When Being Good Is Not Good Enough – Romans 3:1-18
by Pastor Lee Hemen
October 8, 2006
I have shared with you before about some of the vain attempts my folks made to us boys for us to be good. And like I have shared before we tried, we really did try. However there were times when being good was not good enough. You know, like the time I tried to wash the dog in the galvanized washtub in the front yard and he got away, rolled in the garden, and ran into the house. It started out as a good attempt at doing something quite good without being asked to, only to end in… well… tragedy. Our lives can be the same way when we try on our own to please God. Spiritually, we must learn when being good is not good enough.
The Apostle Paul was writing to his Jewish brothers in Rome that had become believers. He asks and then answers obvious questions that his argumentative style had no doubt raised in the minds of his readers. Remember, the Jews bragged about their relationship to God, yet their lifestyle blasphemed His name among the Gentiles. Also, they physically tried to obey the law of God, but were found guilty of breaking it themselves not just outwardly, but inwardly as well. Paul relates that depending upon a faulty relationship with God and trying to please God was not going to hack it spiritually. In fact, being good was not good enough for Paul. His argument directed at his Jewish readers rings true for us as Christians today. Let’s find out what Paul means, when being good is not good enough.
READ: Romans 3:1-18
Because of our wickedness and disobedience, humanity rejects God’s invitation. Human rejection suffers the penalty of God’s wrath. The Hebrews had an advantage in having God’s inspired teachings, but their unrighteousness brought a deserved guilty verdict. Let’s look at Paul’s arguments as having meaning for us this morning by inserting “Christian” where he writes “Jew.” I believe we will soon discover, like the Hebrews of Paul’s day, that we as believers in Christ cannot depend on just being good. We will find by reading Paul’s words that…
I. Just being a good Christian is not good enough (3:1-2)!
1. What advantage is there in bearing the name “Christian” (3:1)? Perhaps, Paul would ask us, “What advantage, then, is there in being a [Christian], or what value is there in [trying to be good]? Is there an advantage? None, if you just carry the name of being one of God’s people, “Christian,” but not the actual relationship of knowing Jesus Christ intimately. Just as the Hebrews had become confused and prideful, this is where many in our world today get confused and prideful. They think that by saying they are a Christian and by trying to be good, then they must be Christian and loved by God. Nothing could be further from the truth! Why would I say that? Let’s see how Paul answers his readers:
2. The advantage is that you have received the Word of God into your life (3:2)! For the Christian, just like the unrepentant Hebrew of Paul’s day, we have the advantage of the “Word made flesh,” Jesus Christ. They had the written Word of God handed down to the from generation to generation which pointed them to Jesus, but they refused to see it. We have an actual living relationship with God’s only Son, but many of us refuse to acknowledge Him as well! Therefore the words of Paul carry with them even more meaning for the believer: “Much in every way! First of all, they have been entrusted with the very words of God.” However, remember that last week I related that carrying the name of Christ is a sacred trust, and it is. It was a sacred trust for the Hebrews to have the Word of God, but they misused that trust. So can the person who claims to know Christ, but does not have a personal relationship with Him misuse that trust? YES! Just saying so, does not make it so.
EXAMPLE: The Hebrews thought that by following a set of rules and regulations would make them acceptable to God. So much so that they had added to God’s original commandments by trying to interpret for God exactly what He desired. God never asked them to do so. In fact, He commanded them not to, but they just could not help themselves. It is kind of like when my mother used to tell my brother and I, “You are not to touch those cookies, while I am out.” We would immediately justify our sneaking a few to the reasoning that she did not say we could use something else, like metal tongs to “touch the cookies” and then share them unselfishly with each other, did she? It is kind of like Satan’s crafty argument to Eve: “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden’?” (Genesis 3:1) He knew otherwise. We do as well, but we make excuses for our sin, then we think, like the Jews did, that by just being good we are okay with God. Paul relates that just being a good “Christian” is not good enough.
Paul’s opponents argued against his doctrine of wrath and judgment: if God is absolutely faithful to His human creations, then He must save all of them ultimately. Otherwise, it was not fair for Him to create them. If He elected the Jews to be His people, then He must save every one of them to be faithful to His elect. Paul proved them wrong. He would relate that…
II. We must understand God’s goodness and our wickedness (3:3-18)!
1. God is being good when He judges any ungodliness in anyone (3:3-4)! The Jews could and can rightfully point with pride to their place in the history of God’s work of salvation. They, however, cannot thereby avoid personal responsibility. God told them, “You only have I chosen of all the families of the earth; therefore I will punish you for all your sins (Amos 3:2).” God is more than gracious to provide a way of salvation for us at all! No person deserves salvation, can demand salvation, or accuse God of unfaithfulness in not providing salvation. In fact, God gave us freedom to return or reject His mercy and love. When we reject it, as we all do, we deserve death and His wrath. His faithfulness to His ultimate purposes demands He let us experience His wrath. His grace in offering salvation gives us an escape from that wrath if we accept it. Paul states therefore, “What if some did not have faith? Will their lack of faith nullify God’s faithfulness? Not at all! Let God be true, and every man a liar.” God is “proven right” when He speaks His word and the judges us. This is why…
2. Our wickedness shows God’s goodness (3:5-8)! God is a just and consistent judge, Paul argues. He has the right to judge the world. Our sin is not to “prove” God’s ability but rather just how much we need God in our lives! God’s action in bringing mercy, forgiveness, and salvation to lost sinners like us is perfectly in keeping with His justice and righteousness. Humans have proved their inability to be righteous by meeting legal standards or by trying to be good enough. So God in Christ has provided a way for us to be right with Him apart from legal standards or our own efforts. Paul understood that “There is no one righteous, not even one; there is no one who understands, no one who seeks God (v. 11).” In fact, so much so that “There is no fear of God before their eyes (v. 18).” Sounds like our day and age, right? Paul just proved for us that mankind has not changed in their sinfulness. We would like to think that things are far worse today than during past history. This is simply not true. We just have more people populating the earth and we get the news and results of sin faster than they did in Paul’s day. Paul wants us to understand God’s goodness and our wickedness.
EXAMPLE: Scripture, as well as human experience, point to the universality of sin. All people of all cultures throughout history have turned away from God, toward selfishness, and against their fellow humans. No evidence points to the goodness and growing perfection of human beings. All evidence points to the fact of our sinful nature. Oh, we would like to think that the new born baby we hold in our arms will never grow up disobeying us, but that is not reality. We love looking out at the rolling hills, high mountains or the raging ocean and yet we neglect to look closer at the decay, litter, death and destruction that exists all around us. It is kind of like buying a store bought pie. It looks good in the picture, but compared to the real thing of a well made home-cooked pie, it is a cheap nasty imitation at best. We want to think that mankind is basically good and that we can be good enough for God, but compared to the righteousness that God has planned for us, it is but a cheap tawdry fake. The Jews thought they knew the truth, like many of us, but they failed to understand God’s goodness and our wickedness.
Conclusion:
Paul relates that just being a good Christian is not good enough and that we must understand God’s goodness and our wickedness. How then can we be good enough? By trusting God’s goodness as found in His Word, Jesus Christ.
by Pastor Lee Hemen
October 8, 2006
I have shared with you before about some of the vain attempts my folks made to us boys for us to be good. And like I have shared before we tried, we really did try. However there were times when being good was not good enough. You know, like the time I tried to wash the dog in the galvanized washtub in the front yard and he got away, rolled in the garden, and ran into the house. It started out as a good attempt at doing something quite good without being asked to, only to end in… well… tragedy. Our lives can be the same way when we try on our own to please God. Spiritually, we must learn when being good is not good enough.
The Apostle Paul was writing to his Jewish brothers in Rome that had become believers. He asks and then answers obvious questions that his argumentative style had no doubt raised in the minds of his readers. Remember, the Jews bragged about their relationship to God, yet their lifestyle blasphemed His name among the Gentiles. Also, they physically tried to obey the law of God, but were found guilty of breaking it themselves not just outwardly, but inwardly as well. Paul relates that depending upon a faulty relationship with God and trying to please God was not going to hack it spiritually. In fact, being good was not good enough for Paul. His argument directed at his Jewish readers rings true for us as Christians today. Let’s find out what Paul means, when being good is not good enough.
READ: Romans 3:1-18
Because of our wickedness and disobedience, humanity rejects God’s invitation. Human rejection suffers the penalty of God’s wrath. The Hebrews had an advantage in having God’s inspired teachings, but their unrighteousness brought a deserved guilty verdict. Let’s look at Paul’s arguments as having meaning for us this morning by inserting “Christian” where he writes “Jew.” I believe we will soon discover, like the Hebrews of Paul’s day, that we as believers in Christ cannot depend on just being good. We will find by reading Paul’s words that…
I. Just being a good Christian is not good enough (3:1-2)!
1. What advantage is there in bearing the name “Christian” (3:1)? Perhaps, Paul would ask us, “What advantage, then, is there in being a [Christian], or what value is there in [trying to be good]? Is there an advantage? None, if you just carry the name of being one of God’s people, “Christian,” but not the actual relationship of knowing Jesus Christ intimately. Just as the Hebrews had become confused and prideful, this is where many in our world today get confused and prideful. They think that by saying they are a Christian and by trying to be good, then they must be Christian and loved by God. Nothing could be further from the truth! Why would I say that? Let’s see how Paul answers his readers:
2. The advantage is that you have received the Word of God into your life (3:2)! For the Christian, just like the unrepentant Hebrew of Paul’s day, we have the advantage of the “Word made flesh,” Jesus Christ. They had the written Word of God handed down to the from generation to generation which pointed them to Jesus, but they refused to see it. We have an actual living relationship with God’s only Son, but many of us refuse to acknowledge Him as well! Therefore the words of Paul carry with them even more meaning for the believer: “Much in every way! First of all, they have been entrusted with the very words of God.” However, remember that last week I related that carrying the name of Christ is a sacred trust, and it is. It was a sacred trust for the Hebrews to have the Word of God, but they misused that trust. So can the person who claims to know Christ, but does not have a personal relationship with Him misuse that trust? YES! Just saying so, does not make it so.
EXAMPLE: The Hebrews thought that by following a set of rules and regulations would make them acceptable to God. So much so that they had added to God’s original commandments by trying to interpret for God exactly what He desired. God never asked them to do so. In fact, He commanded them not to, but they just could not help themselves. It is kind of like when my mother used to tell my brother and I, “You are not to touch those cookies, while I am out.” We would immediately justify our sneaking a few to the reasoning that she did not say we could use something else, like metal tongs to “touch the cookies” and then share them unselfishly with each other, did she? It is kind of like Satan’s crafty argument to Eve: “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden’?” (Genesis 3:1) He knew otherwise. We do as well, but we make excuses for our sin, then we think, like the Jews did, that by just being good we are okay with God. Paul relates that just being a good “Christian” is not good enough.
Paul’s opponents argued against his doctrine of wrath and judgment: if God is absolutely faithful to His human creations, then He must save all of them ultimately. Otherwise, it was not fair for Him to create them. If He elected the Jews to be His people, then He must save every one of them to be faithful to His elect. Paul proved them wrong. He would relate that…
II. We must understand God’s goodness and our wickedness (3:3-18)!
1. God is being good when He judges any ungodliness in anyone (3:3-4)! The Jews could and can rightfully point with pride to their place in the history of God’s work of salvation. They, however, cannot thereby avoid personal responsibility. God told them, “You only have I chosen of all the families of the earth; therefore I will punish you for all your sins (Amos 3:2).” God is more than gracious to provide a way of salvation for us at all! No person deserves salvation, can demand salvation, or accuse God of unfaithfulness in not providing salvation. In fact, God gave us freedom to return or reject His mercy and love. When we reject it, as we all do, we deserve death and His wrath. His faithfulness to His ultimate purposes demands He let us experience His wrath. His grace in offering salvation gives us an escape from that wrath if we accept it. Paul states therefore, “What if some did not have faith? Will their lack of faith nullify God’s faithfulness? Not at all! Let God be true, and every man a liar.” God is “proven right” when He speaks His word and the judges us. This is why…
2. Our wickedness shows God’s goodness (3:5-8)! God is a just and consistent judge, Paul argues. He has the right to judge the world. Our sin is not to “prove” God’s ability but rather just how much we need God in our lives! God’s action in bringing mercy, forgiveness, and salvation to lost sinners like us is perfectly in keeping with His justice and righteousness. Humans have proved their inability to be righteous by meeting legal standards or by trying to be good enough. So God in Christ has provided a way for us to be right with Him apart from legal standards or our own efforts. Paul understood that “There is no one righteous, not even one; there is no one who understands, no one who seeks God (v. 11).” In fact, so much so that “There is no fear of God before their eyes (v. 18).” Sounds like our day and age, right? Paul just proved for us that mankind has not changed in their sinfulness. We would like to think that things are far worse today than during past history. This is simply not true. We just have more people populating the earth and we get the news and results of sin faster than they did in Paul’s day. Paul wants us to understand God’s goodness and our wickedness.
EXAMPLE: Scripture, as well as human experience, point to the universality of sin. All people of all cultures throughout history have turned away from God, toward selfishness, and against their fellow humans. No evidence points to the goodness and growing perfection of human beings. All evidence points to the fact of our sinful nature. Oh, we would like to think that the new born baby we hold in our arms will never grow up disobeying us, but that is not reality. We love looking out at the rolling hills, high mountains or the raging ocean and yet we neglect to look closer at the decay, litter, death and destruction that exists all around us. It is kind of like buying a store bought pie. It looks good in the picture, but compared to the real thing of a well made home-cooked pie, it is a cheap nasty imitation at best. We want to think that mankind is basically good and that we can be good enough for God, but compared to the righteousness that God has planned for us, it is but a cheap tawdry fake. The Jews thought they knew the truth, like many of us, but they failed to understand God’s goodness and our wickedness.
Conclusion:
Paul relates that just being a good Christian is not good enough and that we must understand God’s goodness and our wickedness. How then can we be good enough? By trusting God’s goodness as found in His Word, Jesus Christ.
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