A Study Of The Book Of Romans Lesson #5 Series

Book of Romans Study

Lesson #5

By Rev. James May

Romans 2:1- 2:11

Last week we studied about Paul’s explanation to the saints at Rome that mankind has fallen into sin, such terrible sin that God has to judge it eventually. He referred to the sin of sodomy and said that it was not only what caused God to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah, but that God would have to eventually judge all men to rid the world of this terrible sin.

All of this was said in order to let the Roman saints know that Paul was intending to go to Rome and to preach the gospel at the very center of the Empire where all the idolatry was its strongest.

Man had rejected God, refused to worship God, and has even attempted to rid his consciousness of all knowledge of God, but God isn’t so easy to dismiss. God has given us every means necessary to know him and worship him for who he is. We can refuse to hear him and serve him, but in the end there will be a price to pay for our rebellion unless we repent and accept Jesus as Lord and Savior.

Romans 2:1 Therefore thou art inexcusable, O man, whosoever thou art that judgest: for wherein thou judgest another, thou condemnest thyself; for thou that judgest doest the same things.

There will be no acceptable excuses in the Day of Judgment. Even now, evil men look upon the evil deeds of other men and pass judgment upon them. What we need to remember is that there is none good; no not even one. So when we judge another, we condemn ourselves. Why do we condemn ourselves? It’s because we judge others guilty but do the same things. Are we not then guilty as well? Because we are guilty, the judgment of God that is based upon Truth will be directed to those who won’t repent.

Romans 2:2 But we are sure that the judgment of God is according to truth against them which commit such things.

If we, being men, think that we can judge the actions of others who commit evil, then it is certain that God can judge in a far greater sense than us.

God’s judgment may begin at times while we are yet on the earth, but the Judgment Day will come only after death.

The Bible tells us that “It is appointed unto every man, once to die, and then to face the judgment”. Those things are as sure as anything can be. No man has escaped this life without dying, and none who are dead have not, and will not escape God’s judgment. This won’t be a court of man where lawyers square off against one another, lies are told to cover the truth and witnesses deceive everybody. There will be only the Judge and the Books where every deed and word of man is recorded. God is the Ultimate Authority and there will be no defense. The charge will be guilty by reason of rejection of Christ and rebellion against Almighty God and His Word.

The only hope is that the accused, which is all of us, has cast himself upon the mercy of the court as he trusts in the cleansing power of the blood of Jesus. The only defense we have in the court of our God is the Mediator between God and man, Jesus Christ. Through Christ alone will we be counted worthy to escape the punishment of the flames of hell. By His blood alone we are set free. Thank God for that wonder-working power of the blood!

God’s Righteous judgment will fall, and it will come down hard on those who are guilty and refused the way of salvation. No sin will enter Heaven, so there is only one destination for every sinner, regardless of the evil deeds that were done. Sin is rebellion against God in even the slightest form.

If you’re guilty of stealing a penny, or envying your fellowman, you’re just as guilty and have the same sentence of death upon you as anyone who is caught in the sin of sodomy; who might be a murderer, or someone practicing abortions or genocide. Every sin means death and all it takes is one of what we might consider being a minor infraction to be counted as a criminal in the high courts of Heaven. It’s not necessarily the evil deed that condemns us, even though those deeds do carry a price.

What truly condemns a soul to eternal hell is the condition of the heart, for out of the heart proceeds every evil deed of man. Out of the heart, the mouth speaks. Out of the heart, comes every evil thought. It’s all about the dark heart of every man who refuses to allow the Light of the Gospel to enter in.