God Is The Supremely Righteous Judge Series

God Is the Supremely Righteous Judge

The Book of Romans

Romans 2:11-29

Sermon by Rick Crandall

Grayson Baptist Church - April 3, 2016

(Revised September 10, 2020)

BACKGROUND:

*Please open your Bibles to Romans chapter 2, as we focus on the fact that God is the supremely righteous Judge.

*In Psalm 19:9-11, King David spoke of the judgments God has put in His Word, and there David said:

9. . . The judgments of the LORD are true and righteous altogether.

10. More to be desired are they than gold, Yea, than much fine gold; Sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb.

11. Moreover by them Your servant is warned, And in keeping them there is great reward.

*God is the supremely righteous Judge. Psalm 98:7-9 says:

7. Let the sea roar, and all its fullness, The world and those who dwell in it;

8. Let the rivers clap their hands; Let the hills be joyful together before the LORD,

9. For He is coming to judge the earth. With righteousness He shall judge the world, And the peoples with equity.

*Paul affirmed this truth in 2 Timothy. This was Paul's very last letter, and he wrote it shortly before he was put to death for the cause of Christ.

*This letter has often been called Paul's last will and testament. And in 2 Timothy 4:6-8 Paul said, "I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure is at hand. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Finally, there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which THE LORD, THE RIGHTEOUS JUDGE, will give to me on that Day, and not to me only but also to all who have loved His appearing."

*Years earlier, Paul had written his letter to the Christians in Rome, and one of the great truths he established is that God is the supremely righteous Judge. With this background in mind, let's read Romans 2:11-29.

MESSAGE:

*There must be thousands of good, godly judges in the United States today. But our judicial system has been deeply corrupted by ungodly judges. I don't know when the terrible decline began, but it got much worse after World War II. One of the worst decisions was Roe v. Wade on January 22, 1973. There the Supreme Court invented the right to kill a baby in the womb, and now over 61 million babies have been the victims of legalized abortion. (1)

*But Christians: Our God is the supremely righteous Judge. Aren't you glad? The Lord is never blind to the truth. He can't be bribed or bullied. He never acts out of meanness, spite or revenge. And He always makes the right decisions. This is the truth Paul highlights in tonight's Scripture.

1. SO, FIRST NOTICE THAT GOD NEVER SHOWS PARTIALITY TO PEOPLE.

*As Paul said in vs. 11: "There is no partiality with God." And to get the full context here, we need to go back to chapter 1.

*In Romans 1:18, Paul said that "the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who suppress the truth in unrighteousness."

*Then Paul went into great detail about their foolish, ungodly ways, and he gave a long list of sins that people embrace when they reject the true and living God. Then in Romans 1:32, Paul summed up by saying those ungodly people "who, knowing the righteous judgment of God, that those who practice such things are worthy of death, not only do the same but also approve of those who practice them."

*In those verses, Paul was mainly talking about idol-worshiping Gentiles of the Roman Empire, and most Jews would have cheered Paul on at that point. They would have rejoiced over God's condemnation of the Gentiles, so the Holy Spirit turned Paul's attention in a new direction. And he began speaking to any self-righteous, hypocritical, judgmental people who would read this letter.

*Starting in Romans 2:1, Paul said:

1. Therefore you are inexcusable, O man, whoever you are who judge, for in whatever you judge another you condemn yourself; for you who judge practice the same things.

2. But we know that the judgment of God is according to truth against those who practice such things.

*Then in vs. 6-11 Paul said that God:

6. . . "will render to each one according to his deeds'':

7. eternal life to those who by patient continuance in doing good seek for glory, honor, and immortality;

8. but to those who are self-seeking and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness indignation and wrath,

9. tribulation and anguish, on every soul of man who does evil, of the Jew first and also of the Greek;