The Law Written On Hearts

Alba 7-18-2021

THE LAW WRITTEN ON HEARTS

Romans 2:12-16

There is a story about a little boy who had been attending Sunday school and had the same teacher for many years. She would finish every lesson by saying “And the moral of the story is…”

But after sometime, the little boy moved up to another Sunday school class. His mom asked him how he liked the new Sunday school teacher, and he said, “She’s alright, but she’s got no morals at all.”

Well that is a different kind of “morals” than what it sounds like. But there are objective moral values, moral values that are valid and binding independent of human opinion.

So, for example, to say that the Holocaust was objectively evil is to say that it was wrong, even though the Nazis who carried it out thought that it was right.

And it still would have been wrong even if the Nazis had won World War II and succeeded in exterminating or brainwashing everyone who disagreed with them.

As William Penn once put it, “Right is right, even if everyone is against it, and wrong is wrong, even if everyone is for it.”

So where do morals come from? Where do we get this idea that some things are wrong (even evil), and others are good and right?

The main source for this is the Bible, God's Word. The law of God is a guiding force to help us see right from wrong.

The law is like a mirror that reflects the perfect righteousness, holiness, and goodness of God. And it reveals the infinite gulf that separates God and people.

The law reveals who and what we are. As Galatians 3:19 says, What purpose then does the law serve? It was added because of transgressions.

Many people think they will pass the “moral test” of getting into Heaven. But anyone who really thinks carefully about this realizes they will not pass the test.

Romans 2:12-13 says, 12 For as many as have sinned without law will also perish without law, and as many as have sinned in the law will be judged by the law 13 (for not the hearers of the law are just in the sight of God, but the doers of the law will be justified;

Paul addresses the Jewish saints that are in Rome. He speaks directly to the Jews about their relationship with God as a chosen nation, and their dependence upon being Jews for their assurance of salvation.

The Jews tended to believe that they had a lock on salvation because Law of Moses had been given to Israel alone many centuries before Christ.

They thought of themselves as privileged among all people, which they were in a way, but not to the point of salvation just because they were given the Law of Moses and knew what it said.

Paul has to teach them that just having and knowing the Law of Moses wasn’t enough. This alone could not justify the Jew as he stood before God in judgment.

The Jews didn’t just brag on the fact that they were the only ones to whom God sent His Law. They bragged because they had the Law, even when they didn’t live by it.

Lets put ourselves in the place of those Jews. We know the law, yet we do not keep it as we should. This week in VBS we will be studying the Ten Commandments.

Who of us can say we are not guilty of breaking at least some of them? Just look at the commandments and ask yourself, “Have I always loved God with all my heart?” That includes never having anything take His place, or having any idols of any kind.

Have you ever used His name in vain, or swore, or even violated the Sabbath? Have you always obeyed your parents all the time without fail? Have you ever been angry at anyone? Have you ever lusted in your heart? Have you ever stolen anything, even as a little child?

Have you ever said anything that wasn’t true about someone? And then finally, have you ever wanted something that belonged to someone else? Paul asks similar questions in verse 21 & following.

I don't think any of us can say we’ve kept the ten commandments without fail and attained spiritual and moral perfection.

Paul is saying to the Jews, “What are you bragging about? You have the Law, but you’re not obeying it. You are no better than the Gentiles who didn’t have the law and disobeyed it.

And he is saying, “There are no bragging rights for being in rebellion against the Law of God, whether you are a Jew or a Gentile. Both are wrong, and both will be judged for sin.”

Then in Romans 2:14-15 the apostle Paul deals with those who are not Jews saying, 14 for when Gentiles, who do not have the law, by nature do the things in the law, these, although not having the law, are a law to themselves, who show the work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing witness, and between themselves their thoughts accusing or else excusing them.