Today on Truth Time
Hey listen preacher, abomination is right there in your mirror.
Take a good look.
It's right there in your assembly.
Look a little closer.
Right there under your nose.
You don't have to go far.
You don't have to go to the bar room, gambling casino, or gay parade to find it.
It's right there in your midst.
This is Truth Time Radio.
OK saints, we've come to the seventh part of our series.
In part 6 we identified the "old man" Paul spoke of in Chapter 2.
That old man was not saved and Paul warned him of the wrath to come.
Believe on Christ according to my gospel, or risk going through the tribulation.
This was true then and still today.
God's long-suffering and his timing is perfect.
Thankfully for many, he's in no hurry to unleash his wrath, but instead is showing a great level of mercy.
And to be clear, this old man Paul refers to could be one certain man that's there in the assembly, or he could be referring to more than one.
Sort of if the shoe fits.
I say that because of the first verse in the chapter, where Paul says, "Old man, whosoever thou art that judges."
The whosoever thou art could be one or more.
It could denote a generalization.
A generalization to any one of the many Jews living there among this well-established Jewish community that was in Rome and were attending this church.
And we know from other books, Galatians being one, that Paul's assemblies had trouble with Judaizers coming in and teaching the law.
So that's just a side note, but something to keep in mind when you hear me referring to this old man.
Okay, let's pick up here in verse 12 and see if we can get through the rest of the chapter.
Most of these verses are self-explanatory when we have the context right.
It's probably a good idea to note that verse 12 is one half of a complete sentence that ends with verse 16.
Verses 13 through 15 are parenthetical and include information that provides further understanding of the complete sentence.
This means we could read the sentence without the information in the parentheses and it would still make sense.
If we read the complete sentence, verses 12 and 16 together, without the information inside the parentheses, it would go like this.
For as many as have sinned without law shall also perish without law.
And as many as have sinned in the law shall be judged by the law.
In the day when God shall judge the secrets of men by Jesus Christ according to my gospel.
An important point is made here, and the parenthetical information further explains it.
The point is, Christ is the righteous judge of all men, from all dispensations, from all nations.
And that's why verse 11 says, For there is no respect of persons with God.
Christ, the righteous judge, is no respecter of persons.
2 Timothy 4, verse 8, Acts chapter 17, verse 31, and Revelation chapter 19, verse 11.
By the way, before moving on, there's a strange doctrine being taught out of West Virginia.
This fellow decided to change the definition of faithful to suit his doctrine.
Literally claiming that half of the title that Jesus bears while sitting on the white horse, faithful and true, means that Jesus is, quote, "Full of faith."
Uh, no.
Don't tamper with God's word.
Faithful doesn't mean that.
It doesn't mean full of faith.
It means trustworthy.
Worthy of our faith.
And as the verse indicates, the trustworthiness is due to His righteousness.
Just like it is in Isaiah 1:26, And I will restore thy judges as at the first, and thy counselors as at the beginning. Afterward, thou shalt be called the city of righteousness, the faithful city.
Being faithful has everything to do with righteousness.
God is faithful.
He is trustworthy.
Worthy of our faith.
Why?
Because He is righteous.
Here's a tip on how to figure out if someone is telling you the truth about defining scriptural terminology.
When someone tells you, for example, that faithful means full of faith, or that forgiveness and justification are the same thing, two words that are synonymous, well, do a Bible word search on the word in question, then replace the word with the supposed definition in each verse you find.
If it doesn't make sense, or changes the surrounding context, you should throw that definition in the trash where it belongs.
Let's try out this West Virginia definition of faithful with 1 John 1:9, and let's just see if it holds water or if it begins to leak.
1 John 1:9, If we confess our sins, He is full of faith and just to forgive us our sins.
So how's that work for you?
Not very well.
Just what is it that God needs to be full of faith about to forgive the sins of Israel?
What does God, the Creator of all things, just what does He need to believe in so that He can forgive sins?
That false doctrine just faceplanted.
Listen, if faithful means full of faith, then does grateful mean full of great?
See how men begin to sound foolish when they throw in their own two cents trying to outsmart God?
It doesn't work.
So how about we try 1 John 1:9 with the correct definition of faithful? If we confess our sins, He is trustworthy and just to forgive us our sins.
Much better.
Makes perfect sense for John's audience.
Instead of them thinking that God needed to be full of faith in order to forgive their sins.
Remember, faith always has an object.
So what is it that the God of the universe, the Creator of the world, the very object of our faith, what exactly would He need to have faith in?
That dog won't hunt.
And for those of you who've been asking us to, we're going to dive in to the quote, "Faith of God" further in the next Romans installment.
So stick around.
When defining terminology in Scripture, the easiest answer is often the most correct one.
Too many unqualified people are out here trying to preach the gospel they don't even understand.
Trying to add deeper meanings so they sound smarter or look like they're a full-grown, Son-shipping son of God.
Just listen closely.
They might fool you and they might hide it for a while, but eventually it'll show itself right out there on full display.
Their legalism shows up the most when they attempt to teach from the book of Romans.
But when we get our context right, they'll never be able to fool you again.
When you get the context right, you get the Word of God right.
And you land yourself right there in the middle of sound reasoning.
The central point Paul makes in Romans chapter 2, verses 1-16 is that Christ is the righteous judge of all men.
Which lines up with the Apostle John.
John 5:22, For the Father judgeth no man, but hath committed all judgment unto the Son.
Paul warns this unsaved, hypocritical Jew, this old man, that he is judging others with unrighteous judgment, and that he stands in danger of being judged by the righteous Judge on the day of wrath at the end of the tribulation.
Today, we have grace-believing fruit inspectors that are just like this hypocritical old man back here that Paul dealt with about 1900 plus years ago.
Cut from the same cloth.
Constantly pounding on behavioral modifications while giving little to no time on the good news of the glorious gospel.
Now, I'm not talking about someone who will address sin among believers when it needs to be addressed.
There's a time and place for that.
But these fruit inspectors, the ones I'm speaking of, are the ones who pretty much, well, it's as if they live to tell you how to live.
They have a judgmental attitude.
It's as if their motivation for waking up each morning is to see whose life they can evaluate.
And the ministry of reconciliation, well, it's almost obsolete with these guys.
Just listen to their sermons.
They have no interest in telling the world that God stopped imputing their sins.
They have no outreach to the drug dealer, the drug user, the prostitute, the alcoholic, the homosexual, the homeless.
How can they?
They don't have time for that.
It might get in the way of all their man-made curriculums.
Having their eyes darkened by the God of this world and have yet to understand and believe what actually happened at the cross.
Oh, I believe 1 Corinthians 15:1-4.
Yeah, but what do you believe about it?
Peter, James, John, and the boys believed it too.
But they believed it forgave them of their past sins, placing their sins in remission, Acts 2:38.
Sins that won't be blotted out until a future date, Acts 3:19.
For them, 1 Corinthians 15:1-4 only purged their old sins. 2 Peter 1:9.
They believed it, but what did they believe about it?
1 Corinthians 15:1-4 didn't mean the same thing to everyone back then any more than it does today.
Just go ask five different denominations about it and you're likely to get five different answers.
The cross was not a mystery, but what it did for the world was.
And you have these modern day old man hypocrites, and they're doing their best to keep it a mystery.
Don't kid yourself.
1 Corinthians 15:1-4 means Easter bunnies and finding the prize egg for most of churchianity.
You want to see others have a real breakthrough?
Start telling them that on the cross God stopped imputing their sins.
Oh yeah, that turns the world upside down.
Self-righteous men looking down their nose going on about this sin and that sin.
They've exalted themselves to a place of righteous judge.
They're hyper-sin conscience because they don't understand the word of reconciliation which explains the purpose of the finished cross work.
And if they'd just remove their mask, you'd see them for what they are.
A Lord Shipper standing there.
A Lord Shipper wearing a grace mask.
They like to talk about sins that are an abomination to God, they'll say.
Okay, well let's do that.
Hey, we're ALL abominable to God.
You, me, the whole bunch of us.
You ever been guilty of hypocrisy?
Have you?
Listen to the book.
A false balance is an abomination to the Lord.
But a just weight is His delight. Proverbs 11:1
A false balance is an abomination to God and hypocrisy is a false balance.
And every preacher on the face of the earth, myself included, have had a moment or moments of hypocrisy.
So let's get real.
See, Satan, he has some falsely focusing their attention on homosexuals, this, that, and the other group.
Meanwhile, you're neglecting to evaluate your own self.
Hey, listen preacher, abomination is right there in your mirror.
Take a good look.
It's right there in your assembly.
Look a little closer.
Right there under your nose.
You don't have to go far.
You don't have to go to the bar room, gambling casino, or gay parade to find it.
It's right there in your midst.
We all fall short.
And that's why some haven't understood the word of reconciliation and they don't want to preach it.
They don't know how to minister it.
They're too judgmental.
They're hypocrites.
It's time to get real and get past that and realize that you're not as good as you thought you were.
None of us are.
But Jesus, hey, he wasn't just good.
He was perfect, and perfect in our behalf.
And not just the believer.
He was perfect in the behalf of that man with a gambling addiction.
That alcoholic.
That drug user.
That man, that woman on fentanyl.
Jesus took their place.
He took your place.
He took my place.
He took the place for the whole rotten bunch of us.
Shed his blood that forgave all the sins of the world.
And cleared the path.
Made it clear that anyone, regardless of where they come from, can now be saved.
During his earthly ministry, Jesus taught Israel, Matthew chapter 7, that whatever judgment they use against each other will be the same judgment used against them.
Jesus, the righteous judge, warned them not to present a false balance by judging unrighteously or hypocritically.
Hey, if God in the Old Testament says a false balance is an abomination, Jesus then comes along and warns against the unrighteous hypocritical judgment of others, Paul follows up by saying the same right here in Romans chapter 2.
Then apparently God hates hypocrisy.
You think?
But the twistianity preachers, those in the good old boy network, their focus is on drunkenness, double marriages, smoking pot.
Meanwhile, they're as hypocritical as all get out with their abominable false balance.
Come on.
What is it about the parenthetical "but now" dispensation of grace do some not get?
Just more evidence that we lack in ministers of reconciliation.
But we don't lack for those who have learned a little bit about what they call right division, just enough to be dangerous.
Enough to poison the grace message.
Those who love preaching to the choir, having little to no concern with the lost world that's around them.
Their focus is on showing others, others in the body, just how smart they are.
That's precisely why their ministry does not function as an ambassador for Christ.
They don't have the ministry of reconciliation any more than Benny Hinn does.
They pretty much avoid reconciliation altogether.
Always talking about how the saved can attain some sort of higher elevated position when they get to heaven.
Meanwhile, the lost are dying and going to hell.
Now let's get to this parenthetical information Paul laid out here in verses 13-15,
For not the hearers of the law are just before God, but the doers of the law shall be justified.
Verse 14, For when the Gentiles, which have not the law, do by nature the things contained in the law, these, having not the law, are a law unto themselves.
Verse 15, Which show the work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing witness, and their thoughts the meanwhile accusing or else excusing one another.
Here, Paul reminds this old man that if he isn't doing the law that he's teaching, then he will not be justified.
When Paul says the Gentiles, which have no law, do things that show the work of the law written on their hearts, hey, this isn't exactly a positive statement here.
This isn't Paul saying, see, even though the Gentiles don't know the law, they're still under it.
As preposterous as that sounds, that's the narrative of one grace teacher today.
He teaches that the law is in effect.
Even though all you have to do is press in a little and think about what you read.
Verse 15. Watch, Their thoughts the meanwhile accusing or else excusing one another.
This isn't Paul saying that the conscience of the Gentile is proof that the Gentile is under the law.
Or that the Gentiles have some God-shaped hole in their hearts, and that's why their conscience is revealing God's holy law to them.
No.
The Gentiles were never under the law.
So that makes no sense.
And they certainly aren't under the law during this but-now dispensation of grace.
That would make the dispensation of grace null and void.
The Gentiles had no hope and were without God in the world.
The Gentiles were strangers from the covenants of promise.
The covenants of promise included the law.
Why would Paul possibly be claiming that the Gentiles were under the law of their conscience as a replacement for the law of Moses?
Huh.
So what is Paul saying here?
In verses 14 and 15 he's talking about how the Gentiles who don't have the law behave unrighteously in hypocritical judgment toward one another as well.
This becomes clear, my friend.
So, what we're learning here is that this issue of hypocrisy is not just about the law of Moses this old man is teaching.
It's a heart issue.
It goes further than that because what it really boils down to is pride.
Hypocrites are hypocrites because they're prideful.
Let's look at the phrase in verse 15, work of the law.
Can we find anywhere in Paul's epistles that speaks of how the law works?
The work or works of the law.
Yes, we most certainly can.
Romans 4:15, Because the law worketh wrath for where no law is there is no transgression.
Chapter 7, verse 5, For when we were in the flesh the motion of sins which were by the law did work in our members to bring forth fruit unto death.
And we also see this language in chapter 9, verse 32.
Again in Galatians 2:16 and in chapters 3, verses 2, 5, and 10.
So the obvious conclusion here is, if a Gentile has the quote, "Work of the law written in their heart," they are without faith.
They are under a curse.
They bring forth fruit unto death.
See how this is working?
They are seeking righteousness according to their own conscience which accuses and excuses others.
And they're working wrath because they are hypocritical about their judgment as well.
So there it is.
This is how we use scripture to 2 Timothy 3:16 reprove and correct false teachings.
This false teaching that claims that Gentiles are presently today under the law.
That's doctrinal fallacy.
Paul just explained in these few verses why Gentiles who are without the law for righteousness have never been under the law.
And they are also unrighteous according to their own consciousness.
Wrath is written on their hearts just like wrath is written on the heart of the Jew who is under the law.
Again, it's a heart problem.
One that Christ will deal with for all men.
Which brings us back to verse 16.
In the day when God shall judge the secrets of men by Jesus Christ according to my gospel.
Some come here and get all tripped up.
Trip over Paul saying my gospel right after talking about an unsaved person treasuring up wrath against the day of wrath.
Which is the day of the Lord.
But remember, Paul's gospel is to all men, to Jew and Gentile alike.
In chapter 1 we established that Paul is speaking to all who are at Rome and all who are at Rome are a mixture of saved and unsaved people from a Jewish law-keeping background as well as saved and unsaved people from a Gentile background.
You're not going to understand Romans until you get this.
We established that in the first book of Romans and that Paul's my gospel included messianic information and we prove that with 2 Timothy 2 verse 8 where Paul wrote,
Remember that Jesus Christ of the seed of David was raised from the dead according to my gospel.
When Paul was speaking to or about a Jew, especially an unsaved one, the righteous judgment of God throughout history is quite relevant to Paul's gospel.
Even more so, the future day of wrath is extremely important information that is included in Paul's gospel when speaking to or about an unsaved Jew.
Paul's gospel tells the unsaved Jew that Christ was the prophesied Messiah.
Paul's gospel tells the unsaved Jew about the finished cross work of Christ.
His gospel warns the unsaved Jew of what will happen if he does not believe that.
Here again we have Paul's example of meeting people where they are.
And he isn't done talking to this unsaved Jewish man.
Verse 17, Behold, thou art called a Jew, and restest in the law, and maketh thy boast of God.
Now we'll learn more about why he says, "Called a Jew," and not, "Thou art a Jew" when we get to verses 28 and 29.
But we're further establishing that this man is a Jew.
And after reading verse 17, is there any further question that this man is unsaved?
You'd have to be blindfolded to miss this.
So don't fall for the teaching that says everything Paul wrote was only for saved people.
Hogwash.
There were unsaved people in the church congregation back then just as they are here today.
And it's foolish to think otherwise.
But we have a lot of parrots who parrot what they hear without investigation and thus we wind up with yet more false teachings among us.
Just how can anyone read Romans chapter 2 verse 5, now listen closely, But after thy hardness and impotent heart treasureth up unto thyself wrath against the day of wrath
and revelation of the righteous judgment of God.
Now how can anyone in their right frame of mind read that and not see that this old man Paul addresses here in Romans is unsaved.
That's not a saved person.
Be careful who you get your information from.
Hey, the only way he could be treasuring up wrath against the day of wrath is if he is not saved.
The Paul didn't say anything to lost people lie needs to be squashed here today.
He's doing it right here, right now in front of your face in plain black letters on the plain white page.
Just because the self-appointed theologians are blind to this doesn't mean you have to be.
No one saved according to Paul's gospel will be here for the day of wrath.
For God hath not appointed us to wrath but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ. 1 Thessalonians 5:9.
Romans 2:17 confirms this man to be a Jew that resteth in the law.
Now this genders a couple of questions in my mind.
Number one, what saved by grace member of the body of Christ is a Jew?
There is no Jew or Gentile in the body of Christ. Galatians 3:28.
So this man Paul is addressing is not saved.
Number two, what saved by grace body of Christ member rests in the law?
That's the polar opposite of salvation by grace through faith alone.
Without works.
If you leave this study and you insist on continuing to repeat this lie that Paul never addressed anyone other than saved people, just know that you no longer have an excuse.
You've been clearly shown the truth.
Okay, moving on.
Paul also warns that this man maketh thy boast of God.
What do you think that means?
It sounds like he's bragging on himself and has elevated himself above others with his former quote, "Chosen nation status."
Israel had become so pharicitical and self-righteous that they believed God belonged to them and not so much that they belonged to God.
Okay, we continue.
Romans 2:19, And are confident that thou thyself art a guide of the blind, a light of them which are in darkness.
Verse 20, An instructor of the foolish, a teacher of babes, which has the form of knowledge and the truth in the law.
So we see here how Paul is calling out the prideful ego of this old man whom he also says has a form of knowledge and of the truth in the law.
This man has a form of knowledge just like the men who crept in during the perilous times Paul spoke of in 2 Timothy chapter 3.
Having a form of godliness but denying the power thereof.
From such, turn away.
Okay, verse 21, Thou therefore, which teachest another, teachest thou not thyself?
Thou that preachest a man should not steal, dost thou steal?
Verse 22, Thou that sayest a man should not commit adultery, dost thou commit adultery? Thou that abhorrest idols, dost thou commit sacrilege?
Verse 23, Thou that makest thy boast of the law through the breaking of the law, dishonorest thou God?
Verse 24, For the name of God is blasphemed among the Gentiles through you as it is written.
Whoa!
Paul is just driving home the message of the hypocrisy that is seething from this Jewish man.
Hopefully you're getting a pretty clear picture of who this man is by now.
Paul has spent a whole chapter's worth of words on this unsaved man even though you were told that he only addresses saved people.
Okay, Romans 2:25, For circumcision verily profited if thou keep the law, but if thou be a breaker of the law, thy circumcision is made uncircumcision.
Verse 26, Therefore if the uncircumcision keep the righteousness of the law shall not his uncircumcision be counted for circumcision?
Verse 27, And shall not uncircumcision which is by nature if it fulfill the law judge thee who by the letter and circumcision does transgress the law?
Paul is concluding his correction to this man and saying, hey, if you're relying on your circumcision in order to be accepted of God, yet don't keep the law perfectly as spoken by James, you might as well be an uncircumcised Gentile who knows nothing of God.
So if an uncircumcised Gentile were to keep the righteousness of the law, then not only would his uncircumcision be counted for circumcision, but it would also make him eligible to judge.
To judge this Jewish man when he transgressed the law.
Verse 28, For he is not a Jew which is one outwardly neither is that circumcision which is outward in the flesh.
Verse 29, But he is a Jew which is one inwardly and circumcision is that of the heart in the spirit and not in the letter whose praise is not of men but of God.
These verses explain why Paul says thou art called a Jew in verse 17.
At the end of this correction, Paul is telling this man you aren't really a Jew anyway and here's why.
Okay so that wraps up installment number 7.
Next we'll enter chapter 3 and spend a little time on verse 3 talking about the quote, "Faith of God."
Just what does that mean?
Oh I know what you've heard.
But what does it mean?
Don't fall prey to confirmation bias.
Don't wait on the herd to make your decisions for you.
It would benefit you greatly to use a bit of wisdom.
Take a beat and pause.
Collect all information before deciding what to believe or not to believe.
That way you don't fall guilty of making a false projection, or a false balance, which is an abomination before the Lord.
Hey, when it comes to preaching the gospel, spare me the two step and let's get down to it.
God's forgiveness is past tense and not bound by what you do for it.
So, peradventure, if you're here today and you're unsure of your salvation, stop trusting in anything you can do to get your sins forgiven.
You can't get your sins forgiven.
They already are.
Jesus died for them all.
He was buried and he has risen for your justification before the Father.
Believe on him right now and experience rest like you've never experienced before.
Grace and peace.
Add comment
Comments