Well, we return tonight to our study in the book of Romans, and as I said, we're working through the early sections of Romans right now, and we are in chapter 2, and tonight we will read, actually, verse 1 through verse 24. Last time we opened up Romans, we considered the first four verses, and we're working from that again. So I'll begin at 2 verse 1. Let's give our attention tonight to God's holy and wonderful word to us. Romans 2 verse 1 found on page 1117. This is the word of the Lord. You have no excuse, O man, every one of you who judges. For in passing judgment on another you condemn yourself, because you the judge practice the very same things. We know that the judgment of God rightly falls on those who practice such things? Do you suppose, O man, you who judge those who practice such things and yet you do them yourself, that you will escape the judgment of God? Or do you presume on the riches of His kindness and forbearance and patience, not knowing that God's kindness is meant to lead you to repentance? But because of your hard and impenitent heart, you are storing up wrath for yourself on the day of wrath when God's righteous judgment will be revealed. he will render to each one according to his works. To those who by patience and well-doing seek for glory and honor and immortality, he'll give eternal life. But for those who are self-seeking and do not obey the truth, but obey in righteousness, there will be wrath and fury. There will be tribulation and distress for every human being who does evil, the Jew first and also the Greek. But glory and honor and peace for everyone who does good, for the Jew first and also the Greek, for God shows no partiality. For all who have sinned without the law will also perish without the law, and all who have sinned under the law will be judged by the law. For it is not the hearers of the law who are righteous before God, but the doers of the law who will be justified. For when Gentiles who do not have the law by nature do what the law requires, they are a law to themselves, even though they do not have the law. They show that the work of the law is written on their hearts, while their conscience also bears witness, and their conflicting thoughts accuse or even excuse them on the day when, according to my gospel, God judges the secrets of men by Christ Jesus. But if you call yourself a Jew and rely on the law and boast in God and know His will and approve what is excellent because you are instructed from the law, and if you are sure that you yourself are a guide to the blind, a light to those who are in darkness, and instructor of the foolish, a teacher of children, having in the law the embodiment of knowledge and truth, then you who teach others, do you not teach yourself? Well, you preach against stealing. Do you steal? You say that one must not commit adultery. Do you commit adultery? You who abhor idols, do you rob temples? You who boast in the law dishonor God by breaking the law, For as it is written, the name of God is blasphemed among the Gentiles because of you. And there will end tonight the reading of God's word. Well, this may be one of the very important sections in Romans that it is that is used to set up the aim of the book, the goal of the book, that which is justification. Notice what I say, because what I read a moment ago may have been somewhat confusing as you heard it read. Justification by grace through faith alone. Alone. Remember, that's the aim of the book. Paul said that in Romans 1, 16, and 17. It is, my great purpose is to preach the gospel to you because there is a righteousness made available to you by faith. That is the good news of the Christian gospel. There's a righteousness made available to you by faith, a righteousness that comes by faith, and, important for our text tonight, not of works. We have come to a point in the book, though, where Paul begins to explain this. He's moving to that. When we get to chapter 3, as I've been saying, it's going to be water on a dry desert. It's such a beautiful section in chapter 3 where he breaks out and starts to announce the good news of the gospel. What we have here is, in this particular section, is Paul still dealing with a particular problem and with a particular aim to show and to demonstrate that all, all are alike under sin. It doesn't matter if you're a Jew or a Greek. It doesn't matter your ethnicity. All alike are under sin as fallen children of Adam. This is important to constantly set in front of us. Think of how people conceive of Christianity. Think of how sometimes people conceive of the church. Think of how some people may even conceive of the Escondido URC, our church here where we gather. Someone once said to me, the great hurdle in coming to church is that people feel that they're not good enough like all of us. How would you respond to that? It's a hurdle for some people. And what that illustrates when somebody says that kind of thing is they have not yet understood what the message of grace alone through faith alone is all about. You know who we are. If I've done any kind of good job in preaching to you, my great goal has to have been to show you who you are and to show you the great problem of the human heart, that we are no better than anyone else, that we don't deserve anything better than anyone else gets in this life. What we deserve is what everyone deserves. And that is, as the old children's catechism says, the wrath and the judgment of God. That's what we deserve. But people have to first come to grips with that issue before we can get to really good news in the Christian message. That there is, think about this great summarizing truth in Romans chapter 3. There is, when it comes to the issue of your standing before God, there is none who does good. No, not one. To accomplish that, to make the case for that, Paul tonight makes that very clear as he, as I've been saying, sort of levels the playing field for everyone. And this is the great goal tonight in Romans chapter 2, that people might be led to Jesus Christ, the only name given by which people can be saved, the only name under heaven, the way, the truth, and the life. Romans 2 is very simple tonight. Paul's whole purpose is to level everyone and to show that the pagan people of the world, who we consider the great sinners of the world, and religious people who have all kinds of external benefits by being somehow connected to, we'll look at tonight, Judaism to Christianity. Everyone is under the same judgment. If you look at chapter 3, he asks a very important question as he develops in chapter 3 that really he's going after in chapter 2, are we any better than they are? Are we any better? He's concerned about this. He's concerned about how moral people, how religious people, particularly in this case even the Jewish people, thought of themselves. Romans 1, we had read all the catalog of sins in Romans 1 of we would consider our bad sinners in the world. Paul is here concerned to show, in this case, the pride of religious people with all their external privileges who have not yet themselves come to the Messiah. So, this is where we are tonight as he develops this. It's not, if you think of Israel, he'll say in chapter 9, They had all these external privileges. They had the law, they had the covenants, they had the adoption, the giving of the law. They had all these things, and we could say baptism, we could say we have all these external things, and Paul is really concerned in what those things should lead us to, who they should lead us to, and why they are given, and what does this even announce about us that we need, right? and that's the most difficult truth for people to accept. You know that one of the most difficult truths in Christian witness is to have people accept this basic first premise of Christianity, what three things must you know to live and die in the joy of discomfort, and that first thing is so difficult for people to accept, the greatness of my own sin and misery. Well, in verse 1, Paul is reacting to this particular problem of the Jews, and we could transfer this to the moral, the religious, the upright, not the bad sinners of chapter one, but now the sinners of chapter two, if you will. And notice what he says here. He says something surprising in chapter two, sort of a summary statement as you see the line of development here. He says something surprising to the religious people. You do the same things. You do the same things. That must have been shocking to hear. The same things. In verses 5 through 11, Paul begins to drive this point home. There is no partiality with God, you'll notice. So he moves to the issue right away tonight, notice already by the first section of chapter 2, we have come to the great issue of judgment day. Paul is thinking about judgment day. And what he says is shocking. Look at verse 5 where he says, but because of your hard and impenitent heart, you are storing up wrath for yourself on the day of wrath when God's righteous judgment will be revealed. He will render to each one according to his works. To those who by patience and well-doing seek for glory and honor and immortality, he will give eternal life. But to those who are self-seeking and do not obey the truth but obey in righteousness, there will be wrath and fury. We have to understand where we are in the book of Romans. I think you might say the Pharisees are a good example of this to understand what the apostle is dealing with. He was a Pharisee. He knew the Pharisees well. He knew how Pharisees operated. He knew how they thought. He knew what they thought particularly about the law. And what they thought was having the law brought them close to God, and the problem was that the law for them didn't do what it should have done in their hearts. They never saw the need that they needed to be saved. This is the default position of people who think they're good. this is the position of people who think they're good i come back to the pope because i thought it was so a remarkable moment when he's being interviewed by this news reporter on a major news network in this country and i want i want you to hear the exact precise language of the pope i think this will help you tonight a little bit people are fundamentally good we are all fundamentally good yes there are some rogues and some sinners but the heart itself is good close quote now that's quite a statement in the history of christianity i mean that is directly in the face of scripture and of course if they have a doctrine of papal infallibility you could see why he can come up with whatever he wants to come up with. Paul's answering that. Presumption. It's as if Paul were saying and sitting down with the Pope. It would have been interesting to see Paul go on the news with the Pope and deal with this, wouldn't it? Really? Well, I've got something that's shocking to say to you, Mr. Pope. Would he say, Mr. Pope? I don't know. If you believe that, then you stand on your own. Why would you need to be justified by faith? You will be measured, Mr. Pope, on that standard of, now listen to me, justification by works. Since you believe that, here's my shocking answer to you, Mr. Pope. God is keeping track. He's going to render to everyone according to their deeds. Now that might have made him pause. Paul might have gone to, do you remember what I said in Romans 3? No one's good. No, not one. In verse 7, notice what he says carefully tonight. Think of the same line of reasoning. Eternal life will be given to those who by patient continuance in doing good, seek for glory and honor and immortality. Stop. If you believe you're good, and God's glory is the aim of your heart, and if your life is a God-honoring one, and if your life is lived with that kind of pursuit, a righteous pursuit. Immortality is your pursuit. You will have eternal life. Now, did he say salvation? Nothing to be saved from. It's direct eternal life. Keep in mind, this is exactly what the rich young ruler came to Jesus and asked for. He did not ask for salvation. He asked for eternal life, and Jesus through the book at him. I'll come back to that. God will bless you with eternal life if there is continuance, persistence in doing good in your life. The word here for patience means constancy. The whole section is essentially saying, sure, God demands perfection. and since you're saying you're good, you stand on your own. So follow Paul's line of reasoning just for a minute here. Let me summarize. God keeps track. God is righteous. God is just. Just like we know in society that policemen and law enforcement have to execute the judgments of the law and people who break the law or they're not behaving justly. It's a covenant of works, if you will. Notice what he says. He knows every single thought. We have to let this set in for a minute. He knows every single thought. He knows every single word, idle word. I was amazed when Jesus said that. I thought, do people sit down and ponder what he just said? Every idle word that's spoken? I've probably spoken an idle word in this sermon. Anyone who is sinning, Paul says, who sins is treasuring up for themselves wrath. You will receive eternal life if you do good, if you seek for glory, if you seek for honor, You seek for immortality. But, this is a big but in the scripture. If you're self-seeking. Now, that's kind of the big problem of humanity, isn't it? And you do not obey the truth. Pope's already out, by the way. He didn't obey the truth the other day. But obey unrighteousness. Here's the outcome. Indignation, wrath, tribulation on every soul of man who does evil. There's the standard, beloved, of the Jew first and also of the Greek. To those who are contentious, rebellious, against the truth, who follow in righteousness, there's awful wrath coming. I've often thought, maybe the end of Revelation really helps us with this, where Paul speaks of the great white throne judgment, and he says, on that day, I've always thought, what will the judgment day be like? And I have this imagery, maybe it's from those old terrible films of a long line of people just waiting in line, and it's going to get to me, and then I have to find out whether I'm going to make it or not. That's kind of built into us. I saw the dead, small and great, standing before God, and books were opened. And another book was opened, which is the book of life. And the dead were judged, now listen, the dead were judged according to their works. By the things that are written in the books. On that day, think about this, he says there's two books. There's not a long line. There's two books. When Jesus talked about Judgment Day, He says, I separate out the sheep from the goats. The sheep are on my right hand. The goats are on my left. And each one will then be judged by the book that they're written in. What is the book of those who have not believed? It's a book that writes down everything they've ever done. They're judged by works. Now, is that the message that's been preached to you your whole life? You have been preached. You will be justified on that day. You are justified right now by faith alone. You see what Paul's doing here? He's showing the standard to people who don't understand this. There's no partiality with God. Even every thought, every word, every deed of those who want to stand on their own, they have to face the judgment on those terms. Because God's standard doesn't change. Think of the Heidelberg tonight. He demands a payment. And if you don't have a mediator, you have to answer. You see? So here's the proposition. Dear religious person, standing in judgment on everyone else. This is the point he's making. The Jews were standing in judgment on everyone else. Dear religious person, standing in judgment on everyone else, refusing to think you need to repent or you need a Savior. Do you think you'll escape this? There's no partiality with God. A lot of people get really confused by Romans 2 on this point. And I think many false doctrines and ideas have come out from an abuse of Romans chapter 2 where they try to speak right here in the book. Follow my line of reasoning. I think it'll help you. In a Christian way. In other words, that the gospel, they speak in terms of the gospel here and ending up with some kind of final justification by works at the end based on your continuance in these things. Paul hasn't even got to the gospel yet. Paul hasn't even come to chapter 3 yet. He hasn't even begun to unpack the righteousness that comes by faith yet. Chapter 1 and chapter 2 is dealing with people who stand outside of that. So he's building to this. The whole train of his thought is to show what we need is a different way of justification before God. And it has nothing to do with us. I don't even want you to think of the Christian life yet in Romans 2. We're not there. We'll talk sanctification, and this is not sanctification. We'll talk sanctification when we get to chapter 6. We'll talk sanctification when we get to chapters 12, 13, 14, and 15, and 16. Romans 2 has nothing to do with the life of sanctification yet. It's people who don't understand sin and misery is where we are. So back to this. Notice what he says here. if you do good, if you do good, it's said twice. Why? Well, what does he say in chapter 3? Look at verse 12. We should almost say it together, but I won't make you say it together. No one does good. No, not one. So in terms of justification, here's the problem. If you're going to stand on your own, Here's the problem. If you do good, here's the verdict. No one does. Not in terms of a standing before God. They can't achieve the holy standard. So he's looking at people under the law. He's looking at moral people, upright people. And that's what he's emphasizing tonight in verse 12. For as many as have sinned without the law will also perish without the law. Who are those without the law? Well, we have the law, don't we? We have the law in our hands. We read it all the time. He was thinking of the Jews. The Jews have the law, but the Gentiles did not have the law of God. As many as have sinned in the law, here's a privilege, you have the law, will be judged by the law. For not the hearers of the law are just in the sight of God, but the doers of the law will be justified. now again remember what he'll say we conclude that a man is justified by faith apart from the deeds of the law he's not setting up an alternative way of justification this is the standard that's always been God demands perfect and complete righteousness Paul's whole point is is again to show the likeness of all of us under sin and the impossibility for us to stand before God I pleaded with my grandfather on his deathbed. I remember saying to him, Grandpa, he was somebody who had rejected the gospel all his life and led a hard life and a moral life. I remember sitting with him and I thought, I don't know if anyone's talked to him, but I'm going to go try. I said to him, Grandpa, you're about to enter into eternity. Why won't you believe? You know what his answer was? Chris, I've been a good person. I always paid my bills. Couldn't believe he said it. He had no concept. I worked a long time, and I don't know, maybe he believed. But this is the point Paul's making here. There's a righteousness that comes by the law, and there's a righteousness that comes by faith. and the problem with the righteousness that comes by the law is we can't keep it. That's the simple, basic message of Christianity. The principle that was given throughout the Old Testament was very clear. It was, do this and you shall live. Do the law, Deuteronomy 18. You shall live. The man who does these things shall live by them. Paul was obviously very affected by that because in Galatians 3, he quotes that. And if you don't, cursed is everyone who does not do everything written in the book of the law to do them. That was the standard, you see. The law was never meant ultimately to be treated as the Pharisees treated it. To sit around with it and dissect it and to argue about it and to memorize it and to study it with curiosity. Paul's point would say the law was meant to be obeyed. And there's a standard that God has. And Paul says, if you do this, you'll have eternal life. Now, he could have said salvation, but that's why I'm emphasizing eternal life. Paul is speaking to those content with their lives. When the rich young ruler came to Jesus, it's such a powerful moment in the Gospels. If you ever look at how Jesus responded to people, it was in the approach they came. Why did they come? What questions did they have? If you had blind Bartimaeus crying out, Son of David, have mercy on me, they got mercy. This guy comes up with two verbs. Good teacher. What must I do to inherit, notice it, eternal life? Now, I wish he would have said, Master, what do I need to do to be saved? And I think Jesus would have said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved. Believe in me. Trust me. I'm going to the cross for you. What did Jesus do when he was faced with that question? You know the commandments. What are they? Do them. And he says, oh, check, check, check. I've done them since my youth. He's standing on his own. And Jesus then says, oh, but there's something. I know the heart. Go sell all your possessions. Give to the poor. Then come follow me. uh-oh he loved his possessions see he he had no sense yet no understanding yet of the burden and the guilt of his own sin and that's why jesus dealt with him that way it's this if paul says it's not merely having the law in your hand that accomplishes this The Gentiles who do not have the law by nature do with all, this is kind of a rebuke. It's a really remarkable one in the history of sort of natural revelation and what is in nature. Notice this, when the Gentiles who do not have the law by nature do what the law requires, they're a law to themselves. Even though they don't have the law, they don't read the Ten Commandments, they show that the work of the law is written on their hearts while their conscience also bearing witness and their conflicting thoughts accuse or even excuse them on the day when, according to my gospel, God judges the secrets of men by Christ Jesus. They don't even have the law, dear Jews. And at times, they behave better than you, is what he's saying. They have some kind of light, the remnant remaining in them. It still shows that they are just as moral, if we're judging on that standard as you. But you see, you're a Jew. Notice what he does here. You rely on the law. You boast in God. You know his will and approve what's excellent because you're instructed from the law. And if you are sure that you yourself are a guide to the blind, a light to those in darkness, an instructor of the foolish, a teacher of children, having in the law the embodiment of knowledge and truth. How are you doing? Let's ask that question, says Paul. How do you guys think you're doing? You who teach everyone else, are you teaching yourself? You who preach against stealing, are you stealing? You who say and run around, stop committing adultery, stop remembering a sermon on the mount, shall not commit adultery. Paul might have said here, are you looking at a woman to lust? You who abhor idols, do you rob temples? Verse 24 is the indictment tonight, the closing verse. For as it is written, the name of God is blasphemed among the Gentiles because of you. Summary, you're just as guilty. He says, if you're really being honest with yourselves, you haven't kept this. He asks the question, tell me, if you want to be under the law, do you hear it? It says, obey. You haven't done it. And you see, Paul's building to chapter 3, verse 20. I won't leave you without it tonight. It's so beautiful. Where he says, by the deeds of the law, no flesh will be justified. And then what does he say? Well, look at verse 21. It's the great announcement. I'm getting ahead of myself, but I won't leave you without it. But now. But now. The righteousness of God is revealed apart from the law, apart from your own doing. Although the law and the prophets bear witness to it, the righteousness of God that comes by faith. See? In Jesus Christ, for all who believe. for there's no distinction, for all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God and are justified by what? Works? No. That's all. That can't be. Are justified by grace as a gift. I just am overwhelmed by that truth. A gift. A free gift. It's that good. He justifies us by grace as a gift to you. Receive the gift and believe is what the Romans is going to tell us. You could try to continue the path of establishing your own righteousness before God. God hasn't lightened the standard just because we fell. It has to be kept, or you can come to him. You can come to his son. Why do you think all these calls were going out in the gospel? Come to me, All you who are weary and heavy laden, I'll give you rest. Rest for your souls. My burden's light. My yoke is light. My burden's easy. I'll forgive your sins. Righteousness by faith in Christ that meets the demands of the law. See? He is that wonderful to us. That's how good the gospel is to us. The Lord is in his gospel. I close with this. Two men went up to the temple to pray. One a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee standing by himself prayed thus, God, I thank you that I'm not like other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week. I get tithes of all I get. But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even lift up his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast saying, shortest prayer in Scripture, I think, God be merciful to me, a sinner. I tell you, says Jesus, this man went down to his house justified, not the other guy. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted. Let's pray. Heavenly Father, thank you for helping us through this text tonight. Let us be thankful, O Lord, that you have supplied a righteousness by which we can stand, covered us in a rich robe of righteousness illustrated all throughout Scripture, whereby our filthy garments are removed and a beautiful garment of Christ's righteousness is thrown around us. Thank you, O Lord, for such a free gift as this, through the work of your Son on our behalf, our mediator, truly human and truly righteous, who bore that judgment, who fulfilled all righteousness in the law, so that we might live. In Jesus' name, amen.