11/2/17
The earliest Christians followed a Jewish tradition of pausing to pray, preferably together, first thing in the morning, about mid morning, at noon, about mid afternoon, and in the evening. “Just a Note” posts are brief observations made from Scripture readings not related to a lectionary. If I have one to post, it normally appears about 9:00 in the morning, at “the hour of prayer.”
Romans 2:12-16 is another of those biblical passages that people love to mangle. It usually goes somewhat like this. “Those without the law die without the law. They are a law to themselves. Therefore, if they do what seems right, they are fine.” The problem with this bit of reinterpretation is that it diminishes the biblical view of God’s holiness. In his holiness, when God says we need to keep that law written on our spirits, he still means that we need to keep it perfectly. We are nowhere given permission to break God’s law. The fact that we have a conscience at all is used by Paul as a proof that there is one true God who has made this world to function according to a definitive morality.
What happens in the end? Ultimately, those who are trusting in Jesus, however they managed to get there, like Abraham, will inherit a blessed eternity. What’s the wisest, most loving thing to do? It’s to tell every person we can about Jesus. He is the one who has seen our failure, our sin, our shame, and given himself as a substitute for us. He’s the only one who could do it. And he lives to draw us to himself in salvation. This is the great promise of God.
If this brief meditation was helpful to you, I hope you will check out the other materials on our website at www.WittenbergCoMo.com and consider supporting us.
The earliest Christians followed a Jewish tradition of pausing to pray, preferably together, first thing in the morning, about mid morning, at noon, about mid afternoon, and in the evening. “Just a Note” posts are brief observations made from Scripture readings not related to a lectionary. If I have one to post, it normally appears about 9:00 in the morning, at “the hour of prayer.”
Romans 2:12-16 is another of those biblical passages that people love to mangle. It usually goes somewhat like this. “Those without the law die without the law. They are a law to themselves. Therefore, if they do what seems right, they are fine.” The problem with this bit of reinterpretation is that it diminishes the biblical view of God’s holiness. In his holiness, when God says we need to keep that law written on our spirits, he still means that we need to keep it perfectly. We are nowhere given permission to break God’s law. The fact that we have a conscience at all is used by Paul as a proof that there is one true God who has made this world to function according to a definitive morality.
What happens in the end? Ultimately, those who are trusting in Jesus, however they managed to get there, like Abraham, will inherit a blessed eternity. What’s the wisest, most loving thing to do? It’s to tell every person we can about Jesus. He is the one who has seen our failure, our sin, our shame, and given himself as a substitute for us. He’s the only one who could do it. And he lives to draw us to himself in salvation. This is the great promise of God.
If this brief meditation was helpful to you, I hope you will check out the other materials on our website at www.WittenbergCoMo.com and consider supporting us.
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