Who is inside

DEVOTION

ROMANS

WHO IS INSIDE

Rom 2:12-16

12 All who sin apart from the law will also perish apart from the law, and all who sin under the law will be judged by the law. 13 For it is not those who hear the law who are righteous in God's sight, but it is those who obey the law who will be declared righteous. 14(Indeed, when Gentiles, who do not have the law, do by nature things required by the law, they are a law for themselves, even though they do not have the law, 15 since they show that the requirements of the law are written on their hearts, their consciences also bearing witness, and their thoughts now accusing, now even defending them.) 16 This will take place on the day when God will judge men's secrets through Jesus Christ, as my gospel declares.

NIV

This is a little difficult to grasp in light of what was said in the first chapter about that fact that no man would have an excuse because what may be known about God is plain to them. Here it would seem there is a difference in the judgment of God between the Jew and the Gentile. We know God does not show favoritism and that all are judged according to what they have done. A person is either in or out, saved or not, based on accepting or rejecting Jesus. But here we see the Jew has the divine revelation which the gentile does not. This might lead us to consider God will judge those who have the divine revelation in light of that revelation while judging those who did not receive that revelation by how they live according to their own insights. Yet it is really not their own insights by the law of God written on their hearts. There is no question the Jewish people are God’s chosen and Jesus came unto his own, the Jew. The revelation came to the Jew, as Paul puts it. They did not have the bible, but they did have the Torah. They had the scrolls of past prophets and the law written through Moses. The Jewish people had all they needed to know Jesus was the Messiah, that he fulfilled all the words of the prophets concerning the Messiah. The gentiles had nothing, no previous knowledge of Jesus. They had no advance information as the Jews had. The Jews will be judged because they had the law and did not abide by it, seeing Jesus as the Messiah. The gentiles, not having all that information still have the law of God written on their hearts because of accepting Jesus as their Lord and Savior and doing what was right according to their knowledge of his words, the gospel. We, on the other hand have all the information. We have the divine revelation, through the power of the Holy Spirit. Although we have not physically seen Jesus, as the Jews did in those days, we have seen him spiritually, through the words inspired to Moses and all the prophets, the songs, and the gospels, including the gathered letters from various apostles. We have the bible and the Spirit. We have the completeness of everything, Knowledge and revelation. We truly are without excuse. All men today are without excuse. The bible has been translated into so many languages, but still what may be known about God should be plain to everyone through what has been made. Yet God also says that he has written his law upon the heart of man. This is grace, the divine influence upon our heart. The result of that grace should he in how that influence is reflected in our lives. Whether Jew or gentile God’s grace is given, one way or another. All will be judged according to how they, first receive it, and second, how they respond. This being declared righteous by obeying the law is not about following all the rules and regulations of the law, but by seeing the law pointing to Jesus and understanding he has fulfilled all the law and being in Christ is the answer to obeying the law. Being in Christ is the only way to be declared righteous, whether Jew or Gentile. Our inner life, our secret life that which is hidden behind the façade we present to others, will be judged through Jesus Christ. Is he in our heart or not? That is the question. Are we truly a believer or just look like one? It is not what is on the outside, but what is on the inside. Are we whitewashed tombs, a clean cup on the outside, dirty on the inside? All of scripture points to the truth. Who is in our heart?