Sermon 7

Good People Are Guilty, Too

Romans 2:1-16

The year that I was a 2nd grader was the same year that my Aunt Peggie started the 2nd grade, too. In the same school! I was a student. She was a teacher. I anticipated that there would be great advantages to being related to a teacher. I expected that my classmates would think more highly of me, which they did to some extent, that I would be on a first name basis with all the teachers, which never happened, but mostly that being related to a teacher meant that I would never get in trouble.

I was shocked to discover that being related to a teacher, didn't impress my aunt at all, nor any of the other teachers. When I got in trouble she didn't come to my defense. In fact, I got called to the principal's office in the 6th grade and when I arrived she was already there, on her way out and she said to me, "Got yourself in a little trouble, I see?" I discovered that when you are related to a teacher, that teacher feels entitled to expect more of you than of the other students.

In like manner, the Jews presumed that because they had a unique relationship with God - His chosen people, a covenant relationship - their privileged position exempted them from the judgment of God. God was indeed going to judge the heathen, but not the Hebrews.

So if a Jew read Romans 1, it would not disturb him; it would, in fact, delight him. He relished the thought of the Gentile heathen getting his due and spending eternity apart from God. Amen, Paul! Preach it! Siccum! That was Romans 1.

If you are a moralist, one who believes in and teaches a strong sense or morality, then you are sure to love Romans 1. You love lists of sins, you love immorality and homosexuality to be condemned. But you are going to have a harder time with Romans 2. Romans 1 says that bad people are all going to burn, that they are under the wrath of God and that their ignorance is no excuse because has revealed Himself to all men. But the question that Romans 1 does not answer is "What about good people?" That question is answered in Romans 2-3.

It is clear that Paul has the Jews in mind beginning in verse 17 (see also 3:1) and so, we might assume that in verses 1-16, he is also pointing his finger at the Jews. But, it seems to me, that Paul is not speaking specifically to the Jews in verses 1-16, but more generally, directing this section to moral people.

The hardest people to win to Christ are good people. Good people measuring themselves by others, see themselves somewhat superior to others. They remind themselves of all the good things that they do and of all the bad things that they don't do. They don't drink or smoke or chew and they don't go with girls who do. They work hard and play by the rules. They are good husbands and wives, good parents, good employees, good law-abiding, tax-paying citizens, good neighbors, good people. They help little old ladies across the street. They give to charities. They don't have a drinking problem or a gambling problem or a women trouble. They are honest and solid. They are "not as other men are, extortioners, unjust, adulterers..." They are good, moral people. Hey, they may go to a church, have responded to an invitation, been baptized, joined the church. They may even fast twice a week, and give tithes of all that (they) possess. They are good people! Like a young man who came to Jesus they may say, "All these commandments have I kept from my youth up!" And they are the hardest people to win to Christ. Why? Because they are self-righteous. They have no real sense of their sinfulness, nor of their great need for a Savior.

When we were newlyweds, Carla worked for a brief time for a dentist. His name was Kingston Smith, but it was difficult to call a man King, so we all called him Doc. He became a dear friend. We went out to lunch every Friday. We invited him church and even made some small attempts to witness to Doc. He was a very good man. He was moral, didn't cuss, drink, smoke. He was very health conscious, very generous, very talented. He skied, in fact, he owned a condo in Taos, New Mexico. He learned to fly and purchased a plane so he could fly to Taos. He built his own home which looked out over the beautiful Palo Dura Canyon. He excelled at everything he attempted but remained just a very nice guy and a good man. I remember telling Carla, "I don't know if Doc will ever be saved. He's just too good to ever see his need."

That's the way it is with the self-righteous. But in Romans 2, Paul points out that the ethical, moral person who does not know Christ - whether Jew or Gentile - will not escape the judgment of God. Moral people are sinners, too! In fact, Romans 2 identifies the sins of which moral people are most often guilty.

The Sins Of The Self-Righteous, vs. 1-5.

Judging Others, vs. 1-3 - The one sin that most self-righteous people are guilty of is the place where Paul begins this section. It is the sin of being judgmental. It was certainly true of the Pharisees, the self-righteous religious people of Jesus' day. Read Matthew 7:1-5. According to verse 1 of our text, by judging another, you actually condemn yourself. And just as the heathen is without excuse, so is the judgmental hypocrite inexcusable. The truthful judgment of God is against all sin (v. 2) and the judgmental person will not escape the judgment of God (v. 3). God will judge the judgmental.

When we speak of being judgmental, it is not to say that we are forbidden to discern and evaluate. We are not suppose to walk through life with our eyes closed. We see weakness; we see faults; we see sins. When I say that homosexuality is sin, I am not being judgmental, not in a sinful sense. I am simply evaluating a person's behavior on the basis of what the Bible says.

But the judging that the Bible condemns is being critical and hypocritical. It is not condemning sin, it is condemning the sinner, elevating oneself by degrading others. It is the #1 sin of the self-righteous.

Despising Grace, v. 4 - The second sin of the self-righteous is that they have no appreciation for the grace of God. They do not recognize the goodness, the forbearance (tolerance) and the longsuffering of God. They credit themselves, not God for what they have. Had they any appreciation for the goodness of God, Paul says, they would immediately repent.

Refusing To Repent, v. 5 - The third sin of which the self-righteous are guilty is their hard and impenitent hearts. They are not as bad as others and better than most, so they have nothing for which to repent.

These are the sins of the self-righteous. Thus, they are inexcusable and simply storing up the wrath of God.

The Righteous Judgment Of God, vs. 6-16.

Verse 5 declares that God's judgment is righteous, verse 2 says that it is "according to truth". Men cannot judge each other righteously and truthfully but God can. God, you see, can see even the secrets that are in men's hearts (v. 16) and will judge accordingly.

Here, Paul discusses the righteous judgment of God.

God judges men individually, vs. 6-10. The judgment of men is always by comparison. This one is better than that one but worse then him. That is not how God judges. He does not compare. He judges every person individually. Thus, the Hebrew is no better than the heathen because God does not compare. God judges all men individually.

Why do these verses emphasize deeds? Paul is not teaching salvation by good deeds. The emphasis on deeds, is meant to point out that what you are is not based on what you say but on what you do. It is not the confession of your lips that proves you are righteous; it is the character of your life. Religious people would delight being judged by their doctrinal statements. But God judges on the basis of deeds, not doctrinal statements.

God judges men impartially, vs. 11-16. God is no respecter of persons. He doesn't love the poor more than the rich, women more than men, educated more then the illiterate, Jew more than Gentile, Hebrew more than heathen, religious more than pagan. He loves all men the same. Christ died for all men. And at the judgment, God's judgment will be absolutely impartial. Unrepentant sinners will perish. You can go to hell from a church pew, the same as from a bar stool.

That, according to verse 16, is Paul's gospel. The heathen and the moralist are equally under the righteous wrath of God because all have sinned. Some are like the prodigal son. They waste their lives with riotous living. They are sinners. Some are like the elder brother. They condemn others, they fail to acknowledge how good the Father has been to them. They refuse to repent of the sins that are in their heart. They are also sinners. And an impartial God who judges all matters individually, truthfully and righteously concludes that the wrath of God is upon all men. Good people go to hell if they are without Christ.

One day, I got a call from Doc. I hadn't seen him in several years, having moved from Texas to Kentucky and then to Indiana. He said, "I've got something to tell you. I got saved!" I rejoiced and asked him to share his testimony. His little girl began attending a Baptist church and begged him to go with her on Easter. He reluctantly obliged. And the Spirit began to convict him in that first service. So he went back the next week and the next and in a few weeks repented of his sin and trusted in Christ. He asked me, "Why didn't you ever talk to be about being saved?" I said, "Well, I did, a little." And I reminded him of some of our attempts. I said, "I always doubted that you would become a Christian because you were such a good person." He said, "Really, I wasn't. My heart was filled with anger and hate and there was a side of me that few people ever saw. Deep in my heart, I knew I was a sinner."

That is where the gospel begins. By honest confession that no matter how good you are in comparison to others, before God you are a sinner who needs a Savior.