BETTER THAN

But if you call yourself a Jew and rely on the law and boast in God… Romans 1:17

            Up until this point in Romans, Paul has been talking about all people.  All have ignored the revelation of God in nature.  All have rejected Him and are in bondage to their sin.  All have embarked on a journey of moral and spiritual decline.  Now however, he is talking to the Jews.  He knows that they believe they are not like everyone else.  They are the kind who stand in the synagogue and thank God that they are not ‘lost’ like the rest of the world.  They shake their heads over the desperate situation outside the church; not owning the truth that they are part of sin’s problem.

            Paul is about to talk straight to them about spiritual arrogance.  His message will burn in the hearts of any of us who sit inside the safety of our churches and cluck our tongues over the decline of our society.  “Schools are breaking down.  Crime rates are ever on the rise.  Threats from abroad are inside our borders.  Teen suicides are escalating off the charts.  Pornography is now a female addiction as well as male.”  We see it all, our hearts may even sink, but how many of us identify ourselves with the problem?

            Sin, repentance, and the grace of forgiveness are the three most needed preaching topics inside the church.  The family of God is often so incestuous that we never make friends with one unbeliever.  We think of ourselves as ‘us’ and everyone else as ‘them’.  We support the evangelist and say under our breath, “Preach it!”  We review our spiritual commitments and are self-impressed.

            I want to hear what Paul is going to say to me.  It’s obvious already that I am bent to review my behavior and think myself better than I am but God looks at my heart.  This is the recurring theme throughout all of scripture and yet the Spirit of God keeps prompting the writers of the Bible to accentuate the truth of it again.

            In school, none of us liked the kid who buttered up the teacher, kept all the rules, only to earn himself the title of ‘the teacher’s pet’.  Why?  We knew he was conniving.  His behavior was self-serving, in no way reflective of an inward goodness.  I shouldn’t be surprised that the church can be full of teacher’s pets.  We believe the rules aren’t made for us and we hold up our charts full of green check marks to remind God how lucky He is to have us in His family.  The sin of pride that prompts me to boast is the same sin of pride that keeps the unbeliever in bondage to his sin.  The moment I own that is the moment I will love others and walk humbly with God. 

Every day, help me see my sin and Your grace.  Amen