ULDAH MINISTRY

No,66　　Apr. 2001

　【GOD'S JUDGMENT AND GRACE】

　6 God "will give to each person according to what he has done". To those who by persistence in doing good seek glory, known and immortality, he will give eternal life. But for those who are self-seeking and who reject the truth and follow evil, there will be wrath and anger. There will be trouble and distress for every human being who does evil: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile; but glory, honour for the Jew, then for the Gentile. For God does not show favouritism. 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. For it is not those 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, since they show that the requirements of the law are written on their hearts, their thoughts now accusing, now even defending them.) This will take place on the day when God will judge men's secrets through Jesus Christ, as my gospel declares.
17 Now you, if you call yourself a Jew; if you rely on the law and brag about your relationship to God; if you know his will and approve of what is superior because you are instructed by the law; if you are convinced that you are a guide for the blind, a light for those who are in the dark, an instructor of the foolish, a teacher of infants, because you have in the law the embodiment of knowledge and truth-you, then who teach others, do you not teach yourself? You who preach against stealing, do you steal? 22You who say that people should not commit adultery? You who abhor idols, do you rob temples? You who brag about the law, do you dishonour God by breaking the law? 24 As it is written: "God's name is blasphemed among the Gentiles because of you." Circumcision has value if you observe the law, but if you break the law, you have become as though you had not been circumcised. If those who are not circumcised keep the law's requirements, will they not be regarded as though they were circumcised? The one who is not circumcised physically and yet obeys the law will condemn you who, even though you have the written code and circumcision, are a law-breaker. A man is not a Jew if he is only one outwardly, nor is circumcision merely outward and physical. No, a man is a Jew if he is one inwardly; and circumcision is circumcision of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the written code. Such a man's praise is not from men, but from God.
Romans 2:6~29 　Line added

From the time of the Reformation onwards, when Martin Luther made a scale-removing discovery of 'justification by faith', his understanding of Apostle Paul's Epistles over the law and salvation, has dominantly influenced Christian exegesis. Luther saw a common factor between medieval Catholicism, against which Luther himself had fought and First-century Judaism, against which Luther understood Paul had stood against, that both faiths taught salvation through works of merit and severely condemned them of it. However, a new perspective about First-century Judaism was presented by E.P.Sander, a Jewish Christian in 1970's and since then it has been widely agreed that First-century Judaism was a religion based on God's election and grace and not on human merit by observing the law. This naturally resulted in attempts to redefine Paul's understanding of the law and justification. In other words, Reformers' approach has been questioned and emasculated.
Paul, addressing a Christian community in Rome, wrote 'Romans' for the purpose of preparing his visit to Rome and also a mission to Spain, both of which he had not yet visited. His major thrust of this epistle is that 'the power and the righteousness of God are revealed in the gospel for all who believe and they are justified only by God's grace through faith.' as stated in Romans 1:16~17.

Romans 2:1~16, a part of which has been quoted at the beginning, is a difficult passage to interpret because on first reading it appears to contradict his major theme of 'Romans' that no-one will be justified by work of the law. On the contrary, in this passage, however, he apparently argues that God will impartially judge all according to their works. It says that the Jews will be judged in the light of that which they have received through the law and by the same token, the Gentiles will be judged in the light of the requirements of the law written on their hearts. How to resolve the inconsistency seems to lie in how to interpret Paul's statement concerning Gentiles who are intuitively doing what the law requires. Among many options about how to understand the term of 'Gentiles' in v.14, either of the next two approaches might be thought better.
1. They are pagans who not knowingly conform to the moral precepts of the law. Paul views their morality in a positive light.
2. They are pre-Christian Gentiles, who do the things demanded by the law. God impartially justifies those on whose hearts have been written the requirements of the law as prophesied by Jeremiah in Je.31:33.
However, Paul is never saying that either Jew or Gentiles can achieve all the requirements of the law. Thus, Paul reminded the Jews who had become puffed up by their many privileges, such as election by God as chosen ones, the law given to Moses and circumcision as the sign of the Abrahamic covenant, of God's impartiality. The Jews had to acknowledge that if they broke the law they would be no better than the Gentiles who actually lived out the law though they did not possess the law. Jew's possession of the law would not put them in a better position as far as the judgment of God was concerned, unless they respond to the goodness and mercy of God with repentance and obedience.
To quote the comment of Snodgrass ("Justification by Grace-To the Doers"), 'Those people who have seen Romans 2 as a description of circumstances prior to the coming of the gospel are correct. They are incorrect, however, if they conclude that the coming of the gospel negated or reversed the basic structure of what preceded. The issue after the coming of Christ, as before, is an obedient response to the amount of light received so that God is honoured as God and a relationship with him is established.' (Line added). Accordingly, the crucial point which Paul meant, would be that man would be judged by the way they responded to God according to the light they experienced but it should not be taken as judgment based on works.
There are many examples in the Old Testament, in which Gentiles were commended by God because of their loyalty and practices that agreed with the Mosaic law. It was their attitude that God wanted His people Israel to follow for their salvation rather than legalistically observing the commandments of the law. Some well-known cases in which God extended His salvation to the Gentiles are seen in the accounts of the dramatic repentance of the Ninevites and also of the positive response of the queen of Sheba, as expressed in Jesus' words, 'The Queen of the South will rise at the judgment with the men of this generation and condemn them; for she came from the ends of the earth to listen to Solomon's wisdom … The men of Nineveh will stand up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it; for they repented at the preaching of Jonah' (Lk. 11:31~32). Job in the land of Uz, who can be regarded as Moses' contemporary and Esau's descendant, was the most outstanding figure on earth that God had designated as the blameless, the upright, the God-fearing and the one who shunned evil. Ruth the Moabitess and Rahab the Cannanite prostitute were also counted among the saved due to their loyalty and well-doing. Naaman, the commander of the army of the king of Aram, who had been afflicted by leprosy, was completely healed through the act of obedience. The spiritual salvation in his heart occurred simultaneously with his outward salvation, i.e., physical healing, which he demonstrated by confessing his faith in public. Naaman's genuine faith in the God of Israel was also approved by Elisha the prophet who instructed him in how to be healed. In fact, Elisha, when asked by Naaman for permission to go back and serve his master, the king of Aram in the temple of the pagan idol god, Rimmon, allowed him to return to his pagan environment in peace, leaving his problem of conscience in God's own guidance and grace (2Ki. 5).
Furthermore, added to the cases of all these individual Gentile's salvation, there is a convincing account of the Recabites in Jeremiah 35. The Recabites were the Kenites, the descendants of Hobab, Moses' brother-in-law and a part of the Hebrew nation. They lived a nomadic life in tents as herdsmen without settling down anywhere, which meant that they would never build houses, sow seed nor plant vineyards because of fidelity to their forefather Jonadab's command. Preserving the culture of the wilderness, they had developed into a kind of religious sect. One day, God commanded Jeremiah the prophet to invite a Recabite family, who happened to be temporarily staying in Jerusalem to escape attacks by Babylonian and Aramean armies, and make them drink wine. Despite seeing in front of them tempting bowls and cups full of wine, without hesitation, the family turned down Jeremiah's offer. They explained the reason and gave a good testimony of their utter obedience to their forefather's command with deeds: 'Neither you nor your descendants must ever drink wine. Also you must never build houses, … . Then you will live a long time in the land where you are nomads.' (Jeremiah 35:6~7). Then, Jeremiah heard from the Lord, of His high commendation for the obedient Recabites as well as His great grief for disobedience of Judah. More precisely, God highlighted the sharp contrast between the two, that the former lived up to His standard in a way that put the latter, who did have the Mosaic law to feel ashamed. In fact, to be faithful to their forefather's command and to practice upon it equalled giving honour to their parents, and thus, was counted as living out the fifth great commandment of Moses. Therefore, they were promised to be continually given special roles in God's plans. On the contrary, Judah was sentenced a judgment due to failing to respond to God with repentance and obedience, putting it, 'I am going to bring on Judah and on everyone living in Jerusalem every disaster I pronounced against them. I spoke to them, but they did not listen; I called to them, but they did not answer.' (Jeremiah 35:17).

In the following verses, Romans 2:17~29, Paul warns complacent Jewish religious leaders who boasted about their privileges as God's chosen, not to disgrace God's name among the Gentiles by disobeying the law. Privilege increases responsibility. Therefore, were the Jews more righteous, more moral and holier than other nations? The reality was that they were not different from others and instead, failed more miserably in responding to God than those with less light. What Paul meant by 'temple robbery' in v. 22, is understood to include profiting by any means from heathen contributions, or withholding 'the temple tax', which Jews over 20 years old were obliged to pay to the Jerusalem temple. It was Matthew that smartly recorded how faithful Jesus and His disciples were to the Jewish Authority among many defaulters. Here, Paul points out two important reminders. On one hand, the law is good and holy and positively benefits the Jews to let them know God's will. Also the law instructs them into knowledge and truth so that they are able to be 'a guide for the blind, a light for those who are in the dark, an instructor of the foolish, a teacher of infants.' (vs.19~20). On the other hand, what is essential for salvation is the heart from above, i.e., inward circumcision but not outward physical circumcision because Jews are no better off than Gentiles, if they do not respond to God with inner convictions by the Holy Spirit, i.e., repentance and obedience.
What has been explored above might be summed up in the following way: Both Jews and Gentiles are equally under the bondage of sin and there is no-one that is perfectly able to fulfil the demands of the law because of intrinsic weakness of human nature, therefore, both must be justified by God's grace through individual faith. Though the law is still valid and beneficial for believers as a source of instruction it is unable to make man righteous in God's sight through obedience to it. On the coming day of God's judgment, all things that man did and did not do, that is, both sin of commission and sin of omission will unsparingly be revealed and judged in the light given to him, according to both truth and deeds. There are people who lead righteous lives in the world, whether Christians, Jews or the non-believing. They might be confident in claiming their own goodness and righteousness before the presence of God. The moralist, the pious and the philosophers, might think that they are better than those who openly commit sins in the society. However, when it comes to their private, secret lives, who would dare to claim their righteousness and holiness before the Lord and dare so confidently to condemn those who commit sins? All, without any exception, have sinned and hopelessly are guilty and deserve to be condemned in God's sight. If there had been no means of salvation one-sidedly given from the Lord, no-one would have been found not guilty, 'on the day when God will judge men's secrete through Jesus Christ.'(v.16). But for God's grace all will perish. Romans 2 explicitly addresses this issue and also implicitly encourages Jews to return to God's grace and mercy by reminding them of His unfailing love for His chosen Israel and His faithfulness to the covenant. The latter conclusion can be deduced from the Paul's citation from Isaiah 52:5 LXX in v.24: "For 'on account of you the name of God is blasphemed among the Gentiles,' just as it is written". Isaiah delivered this word of God as His reassurance of Israel's salvation in a passage that speaks of the oppressed condition of Israel in exile which allowed the pagan nations to despise the God of Israel. Accordingly, by quoting Isaiah's oracle, Paul echoes the same prophetic significance here as that which impacted the oppressed Israel in the days of exile. In other words, although Paul uses the citation as a word of judgment on the Jews he implies that the very judgment accompanies the same promise of hope and redemption of Jews that was given to Israel in exile.
God has not abandoned the Jews at all. Paul envisages eschatological reconciliation to embrace both Jews and Gentiles within the scope of God's unending grace.