Bible reading: Romans 2 ESV
Assume you are driving on a highway leisurely on a Saturday morning towards a coffee shop. A young man was driving a sports car. He Went at full speed ahead of you breaking all the safety limits. Then he cuts into your lane without switching on the indicator light. You had to apply the brake instinctively. But the sports car picked up speed and vanished. I am not sure how many of us have faced this in our lives. Our immediate reaction would be to blame the sports car, the young person who drove the car, and the whole new generation and their ideology. Paul in Romans 2 indicates how quickly we end up judging others. We judge our neighbor, government, and social system very often without searching for our hearts. God searches every heart and none is sinless. If God has to apply his judgment he has to apply it on the young man who made the obvious mistake and on us, who also have made many mistakes. God is patient with everyone including People who openly commit a mistake and those who commit the mistake in a hidden manner (Romans 2: 1-3).
When you say they are wicked and should be punished, you are condemning yourself, for you who judge others do these very same things. V2 NLT
The problem of judgmental behavior arises when we do not see our own actions based on the standards God has set but end up seeing others through our own standards. God searches every heart and judges based on the standards He has set. We might have a very clear knowledge of God’s standards from the Bible. But God is not going to judge us based on our knowledge. He measures our obedience based on our actions. His anger and judgment will fall on those who do not live according to His standards. God gives eternal life to those who follow Him.
For merely listening to the law doesn’t make us right with God. It is obeying the law that makes us right in his sight. – NLT v 13
God’s Judgement Based on our conscience
We might ask, how Humanity perceives God’s standards with the same Interpretation, since the interpretation may differ across different cultures, races, and religions. God gave His laws to Jews through His servant Moses. He spoke to Jews directly through Moses and many other prophets. What about others in the world? Paul addresses this question through human conscience. God’s moral law is written in every human heart. We instinctively know whether what we do is right or wrong through the moral laws embedded in our conscience. Our conscience cries out against us when we sin. The conscience can be made numb by repeating the same sin many times.
They demonstrate that God’s law is written in their hearts, for their own conscience and thoughts either accuse them or tell them they are doing right. – NLT v.15
Dear friend, are you going through a guilty conscience today? Do you want to come out of it? Jesus wants to forgive all your past mistakes. He wants to help you to come out of it. Some of you might have already asked for forgiveness. You know God has forgiven your past. But you are not able to forgive yourself. Jesus died on the cross as our atoning sacrifice. He wants to fill your heart with peace and joy.
The Roman church is a mix of Jews and non-Jews. Hence Paul balances both the group carefully in His letter. Jews might say they have received the standards of God directly from God. They put much focus on learning it and teaching the same to their children. They traveled much distance to educate the ignorant about the laws of the Jews. But they missed the mark in following it. Paul points out that both Jews and non-Jews have moral standards set through the Jewish laws and human conscience respectively. Both have no right to judge the other.
Well then, if you teach others, why don’t you teach yourself? – NLT v.21
We are judged based on how much we obey instead of what we know
This might reflect the problem of the current Christian community. We put much emphasis on knowing the Bible through bible study, and teachings. We are proud of knowing bible verses by heart and quoting cross-references. It is not wrong but much more emphasis has to be given to following and obeying what we learn.
If we do not follow what we preach and know then we are at the same level as others. God is not going to judge us based on what we know, but based on how much we obey. It does not matter whether we lived our life knowing God’s commandment or without the knowledge of it. God will reward those who follow His commandments based on the moral conscience given to all of us.
God looks at our hearts and He knows the deepest thoughts and the motives. He judges us based on whether we follow God to seek praise from fellow men or God Himself. His standards are the same for everyone across the world independent of color, race, background, and culture. If you want to know God and His heart, you can subscribe to our knowing God journey.
it is a change of heart produced by the Spirit. And a person with a changed heart seeks praise from God, not from people. – NLT v.32
Shall we search our hearts today? We might know about God and read various scriptures. But how much we took it to our hearts and followed them. Let’s pray to God to search our hearts and reveal all our mistakes.
Dear Jesus, I come to you with a humble heart. Search my heart. Show me my faults. At times I am quick to judge others without realizing my own mistakes. I think I am right and others are always wrong. Please forgive me. Please strengthen my conscience. Teach me your ways. Give a heart of conviction. Help me to correct my mistakes. Be with me and guide me. In Jesus’s name, I pray.