Romans 3 and 4
Romans 3 presents the problem...the law can never be observed perfectly. Paul points out that mere observance of rules does not impress God. Instead, the rules were originally put in place to point out our shortcomings. The purpose of the laws was to show us that we could never fully obtain perfection, and therefore we could never fully be connected to a Holy God. Romans 3:20 says that "through the law we become aware of sin". Our failure to perfectly follow every law to obtain righteousness should cause us to see our need for the intervention of an intercessor to make us holy.
Jesus. (v22,25) This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe....God presented him as a sacrifice of atonement through faith in His blood."
Romans 4 then refers to Abraham who believed in God, and therefore was considered righteous. What does "righteous" mean? Romans 4:8 says, "Blessed is the man whose sin will never be counted against him." Righteous....without sin. The end of verse 25 says that we get credit for belief in the Jesus, and that credit translates into righteousness of heart and soul. There is no mention in this conclusion about laws, rules, or traditions...just a simplistic belief in the death and resurrection of Jesus, which is the acknowledgment of Him as Lord.
If my righteousness is given to me because of my beliefs and not my actions, then my emphasis needs to be on my heart and not on my habits. If I truly believe that Jesus is Lord, then my actions, speech, and attitude should reflect the holiness of Him. I obey because I have been given a righteousness from God, not to obtain that righteousness from God.
That is given to me freely when I believe.
1 comment:
Preach it Bethany! That is a great devotion on Romans 3 & 4! Do remember when we preached a sermon together in NXT junior high? We spoke on Matthew 14 when Jesus called to Peter to walk on the water. I think the title of our sermon was "The Waves of Our Lives". That was my first sermon I ever preached!
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