“For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written: “But the righteous one will live by faith.” Romans 1:16-17 NASB
- What is the bad news? Universal guilt
What are we all guilty of?
Determining for ourselves what is right and wrong and good and evil.
“Do not be wise in your own eyes; Fear the Lord and turn away from evil.” Proverbs 3:7 NASB
“What then? Are we better than they? Not at all; for we have already charged that both Jews and Greeks are all under sin; as it is written:
“There is no righteous person, not even one; There is no one who understands, There is no one who seeks out God; They have all turned aside, together they have become corrupt; There is no one who does good, There is not even one.” “Their throat is an open grave, With their tongues they keep deceiving,” “The venom of asps is under their lips”; “Their mouth is full of cursing and bitterness”; “Their feet are swift to shed blood, Destruction and misery are in their paths, And they have not known the way of peace.” “There is no fear of God before their eyes.” Now we know that whatever the Law says, it speaks to those who are under the Law, so that every mouth may be closed and all the world may become accountable to God;” Romans 3:9-19 NASB
Three Wrong Approaches In Relating To God
- Hedonism (Romans 1:18-32)
“I’ll do what I want.”
- Moralism (Romans 2:1-16)
“I am not like them.”
- Legalism (Romans 2:17-29)
“I follow the rules.”
- What is the Good news?
Jesus did for us what we could never do for ourselves
“For no one is declared righteous before him by the works of the law, for through the law comes the knowledge of sin. But now apart from the law the righteousness of God (although it is attested by the law and the prophets) has been disclosed— namely, the righteousness of God through the faithfulness of Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. But they are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus. God publicly displayed him at his death as the mercy seat accessible through faith. This was to demonstrate his righteousness, because God in his forbearance had passed over the sins previously committed.” Romans 3:20-25 NET
The Right Approach In Relating To God
Faith and repentance: Change your mind and direction
“The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.” Mark 1:15 NASB