When we hear the word “confession,” we automatically think of bad behavior or an admission of guilt. To confess can also mean to declare. Many churches align themselves with statements that are known as confessions of faith.

In verses 9–10, the apostle Paul articulates the central confession of the Christian faith. These verses express the “message of faith” that Paul preached everywhere he went (v. 8). This message does not contradict the Law God gave to His Old Testament people, nor does it denounce the Law. Rather, it is a gospel that recognizes: “Christ is the culmination of the law so that there may be righteousness for everyone who believes” (v. 4).

Israel’s refusal to acknowledge this led to a misguided zeal for the Law. Paul observes: “Since they did not know the righteousness of God and sought to establish their own, they did not submit to God’s righteousness” (v. 3). The “righteousness of God” is a righteousness that can only come to us as a gift. It cannot be earned by human effort, no matter how zealous it is (Rom. 5:17). As one commentator explains, “It was in Jesus Christ that God’s gift of righteousness was offered, and Israel’s ignorance of God’s righteousness was identical with their failure to recognize Jesus Christ.”

Confessing the death and resurrection of Christ is more than merely acknowledging that these events were historical facts. It is a declaration of dependence upon Christ’s work as the basis for our righteous standing before God. It is the opposite of trying to obtain eternal life by what I do (v. 5). Faith is a matter of trusting that what Jesus has done on my behalf has earned that righteousness for me. Christ opens the door of access to people from all backgrounds, both Jews and Gentiles (vv. 12–13).

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