“The Knowledge of the Law”

(Romans 3:1-20)

Series: Romans – United in the Gospel [on screen]

Rev. Matthew C. McCraw, EdD

First Baptist Church, Bartow, Florida

February 6, 2022

Introductory Comments:

Have you ever received a lot of information about something and after a while you get to  the point where you just need to ask some clarifying questions? That’s how I am when my kids try to explain a new board game to me. I listen to them for a little while and then I just start asking questions.

Well, Paul has been sharing with the Roman Christians a lot of different information pertaining to the wrath of God towards Gentiles, the wrath of God towards religious pretenders, and the judgment of God towards Jews who were not truly faithful to the Lord. 

Now, it’s almost as if Paul is anticipating questions that the people might be asking him in response to what he’s said. So, he’s addressing these hypothetical questions that may arise from all that he’s said thus far in his letter to the Romans. 

Before we get into these questions, let’s go to the Lord in prayer and ask Him to bless us.

(prayer)

So, Paul asks these questions and then provides some answers for them. Here are the questions that Paul will ask (we’ll look at these in more detail as we progress along):

In verse 1 – What advantage does the Jew have? [on screen]

In verse 3 – Does the unfaithfulness of some Jews compromise the faithfulness of God? [on screen]

In verses 5-7 – Is God unfair to punish us if our unrighteousness points to the greatness of God’s grace? [on screen]

In verse 8 – Should we sin so that God can look good by forgiving us? [on screen]

In verse 9 – Are the Jews better off than the Gentiles? [on screen]

These are some important questions. I’m not going to take each one independently. Instead, I’ve narrowed these down to three questions for us to consider today.First, . . . 

I. What’s the point of the law? (1-8) [on screen]

So, Paul has spent some time in the previous passages pointing out that the Jews are not made right with God simply because they have the law of God. The law, given by Moses, in and of itself does not save us from our sin. So, what’s the point?

Well, let’s see what Paul says. Look at verses 1-8:

1 So what advantage does the Jew have? Or what is the benefit of circumcision? 2 Considerable in every way. First, they were entrusted with the very words of God. 3 What then? If some were unfaithful, will their unfaithfulness nullify God’s faithfulness? 4 Absolutely not! Let God be true, even though everyone is a liar, as it is written: That you may be justified in your words and triumph when you judge.

5 But if our unrighteousness highlights God’s righteousness, what are we to say? I am using a human argument: Is God unrighteous to inflict wrath? 6 Absolutely not! Otherwise, how will God judge the world? 7 But if by my lie God’s truth abounds to his glory, why am I also still being judged as a sinner? 8 And why not say, just as some people slanderously claim we say, “Let us do what is evil so that good may come”? Their condemnation is deserved!

So, Paul doesn’t say at all that receiving the law is a waste. No! Instead, he says that, “ . . . they were entrusted with the very words of God.”

The law of God is a blessing, not a curse. In and of itself, it does not save us. However, it does point us to the God who can save us. It does point us to our great need for the God who can save us. It does show us more about God, more about God’s ways, and more about ourselves and our need for God’s ways. 

So also, I said this last week: growing up in church, having access to biblical teaching, and being surrounded by other Christians can’t save you from your sins. However, all of those things are blessings because they draw us closer and closer to who God is, what He wants for us, and the knowledge of how He can save us from our sins through the work of Jesus!

Paul goes on to p