26-0315sc - Detailed Summary

The class begins with Steve announcing they are reading from the New International Version and studying Paul’s letter to the Romans, starting in chapter 2. He explains that chapter 1 serves as the foundational framework for the rest of the book. Before diving into the text, Steve leads the group in prayer, expressing gratitude for the opportunity to study God’s Word together with fellow believers. He thanks God for giving His Word in a way that can be understood and asks for help in comprehending it, for blessings on the study, and for the group to be rewarded through it. The prayer is offered in Jesus' name, and the group says Amen.

Steve shares that he recently completed a three-day fast which he broke that morning, noting that he is still feeling its effects and asking for patience. He then recaps Romans chapter 1, explaining that God’s wrath is revealed against those who refuse to acknowledge or know Him. By rejecting God, people exchange His truth for a lie, leading to lives that oppose His commandments. This rejection results in sinful behaviors, beginning with God giving them over to sinful desires, sexual impurity, and the degrading of their bodies with one another. They worship created things instead of the Creator. Because of this, God gives them over to shameful lusts.

Steve continues quoting and explaining Romans 1:26-32. Women exchange natural sexual relations for unnatural ones, and men likewise abandon natural relations with women and burn with lust for one another, committing shameful acts and receiving the due penalty for their error. Because people did not see fit to retain the knowledge of God, He gives them over to a depraved mind, leading them to do what ought not to be done. They become filled with every kind of wickedness, evil, greed, and depravity, including envy, murder, strife, deceit, malice, gossip, slander, hatred of God, insolence, arrogance, boastfulness, inventing ways of doing evil, disobeying parents, and lacking understanding, fidelity, love, and mercy. Although they know God’s righteous decree that those who practice such things deserve death, they not only continue doing them but also approve of others who do them. Steve emphasizes that these people knowingly and deliberately reject God despite being able to recognize His existence, resulting in these various sinful attributes. Not everyone develops every sin (such as homosexuality or drunkenness being more specific to certain individuals), but patterns of rejection become visible in behaviors like arrogance, slander, gossip, and hatred of God.

Paul writes to the church in Rome, which consists of a diverse group: some raised as Jews and others as Gentiles from various pagan backgrounds and religions. Gentiles are defined as anyone who is not Jewish. Many in the church have renounced their former faiths to follow Christ, accepting Jesus as their high priest and the one who reconciles them to God. Jews in the church tend to look down on and criticize Gentiles because of their upbringing in the faith of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, believing they worship the one true God and have been given His instructions for living. Gentiles were not raised with this understanding and often came from idolatrous backgrounds. Steve references Psalm 147 to show that God dealt uniquely with Israel in a way He did not with other nations, leading Jews to view themselves as special and to avoid association with Gentiles, fostering prejudice and bias that is difficult to overcome.

Paul seeks to help Jewish believers drop their prejudice against Gentiles and to encourage Gentiles that they are fully worthy to be part of the body of Christ. Both groups must set aside their former ways and adopt the teachings of Jesus. Gentiles needed forgiveness of sins, but Jews—who may have thought they did not need Jesus because of their heritage and the law—also require the same forgiveness. Steve references Acts (likely chapters 10-11 or 15), where Paul explains to the Jerusalem apostles that Gentiles are saved in the same way as Jews, and that Jews themselves need the same salvation. Circumcision has no value without obedience to the law, and Gentiles who live righteously can have hearts that are "circumcised" in the same way. In the early part of Romans 2, Paul addresses the Jewish believers in the church, urging them to humble themselves and treat incoming Gentile believers with grace. Steve draws a modern parallel to the church today: long-time members (like himself, baptized at age 12) have knowledge and experience, while new converts from the world may not even know basic Bible navigation or church expectations (such as dress or behavior). Older members must teach rather than condemn or judge newcomers harshly.

New converts and their children often feel lost or discouraged when they do not understand church practices or Bible references, and harsh criticism can drive them away. Paul (writing to Timothy) instructs on how people ought to behave in the household of God, and believers today must avoid being critical of new Christians. Steve revisits the topic of judging, explaining that its purpose is to assess how far someone has progressed in their faith. He uses the analogy of Olympic figure skating: judges evaluate performances, noting flaws or beauty, and assign scores. A perfect 10 means righteousness, but anything less implies condemnation because it falls short of perfection. The Bible and the law function similarly—they reveal whether a person is perfect or not. No one except Jesus receives a perfect score; the Holy Spirit confirmed Jesus as fully righteous. Therefore, when judging, believers should judge themselves by comparing to God’s standard and to Jesus, rather than condemning others.

Steve continues explaining that the Holy Spirit judges believers by showing areas for growth, but Jesus' sacrifice declares Christians righteous. When God looks at believers, He sees only the blood of Christ, counting them as a perfect 10 because Jesus' blood continually cleanses them, even though personally they recognize room for improvement. The purpose of judging is to determine if a person is righteous or not. He shares analogies from 4-H livestock judging, dog shows, and similar events where judges evaluate animals against an ideal standard and declare the best in show, not claiming perfection but relative excellence. When people judge others harshly, they demean them. Paul will show in chapter 3 that everyone is in the same boat—all have sinned and fall short of God’s glory and need Jesus' salvation. Steve asks for questions or comments before moving to Romans chapter 2, noting about 15 minutes remain.

Steve reads and explains Romans 2:1-4. He states that those who pass judgment on others have no excuse, because in judging another, they condemn themselves—not necessarily for the exact same sins, but because they too break God’s law and are not perfect. God’s judgment is based on truth, as He defines perfection. A mere human who judges others while doing the same things cannot escape God’s judgment. Steve emphasizes that showing contempt for God’s kindness, forbearance, and patience misses the point: God’s kindness is meant to lead people to repentance. Repentance involves changing one’s attitude toward God—acknowledging His authority and right to define the proper lifestyle—and turning away from sinful ways to adopt God’s standards. It means giving up lawlessness and striving to live according to God’s will. Steve asks if there are questions about this section.

Steve reads Romans 2:5-11. Because of stubbornness and an unrepentant heart, people store up wrath for the day of God’s righteous judgment, when God will repay each according to their deeds. To those who persist in doing good and seek glory, honor, and immortality, God will give eternal life. But for the self-seeking who reject the truth and follow evil, there will be wrath, anger, trouble, and distress for every evildoer—first for the Jew, then for the Gentile. Conversely, glory, honor, and peace come to everyone who does good—first for the Jew, then for the Gentile—because God shows no favoritism. Steve clarifies that this is not about earning salvation through works but about attitude: those who genuinely seek to live God-fearing lives and align with God’s will will recognize His grace, accept reconciliation through Jesus, and become Christians. Persistent pursuit of good reflects this heart attitude, leading to blessing. Those who reject truth, seek self-glory, or claim Christianity without living accordingly face rejection and distress. God judges impartially, without favoritism between Jew and Gentile. Steve asks for questions or comments and confirms his interpretation.

Steve continues with Romans 2:12-16. All who sin apart from the law perish apart from the law, and all who sin under the law are judged by the law. Righteousness in God’s sight comes not from merely hearing the law but from obeying it. When Gentiles who do not have the law instinctively do what the law requires, they become a law to themselves. They show the law’s requirements written on their hearts, with their consciences bearing witness—sometimes accusing them, sometimes defending them. This will occur on the day God judges people’s secrets through Jesus Christ, as the gospel declares. Steve transitions to the next section addressing those who call themselves Jews.

Steve reads Romans 2:17-24, directing it to those who call themselves Jews, rely on the law, boast in God, know His will, approve what is superior through instruction in the law, and see themselves as guides for the blind, lights for those in darkness, instructors of the foolish, and teachers of children because the law embodies knowledge and truth. He asks if they who teach others fail to teach themselves: those who preach against stealing—do they steal? Against adultery—do they commit it? Who abhor idols—do they rob temples? Who boast in the law—do they dishonor God by breaking it? As Scripture says, God’s name is blasphemed among the Gentiles because of them. Steve explains that blasphemy here refers to people seeing hypocrisy in those who condemn others while doing the same things, causing outsiders to speak against God. He notes that over his 84 years, he has heard non-believers refuse to join the church because they see hypocrisy—people teaching one thing but living another. Hypocrisy comes from the Greek term for play-acting in ancient theater, where actors wore masks to pretend to be someone else. Hypocrisy means being or pretending to be something one is not. People accuse the church of hypocrisy when members condemn sins they themselves commit, making outsiders say the church teaches one thing but does not live it.

Steve concludes that God’s name is blasphemed among Gentiles because of such hypocrisy. Time has ended, so the class will pick up next week with circumcision. He assigns study using a chain-reference Bible and lists key verses: Deuteronomy 10:16, Deuteronomy 30:6, Jeremiah 4:4, and Colossians 2:11. These will be discussed in detail next time. He thanks everyone, and the class ends.