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by Howard Watson
In verses 1 -11 the Apostle states
that even though Jews may not accept Christ Jesus, they were the
ones to whom God gave the Torah law of Moses (the oracles of God).
They had received circumcision as sign of the privilege of bearing
the covenant name of Israel. Yet, it was one thing to receive the
Torah law and another thing to obey it. To make their religion a
living reality, they needed to share in the faith of Abraham who
believed God would provide a lamb of sacrifice instead of his son,
and would fulfill the promise of a nation and land to those of his
family who would trust in God/Jehovah .
In verse 5 God takes vengeance upon
sin in judgment of all who sin, both Jews and Gentiles. Verses nine
through eleven state that all, Jew or Gentile, are guilty of missing
the mark of righteousness in sinning.
In verses 12-18 the fallen condition
of the sinner, both Jew and Gentile, is marked by foul, ungodly
speech, bitter fightings in anger against each other, and irreverence
towards God. Sinners, whether Jew or Gentile, are equally condemned.
Verses 19 -31
In verse nineteen we see that all people, those under the Law of
Moses or without the Law of Moses, are found guilty of disobedience
to God's standard of law. No one can truly say they have kept the
Law without sin. In Galatians, chapters three and four, the Apostle
Paul strongly declares that the just shall live by faith: "Now
that no one is justified by the Law before God is evident..."
(3:11 NIV). There are two points to be made here. First: no one
except Jesus has kept the Law perfectly without trespassing its
requirements of holiness; second: once sin has occurred the Law
is powerless to redeem the sin of the sinner.
Therefore redemption must come from outside of the sinner's lost
condition. A sinner must come by faith in the work of another person,
Jesus Christ. In verse twenty-two, Paul writes: "Even the righteousness
of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them
that believe...."
In verse 26 God is the just ("dikaios,
dike", right, just) justifier of those who believe ("pisteos
from pisteuo" to be fully persuaded with committed trust) on
Jesus Christ. In the same way, God is the justifier of those who
were under the Law (Jews) and those without the Law of Moses (Gentiles),
verses twenty-seven through thirty-one. The requirements of the
Law are, therefore, met in Jesus Christ, who took the penalty of
our sins upon Himself and paid our sins' debt as required by the
Law. The Law is thereby fully established/met.
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