Stand Strong in the Word

#319 "God Does Not Play Favorites” (Romans 2:5-11)

• Jason Jimenez

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Have you ever noticed how quick we are to demand justice for others but show mercy to ourselves? In Romans 2:5–11, Paul directly addresses that double standard. He reminds us that God’s judgment isn’t based on status or reputation but judges every person by the same righteous standard. Today, we’ll see that God doesn’t play favorites in His judgment of us all.

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SPEAKER_00:

Have you ever noticed how quick we are to demand justice for others but show mercy to ourselves? Romans chapter 2, 5 through 11, all directly dresses that double standard. It reminds us that God's judgment isn't based on his status or reputation, but judges every person by the same righteous standard. Today we'll see that God isn't playing favorites in his judgment of us all. Turn to Romans chapter 2 and let's stand strong in the word together. And last time, when we were exploring chapter two, I kind of got ahead of myself thinking that we are going to be able to take on 14 verses, but we stopped at verse four, and now we're going to be looking at verses five through 11. And the title is God Does Not Play Favorites. And my friends, that is so important because you have religions out there that says, We know God, you don't, whatever their version of God is, but we know there's only one true God. And the God of the Bible, the God who's revealed himself through his creation and through special revelation and the inspired word of God. We have 66 books from Genesis to Revelation, and God reveals who he is through the pages of his word as he spoke through the 40 different authors, these prophets and these apostles, who not only laid out prophetically in God's timeline, but also ushering in the Messiah, Jesus Christ, the second person in the Trinity. And so on on this podcast, we are all about focusing on his word, and his word is true and it's unbreakable. And so as we explore this passage today, we have to understand that God's judgments are impartial, that they are absolute, that they're infinite. That is so comforting to know that God is in charge. He is not throwing out his resume, he's not looking for something better, he's not going to be ousted, he doesn't have to run for re-election. God is God, period, from the famous theologian A.W. Pink. That's the definition. And I encourage you to even read the book Knowing God by J.I. Packer to explore some of these things because they're just so rich with truth. And it teaches not only us, it not only teaches us who God is, but through that, as we understand our Maker, our Creator, we understand ourselves even better. So I encourage you as we dive in, if you've missed any previous podcasts, to check those things out so you can get the proper context of what we have been learning. But let me just highlight a few things to give you kind of like an outline as we then dive into chapter uh two, verses five through 11. When you look at this whole unified argument, if you will, and it starts really back in chapter one, verses 18, and it goes all the way into chapter three, verse 20. So I want to give you that overview in the proper context of where chapter two finds itself. In our particular segment from last podcast to today, podcast three one nine, is God's impartial judgment against moralists. And you remember, Paul starts using a figure that he imagines, if you will, having this open debate about what his audiences, the Jewish people, would be saying in response, including even Gentile moralists. And then what what what Paul does is he then will transition after verse 16 into verse 17 through 29 and talking about God's true covenant, of how he defines his people inwardly, not externally. That's where you get religiosity. Then he gets into the universality, the universality of sin and justification by faith, which again, verses 22 through verse 26 of chapter 3 is just rich with the atonement, the imputation of Christ, justification by faith. But for our purposes today, if you look specifically at what we're going to be covering today, is he's going to be talking about this accumulated wrath through this unrepentance. And he's shifting from, remember, the depravity of the Gentile to the Jewish moral superiority. So let that sink in. And all people are going to be judged, no matter their deeds, no matter their ethnicity, their nationality, their background, their knowledge, their status, their privilege, who they were born from, what their last name is. The principle that we're going to be seeing today is retribution. And we're, and that's something that I want you guys to really, as we go into this passage today, to let this really speak to your heart. So with that being said, let's let's go back to verse one, and then I'll read up to verse 11. It says, Therefore you have no excuse, O man. Every one of you who judges, for in passing judgment on another, you condemn yourself because you, the judge, practice the very same things. We know that the judgment of God rightly falls on those who practice such things. Do you suppose, O man, you who judge those who practice such things, and yet do them yourself, that you will escape the judgment of God? Or do you presume on the riches of his kindness and forbearance and patience, not knowing that God's kindness is meant to lead you to repentance? But because of your hard and impotent heart, you are storing up wrath for yourself on the day of wrath, when God's righteous judgment will be revealed. He will render to each one according to his works, to those who by patience and well-doing seek for glory and honor and immortality, he will give eternal life. But for those who are self-seeking and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, there will be wrath and fury. There will be tribulation and distress for every human being who does evil, the Jew first and also the Greek. But glory and honor, peace for everyone who does good, the Jew first and also the Greek, for God shows no partiality. So the second thing that we have to understand here from what we talked about previously, let me just remind you, when you go back to verses one through four, one of the first things that Paul wants to get in our minds for us to understand in this case is that God's judgment, there's temporal judgment, but there's the finality, and no one can escape that judgment. And that judgment is pure and righteous. And remember, through that, before the judgment comes, if you will, there's God's kindness. That's his benevolence and action, his forbearance, his patience toward us. So when you are finally judged, we can't say, Well, God, you didn't do anything about this. You just let me fail. You're just a vengeful, evil, cosmic being that doesn't deserve to be worshipped. Well, that guys, by definition, that is not God. And so we can play those games, but that's what Paul's talking about is before this happens, God is causing, you know, he's moving on us and trying to get us to pay attention to his mercies. So the second thing now with that is he's going to talk about God's impartiality, meaning when he does execute, when retribution does happen, it is absolute, it is infinite, but it's done with impartiality. Now we have to understand in the context here is this hard and impotent heart because we so often, especially the skeptic, focuses on quote, the nature of God and how it contradicts and his character so nasty, he's malevolent. We have to look at the sin of man. And Paul describes the Jews to be very stubborn. And Paul uses a very interesting Greek word here, scleratita in English, where we get the word sclerosis. And it it's like him talking about this resistance or possessing a perverse or unyielding attitude. One of the commentaries in defining this root term here in Greek, and how we use it, you know, obviously the English medical term, sclerosis, he says, is used in arterosclerosis, which describes the condition of hardening of the arteries. And so this physical hardening is a perfect picture of the spiritual condition of a heart that has become unresponsive and insensitive to God. That is key. And yet, even in that condition, even in the hardening of the heart, God is calling people to repentance. And so the most famous that we know of the hardening of the heart is Pharaoh. And it wasn't that God was the one that says, okay, I'm going to inject this and I'm going to destroy you, and I'm going to harden your heart. I'm just going to wipe you out. No, so God says, okay, you don't want what I'm telling you that you need. And I'm using Moses and these miracles, and yet you stubbornly continue to reject because in time, just as the arteriosclerosis, meaning this building up in, you know, this uh of stuff in your of your arteries that eventually hardens your arteries and then you know you could die, it's this process, right? It builds up. And that's what Pharaoh, time and time and time again, with the miracles, right? The ten plagues, his heart kept getting hardened. And he wasn't truly repentant. But he always tried to find a way to outdo Moses in a way of saying, My gods are better. And as long as he could try to tell himself that, there was no need for him to acknowledge the one true God. And that's what Paul is saying here with this hard and impotent heart. Not only that, but he's also using uncircumcised language here in verse five as a picture, as a way to emphasize that the Jews who rejected the Messiah are not the beneficiaries of this new covenant because the Holy Spirit is not dwelling within them. So they are completely lost. And as a result of that, when he says that your hardened impotent heart, you are storing up for yourself. Notice, storing up. So as you're building up a hardened heart, you are in the process of storing up for yourself wrath. And this is a picture of a great reservoir. So here you have a picture of a medical term of someone who is on the verge of dying because their arteries, if you will, are clogging up. And we also have a picture of a great reservoir, is that you are filling up, your life is filling up with God's wrath to come. And so what Paul is saying is that God, though, is long-suffering towards us, but there comes a point as God in this process, right, is withholding his judgment so you can learn lessons, whatever they may be, to come back to him. But there comes a point where God says, okay, enough is enough. Just like if you're a parent listening, you know when you say to your child, enough is enough. They have to, and this is a sad reality, but they have to learn. We always use that simple analogy of, you know, they tap the stove and it hurts really bad, and they cry, you know, and you comfort them, but you say, What did you learn? Will you do that again? Of course not, because your body tells you that's very painful. Don't do that again. And the sad reality is that those who reject God are storing for themselves the coming wrath. But along the way, God in his love and grace and mercy is saying, Don't continue to harden your heart. Because there will be a future day when my wrath will be poured out upon the world. You see this in Isaiah 13, Zephaniah 1, verse 15, 1 Thessalonians chapter 1, verse 10. So then he says to build off of this in verse 5 and verse 6, he says, I will render to each one according to his works. This is amazing. Paul is using Psalm 62, verse 12, along with Proverbs 24, verse 12. So he's taking these two passages in the Old Testament. This is something that we see that was addressed in the Jewish scriptures, and he uses them to demonstrate that God in his judgment acts righteously, and that yes, the receipts, you guys, they're coming in. And so everybody who has made the case and have argued against God all of these years, the day will come, he's got his receipts, and no one is going to be able to disprove God. Not one now. This word render is apo didomi in the Greek, and it literally means to pay back to repay. So rather than on the side of grace, when God says, and and remember, this is a powerful terminology that's used, is that Christ will return and he has his reward in hand. You could see this, everybody will receive their praise from God in 1 Corinthians 4, 5. You also see the the wood, hay stubble versus precious stones in 1 Corinthians chapter 3, depending on if it's built on the foundation, which is Christ. That's the whole thing that Paul makes the case. And when you look at the parables of the good steward, they will be repaid back how they steward what God had given them, how they invested the talent. But there's also this rendering of judgment as you're storing it up, that that will be repaid to you. And the finality of somebody who rejects the gospel is eternity being separated from God. And so this word implies an obligation, a responsibility, if you will, to pay back a debt. And so Paul teaches that works serve as proof of an individual's heart and spiritual condition, and that in his righteous judgment, that is God who is judge, a righteous judge, he will repay. That's the word when God will judge you of your actions, each one according to his works, there is a repayment both for Jews and Gentiles, and that's going to be based on the evidence of their works. And Paul's not arguing that a person can be saved from sin or God's wrath solely based on merit. So we got to understand that all these religions out there, they know that there's a guilty conscience. They know that there's a God out there. We saw that in Romans chapter 1. So what they do is with this false, with their false idols, they lead to false worship, which is false religions. Thinking that that's going to atone for their sin to evade the wrath of God. But no, God will render. The payment is due. And the sad reality, those who do not have Christ, there's no payment. So you guys, we have to understand, and I'm pleading with any of you listening to this podcast, there's no way to escape the punishment from your sin. There's no good deed that you can do to atone for it. It's only in Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, to confess him as your Lord and Savior. So God, He judges the works that are done from a wicked heart. He doesn't give anyone a reprieve, but each person will face the pure and honest judgment for their beliefs and their actions. Because you were given freedom. You were given free will. But notice in verse 7, it says to those who by practice and well-doing seek for glory and honor in immortality, you will give eternal life. So now these two points in verse 6 and 7 is building from verse 5. And so in recognition of God's impending judgment, Paul goes on to describe the two groups of people, those motivated by their relationship with God and those whose actions are driven by disobedience. And this is something he'll, you know, lean in on all the way to verse 10. But I want to point out a phrase he says here in verse 7 about while doing, so those who by patience in well-doing. Again, Paul's not arguing that a person can achieve eternal life by their good works. In fact, I like what the New Bible commentary said. Quote, Paul's purpose at this point is not to show how people can be saved, but to set forth the standards of God's evaluation apart from the gospel. These standards are the same for everyone, whether they be Jews or Gentiles, black or white, end quote. So in other words, our actions or our choices, if you will, lead to consequences. And this is something that Paul talked about in Galatians chapter 6, verses 7 through 8. That you reap what you sow. In fact, if you missed that study, we have that here on the podcast. So I encourage you guys to check that out. So choosing God's path will give you a life worth living. Alternatively, following your own path will lead to facing the consequences. Doing good alone doesn't earn eternal life. However, those who trust in God's promise will naturally do good and they will honor him. That's what Paul's saying. Now in verse 8, he contrasts that by those who are seeking their own way, they're self-seeking. They don't obey the truth. They don't obey what God has set forth because they're living an unrighteous life. Again, this is language he used back in Romans chapter 1. So these ungodly people, what they have chosen is a life of rebellion, specifically against God. They don't want to live according to his standards. Remember that they rejected him. They suppressed the truth. They didn't want to worship God, so they want to go worship something else. So they make their own idols. They want to live in strife with God. This word self-seeking is also can be translated as self-ambition. It comes from the Greek word etha to be extremely contentious or selfish. So get this in context, let's look at it. But for those who are in constant conflict and are contentious, do not obey the truth. Isn't that interesting? It's the same language that's being used back in Romans 1 that Paul employs is employing here now. Is they're they're just they're in turmoil with God. They're at war with God, if you will. And not only that, but as I look deeper to this Greek word, the language that Paul's using here in Romans 2.8, it's almost like this description of a person who only cares about their own interests and will challenge anyone who opposes them. So that's what they're doing. They're opposing God. Isn't that interesting? I live in the apologetic space. And when you encounter somebody who makes objections, I love them, want to respect them, want to be patient. Now, if they just want to argue and cut you off and they're they're being belligerent, then you can't have a conversation, whether it's about religion or politics or a movie, it's pointless. Just pray for them, say this conversation's over. Love you. When you're willing to cool down, we'll have a conversation. But when you have somebody who is who's always like fighting against the truth, and it's never good enough. Why? It's because ultimately, you guys, who are they fighting against? Who who are they raising their fist against? God. Even though they may say they don't believe in God, but notice the passion, the vitriol, notice how many people spend their life try trying to debunk something they believe doesn't exist. And so people who fit this description, if you look through the course of scripture, Cain comes to mind, somebody who was self-seeking, Esau comes to mind, Saul comes to mind. And what we have to understand is that what Paul's getting at, and this is also what's interesting, is I dug a little bit deeper into this Greek term, this word eventually started to be used in terms of mercenary, a hired person. And a mercenary again has no loyalty. So if you're not loyal to God, you're not loyal to anything. And that's sad. And that's the point that Paul's trying to make here with this hard and impotent heart of somebody who will receive the judgment based on their actions, and in this case they're not obeying the truth, but instead they're obeying unrighteousness. Now notice the fourth point here that Paul's building off of from verse five. He says in verse nine, there will be tribulation and distress for every human being who does evil, the Jew first and also the Greek. But glory, verse 10, and honor at peace for everyone who does good, the Jew first and also the Greek. So remember, we have the two contrasted aspects, and then you see him taking that in verse nine and combining them. So he's mentioning these two groups again. You got believers and you got unbelievers. But what he does is so interesting in Greek because what he does is he puts them in reverse order. So he repeats this to convey the fear and anguish of God's wrath, as well as his mercy toward those who seek to live according to his truth and obedience. So he says, the Jew first and also the Greek. I like what the believers' Bible commentary says, quote, the expression to the Jew first and also to the Greek cannot indicate favoritism because the next verse points out that God's judgment is impartial. So the expression must indicate the historical order in which the gospel went out, as in verse 16 of chapter 1. It was proclaimed first to Jews, and the first believers were what? Were Jews. Now, Zane Hodges says this, quote, with good rhetorical effect, Paul here accumulates terms that serve to elaborate and underline his original word wrath back in chapter 1, verse 18. And in verse 8, the additional word is the synonym anger thumos. And in verse 9, the phrase anger and wrath is replaced by the explicative phrase tribulation and distress. So all of these words, of course, are expressive of the present experience of mankind as it lives sinfully under the cloud of divine displeasure. Let me boil it down like this. There is deep down the knowledge that God is who he is. The person suppresses that. So there's a level of God's judgment through just consequences of sin. But then they know that they're under this cloud of divine pleasure, as Zayn Hodges puts it. And then I want to end with this final verse when Paul says all this, and he says in verse 11, for God shows no partiality. It literally means to accept the look of the person. What does this mean? If that's how it's kind of rendered in the Greek, because he has this plan on words in the Greek of pros opon, which is face and lampano, receive. So he's saying, for God shows no partiality, literally, God accepts the look of the person. He knows the heart of the person. What do we think of? We think of David. So God sees us completely. That's what he's saying. When he says God shows no partiality, God sees us completely. There's nothing about us that God isn't aware of. Although Jews and Gentiles may live different lives and God's actions towards them may vary. But even in that relationship, you can say, well, it's unfair because God did this for the Jews. It's not unfair. God shows no partiality. It's how we respond. Notice the contrast he just gave. Notice the consequences when you obey God, you live in peace and you're forgiven. When you disobey God and you live in unrighteousness, there's consequences of sin and bondage. Because every time you do that, you're not living according to his standards. You're not living according to his divine decree. And as a loving father, he has perfectly carried out his decrees, truth, and judgments. And he's done it impartially, whether it's a Jew or a Gentile, God shows no favorites. God doesn't have favorites. This is something that the half brother Jesus James goes into in great detail in chapter two of his little letter. So to wrap things up, God shows no favorites. Each person will receive his payment, whether it's in the Lord or it's not in the Lord. God doesn't play favorites, God's love cannot be purchased, cannot be bought, he cannot be bribed because he is God. And his love is eternal, and his justice, my friends, is righteous. So just listening to this passage today, if you feel that your life is not where it should be, ask God right now to forgive you of your sins, and maybe re-listen to this podcast, maybe go back and listen to different books that we've covered and just explore it and learn the richness of God's word so you can learn how to stand strong in it. But let me just say this in closing if you are a person who's curious and you're on a you're on a journey and you're trying to figure things out and you just don't know if Jesus Christ is who he says it is, I encourage you to go check out our website, standstrongministries.org. We have tons of resources there, books that I've written, videos, articles to help you confront who Jesus is. Or maybe I just put it this way there's the there's the case for Christianity that is on our website to help you. And if you have some specific questions or prayer requests, you can always contact us by emailing us at infostandstrawn ministries.org. And let me just say this I appreciate the many faithful listeners and people that support this ministry. If you've been listening and this is helping you grow in your faith, we are a nonprofit ministry. Standstraw Ministries exist to help people stand strong in their faith with wise thinking and bold living. And so if this has contributed uh in in any way to help you grow in your faith, I would love for you to prayerfully consider becoming a stand strong supporter. And you can do that by going to standstrawministries.org, clicking on the donate button. It's all tax exempt. We have online security. We are not sharing your information. It's all private, but you know, my friends, that we need more Christians standing strong in their faith, understanding God's word, because there's so many Christians who are biblically illiterate. So with your support, with your prayers, with you coming alongside, sharing this podcast, leaving us reviews to continue to help reach more people, that's what it's all about. So I appreciate your guys' love. Until next time, keep standing strong in the Word of God.