Romans – Chapter 3

For by works of the law no human being will be justified in his sight, since through the law comes knowledge of sin. But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, although the Law and the Prophets bear witness to it Romans 3:20-21 – Understandably this would be a hard message for an audience that came from a Jewish background to hear. Paul is telling them that a life of following the Law will not make one right before God. Following the Law was the heartbeat of the Jewish faith yet here Paul is telling them that the part of their faith life they trusted to provide them entrance into Heaven did not do what they hoped it would, in fact it did the opposite. While the message in the first verse was the Law provided no righteousness or justification for the sinner, Paul brings the joy in the second verse by revealing those needs were met in a way outside the Law. In the following verse Paul shares that this means of righteousness and justification now comes through faith in Jesus Christ. It’s sometimes hard to accept that our best efforts add nothing to the redemptive plan of our life. Our believing we are earning our salvation by our abundance of good works separates us from God. No law can save us, no amount of faithful deeds on our part can save us, only Jesus can. As we’ve worked through many of Paul’s letters, this seems to be a truth he continually reminds the church. Why then do you think the Lord is reminding you of this today? How might have you fallen back into the rut of trying to earn God’s favor and forgiveness? Settle in your mind again today that it is the work and life of Jesus alone that brings us the rescue from our sin. Let that truth then as well shape the way you praise the Lord with your life. I love you, but Jesus loves you more – Mac – Daily DEVO 3426

Do we then overthrow the law by this faith? By no means! On the contrary, we uphold the law. Romans3:31 – We receive God’s grace and salvation through faith in Jesus, not by a strict obedience to the law. It can then be easy to think the law has no value in this new life we have with God, but as scripture clearly lays out it does. God’s commands He gave us through scripture need to play key roles in our daily life. They allow us to known how to honor Him with our life. They allow us to understand what is acceptable in God’s eyes and what isn’t. The commands show us how we can find intimacy with our Savior. They also help us share the truth of the Gospel to those who need to hear it. So while yes, we are saved through faith, the commands of God can’t be something we just set aside. They help us know how to exist in an honoring way with our Heavenly Father and help us share the message of life with others. Be careful then to avoid a mindset that as a Christian you don’t need to care about the laws and commands of God because you have Jesus. I love you, but Jesus loves you more – Mac – Daily DEVO 1051

But if through my lie God’s truth abounds to his glory, why am I still being condemned as a sinner? ⁸And why not do evil that good may come?—as some people slanderously charge us with saying. Their condemnation is just. Romans 3:7-8 – A unique charge is coming again Paul. Some are claiming that he is teaching people to continue to remain in their sin because our sinfulness reveals just how sinless and perfect our God is. That, in a strange way, we shouldn’t be condemned and punished for our sin because a result of our sin is God’s glory and the world is able to see just how perfect our God is. Paul quickly shuts down this claim of false teaching. It though is a solid question…if my sinning does show just how powerful and perfect God is, why should I stop sinning? Shouldn’t I just kept sinning and God keep forgiving so the world can see just how able our God is to save? Paul himself even asked this question in chapter six. (Romans 6:1-2 – What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound? ²By no means! How can we who died to sin still live in it?) We who are followers of Jesus must remember what sin is and what our relationship to sin is now because of Jesus. Sin is what disconnected us from God in the first place and we are dead to sin now because of Jesus. A following of Jesus while remaining in our sin is like a person sleeping every night by a corpse. Our connection and relationship to sin is dead, and while God’s glory is revealed through His ability to save us from our sin, how much more will His glory be displayed by His followers remaining free from sin and proclaiming His goodness all their days! If then you are a follower of Jesus, sinning is going to happen, but it shouldn’t be our story anymore. Take steps today to cut out any strongholds sin still has so we can faithfully walk after the Lord. I love you, but Jesus loves you more – Mac – Daily DEVO 2412