Romans 2:17-24 (NIV)
Now you, if you call yourself a Jew; if you rely on the law and brag about your relationship to God; if you know his will and approve of what is superior because you are instructed by the law; if you are convinced that you are a guide for the blind, a light for those who are in the dark, an instructor of the foolish, a teacher of infants, because you have in the law the embodiment of knowledge and truth–you, then, who teach others, do you not teach yourself? You who preach against stealing, do you steal? You who say that people should not commit adultery, do you commit adultery? You who abhor idols, do you rob temples? You who brag about the law, do you dishonor God by breaking the law? As it is written: “God’s name is blasphemed among the Gentiles because of you.”
It might seem to some that Paul is being too harsh on the Jews here. But he is drawing his central thesis very clearly, the thesis which he first stated in Romans 2:9-13. That thesis is that salvation cannot be found by converting to Judaism, because the Jews are just as lost, just as unrighteous before God as the gentiles. And they have far less excuse for it, because they have had the oracles of God for centuries.
Paul points out here many of the typical Jewish responses to the gospel:
- I am one of God’s chosen people, and I know His law.
- I can show the ignorant what God requires, because I myself have been educated in the law.
- Because I have the light of the law, I am not only NOT lost, I can be an effective guide for all who are lost.
- As I follow the law, others can learn righteousness by watching me.
- Therefore, I don’t accept that I need Jesus. I am one of God’s people, and I have and follow the law. That’s good enough for God!
But the problem with this philosophy as Paul himself knows through his own personal experience, is that the externals of following the law can easily cover up corruption of the heart – a corruption that prevents the most educated Jew from being able to effectively follow the law from the heart.
In the next several verses, Paul strives to put a finger on the hypocrisy that lies at the true heart of all self-made holy people. They may be good at pointing out the speck of sawdust in someone else’s eye and be quick to offer their help in enlightenment and in getting it out, but they refuse to acknowledge the beam that is protruding from their own eye, making it impractical, if not impossible, for them to be of any real help in finding true righteousness.
Keep in mind here that Paul is not trying to be either cruel or controversial in this depiction. He merely knows from his own journey that self-righteousness is far from the real thing, and only puts up roadblocks between the self-righteous person and the Savior who can make them genuinely holy.
Father, it is not just the Jewish people of Paul’s day who can get sucked into the trap of self-righteousness. There are many today who have been around the Church for decades without surrendering to Jesus. They have learned the outer behaviors and forms to the point that they consider themselves in fine spiritual shape and capable of leading others in Your ways. What is needed is deep self-inspection and humility before You so that they can see themselves as You see them, as they truly are. It is only by dying to our own self, no matter how righteous we consider our own self to be, that we can receive new life from You. It is only as we confess our inability to make ourselves acceptable in Your sight that we can be made genuinely holy and righteous. Help us always to keep a humble, meek, and teachable spirit before You, Lord. Amen.