Romans 2:5-11 (NIV)
But because of your stubbornness and your unrepentant heart, you are storing up wrath against yourself for the day of God’s wrath, when his righteous judgment will be revealed. God “will give to each person according to what he has done.” To those who by persistence in doing good seek glory, honor and immortality, he will give eternal life. But for those who are self-seeking and who reject the truth and follow evil, there will be wrath and anger. There will be trouble and distress for every human being who does evil: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile; but glory, honor and peace for everyone who does good: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile. For God does not show favoritism.
There are three “bombshells” in this paragraph; ways of thinking about God and how He relates to mankind that would have shocked Paul’s readers. The first is that, even though God does not always punish sin and evil during a person’s lifetime, He does not forget that punishment is due. He is storing up wrath that will be delivered in the next life when the great judgment takes place. (See also Revelation 20:11-15.)
The second is that the basis of God’s judgment of people at the end of time will not be what people profess or believe, but their actions. In support of this, Paul quotes from Psalm 62:12 and Proverbs 24:12. But this truth is also threaded throughout Jesus’ teachings (for example, Matthew 7:21), and is clearly seen by John at the great white throne judgment as reported in Revelation 20:12-13.
This is not a legalistic interpretation at all. Instead, it is very logical. The fact is, anyone can profess to believe in anything that they don’t really believe or commit to, whether from tradition or for expediency. But a person’s actions demonstrate very clearly what is truly in their heart. For example, a husband may profess undying love and loyalty to his wife. But if he is unfaithful to her, his actions disprove his words, and show how he really feels about her.
The third bombshell is the clear statement, repeated twice in quick succession, that in the judgment to come, the Jews will have no advantage over the gentiles. In fact, Paul’s final statement that God does not show favoritism flies directly in the face of what many people, especially the Jews, believed at the time.
Many of the Jews saw themselves as specially favored by God simply by virtue of their bloodline, being descendants of Abraham. But John the Baptist began deconstructing that argument when he first came on the scene (Luke 3:7-9). And Jesus Himself continued the deconstruction, openly accusing the Pharisees and teachers of the law, the most “religious” of the Jewish people, of actions and attitudes that left them condemned before God (Matthew 23). When people stand before the throne of God for judgment, the ground will be absolutely level, and the same standards of righteousness and holiness will be applied equally to both Jew and gentile, male and female, younger and older, because that standard is rooted in God’s very character, in His very being.
Father, it is not only the Jews of Paul’s day who have misplaced confidence in the saving power of their heritage on judgment day. There are plenty of people who attend churches whose profession of faith does not match their actions. And there are also those who do not have a relationship with You through Jesus, and who rely on their heritage, the fact that their parents or grandparents had a strong faith and were “pillars of the church”. But You are very clear throughout Your word that at Your throne it is not what we profess with our lips that will be the deciding factor, nor is it our family connections and genetics. It will be our everyday actions and attitudes that show clearly what is really in our hearts. Help us, Lord, to truly surrender ourselves to you, so that You can work powerfully in us to purify our hearts and mold our inner lives, so that our fruit, our actions, clearly demonstrate our relationship with Jesus and our reliance on You, bringing You glory when we stand before You. Amen.