| 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. |
| —Romans 2:6-7 |
“If only I can be good enough, I will get into heaven.” Having dropped that statement into a somewhat lengthy conversation, my acquaintance turned and started to quickly walk away.
“Where in the world did you get that idea?” I shouted after him.
“It’s in the Bible,” he replied. “In the Book of Romans.”
I must confess to you that I was flabbergasted. In the Bible? No! It couldn’t be. Not possible. So, of course, as soon as I could, I grabbed my Bible and started to quickly review the content of this most important writing of the Apostle Paul.
The Book of Romans was written to the fledgling Christians gathered at the seat of the Roman government. It was a congregation that Paul had not yet had the opportunity to visit. So, in his letter to them, Paul provided the details of the Christian faith. In so doing, Paul laid the groundwork for all scholars of the written Word of God who would follow him.
Suddenly, as I read through the first chapter and on to the second chapter of the Book of Romans, I came upon these verses found in Romans 2:6-7:
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.
Standing alone and without the benefit of context, it does appear that good works play an important part in eternal life. But, as with all Scripture, one must look at the context. The context resides in the latter half of the first chapter of the Book of Romans, where Paul declares:
For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes: first to the Jew, then to the Gentile.
For in the gospel the righteousness of God is revealed—a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: “The righteous will live by faith.”
The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of people, who suppress the truth by their wickedness, since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them.
For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse.
For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened. Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like a mortal human being and birds and animals and reptiles.
Therefore God gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts to sexual impurity for the degrading of their bodies with one another. They exchanged the truth about God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator—who is forever praised. Amen.
Because of this, God gave them over to shameful lusts. Even their women exchanged natural sexual relations for unnatural ones. In the same way the men also abandoned natural relations with women and were inflamed with lust for one another. Men committed shameful acts with other men, and received in themselves the due penalty for their error.
Furthermore, just as they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, so God gave them over to a depraved mind, so that they do what ought not to be done. They have become filled with every kind of wickedness, evil, greed and depravity.
They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit and malice. They are gossips, slanderers, God-haters, insolent, arrogant and boastful; they invent ways of doing evil; they disobey their parents; they have no understanding, no fidelity, no love, no mercy.
Although they know God’s righteous decree that those who do such things deserve death, they not only continue to do these very things but also approve of those who practice them.
Picking up from this theme of godlessness, Paul then continues in chapter two of the Book of Romans, thusly:
You, therefore, have no excuse, you who pass judgment on someone else, for at whatever point you judge another, you are condemning yourself, because you who pass judgment do the same things.
Now we know that God’s judgment against those who do such things is based on truth. So when you, a mere human being, pass judgment on them and yet do the same things, do you think you will escape God’s judgment?
Or do you show contempt for the riches of his kindness, forbearance and patience, not realizing that God’s kindness is intended to lead you to repentance?
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 repay each person according to what they have done.” [Note: Here Paul quotes from Psalm 62:12 and Proverbs 24:12]
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.
The main thrust of this featured passage found in Romans 2:6-7, as quoted above, is that God is a rewarder of all who respond to His love by emulating His goodness and righteousness. God does not play “favorites”—He does not show favoritism. There are no “elites” in the Kingdom of God. We are all sinners—saved by the mercy, grace, and love of God, through His precious Son, Jesus, and Jesus’ sacrificial death on the cross. Good works—said another way, true “godly works”—will flow out of us in response to the love God has shown toward us.
Our good works do not secure our salvation. No, they punctuate our salvation as a natural outgrowth of our response to what the writer of the Book of Hebrews calls: “so great salvation.” (Hebrews 2:3)
As we begin this new day, let’s remember that our desire to do good in the world comes as a response to the goodness of God that He has chosen to pour out on us both freely and in abundance. Having received this great outpouring of God’s mercy, grace, and love, let us strive to share His love with all who cross our pathway—this day and every day.
Based on a blog originally posted on Friday, October 13, 2017
