Lessons #67 and 68
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+ 1. It is best to use this note after you have listened to the lessons because there are +
+ comments given in the actual delivery not in the note. +
+ 2. The Bible abbreviations are as follows: CEV =Contemporary English version, +
+ CEB = Common English Bible, ESV= English Standard Version, +
+ GW = God’s Word, ISV = International Standard Version, +
+ NAB=New American Bible, NASB= New American Standard Bible, +
+ NEB= New English Bible, NET = New English Translation, +
+ NLT = New Living Translations NJB = New Jerusalem Bible, +
+ NJV = New Jewish Bible, TEV = Today’s English Version. +
+AMP = Amplified Bible, UBS = United Bible Society +
+ HCSB = Holman Christian Standard Bible +
+ 3. Notes have not been edited for grammatical errors. +
+ 4. Text is based on 1984 edition of the NIV +
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Law and conscience affect God’s judgment (Rom 2:14-16)
14 (Indeed, when Gentiles, who do not have the law, do by nature things required by the law, they are a law for themselves, even though they do not have the law, 15 since they show that the requirements of the law are written on their hearts, their consciences also bearing witness, and their thoughts now accusing, now even defending them.) 16 This will take place on the day when God will judge men’s secrets through Jesus Christ, as my gospel declares.
In our introduction to this section, we indicated that it is concerned with two subjects. The first is the law as it related to Gentiles and the second is the conscience. Consequently, we stated a message of the section as God’s judgment of unbelievers is just because they are capable of demonstrating the existence of His law within them and because of their possession of conscience. We considered the first four problems of the interpretation of the section we are considering in our last study. In the course of this, we interpreted that when the apostle wrote the verbal phrase of Romans 2:14 do by nature things required by the law, he meant that people instinctively know what is right or wrong and so would sometimes do what is right. Furthermore, we indicated the apostle stated two implications of people instinctively knowing and doing what is right. The first implication of people instinctively knowing and doing what is right is that they fulfill the law although they do not have God’s righteous requirements in written form. The second implication of people instinctively knowing and doing what is right is that they provide practical proof of the existence of the law within their hearts. This implication is derived from the first clause of Romans 2:15 since they show that the requirements of the law are written on their hearts. It is with the phrase written on their hearts that we ended our last study and so we continue with the rest of our exposition of the section.
The message of the section of Romans 2:14-16 that we are considering, as we stated previously, is that God’s judgment of unbelievers is just because they are capable of demonstrating the existence of His law within them and because of their possession of conscience. The message is because we stated that the section is concerned with two subjects: law as it related to Gentiles and conscience. We have considered the first subject that is concerned with law as it relates to Gentiles that do not have the Torah or written word of God, so we proceed to consider the second subject, that is, conscience, especially, as it pertains to Gentiles.
Our consideration of the subject of conscience is divided into two parts. The first part is concerned with the functions of conscience and the second is with the confirmation of conscience on judgment day. There are three functions of conscience that are given in the passage we are studying. The first is that of bearing witness to a person. It is this that is stated in the sentence of Romans 2:15 their consciences also bearing witness. This sentence presents the fifth problem of interpretation of the section we are considering. In effect, the problem is tantamount to how to interpret what the apostle meant in the sentence. To begin with, the word also does not appear in the Greek text but added in the NIV, the ESV, the TEV, among many others. The Greek literally reads their conscience bearing witness with. The insertion of the word also suggests that the apostle had in mind a Greek word (kai) that if given the meaning “also” would suggest that it marks something added to what has already been said, or that of which something already said holds good. In our context, it will imply that the conscience confirms that the law is written in the hearts or minds of Gentiles, that is, made a part of their thinking. Other interpreters take the use of the word “also” to imply that the apostle gave three witnesses: the work of the law, the consciences of the Gentiles, and their thoughts when, according to them, there are only two witnesses, the consciences of the Gentiles and their thoughts, and these confirm “the work of the law written on their hearts.” This notwithstanding, we insist that the sentence of Romans 2:15 their consciences also bearing witness is concerned with “conscience” as the second issue the apostle addressed in the section we are considering. Consequently, we stated that there are three functions of conscience that are given in the passage we are studying. The first, as we have stated, is that of bearing witness to a person. Again, it is this function that is stated in the sentence of Romans 2:15 their consciences also bearing witness.
The word “conscience” is translated from a Greek word (syneidēsis) that may mean “consciousness,” that is, “awareness of information about something” as it is used to describe being conscious of God in 1 Peter 2:19:
For it is commendable if a man bears up under the pain of unjust suffering because he is conscious of God.
The translators of the NIV gave the word the meaning “guilty” in translating what the human author of Hebrews said would have happened to those in the OT times that continued animal sacrifice if their sacrifices were adequate to deal with sins as stated in Hebrews 10:2:
If it could, would they not have stopped being offered? For the worshipers would have been cleansed once for all, and would no longer have felt guilty for their sins.
The verbal phrase would no longer have felt guilty for their sins is rendered literal in the LEB as would no longer have any consciousness of sins. In our passage of Romans 2:15, the word means “conscience,” that is, “the psychological faculty that distinguishes between right and wrong.” Thus, the conscience is that capacity of the human mind to look retrospectively at the action of a person and judges it right or wrong. It may also judge a contemplated future action to either encourage going forward with it or refraining from it.
Anyway, the first function of the conscience as it pertains to a person is that of bearing witness to the individual as it relates to what a person does as we read in the sentence of Romans 2:15 their consciences also bearing witness. The expression “bearing witness” is translated from a Greek word (symmartyreō) that appears only three times in the Greek NT, all by Apostle Paul and only in this epistle to the Romans. The word may mean to testify as it is used to describe what the Holy Spirit does to believers to assure them of their salvation as we read in Romans 8:16:
The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children.
The translation The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit is not correct. A better translation is The Spirit himself testifies to our spirit since we cannot join Holy Spirit to testify that we are God’s children. That aside, our Greek word may mean “to confirm” as it is used when Apostle Paul indicated that his conscience under the control of Holy Spirit confirms that he is not lying about what he communicated to the Romans according to Romans 9:1:
I speak the truth in Christ—I am not lying, my conscience confirms it in the Holy Spirit—
In our passage of Romans 2:15, the word means “to support by testimony.” You see, in a court of law, a person is convicted or acquitted because of support of testimony of eyewitnesses to an event. Thus, conscience takes this role of an eyewitness to a person’s action.
Witness or “support by testimony” must have an object, so the question arises as to whom the witness or “support by testimony” is borne? The object of the witness or “support by testimony” is the individual with conscience. Thus, “the support by testimony” or witness is directed to Gentiles themselves. Hence, we are saying that the support by testimony or witness is certainly what takes place inside of a person when the individual is involved in some kind of action. This inward testimony to what a person does leads to the next two functions of conscience as provided in the passage we are studying that involve rendering of judgment regarding a given action.
The second function of the conscience is to condemn an individual if the action taken is wrong. It is this function that is stated in the next sentence of Romans 2:15 and their thoughts now accusing. Literally, the Greek reads and between one another their thoughts accusing. There are two issues to consider: the interpretation of the word “and” and the omitted Greek phrase in the NIV that literally translates between one another.
The word “and” is translated from a Greek word (kai) that is often translated “and” in our English versions as a marker of connection between single words or clauses, but the conjunction has several usages. It may be used as a marker of introduction of a result that comes from what precedes and so may be translated “and then, and so.” It may be used to emphasize a fact as surprising or unexpected or noteworthy, leading to the translation “and yet, and in spite of that, nevertheless.” It may be used as a marker of emphasis where there is a stress on what is said and hence means “indeed, certainly.” It may be used as a marker to indicate an additive relation that is not of equal rank and significance to another clause, in which case, it means “also, likewise.” Still the word may be used as a marker of contrast so that it means “but.” In our passage, it is subjected to two possible interpretations. It could have been used as a marker of explanation of what preceded its use so that it may be translated “that is” or “namely” or it is used as a marker of an additional fact. The first interpretation of explanation implies that the next sentence of Romans 2:15 their thoughts now accusing explains what it means for the conscience to bear witness or to support by testimony. The second interpretation implies that an additional function of the conscience is provided. It is probably a case where both interpretations are applicable. In other words, the sentence that follows is a second function of the conscience, but it also helps to explain what the conscience bearing witness or “support by testimony” means. This leads us to consider the next issue of concern in sentence we are considering.
The next issue we need to consider is the omitted Greek phrase in the NIV that literally translates between one another. The NIV of the sentence we are considering in Romans 2:15 reads and their thoughts now accusing while the literal Greek reads and between one another their thoughts accusing.
The word “between” in the literal translation is translated from a Greek word (metaxy) that may be used as a marker of an interval that separates, say of time, so it means “next” as it is used to describe the invitation extended to Apostles Paul and Barnabas to come back to the synagogue in Pisidian Antioch so the people would hear more what he had to say about Christ that he preached as recorded in Acts 13:42:
As Paul and Barnabas were leaving the synagogue, the people invited them to speak further about these things on the next Sabbath.
The word may be used as “a marker of a reciprocal relation, a difference” and so means “between” or “among” as that is the sense the word is used in Romans 2:15. The expression “one another” in the literal translation is translated from a Greek word (allēlōn) that is a pronoun that marks reciprocation between two persons or groups, so means “each other” or “one another.” The question is how to understand the literal phrase between one another. Bloomfield’s Greek and English Lexicon to the NT suggests that the phrase means “in turn, alternately” while the Exegetical Dictionary of NT says it means “mutually.” Some of our English versions such as the NIV did not translate it but others because of the context, used the meaning “conflicting.” This aside, there are three possible interpretations of the phrase we are considering. The first interpretation is that it refers to the internal debate of a person’s own thoughts. The second interpretation is that it refers to a contrasting process between people, namely, thoughts which people have in their dealing with other people that are either critical of them or in defense of them. The third interpretation is that it is a reference to internal debate of a person’s thoughts that will occur at the last judgment, when believing Gentiles will recognize that their lives fell far short of the perfection demanded by the law, but also that they had believed and had begun to be obedient. We believe that the first interpretation of internal debate taking place within a person’s thought is meant in the literal phrase between one another. It is because of the difference between the second and the third functions of the conscience that it is proper to take the literal phrase as describing thoughts that are in conflict with each other within the same person. It is a reminder of the internal conflict taking place within a person that is between the Holy Spirit and the sinful nature as stated in Galatians 5:17:
For the sinful nature desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the sinful nature. They are in conflict with each other, so that you do not do what you want.
All the same, the second function of the conscience, as we have stated, is that of condemnation of an individual as stated in Romans 2:15 and their thoughts now accusing. The word “thoughts” is translated from a Greek word (logismos) that appears twice in the Greek NT, here and in 2 Corinthians where it is used for reasoning that is hostile to the Christian faith and so translated “arguments” in the NIV of 2 Corinthians 10:5:
We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.
In our passage of Romans 2:15, it means “thoughts” as the product of a cognitive process, that is, “to use the mind to consider something carefully.”
The thoughts of an individual are responsible for condemning or accusing a person’s action as in the sentence of Romans 2:15 their thoughts now accusing. The word “accusing” is translated from a Greek word (katēgoreō) that is used as a technical term for bringing a charge against some in court and so means “to bring or make charges” as Apostle Paul used it in his defense to indicate that the Jews had nothing against him that warrants bringing him into court as we read in Acts 24:19:
But there are some Jews from the province of Asia, who ought to be here before you and bring charges if they have anything against me.
In our passage of Romans 2:15, the word means “to accuse.” The thoughts of a person accuse or condemn a person for doing what is wrong. Why are a person’s thoughts involved in accusing or condemning a person for doing that which is wrong? It is, as we have stated previously, because God’s law is made a part of thinking of those who do not have the law in written form but do those things that are part of God’s law or word. Hence, the conscience has the proper information regarding the correct action that a person should have taken but did not, so the conscience accuses or condemns a person for doing what is wrong.
It is true that the word “conscience” is not directly used in the OT Scripture but the fact of conscience accusing someone of doing something wrong is found in the OT Scripture. Joseph’s brothers, when Joseph, they did not recognize, was harsh on them, their conscience accused them of wrongdoing with respect to Joseph although they did not know he was the person before them and so before they left Egypt to return to Canaan, they expressed the thoughts of their conscience accusing them as we read in Genesis 42:21:
They said to one another, “Surely we are being punished because of our brother. We saw how distressed he was when he pleaded with us for his life, but we would not listen; that’s why this distress has come upon us.”
David after he carried out the ill-advised census in Israel, his conscience condemned him for doing so as stated in 2 Samuel 24:10:
David was conscience-stricken after he had counted the fighting men, and he said to the LORD, “I have sinned greatly in what I have done. Now, O LORD, I beg you, take away the guilt of your servant. I have done a very foolish thing.”
Someone may read this passage in the NIV and charge me of being inaccurate when I stated that the word “conscience” does not appear in the OT Scripture. Well, there is no Hebrew word for conscience in this verse. You see, the sentence David was conscience-stricken after he had counted the fighting men is literally The heart of David struck him after he had counted the people. The point is that the second function of the conscience is to condemn an individual if the action taken is wrong.
The third function of the conscience is to commend a person for doing what is right or acquitting a person of any wrongdoing if the person’s action is right although others may adversely judge the individual’s action. It is this function that is described in the last verbal phrase of Romans 2:15 now even defending them. The NIV2011 added several words not in the Greek in their translation that reads and at other times even defending them in attempt to help the reader understand the Greek expression although literally the Greek reads or even defending.
The word “now” in the NIV84 or “and” in the NIV2011 is translated from a Greek particle (ē) that may mean “than” as a marker of comparison even if the object of comparison is not clearly stated as Apostle Paul used it to indicate that he would rather communicate instructions believers will understand than speak in tongues in 1 Corinthians 14:19:
But in the church I would rather speak five intelligible words to instruct others than ten thousand words in a tongue.
The Greek particle may mean “or” as a marker of alternative. The alternative may express opposites that are mutually exclusive as, for example, “to do good” is opposite of “to do evil” as the particle is used in the Lord Jesus’ question to those who were watching to see if He would perform a healing miracle on a Sabbath as stated in Mark 3:4:
Then Jesus asked them, “Which is lawful on the Sabbath: to do good or to do evil, to save life or to kill?” But they remained silent.
The alternative may express related and similar terms, where one can take the place of the other or one supplements the other as Apostle Paul used the word “read” as a word that can take the place of the expression “understand” in 2 Corinthians 1:13:
For we do not write you anything you cannot read or understand. And I hope that,
In our passage of Romans 2:15, the particle is used to supplement the second function of the conscience, so it has the meaning “or.” In other words, the expression that follows our Greek particle gives a third function of the conscience and so supplements the second. This interpretation is supported by the Greek conjunction (kai) that follows it that usually means “and” but here it is used as a marker to join or add to what was previously stated, with the meaning “even” or “also.” This is the reason that the literal translation begins with the phrase or even to indicate the apostle added a third function of the conscience, but he did it in an emphatic manner. Again, the verbal phrase of Romans 2:15 now even defending them in the NIV84 or and at other times even defending them of the NIV2011 is literally or even defending.
The word “defending” is translated from a Greek word (apologeomai) that means “to defend oneself,” that is, “to speak in one’s own defense against charges presumed to be false.” The situation here with the third function of conscience is that a person may take an action for which the person might not have thought or considered its correctness, that is, a person acts impulsively. After such an action, the person may then wonder if the action is correct. The individual’s conscience can put a person at ease by conveying internally to the individual that the action taken is correct if that is indeed the case. This function assumes that the person’s conscience has not been affected by repeated rejection of truth so that the individual no longer has truth within that would be used for such function. The person whose conscience no longer functions correctly is described in 1 Timothy 4:2:
Such teachings come through hypocritical liars, whose consciences have been seared as with a hot iron.
People with “seared conscience" are those who in a sense have their consciences as it were burned out, implying that their consciences are insensitive, so such individual have reached a point in their life where their conscience no longer bothers them; consequently, they live and act as if their conscience does not exist at all. That aside, when the apostle wrote literally or even defending, he probably meant that the third function of the conscience is not as frequent as the second function. This is to say that the conscience functions more in a condemnatory manner than in an approving manner. We can understand this because our sinfulness makes us do more wrong than right things. Anyhow, the third function of conscience is to commend a person for doing what is right or to give rest to the soul of a person that does what is right.
Previously, we stated that the subject of conscience is divided into two parts. The first part is concerned with the functions of conscience and the second is with the confirmation of conscience on judgment day. We have considered the functions of conscience, so we proceed with the confirmation of conscience on judgment day as given in Romans 2:16.
Verse 16 presents the sixth major problem of interpretation of the section of Romans 2:14-16 that we are considering. One of the difficulties of this verse is to determine the logical connection between the verse and what preceded, that is, the functions of the conscience. In effect, there is the concern as to when the functions of the conscience described in verse 15 will take place. There is no doubt that the apostle intended to convey that the functions of the conscience are occurring at the present. This being the case, some wonder how such functions will relate to God’s future judgment mentioned in verse 16. To address this difficulty, commentators have given different interpretations as a solution to the problem. For example, one interpretation takes the position that the judgment mentioned in verse 16 should not be taken as God’s final judgment, but rather as a present, earthly day of encounter with the word of God. Another interpretation takes the view that the material of 2:14–15 was originally a marginal gloss in some ancient manuscript that a later scribe incorporated into the text. Related to this is the view that verse 16 is a marginal gloss that has somehow found its way into the text. As we stated at the introduction of this section, there is the interpretation that verses 14 and 15 are parenthetical implying that verse 16 continues the thought given in verse 13 so that verse 16 would then be indicating the time when God will declare righteous those who obey the law. While this is possible but there is nothing in the Greek text that suggests this interpretation. Besides, as we have expounded verses 14 and 15 there is nothing in these two verses that indicates that they are parenthetical. Still another interpretation is that verse 16 is a continuation of verse 15, that is, to say that the convicting work of conscience described in verse 15 will occur on judgment day. These interpretations notwithstanding, it is my interpretation that verse 16 is related to verses 14 and 15 especially with verse 15 where the functions of the conscience were given so that the condemning function of the conscience works at the present but will be fully realized on the day of God’s final judgment when the functions of the conscience will be confirmed.
It does not appear that verse 16 is concerned with the confirmation of the functions of conscience, at least, in the literal Greek text. Verse 16 in the NIV begins with the sentence This will take place. This sentence does not appear in the Greek, but it is used by the translators of the NIV to connect verse 16 either with the preceding verse 15 that is concerned with the function of conscience or with verse 13 to state when God will declare those who obey the law righteous. Literally, the Greek of verse 16 begins with the phrase on (the) day.
The word “day” is translated from a Greek word (hēmera) that may refer to a period between sunrise and sunset. However, it is used to describe a day appointed for very special purposes. Thus, the Greek word that means “day” could mean “court of justice” as in 1 Corinthians 4:3:
I care very little if I am judged by you or by any human court; indeed, I do not even judge myself.
The phrase by any human court is more literally by human day that may be understood as a day appointed by a human court. The word can refer to the day of God’s final judgment, as it is used in 2 Peter 3:12:
as you look forward to the day of God and speed its coming. That day will bring about the destruction of the heavens by fire, and the elements will melt in the heat.
It is in the sense of the day of judgment that God had fixed for final judgment that the Greek word is used in our passage of Romans 2:16. This day, of course, is more often described as the day of Jesus Christ as we read, for example, in 1 Corinthians 1:8:
He will keep you strong to the end, so that you will be blameless on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.
It is our assertion that “day” as used in Romans 2:16 refers to a day God had fixed for final judgment because of what follows in the verse. The apostle tells us of what takes place in the clause when God will judge men’s secrets. The word “judge” is translated from a Greek word (krinō) that may mean “to judge as guilty, condemn” as that is the sense in which Apostle Paul used it in his sermon in Pisidia Antioch to describe what the Jews in Jerusalem did with respected to Jesus Christ as narrated in Acts 13:27:
The people of Jerusalem and their rulers did not recognize Jesus, yet in condemning him they fulfilled the words of the prophets that are read every Sabbath.
The word may mean to make a judgment based on taking various factors into account, hence means “to consider,” as the word is used to describe what Lydia said as she invited Apostle Paul and his team to her house as recorded in Acts 16:15:
When she and the members of her household were baptized, she invited us to her home. “If you consider me a believer in the Lord,” she said, “come and stay at my house.” And she persuaded us.
The word may mean “to punish” as in Stephen’s sermon as he referred to God’s promise to Abraham of punishing those who would enslave his descendants in Acts 7:7:
But I will punish the nation they serve as slaves,’ God said, ‘and afterward they will come out of that country and worship me in this place.’
In our passage of Romans 2:16, the word means “to judge or administer justice” with the implication of punishment to follow.
The thing to be judged is described as men’s secrets or people’s secrets. The mention of secrets of people should remind us of what the Lord Jesus communicated to His disciples that indicate that there is nothing hidden that will not be revealed, certainly on the day of judgment as recorded in Luke 8:17:
For there is nothing hidden that will not be disclosed, and nothing concealed that will not be known or brought out into the open.
Apostle Paul communicated that when the Lord returns people’s thoughts and secrets would be revealed as stated in 1 Corinthians 4:5:
Therefore judge nothing before the appointed time; wait till the Lord comes. He will bring to light what is hidden in darkness and will expose the motives of men’s hearts. At that time each will receive his praise from God.
This aside, the secrets of the phrase of Romans 2:16 men’s secrets or people’s secrets involve both thoughts and actions. It is true that what would be the focus of God’s judgment is what people actually did but behind the deeds of people are their thoughts. Thus, when God judges the deeds of a person, He would also be judging the thoughts behind them. It is as God judges the thoughts behind what people did that the functions of conscience will be confirmed. If a person’s actions were condemned by the conscience at the present, such would also be condemned in time of God’s final judgment. Nonetheless, the fact remains that a judgment day is coming. It is not only confined to judgment of unbelievers but also of believers as conveyed in 2 Corinthians 5:10:
For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive what is due him for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad.
While this judgment the apostle mentioned is primarily for believers that involves receiving of reward or loss of it, the judgment of unbelievers will lead to eternity in the lake of fire. The judgment of unbelievers is clearly described in Revelation 20:11–15:
11 Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. Earth and sky fled from his presence, and there was no place for them. 12 And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Another book was opened, which is the book of life. The dead were judged according to what they had done as recorded in the books. 13 The sea gave up the dead that were in it, and death and Hades gave up the dead that were in them, and each person was judged according to what he had done. 14 Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. The lake of fire is the second death. 15 If anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.
In any case Apostle Paul stated that God is the One that would carry out the judgment, but he went a step further to describe the member of the Godhead he meant as Jesus Christ. It is this that is given in the phrase of Romans 2:16 through Jesus Christ. The word “through” is translated from a Greek preposition (dia) that may mean “through, by” as a marker of instrumentality whereby something is accomplished or effected. It can also mean “through, by” as a marker of “personal agency.” It is in this later usage that applies to our verse. In fact, to convey that Jesus Christ is the agent of the judgment, the standard Greek English lexicon of BDAG suggests that the Greek phrase rendered through Jesus Christ may be translated with the word “God” as God judges, represented by Christ Jesus. That aside, the apostle asserted what Jesus Christ stated during His earthly ministry, which is, that He is responsible for all judgments as stated in John 5:22–23:
22 Moreover, the Father judges no one, but has entrusted all judgment to the Son, 23 that all may honor the Son just as they honor the Father. He who does not honor the Son does not honor the Father, who sent him.
Apostle Paul also identified Christ as the person responsible for final judgment as we may gather from 2 Timothy 4:1:
In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead, and in view of his appearing and his kingdom, I give you this charge:
It is not only that the apostle identified Jesus Christ as the final judge of people, but he also conveyed that such information is one that he gave as he preached the gospel as in the last clause of Romans 2:16 as my gospel declares. The apostle’s use of the phrase my gospel does not mean that there is a special gospel message that belongs to him that he preached. No, the apostle recognized that he was entrusted with preaching of the gospel of Jesus Christ that he speaks of owning the gospel in such a way that he guarded its message. The message of the gospel that Apostle Paul and others preached is summarized in 1 Corinthians 15:3–4:
3 For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4 that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures,
To convey that when the apostle used the phrase my gospel in Romans 2:16, he was not thinking of some esoteric gospel but the one that he described to the Corinthians we find the same phrase my gospel used when the apostle mentioned to Timothy the gospel, he preached in 2 Timothy 2:8:
Remember Jesus Christ, raised from the dead, descended from David. This is my gospel,
Anyway, it is not to be doubted that the apostle described Jesus Christ as the final judge when he preached the gospel in Athens as we read in Acts 17:31:
For he has set a day when he will judge the world with justice by the man he has appointed. He has given proof of this to all men by raising him from the dead.”
The clause by the man he has appointed is a reference to Jesus Christ. Of course, Apostle Paul was not alone in conveying this truth, so did Apostle Peter. He conveyed this truth when he preached the gospel to Cornelius and those who assembled in his house as we read in Acts 10:42:
He commanded us to preach to the people and to testify that he is the one whom God appointed as judge of the living and the dead.
Anyway, when Jesus Christ judges in the day of judgment, He would confirm the functions of conscience.
We have indeed completed our exposition of Romans 2:1-16 that we summarized by saying that God’s judgment is independent of the law. Our exposition of the passage reveals clearly that God’s judgment will be based on light or truth revealed to a person that was rejected. Those who never heard the gospel but responded to God’s revelation of Himself through creation so that they were never involved in idolatry but sought the creator although they did not have special revelation that we find in the Scripture will certainly not eternally perish since Christ’s death is sufficient to take care of their sins. Such individuals would have worshipped the creator without being involved in idolatry. Those who heard the gospel but rejected it would certainly perish eternally since they rejected Christ’s sacrifice on their behalf. The point is that God’s fairness means that He would judge people based on the light they received about Him. Of course, we cannot go beyond what may be deduced from the passage we have studied. Thus, we are not here answering the question of what God does with those who died before knowing what is right or wrong. He only knows how to evaluate such individuals although we may guess that if such a person is an elect then the person would be saved. This aside, as we end this section of Romans 2:14-16, let me remind you of its message which is that God’s judgment of unbelievers is just because they are capable of demonstrating the existence of His law within them and because of their possession of conscience.
11/22/24