Romans 2. Today the Apostle Paul is calling out the hypocrisy and sinfulness of all people, Jew and gentile alike. His words are convicting. “Therefore, you have no excuse, O man, every one of you who judges. For in passing judgment on another you condemn yourself, because you, the judge, practice the same things. We know that the judgment of God rightly falls on those who practice such things.”(2:1-2)

Why is it that it is so easy to see the sin in other people, but not acknowledge our own sins? We are quick to notice and pass judgment on others, but so slow to notice the log in our own eye!

He goes on to say, “You who teach others, do you not teach yourself? While you preach against stealing, do you steal? You who say that one must not commit adultery, do you commit adultery? … You dishonor God.” (2:21-23)

Here is a hint to where Paul is going with his arguments this section of Romans 1:18 to 3:20.

In chapter 1:18-32 Paul pointed out how God has made himself known, but people chose not to honor Him and so they persisted in their own foolish, destructive ways. In that section Paul is writing about the gentiles and how they were sinful in their pursuit of things other than God. Hear me clearly on this – that section is about us, all of us who are not Jews, who tend to exchange the truth of God for a lie and worship the creature rather than the creator. I know you thought that section was about those other, terrible sinful and deceived people – but I need to tell you that we are those people! We are full of sin and pursuing the wrong things, things that do not set us in a right relationship with God. (Or rather we were, before we met Jesus.)

Now in chapter 2 Paul is addressing the Jews, who had the law and who had every opportunity to know God. But guess what, the Jewish people were also full of sin! They relied on the law to make them right before God, but then they failed to keep the law. Paul points out their hypocrisy with the section about “You who teach others, do you not teach yourself?… The name of God is blasphemed among the gentiles because of you!” The Jews were pursuing the correct thing – a right relationship with God – but they were going about it in the wrong way. They tried to keep the law and do right to earn God’s favor, but in reality they lived lives full of hypocrisy.

So, everything is a mess, right?! “All who have sinned without the law (gentiles) will perish without the law… and all who have sinned under the law (Jews) will be judged by the law (and perish because they broke it)”(2:12).

No one is achieving a right relationship with God. Good, I’m glad that’s clear, because that is exactly what Paul is trying to tell us at this point in Romans.

The good news comes in the next chapter!