Series: The Judged
Message: Being Judged
Preacher: Japhet De Oliveira
Reflection: Japhet De Oliveira
Live Wonder: Zan Long
Live Adventure: Zan Long
Live Purpose: Jason Calvert
Editor: Becky De Oliveira
Refresh: Begin with prayer. Ask for the Holy Spirit to open your heart to new understanding and for God’s character to be revealed.
Read: Romans 2:12-29 in the New Living Translation (NLT). Note 1–3 insights or questions.
Reflect: The NLT version of this text brings so many fresh ideas to the forefront—as does The Message paraphrase which we will look at tomorrow. However, I do not want to ignore the elephant in the room. There is a central tension in these verses that those of you who are regular Bible students will be familiar with already. Even those reading these verses for the first time might sense the presence of this elephant—perhaps through things you have heard other people say. The big question is: Are we saved by faith or by works? We’ve just recently finished studying Romans Chapter 1—and those of you following along on this study will know that we accept the concept of salvation by faith, which is what Paul seems to have preached in that chapter. But if this is indeed the case, then why is Paul talking about the law here—indicating that we saved by what we do? Are we in fact saved by our obedience? If you can’t wait and want to know what my conclusion on this matter is, go ahead and jump to the reflection for Wednesday. However, I hope you will resist this impulse and allow yourself the space to process this seeming contradiction slowly and prayerfully.
I’d like to draw your attention to Paul’s insights regarding the incredible marvel that God is. When Adam and Eve rejected a relationship with God, the plan of salvation was shared with great hope for our first parents (Genesis 3). I can only imagine the pain they must have experienced with the death of their son Abel, yet God’s promise prevailed. It appears embedded in the genealogies, continues through the flood narrative, and in the great hope of the childless couple Abram and Sarai. But in spite of the surety of the plan, these people’s lives proceeded with difficulty. The Bible gives excruciating, painstaking detail of their experiences and those of their children, all the way to hundreds of years of slavery in Egypt. Their miraculous redemption and victorious rise was never a steady upward progression, but rather an ever-expanding cyclical story. During the golden era of King Solomon, this nation was, by its own definition, a true beacon to the world, but slowly this temporary glory was lost and the people came to live unhappily under Roman rule. Along comes Paul and, in vs. 17-23, he tells the Jews. “You are not that beacon anymore. Be honest with yourselves. You forgot what God was really looking for in you.”
That is a hard message to hear. It was hard for those hearing it then and it is hard today. Yet this is a message that we need to hear today just as badly as the Jews of Paul’s time needed to hear it. Are we effectively the beacon of the Gospel? Are we smug and complacent thinking that we have it all together? How many people today have given up on faith in Jesus as part of a Church community because of us—our actions and failures? Verse 24 in the NLT is very direct and calls us to reconsider the life we live.
Recalibrate: Am I my brother's keeper? What responsibility do each of us carry, both collectively (as a church) and personally, for the faith of others?
Respond: Pray for the clarity to see what Jesus needs from you.
Research: How do Matthew 10:14 and Luke 15:4 relate to each other?
Remember: “For it is not those who hear the law who are made righteous in God’s sight, but it is those who obey the law who will be declared righteous” (Romans 2:13, NIV).
Japhet De Oliveira is senior pastor at Boulder Adventist Church in Boulder, CO, and was co-founder of the One project. Originally from southeast London, Japhet served as a pastor and as youth director in the South England Conference for nine years before moving to the United States. He was director for the Center for Youth Evangelism (CYE), chaplain for missions, and university chaplain at Andrews University in Berrien Springs, MI. Japhet has bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Andrews University (Newbold College campus). He has taught youth ministry, coordinated a master’s in youth ministry program, and spearheaded numerous conferences and initiatives. He is married to Becky and they have two sons, Joshua (18) and Jonah (14).
Line up the things that your little ones use throughout the day. Place them upside down or on their side—any way that is not how they are designed to be. If your little one is able, ask them to turn them up the right way. Can they put these things how they should be? Cheer your children on as they turn things up the right way. This is what Jesus did when He rose from the dead—He made things right.
Turn a cup upside down in the sink and pour water into it. How much water did the cup hold? Why isn’t the cup full and overflowing. I think I can hear you yelling at me “It’s upside down, that’s why!” Yes it is, and you are right. Imagine that you are the cup trying to be full and overflowing, but you cannot turn yourself over because you have no hands. Jesus came and turned our cup right side up.
Have you been watching the NBA finals (2018)? Or the Stanley Cup Final? Maybe you don’t even know or like sports and you’re totally lost (In case you haven’t been watching the NBA finals this year, you could just go back to watching 2017, 2016, and 2015—pretty much the same.) I bring this up because in game 1 (last Thursday, May 31), with under five seconds to go, a Cleveland Cavalier professional basketball player made a huge mistake! If you know what I’m talking about, there are two letters coming to mind, J and R. If you don’t, Google it and you’ll soon find out. Two points on this: A) All professionals screw up. So if you’ve ever messed up, no worries— you and I are in good company, and B) Mr. Smith’s explanation (talk) didn’t match what he actually did on the court (walk). He explained to reporters one thing, while in the moment clearly communicating to his teammates another.
While it’s easy to throw shame and judgment on Mr. Smith—be honest, you’ve been there too, haven’t you? You’ve experienced times when your talk didn’t match your walk right? Think of that time when your actions didn’t match your profession of Christianity. How could you have acted or reacted differently?
The challenge is to search deep in our own hearts and determine if the way we walk with God is in name only, or if our lives are lived with the joy, peace, freedom, and excitement of doing life with Jesus. You know people who don’t follow their own expectations of others? What would it look like for your talk to perfectly match your walk? What needs to change—starting now? That’s the question Paul has for us in 2018—as we unpack this passage from nearly 2,000 years ago.