Romans 1:16-17; 3:22b-28, 29-31 (NRSV)
Read Romans 1:16-17; 3:22b-28, 29-31 on biblegateway.com
Verse 16For I am not ashamed of the gospel; it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who has faith, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. Verse 17For in it the righteousness of God is revealed through faith for faith; as it is written, "The one who is righteous will live by faith." Verse 22the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction, Verse 23since all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God; Verse 24they are now justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, Verse 25whom God put forward as a sacrifice of atonement by his blood, effective through faith. He did this to show his righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over the sins previously committed; Verse 26it was to prove at the present time that he himself is righteous and that he justifies the one who has faith in Jesus. Verse 27Then what becomes of boasting? It is excluded. By what law? By that of works? No, but by the law of faith. Verse 28For we hold that a person is justified by faith apart from works prescribed by the law. Verse 29Or is God the God of Jews only? Is he not the God of Gentiles also? Yes, of Gentiles also, Verse 30since God is one; and he will justify the circumcised on the ground of faith and the uncircumcised through that same faith. Verse 31Do we then overthrow the law by this faith? By no means! On the contrary, we uphold the law.
Devotion
While the four gospels recount the life of Jesus Christ, St. Paul, in the account of Romans, explores the significance of Jesus’ sacrificial death and resurrection. The book of Romans, called “the Gospel according to Paul,” is more than a theology to be pondered – it is the good news of God declaring you and me and all sinners “not guilty” (Romans 3:24). That’s the “wow” of God’s love.
Paul teaches strongly that all have sinned and face condemnation, without exception. But God so loved what God created and sent God’s Son into the courtroom to pronounce the final sentence: you are forgiven (Romans 3:22). Christianity stands alone in teaching these gospel truths.
Prayer
Let us pray: There’s a wideness in God’s mercy like the wideness of the sea, There’s a kindness in his justice which is more than liberty! There is no place where earth’s sorrows are more felt than up in heaven. There’s no place where earth’s failings have such kindly judgment given. Amen.