THE WORLD ON TRIAL..........THE VERDICT Romans 3 v 19.
"Now we know, that whatsoever things the law says, it says to them who are under the law; that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may be come guilty before God."
SILENCE IN COURT!
Paul has, brought the entire world into an imaginary court, although as we shall see it is far from imaginary. There is no need to wait for the future, the trial has already taken place, the judge is God, the accused is the whole world, the charge is "all under sin", the evidence is overwhelming (14 indictments accusing all who have ever lived to be totally under the power of sin and therefore in trouble with God).
Listen to God speaking Himself in Isaiah 41v1 "Keep silence before Me, O islands; and let the people renew their strength; let them come near; then let them speak; let us come near together to judgement." There is nothing clearer in the Bible than the fact that God is the judge of all (Genesis 18v25 "The judge of all the earth; Hebrews 12v23 "God the judge of all)" Other scriptures like Acts 17v31 "He will judge the world in righteousness; Ecclesiastes 12v14 "God shall bring every work into judgement"; 2 Timothy 4 v "God and the Lord Jesus Christ who shall judge the living and the dead at His appearing and His kingdom"; Hebrews 13v4 "Whoremongers and adulterers God will judge." Every human being whether living or dead, whether great or small will be called to give account to God.
In this verse Romans 3v19 Paul sums up the situation in three ways
a) What everybody knows b) the fact that every mouth will be stopped c) the whole world guilty before God.
"Now we know that what the law says it says to them that are under the law" - The law he is referring to here, is not merely the MOSAIC law, the ten commandments and the two thousand or so peripheral laws affecting the Jewish nation, or even a general world civil law which governs a civilised society. Paul is referring here to the MORAL CODE, which he has placed within the hearts of every human being, whether Jew or Gentile and to which he has already referred in the epistle (Romans 1v19 "that which may be known of God is manifest in them" and Romans 2v15 "which show the work of the law written in their hearts)" This is the INSTINCTIVE knowledge within each and every one of us between right and wrong. Thus he says the law applies to everyone who is "in the law," those who are within the realm of the Divine moral code. There are two different words used for "said" in this verse, the first could be thought of as what is written down, whether on paper or in our hearts; the second refers to the message that the law is bringing to us, if you like the preaching of it, the demands it is making upon us. The Divine law is not there for us to learn intellectually, or debate about, it is there to be obeyed and this is the force of the second word for "said". God has clearly revealed Himself in creation, in conscience, in commandments, so that all of us are without excuse if we ignore His revelation. The law written in all of us makes demands and we know it. Even the heathen man knows within himself that God will judge him. Romans 1v 32.
The evidence, having been clearly presented, so that no man whether Jew or Gentile has obeyed the moral code given to him; in the case of the Gentiles they have suppressed whatever knowledge they had of God, because it didn't suit them; in the case of the Jews who received the written form of the Divine law, they, mistakenly, took it as a sign of privilege rather than responsibility and in the event continually broke the law of God.
The result ....."every mouth stopped." There is no answer to the charges made by God against us, the awesome silence of the universe is evident, no excuse, no plea, no mitigation, no appeal, just absolute silence.
The world today is full of people shouting the odds, protesting their point of view, even denying the existence of God, when they know within themselves not only that He does exist but they will give account to Him. There are high profile people today, who in blasphemy are telling us all what they will say to God when they meet Him! thus reducing God to a level beneath them! They will say nothing when they stand before the awesome presence of a Holy God who has filed complaints against them, as against all of us. The culmination of this is seen in a prophetic picture of the last days in Psalm 2v1-5 "why do the nations rage and the people imagine a vain thing? the kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together against the Lord and against His Messiah saying Let us break their bands asunder, and cast away their cords from us. he that sitteth in the heavens shall laugh; the Lord shall have them in derision. Then shall He speak to them in His wrath, and vex them in His sore displeasure."
The silence of every human being before the Majesty in the heavens will be awesome, and no mouth will be opened in His presence.
The verdict : GUILTY
Tomorrow d.v. we look at the last effort of man to justify himself before God.
"VVVVVVVV
"NNNNNNN v 13
"Now we know, that whatsoever things the law says, it says to them who are under the law; that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may be come guilty before God."
SILENCE IN COURT!
Paul has, brought the entire world into an imaginary court, although as we shall see it is far from imaginary. There is no need to wait for the future, the trial has already taken place, the judge is God, the accused is the whole world, the charge is "all under sin", the evidence is overwhelming (14 indictments accusing all who have ever lived to be totally under the power of sin and therefore in trouble with God).
Listen to God speaking Himself in Isaiah 41v1 "Keep silence before Me, O islands; and let the people renew their strength; let them come near; then let them speak; let us come near together to judgement." There is nothing clearer in the Bible than the fact that God is the judge of all (Genesis 18v25 "The judge of all the earth; Hebrews 12v23 "God the judge of all)" Other scriptures like Acts 17v31 "He will judge the world in righteousness; Ecclesiastes 12v14 "God shall bring every work into judgement"; 2 Timothy 4 v "God and the Lord Jesus Christ who shall judge the living and the dead at His appearing and His kingdom"; Hebrews 13v4 "Whoremongers and adulterers God will judge." Every human being whether living or dead, whether great or small will be called to give account to God.
In this verse Romans 3v19 Paul sums up the situation in three ways
a) What everybody knows b) the fact that every mouth will be stopped c) the whole world guilty before God.
"Now we know that what the law says it says to them that are under the law" - The law he is referring to here, is not merely the MOSAIC law, the ten commandments and the two thousand or so peripheral laws affecting the Jewish nation, or even a general world civil law which governs a civilised society. Paul is referring here to the MORAL CODE, which he has placed within the hearts of every human being, whether Jew or Gentile and to which he has already referred in the epistle (Romans 1v19 "that which may be known of God is manifest in them" and Romans 2v15 "which show the work of the law written in their hearts)" This is the INSTINCTIVE knowledge within each and every one of us between right and wrong. Thus he says the law applies to everyone who is "in the law," those who are within the realm of the Divine moral code. There are two different words used for "said" in this verse, the first could be thought of as what is written down, whether on paper or in our hearts; the second refers to the message that the law is bringing to us, if you like the preaching of it, the demands it is making upon us. The Divine law is not there for us to learn intellectually, or debate about, it is there to be obeyed and this is the force of the second word for "said". God has clearly revealed Himself in creation, in conscience, in commandments, so that all of us are without excuse if we ignore His revelation. The law written in all of us makes demands and we know it. Even the heathen man knows within himself that God will judge him. Romans 1v 32.
The evidence, having been clearly presented, so that no man whether Jew or Gentile has obeyed the moral code given to him; in the case of the Gentiles they have suppressed whatever knowledge they had of God, because it didn't suit them; in the case of the Jews who received the written form of the Divine law, they, mistakenly, took it as a sign of privilege rather than responsibility and in the event continually broke the law of God.
The result ....."every mouth stopped." There is no answer to the charges made by God against us, the awesome silence of the universe is evident, no excuse, no plea, no mitigation, no appeal, just absolute silence.
The world today is full of people shouting the odds, protesting their point of view, even denying the existence of God, when they know within themselves not only that He does exist but they will give account to Him. There are high profile people today, who in blasphemy are telling us all what they will say to God when they meet Him! thus reducing God to a level beneath them! They will say nothing when they stand before the awesome presence of a Holy God who has filed complaints against them, as against all of us. The culmination of this is seen in a prophetic picture of the last days in Psalm 2v1-5 "why do the nations rage and the people imagine a vain thing? the kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together against the Lord and against His Messiah saying Let us break their bands asunder, and cast away their cords from us. he that sitteth in the heavens shall laugh; the Lord shall have them in derision. Then shall He speak to them in His wrath, and vex them in His sore displeasure."
The silence of every human being before the Majesty in the heavens will be awesome, and no mouth will be opened in His presence.
The verdict : GUILTY
Tomorrow d.v. we look at the last effort of man to justify himself before God.
"VVVVVVVV
"NNNNNNN v 13
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