I am using the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on Romans 1-3.

    As Paul starts his letter to the Christians in Rome he says that he desires to go to Rome in order to strengthen their faith and in order to have his faith strengthened by them. He follows this up by giving a quick synopsis of the Good News which he preached. There he sums it up by saying that God makes us right in His sight and that this is accomplished in its totality by faith. However, I want to point out that just a few days ago we read where Paul made his defense before King Agrippa and said that those who had been made right with God did good as a demonstration of the change they had undergone.

    Paul then moves on to discussing sin. Everyone has sinned and no one is able to make themselves right with God by their own effort. Paul points out that no one can claim ignorance as an excuse to sin. Anyone who cares to can know the truth because God has made it plain for anyone who chooses to look. However, for one reason or another, people did not want to know God, so they made up gods and chose to worship them instead. In their desire to prove themselves wiser than others, people became fools. Paul points out that as a result of their refusal to acknowledge God people have chosen to vile and degrading things to other people’s bodies. This here is a lesson all of us can use to evaluate our behavior, does our behavior degrade others?
    Having said this, Paul is quick to point out that we are in no position to condemn those who behave as Paul just described because we have all sinned and can only be made right by God’s grace. Those who keep on doing evil will suffer God’s condemnation. And here Paul says something which reminds us of what he told King Agrippa. God will give eternal life to those who keep on doing good. Paul says this just a short time after telling us that the start to finish of being made right with God is accomplished through faith. The good we do does not save us. It does not offset the sins we have committed. Rather, it is a reflection of our repentance and faith.