Identified in the Line-Up

 

Identified in the Line-Up

Romans 3: ⁹ Well then, are we Jews in any better condition than the Gentiles? Not at all! I have already shown that Jews and Gentiles alike are all under the power of sin. ¹⁰ As the Scriptures say:

“There is no one who is righteous,
¹¹     no one who is wise
    or who worships God.
¹² All have turned away from God;
    they have all gone wrong;
    no one does what is right, not even one.
¹³ Their words are full of deadly deceit;
    wicked lies roll off their tongues,
    and dangerous threats, like snake's poison, from their lips;
¹⁴     their speech is filled with bitter curses.
¹⁵ They are quick to hurt and kill;
¹⁶     they leave ruin and destruction wherever they go.
¹⁷ They have not known the path of peace,
¹⁸     nor have they learned reverence for God.”

 

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Years of music gone. Someone broke the back window of my car and stole all my mix tapes. Yes I said tapes. How dare they! Having watched a lot of TV shows about cops, I thought “maybe they can dust for prints or pull up a book of usual suspects or put people in a line-up where my neighbors can point out the culprit.”

 

That did not deter me from going out that night, trying to “steal” someone’s girlfriend at the bar.

 

• There were times when I wanted justice when something happened to me.
• There were times when I wanted to point at what others were doing wrong.
• There were times when I wanted forgiveness for my wrong but justice for theirs.

 

Paul gets very real about this sin situation. He talks about those who think they are “good” but are not. He states a list that is harsh and when reading it, the tendency is to think of other people. BUT GOD wants something different.

 

• GOD wants me to see myself as a person who would never choose HIM.
• GOD wants me to know I need HIM by identifying with the sin that naturally flows from me.
• GOD wants me to understand that my heart needs daily cleaning.

 

“No one is righteous” when compared to JESUS. There are a lot of people who do nice things, but no one is sinless down to the motive. But there was one who remained sinless, namely JESUS. HE became a human, lived to adulthood and was murdered, all without committing a single sin. I identify with the list of sins and I am grateful JESUS forgave me.

 

• Are you mad at someone and think you are “righteous?”
• Do you see the faults in others and not your own?
• Will you ask GOD to look at your own heart to show you how much “you” need HIS grace today?