In 2 Samuel 12 the prophet Nathan comes to King David after David had sexually sinned with Bathsheba and attempted to cover up the pregnancy by killing Bathsheba’s husband and marrying her. So Nathan must come to David with a story about a rich man and a poor man. The rich man had a very large flock of sheep while the poor man had only one small ewe lamb that he bought. The poor man raised this small sheep with the family and fed the sheep from the meager food the family had. He loved this sheep and cared for it like a family member. The rich man had a guest come to his house and rather than killing one of his many sheep, he took the poor man’s lamb and killed it for his guest. At hearing this, David’s anger burned and he passes righteous judgment. This rich man deserves to die for what he has done. He owes this poor man four lambs for the one he has taken from this poor man because of what he did and because he had no pity. Nathan then responds to David’s indignation by telling David that you are that rich man. God gave you everything but that was not enough for you. What is important to consider is how we can so easily see the sins and unrighteous acts in other people but are blinded by our own sins. When we do something, we do not see what is wrong with it but we are outraged when we see others do the very same thing. This is where Paul opens in Romans 2.
No Excuse (Romans 2:1)
After teaching about what happens when people do not honor God or give thanks and the subsequent sinning that results, Paul now turns the tables on the audience. Look at the words of Romans 2:1. “Therefore you have no excuse, every one of you who judges.” We need to carefully consider what the problem is. Paul cannot be saying that we cannot call out sins because that is exactly what Paul just did in chapter 1. Paul just proclaimed judgment on everyone who practices and approves of the sins he has listed in chapter 1. So what is the problem? Look again at Romans 2:1. Paul says in verse 1 the problem is that you do not have an excuse for your behavior because you are able to see in others but not in yourself. You condemn yourself because you do the very same things. It is so easy to pass judgment on others but give ourselves a pass when it comes to our own sins. Allow me to reach back to the sins that Paul listed in the last paragraph as noted in Romans 1. It is easy to be judgmental and angry about the sexual sins of others while tolerating our own sexual sins. It is easy to see the slander and gossip in others but do not see that we speak the same way. It is easy to see the arrogance and boasting in others but fail to see the same sinning in ourselves. It is our temptation to try to look righteous as we condemn others but hide our own failings. Here is Paul’s big point as he draws this key conclusion in Romans 2:1. We condemn ourselves and are without excuse when do not apply the same standard to ourselves that we apply to others. This is exactly what Jesus meant in Matthew 7:1-3. You will be judged by the same standard that you place on others. It is so easy to pass judgment on others and not look in the mirror. You see the speck in your neighbor’s eye but cannot see the plank coming out of your own eye. We like to look at God’s laws that we are keeping and proclaim ourselves righteous while ignoring the fact that there are other sins we are committing and excusing. We have no excuse.
No Escape (Romans 2:2-3)
Now the apostle Paul is going to prove this conclusion that he drew in verse 1. We know that God’s judgment rightly falls on those who practice such things. Look back at Romans 1:18-32. We know that there will be judgment on sexual immorality. We know that there will God’s judgment on those who practice the sinful things listed. But somehow we can think that we are going to escape that judgment. Do you see that in verse 3? There is a curious deception that we play with ourselves. We will quickly note how those people will not escape God’s judgment. Yet somehow we think that we will escape God’s judgment for doing the same things. The truth is God judges those who do these things. Yet somehow we are not included in that truth. We think we are going to get away with our sins. We think we are hiding our sins from God and from others. We think that this certain judgment is not going to be on us. I am not sure why we do this. I am not sure why we think that we will be fine continuing in our sins. Perhaps the answer is as simple as the temptation that the serpent gave to Eve in the beginning. The serpent tempted Eve with these words: “You will not surely die” (Genesis 3:4). Maybe the problem is as simple as this. We are listening to the lie that we will escape. We are listening to the lie that we will not be judged for practicing these things. Somehow we think that no one else is getting away with the sins yet somehow you will.
No Understanding (Romans 2:4)
But the problem is far bigger than what we think. We think we have an excuse for our sins. We think we will escape judgment for our sins while others will not. But Paul says that we are missing something really important. Look at verse 4. Paul says we are taking lightly and despising the riches of God’s kindness, restraint, and patience. Notice that Paul is showing us that we are missing something really important. We look at our sins and think that we are escaping judgment. We look at our sins and think that we have an excuse for what we are doing while others do not have an excuse. But Paul says that neither are correct. You have no excuse for the sins you practice and there will be no escaping God’s judgment. So what is God doing? God is intending to lead you to repentance. God’s kindness, restraint, and patience are intended to lead you to repentance. God’s kindness is not to cause us to think that we are getting away with your sins. God’s restraint is not to cause us to think that we are not going to be judged. God’s patience is not supposed to make us think that we are right to apply a different standard of judgment on others than we do on ourselves. The reason God has not brought about his judgment is because he is giving each of us another day to turn from our sins. God is trying to get us to repent and we are despising his efforts. Every day we wake up does not mean we are getting away with our sins. Every day we wake up is another day given to us to acknowledge our sins and turn toward holy living. The apostle Peter proclaimed the same truth.
The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance. (2 Peter 3:9 ESV)
God’s kindness is not to cause us to be self-righteous. God’s kindness is not to cause us to believe we are living righteously before him. God’s kindness is intended to give us another day to say, “God, be merciful to me, a sinner!” (Luke 18:13). The gospel not only reveals the wrath of God (cf. Romans 1:18) but also God’s kindness because that deserved wrath has been restrained for another day. Think about what Paul is teaching. Every day that we do not go to war against the sins in our lives and in our hearts is a day we are showing contempt toward the riches of God’s kindness. Every day that we choose to continue practicing our sins is another day that we are despising the riches of God’s restraint. Every day that we do not change the way we are living is another day when we are presuming upon the riches of God’s patience. We are missing that every day is another day to respond to God’s kindness. Every person is enjoying the riches of God’s kindness, restraint, and patience today. But we miss this. We miss that each day is a new day for repentance.
No Mercy (Romans 2:5)
Now we need to notice what happens when we do not have this understanding regarding God’s kindness, restraint, and patience. Look at verse 5. Paul says that because of our hard and unrepentant heart we are storing up wrath for ourselves on the day of wrath when God’s righteous judgment is revealed. The riches of God’s kindness are to draw each of us to repentance. But if God’s kindness is not leading us to be repentant, then there is only one outcome. Our unrepentant heart is storing up wrath for ourselves. If all that we do with the riches of God’s kindness of show contempt, then what else should be the result? It is not like God did not tell us what our response should be. It is not like God has not shown a staggering amount of patience toward us. What Paul wants us to see is that the problem is not with God. The problem is with us. We have stubborn and unrepentant hearts. We know God’s law. We condemn others for breaking God’s law. But then we break God’s law somehow thinking we are going to escape. We are not going to escape God’s judgment. Rather, our repentant hearts are storing up wrath for ourselves. Please think about this picture. This is not what we want to be saving up for ourselves.
So this leads us to a very important question. What are you doing with the kindness of God? Paul states something rather dangerous that is critical for our faith. A hardening of our hearts develops when we are not seeing God’s kindness as the means of leading us to repentance. The writer of Hebrews notes that this was the problem for the Israelites in the wilderness and why they fell.
7 Therefore, as the Holy Spirit says, “Today, if you hear his voice, 8 do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion, on the day of testing in the wilderness, 9 where your fathers put me to the test and saw my works for forty years. 10 Therefore I was provoked with that generation, and said, ‘They always go astray in their heart; they have not known my ways.’ 11 As I swore in my wrath, ‘They shall not enter my rest.’” 12 Take care, brothers, lest there be in any of you an evil, unbelieving heart, leading you to fall away from the living God. 13 But exhort one another every day, as long as it is called “today,” that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin. 14 For we have come to share in Christ, if indeed we hold our original confidence firm to the end. 15 As it is said, “Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion.” (Hebrews 3:7-15 ESV)
Notice that the writer of Hebrews gives the warning about having an evil, unbelieving heart. Now no one reading this letter would think they have an evil, unbelieving heart. These are Christians who are hearing these words. But this is why the author wants to connect us to the people of Israel because they also were the people of God and they enjoyed relationship with him. God was caring for the people in the wilderness. God was showing his kindness to them in spite of their complaining and sinning. But that did not cause the hearts of the people to change. They continued to provoke God. Listen to the words at the end of verse 10. “They always go astray in their heart.” Their hearts were hardened and not softened by their time in the wilderness. So now the point is made to us. We need to watch out so that we do not have the same heart as they did (cf. Hebrews 3:12).
What is the solution? Notice the author of Hebrews gives two answers. First, in verse 13 we are told we need to encourage each other every day so that we are not hardened by the deceitfulness of sin. We need each other and we need to get together so that we can encourage each other to have soft, repentant hearts. What we are not doing with each other is what we read at the beginning of Romans 2. We are not condemning others of sin while practicing the same sins. We are not being fake. We are being authentic, confessing our sins and turning our hearts back to God as we hear God’s word and encourage each other. Second, in verse 14 we are told that we have come to share in Christ if we hold on to our original confidence firm to the end. You have the riches of God’s kindness. Do not throw it away. Do not waste it. Do not give up on God when God has been patient with you. Do not store up wrath for yourself. We have no excuse for continuing in our sins. Turn back to God before the day of God’s wrath comes.