Eventually, every sin will be found out. It is either confessed before the Lord in repentance or revealed on the day of God’s judgment. People may flaunt God’s Law, but they won’t escape God’s wrath unless there is repentance and forgiveness.
In Romans 2:1-16, Paul continues his discourse on God’s wrath. He warns about the hypocrisy of judging others while doing the same thing. “Do you think—anyone of you who judges those who do such things yet do the same—that you will escape God’s judgment? Or do you despise the riches of his kindness, restraint, and patience, not recognizing that God’s kindness is intended to lead you to repentance? Because of your hardened and unrepentant heart you are storing up wrath for yourself in the day of wrath, when God’s righteous judgment is revealed.” (Romans 2:3–5, CSB)
Now, if we are innocent of a sin, that doesn’t grant license to judge. If we’re not guilty of one thing, we’re guilty of another. Our judgment and justice are imperfect. The keystone of God’s judgment is perfect justice. “There will be affliction and distress for every human being who does evil, first to the Jew, and also to the Greek; but glory, honor, and peace for everyone who does what is good, first to the Jew, and also to the Greek. For there is no favoritism with God.” (Romans 2:9–11, CSB) All will be judged perfectly.
The big argument in Paul’s day was what to do about the Jewish Law that God revealed to Moses. Will God judge Jew and Gentile alike according to the Law? How will justice prevail for those who never heard the Law? Paul says, “For all who sin without the law will also perish without the law, and all who sin under the law will be judged by the law. For the hearers of the law are not righteous before God, but the doers of the law will be justified.” (Romans 2:12–13, CSB)
Paul explains, “So, when Gentiles, who do not by nature have the law, do what the law demands, they are a law to themselves even though they do not have the law. They show that the work of the law is written on their hearts. Their consciences confirm this. Their competing thoughts either accuse or even excuse them on the day when God judges what people have kept secret, according to my gospel through Christ Jesus.” (Romans 2:14–16, CSB) God knows our hearts; He knows our secrets.
These are just a few strokes of a much larger picture that Paul is painting. That picture has one gigantic truth – we’ve all sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. We are all under God’s perfect justice and deserving of His wrath. This includes Jews and Gentiles. Those to whom the Law was revealed, and those without the Law. All.
In applying these truths to our daily walk with Christ, what do we see? First of all, God’s justice is perfect. It’s easy to think that people are “getting away with it.” They aren’t, and neither are we. God’s justice will be revealed in due course. But God’s desire is always for repentance instead of wrath. Our prayer for those “getting away with it” is for repentance and not vengeance. That’s hard sometimes. We’d like to lower the boom of God’s wrath. While we do fight against the demonic (Eph 6), we are ambassadors proclaiming Christ to the world.
Secondly, that secret sin that we hide from God, He knows. And as Paul observes, God’s kindness and restraint are intended to lead us to repentance.
- Romans Applied – Prevailing Grace - June 3, 2026
- Proverbs – Grandkids - June 1, 2026
- Romans Applied – Abundant Grace - May 27, 2026
