No Difference

1-17-10 Rom. 3:22b-24 "For there is no difference, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus,"

There is no difference. We are all the same. Back when this was written, Paul was talking about the perceived difference between Jews and Gentiles (Greeks), those who had the law and those who did not. The perception was that the Jews were special. They were closer to God. They had special privileges. That the Gentiles were “dogs”, spiritually dead. Paul said: “No…there is no difference. You are all “dogs”. You are all spiritually dead. “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” “You have all violated God’s standard whether you have the law or you don’t have the law. You all miss the mark.”

Think about the glory of God. What is it like? Here are some words that describe it in Strong’s Concordance: The splendor, the brightness, the magnificence, the excellence, the preeminence, the dignity, the grace, the majesty. Let’s face it, we just don’t measure up when it comes to comparing ourselves with God. We fall short. This is why “…the goodness (the glory, the splendor, the brightness, the magnificence, the excellence, the preeminence, the dignity, the grace, the majesty) of God leads you to repentance.” When we get a realistic view of who we are, and who God is, we fall short. We have all sinned. We have all screwed up. We have all missed the mark, we have all violated God’s standard. There is no difference. We are all bad.

The unreal thing is what comes next: Jesus. Free justification. God’s grace. Redemption. All big “Christian” words. All necessary words to get out of this pit. To be released, delivered and liberated and to be undeservedly declared right in God’s sight because of His unmerited kindness, is unreal. We are so far from God and He, on His own initiative, because of who He is makes us right…He brings us close, He sets us free. How? Through His Son. Jesus paid it all (v25 – our propitiation). He shed His blood. He gave it all up so I could be declared blameless, without sin, no more missing the mark, in God’s sight. How? Through faith. (v26) Through belief. Through the strong internal conviction that this is the truth and I am relying on Jesus alone.

Thank you Lord that one day in my life you brought this truth to me. You revealed my own garbage and You said that You would clean it up if I would only trust what Your Son did for me on the cross. I no longer fall short in Your eyes.