At the end of Romans 3 , Paul argues that there is only one God, and that he is the God of everyone regardless of whether or not a person is a circumcised Jew, or an uncircumcised Gentile ( Romans 3:27-31 ). In the development of his argument, he contends that the Jew is made right by faith, and the Gentile is made right through faith. What Paul is saying is that a person is made right by his belief in who God is, and his trust in the goodness of God rather than by his cultural identity, or...

In Romans 3:9-22 , Paul makes a compelling biblical argument that no one is without sin.  In fact, not only does he assert that everyone is a sinner , but he also strongly argues that no one  can be made right with God through the Mosaic law. Those piercing statements would not have landed well with his contemporary religious elites. Those elites would have been repulsed by both the tip and the edge of that spearhead. Their pride would have been punctured and sliced in ways that would have...

Paul begins Romans 3  on the heels of a discussion about circumcision. In his circumcision discussion he explained how Jews should not presume to be members of God’s people based solely on the fact that they have engaged in a religious and cultural ritual.  What you look like on the outside, Paul argued, doesn’t matter in the eyes of God ( 1 Samuel 16:7 ).  Rather, what matters is the state of your heart.  Being a true member of God’s people is a matter of faith, trust, allegiance, and a...