Tag: no

Romans 3:27 – No Bragging Rights

Posted on by Will

Then where is the boasting? It is excluded. Through what kind of law? Of works? No, but through a law of faith.

Truth to Learn

Salvation through faith in the blood of Christ is nothing to brag about.

 

Behind the Words

“Boasting” is from kauchēsis, which refers to the act of bragging or boasting.

The Greek word translated “excluded” is ekkleiō, which is made up of ek, meaning “out” or “out of” and kleiō, meaning “to shut.” Therefore, this word literally means “to shut out.” In other words, something has no chance of coming in whatsoever. In sports, we refer to a team as having been “shut-out” if they have been beaten without having scored a single point.

The words “what kind of” are translated from the Greek word poios, which means “of what sort” or “what kind.”

“Law” is translated from nomos, which refers to “a law” or “a principle.” Paul is using it here, as he does in many places, in reference to a principle rather than a specific law.

The word “no” is from the Greek word ouchi, which is a stronger form of the word ou, meaning “no” or “not.” We might translate this as “No way!”

 

Meaning Explained

The apostle now goes on to cement in the minds of the Roman Christians that their salvation is not of themselves through acts of righteousness, but completely through the actions of God. He starts off this verse by asking where any of us can find room for boasting. There is nothing to boast about in having been granted righteousness. Since all have sinned and have failed at being able to justify themselves by obeying the Law, and since all are alike, dependent on the mercy of God, any reason for bragging is, of course, taken away. It is shut out.

That’s what Paul is telling us about boasting or bragging with regard to our salvation. There is no way we can brag about our salvation because bragging has been shut-out!

This boasting is not shut-out by the law of works, but by the law of faith. By this Paul means that we cannot be justified by performing any works no matter how unselfish or self-sacrificing they are. We cannot be justified by keeping the 10 commandments, and we cannot be justified by obeying all the rules or ordinances set-down for us by our church. We simply cannot be justified by this kind of law. In other words, there is nothing we can do to earn righteousness, nothing! It can only come through faith.

Back in verse twenty-two we learned that faith (Greek pistis) means “belief in a truth.” But what does Paul mean by “the law of faith?” This is not a written law or set of commandments, but a principle. The principle here is, “believing in a truth.” That is, the truth that Jesus Christ is the Messiah, the Son of God who, while completely God, is completely man. The truth that He lived a perfect life, then offered His life as a sacrifice in payments for your sins and mine.

 

Application

It’s easy to boast about all the things we have done to earn something, but salvation can’t be earned. It requires humility to accept salvation and become a Christian. It can’t be bragged about. A humble person doesn’t brag about his humility.

In God's service, for His glory,

Copyright © 2017 Will Krause. All rights reserved

1 Corinthians 1:7 – Gifts Used for Him

Posted on by Will

so that you come short in no gift, eagerly waiting for the revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ,

Truth to Learn

All Christians are gifted so we might bring glory to God.

Behind the Words

The words “come short” are from the Greek verb husteroō, which is based on the noun husteros, meaning “latter” or “last.” Husteroō literally means “to be in last place, to be behind, or to be lacking something.” It is expressed here in the passive voice, indicating action done to the subject. So, we see that Paul is saying “that you may not be made to be lacking …”

Mēdeis is the Greek word translated “no.” It is a compound word made up of mēde, meaning “and not” and heis, meaning “one.” Hence, mēdeis means “not even one.”

“Gift” is translated from charisma, which is based on the verb charidzomai, meaning “to show favor.” Thus, charisma refers to “an undeserved gift.”

The words “eagerly waiting for” are from the Greek verb apekdechomai. This word is made up of apo, used as an intensifier and ekdechomai, meaning “to watch for” or “to fully expect.” Thus apekdechomai means “to intently watch for something, fully expecting it to come to pass.”

Meaning Explained

As we have discussed before, there are two aspects of salvation that apply to our lives. The first is the day of our belief, the point in time when we believed in our heart that Jesus died for our sins and rose from the dead. At that point, we say that we are “saved.” The second aspect of our salvation is the day that God will fully accomplish our salvation. That is a future time when Jesus Christ will return (the rapture) and claim His children, giving us our heavenly body and presenting us as blameless before the Father.

On the day we accepted Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior, we believed God’s promise that He will claim us as His own. And, on that day we were imbued with spiritual gifts to be used in building up the body (the church) in preparation for His return. In God’s record book, those of us who “believe” are already recorded as sinless and blameless because Christ has paid the penalty for our sins. In reality, however, we are still sinners because we still have a sin nature.

Here’s one of the wonders of God. Even though we are still sinners, we have already been reconciled to God, and every sin, past, present, and future, has been paid for and is covered by the blood of the Lamb. And, even though we are still present in this sinful form, God has gifted us and expects us to use those gifts to bring glory to Him.

In today’s verse Paul tells the Corinthians that they are not lacking in any of the spiritual gifts and that they (and we) are eagerly waiting for, and fully expecting, the return of Christ. Because of this expectation of our full salvation, we need to do our part which is to use those spiritual gifts to build up the body and to bring glory to God.

Application

If you have accepted Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, then you are gifted in a special way by God. In return, God expects you to use your gifts for Him until He returns. These gifts are to be used to bring Him glory and praise. Are you using your gift(s)? Do your gifts bring glory to God or just to you?

In God's service, for His glory,

Copyright © 2013 Will Krause. All rights reserved