What then? Are we better than they?
Not at all; for we have already charged that both Jews and Greeks are all under sin; as it is written,
There is none righteous, not even one;
There is none who understands,
There is none who seeks for God;
All have turned aside, together they have become useless;
There is none who does good,
There is not even one.
Their throat is an open grave, with their tongues they keep deceiving,
The poison of asps is under their lips”; whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness;
Their feet are swift to shed blood,
Destruction and misery are in their paths, and the path of peace they have not known.
There is no fear of God before their eyes.
Now we know that whatever the Law says, it speaks to those who are under the Law, so that every mouth may be closed and all the world may become accountable to God; because by the works of the Law no flesh will be justified in His sight; for through the Law comes the knowledge of sin. Romans 3:9-19
Do Christians think they better than other people? I love the answer pastor Greg Laurie gives. “No, we are not better than other people, but we are ‘better off’! This is the point that the Apostle Paul is making. Everyone is in the same boat. We are sinners. The difference is that Christians are forgiven. My buddy Dale used to say ‘its not good people that go to heaven, its forgiven people’. So true!
When did I receive the forgiveness available to me? To whom am I extending it?
God as this day begins, I know that in my flesh no good thing dwells. Help me remember that while I have the hope of heaven and the abiding presence of Your Spirit in my life, I am no better than anyone else. But I am ‘better off’! For that I am eternally grateful.
