Today you should read: Romans 2:17-29
Have you ever heard the old saying “Do as I say, not as I do”? How about, “Practice what you preach” or “Walk your talk”? These sayings come to my mind when I read this passage. You see, the Jews had this idea that they were safe from God’s judgment because of their position as His chosen people. They were spiritually prideful – the worst kind of pride – because they had God’s law and practiced His covenant sign of circumcision.
They thought they were in the clear. Not only that, but they thought themselves superior to others because they were also teachers concerning God’s laws and basic religious morality. In this passage, Paul shoots all those prideful notions down. He tells the Jews that even though they think they are teachers they really are not because they do not “practice what they preach”. They tell others to follow God’s commandments but they don’t follow them. Paul tells them that they dishonor God because of their hypocrisy and that circumcision’s importance is not in the physical ritual but rather in the act of obedience. It is not about being given the right to do what you want because you are in the “in” crowd; it is about obeying the God who so loves you and that He has given you a clean and renewed life.
What about us today? Are we living as though we are the “in” crowd? Do we act like, because we go to church and know Jesus, we are “safe” and can live how we want? Shame on us for this kind of living. God did not save us so we can do what we want. God has saved us, Ephesians 2:10 says, “to do good works.” We are called to obedience when we are saved. Does our walk match our talk? Do we come to church and say churchy, religious stuff, put on a smile, then go about business as usual the rest of the week?
Take some time now to examine your life. Take a few minutes and pray Psalm 139:23 to the Lord. Ask God if your walk matches your talk. We might be the only Jesus someone ever sees. We have to be careful that they see the real Jesus and not a hypocritical, “do as I say and not as I do” Jesus.
Posted by: Robbie Byrd