God that is able to save every one who believes it, the Jew first and the Greek as well. It is a revelation of God's righteousness manifested through faith and developing faith, as it is written, 'By faith the upright man shall find life.'

143. GOD'S JUSTICE AND IMPARTIALITY

The wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all the impiety and wickedness of those who hinder the truth by their wrong-doing. For what may be known about God is made clear to them; indeed God himself has made it clear to them. For since the creation of the world his invisible attributes, his everlasting power, and divine nature have been so clearly perceptible through what he has made that they have no excuse. Though they knew God, they did not praise him as God nor give him thanks, but they have become absorbed in futile speculations and their dull moral sense was obscured. Professing to be wise, they became fools, and substituted for the glory of the immortal God, images resembling mortal men and birds and four-footed beasts and reptiles.

So God gave them up to their depraved desires, to sexual vice, and to the dishonoring of their own bodies; for they substituted a sham for the true God and worshipped and served the creature rather than the Creator who is blessed forever.

He will reward each man according to what he has done, eternal life to those who by patient perseverance in the right are striving for glory, honor, and immortality; but anger and wrath to those who are rebellious,. who are disloyal to the truth and loyal only to evil impulses. Trouble and anguish are in store for every human being who persists in doing wrong, for the Jew

first and for the Greek as well. But glory, honor, and peace are in store for every one who does right, for the Jew first and for the Greek as well; for with God there is no distinction of race.

All who sin without the law will perish without the law; and all who sin when subject to the law will be condemned by the law. For it is not those who merely hear the law read that are upright before God; it is those who obey the law who will be acquitted.

When the foreigners, who have no law, instinctively do what the law requires, they are a law to themselves, even though they have no law. They show the effect of the law written on their hearts, and their consciences bear them witness as their moral convictions accuse or even defend them.

144. MORAL CLEANSING AND PEACE THROUGH

CHRIST

What is the advantage then of being a Jew? Or what is the value of their religious rites? Much in every way. First of all, because the Jews were intrusted with the divine teachings. What if some Jews have proved faithless? Will their faithlessness make God break faith? No, never. God will be true to his word even though every man prove false.

Well, then, are we Jews in a better position than those who are not Jews? Not at all. Our indictment of Jews and Greeks was that both are alike under the tyranny of sin. It is written in the scriptures: 'None is righteous, no not one.'

We know that whatever the law says is said to those living under the law, that every mouth may be closed and the whole world made answerable to God. For no human being will be declared righteous on the ground of

obedience to the law. The law simply gives a consciousness of sin.

But now apart from the law a divine way of attaining righteousness has been revealed. The law and the prophets bore witness to it, but the divine way of attaining righteousness comes through believing in Jesus Christ, and it is for all who believe. There are no distinctions, for all have sinned and all fail to realize God's glorious ideal, but through his loving-kindness they may freely attain righteousness by the deliverance which is found in Christ Jesus.

What then becomes of our boasting? It is absolutely excluded. On what principle? On the ground of merit? No, on the principle of faith, for we hold that a man attains righteousness by faith apart from deeds done in obedience to the law.

The promise made to Abraham and his descendants that he should inherit the earth did not come through the law but by the righteousness that is attained by faith. Therefore, since we attain righteousness through faith, let us enjoy the harmony which we have with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Through him we also by faith have gained access to that place in God's favor which we now hold, and we exult in the hope of sharing God's glory. Not only so, but we also exult in our hardships, for we know that hardship develops fortitude, and fortitude develops ripened character, and ripened character develops hope. This hope never disappoints us, for God's love has flooded our hearts through the Holy Spirit which has been given to us.

For while we were still helpless, at the opportune time Christ died for us godless sinners. Even for an upright man scarcely any one would die, though perhaps for a good man some one might be brave enough to die. But God proved his love for us in that Christ died for us

while we were still sinners. As we have now been freed from guilt through his blood, we can be more certain that we shall be saved by him from God's wrath. If while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life. Not only so, but we also exult in God through Jesus Christ our Master, to whom we owe this reconciliation.

145. THE VICTORY OVER SIN AND DEATH

What then shall we conclude? Shall we go on sinning in order that God's goodness toward us may be all the greater? By no means. How shall we, who are dead to sin, still live sinful lives? Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into fellowship with Christ Jesus were by the same symbol made to share his death. Therefore we by our baptism were buried with him in death, in order that, as Christ was raised from the dead by the glorious power of the Father, we also should enter upon a new life. For since we have been completely united with him in sharing his death, we shall also be united with him in sharing his resurrection. This we know, that our old self was crucified with him that our sinful nature might be destroyed, so that we should no longer be the slaves of sin; for he who is dead is freed from the power of sin.

We believe that as we have shared Christ's death we shall also share his life. We know that Christ, having been raised from the dead, will never die again. Death has forever lost its power over him; the death he died was death to sin once for all, but the life he now lives is life with God. In the same way you must consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God by virtue of your union with Jesus Christ.

Therefore do not let sin reign over your mortal bodies and make you subject to its evil passions. Do not go on yielding your members to sin to be used for wicked purposes, but once for all give yourselves to God as men who have been brought from death to life. Devote all your members to God in the cause of righteousness. Sin must not have power over you, for you are under the rule not of law but of love.

Are we therefore to go on sinning because we are under the rule of love rather than of law? No, never! Do you not know that when you render service and obedience to any one you become the servant to that master, whether it is sin whose service leads to death, or obedience to God which leads to righteousness?

But thank God, though you were once slaves to sin, you have learned to render hearty obedience to the standard of truth in which you have been instructed. Set free from the bondage of sin, you have entered the service of righteousness. I use this analogy of the slavery of the weak human body because you can understand it, for as you once gave your members as slaves to impurity and to the practice of lawlessness, so now dedicate your members as slaves to righteousness that you may develop perfect characters.

For when you were the slaves of sin you were not ruled by right principles. What then did you gain from those deeds of which you are now ashamed? The end of all that is death; but now that you are emancipated from sin and have become servants of God you have your reward in being made pure, and the end of that is life eternal. For the wages of sin are death, but God's free gift is life eternal through union with Christ Jesus our Lord.