Rom 3:1-3 (NIV) What advantage, then, is there in being a Jew, or what value is there in circumcision? Much in every way! First of all, they have been entrusted with the very words of God. What if some did not have faith? Will their lack of faith nullify God’s faithfulness? God gave a group of people called Jews His instructions so they would know how He wanted them to treat themselves, other people, and His plan. As the Jews started learning all God’s rules, laws, and instructions, they misunderstood one VERY IMPORTANT thing.

It seems strange to us that God would give us laws that were too hard for us to live; but, it makes sense when we think about relationships. People always expect too much of us; the way they want us to treat them is far better than we are capable of performing. From time to time we even disappoint ourselves. If we can’t live up to our own expectations, how are we ever going to live up to other peoples rules, laws, and expectations? And, if that is hard, then what would give us the impression that we would be able to fulfill all of God’s laws; so, why have them?

If laws were all we needed, then law enforcement people wouldn’t be needed. We wouldn’t need police, soldiers, sheriffs, judges, wardens, and penalties. All we would have to do was put the laws together, make sure everyone knew what they were, and explain how to apply them and we would have law-abiding citizens. Everyone would simply follow the laws to the very best of their abilities. BUT, that isn’t the way we humans think, feel, believe, behave, and react to laws that have been created with our best interest in mind.

Rom 3:19-20 (NIV) Now we know that whatever the law says, it says to those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be silenced and the whole world held accountable to God. Therefore no one will be declared righteous in His sight by observing the law; rather, through the law we become conscious of sin. Human laws have one purpose and God’s laws have another. Humans make laws and require that we live according to them. God causes laws to be written so we will be informed as to what is right and what is wrong. If we apply human reasoning to God’s laws, we will fail to live a life that God had planned for us.

Human laws place all the responsibility on us; God’s laws point to all the provisions He provides for us. If He requires that you stop doing something, then He makes power available to you so you can stop it, IF YOU WANT TO. If He requires that you start doing something, then He makes power available to you so you can start doing it, IF YOU WANT TO. All we have to do is follow God’s instructions for establishing a relationship with Him. Then, from that point on, He makes all kinds of provisions, power, attitudes, character traits, miracles, and blessing available to us. From there, we use them to fulfill all the laws of God, IF WE WANT TO.

Rom 3:21-24 (NIV) But now a righteousness from God, apart from law, has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by His GRACE through the REDEMPTION that came BY Christ Jesus.

The words “apart from law” makes it sound like our relationship with God is going to be a lawless one. But, we all have to understand that before we can deal with God’s laws we have to be able to get God’s power, provisions, and wisdom. You had to FIRST be born again before you could get anything else from God. You had to follow God’s instructions for establishing a relationship with Him. So, you prayed Jesus’ prayer in Matthew 6:9-13 and you obeyed the instructions in Romans 10:8-10. Now, you are ready to start getting all the power, provisions, and wisdom; God is hearing and answering ALL your prayers BECAUSE you are His child.

Rom 3:31 (NIV) Do we, then, nullify the law by this faith? Not at all! Rather, we uphold the law. If you hadn’t learned how to use your mouth and heart, you wouldn’t be born again now. You wouldn’t be God’s child or a citizen of His Kingdom. And, if you hadn’t learned how important your mouth and heart are in the spirit realm, you wouldn’t be ready to start living according to God’s instructions, commandments, rules, and laws. And, if you couldn’t live by them, you life would NEVER change in your relationships with yourself and other people.

People who TRY to be good, TRY to do what is right, and TRY to not do anything wrong, bad, or evil will fail. Humans lack the power, adequate desire, the necessary commitment, and the needed compassion to always do the right things with themselves and other people. However, those who put their faith, trust, reliance, and dependency on God, WILL HAVE AVAILABLE to them the power, adequate desire, the necessary commitment, and the needed compassion to always do the right things with themselves and other people. They may not take advantage of these AVAILABLE things; but, they can IF THEY WANT TO.

The provisions of God are too valuable, too expensive, too important, and too God-sized for anyone to be able to earn them. No matter how hard or how long we worked, we would never be able to afford or deserve God’s provisions. Work can only provide a wage; faith is free! Anyone can get the gift of faith in Jesus; anyone can speak faith through their mouth and use it to believe with their heart. If all the things of God are going to be AVAILABLE to everyone everywhere, then it has to be free, a gift, and by faith.

When we prayed Jesus’ prayer and obeyed the instructions in Romans 10:9-10, we saw how EASY it was to be born again into God’s family and Kingdom. It was so easy, that some didn’t feel like they had done enough. They thought, “It can’t be this easy!” But, it is! Because it is by faith as a free gift from God, we become His child and a citizen of His Kingdom through a power that flows generously from a loving God. BUT, we must not doubt the results just because it came with such ease. We must believe that all the things of God DO come to us VERY easy; but, that easiness doesn’t make the things that come to us to be insignificant. This is just the way God works; He makes everything come to us as a free gift and to come with great ease.

Once you were born again through faith confessed through your mouth that Jesus is Lord and that Jesus is your Lord, and once you used faith to believe in your heart that God raised Jesus from the dead, being born again came to you as a gift from God. It didn’t matter how important you were, how rich you were, how smart you were, or how hard you worked. You became God’s child and a citizen of His Kingdom as a gift. Once that happened, God started hearing and answering your prayers because you ARE His child.