Is Judgment The Same For All People 

Please read the following Scripture very carefully.

Romans 2:6-11

            6 who “will render to each one according to his deeds”: 7 eternal life to those who by patient             continuance in doing good seek for glory, honor, and immortality; 8 but to those who are self-      seeking and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness–indignation and wrath, 9             tribulation and anguish, on every soul of man who does evil, of the Jew first and also of the             Greek; 10 but glory, honor, and peace to everyone who works what is good, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. 11 For there is no partiality with God.

Notice these words in these verses

To The Jew First and Also The Greek

For there is no Partiality With God.  

            Does the statement, “For there is no partiality with God”, seem strange when you also read, “To the Jew first and also to the Greek”? You might ask, how can the Jew be first if there is no partiality with God?

            You might also notice this passage as well;

Romans 2:9 (NKJV)

                    ⁹ tribulation and anguish, on every soul of man who does evil, of the Jew first and also of                                the Greek;

            So, how can this be? If there is no partiality with God; how can the Jew be first in glory, honor and peace and at the same time the Jew is to be first in tribulation and anguish?

            Well, there are some things we know from what God has revealed in the Bible for us to understand. The first thing we know is that the Jews had the Law of Moses and the Gentiles did not. That does not mean that the Gentiles did not have a law. From the days of creation when Adam and Eve ate from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, man has been governed by the Moral Law. Mankind was subject to this law as his guide for righteous behavior and acceptance with God’s approval for hundreds of years. Unfortunately, man was never able to obey any law good enough to prevent being condemned by sin. This “moral law” continued to govern mankind until Moses came on the scene and God set up the system of “The Law of the Jews”.

            There were 2 parts to this new law. There was the “ceremonial part of the law” which included circumcision, Sabbath Days, sacrifices, feast days, priesthoods, and many other parts.

            Only the Jews were subject to this part of the Law.

            But there was another part of this new Law. It was the moral part of the Law. Things that had already been the law for mankind ever since the Garden of Eden. Laws such as, “thou shall not kill”, and many other moral rules, such as lying, stealing, cheating, false witness, adultery, fornication, homosexuality, and many others. These moral laws were for the Jews, yes. But they were for the Gentiles as well. The moral laws that governed man’s behavior from the beginning of time were never done away with. They continued right along and became a part of the Jewish Law. This means that all men, Jew or Gentile were still responsible to obey the morals laws of God.

            But the Jew had a special responsibility to obey the entire Law. They had a written Law and they had the Prophets and the Priesthood to continually explain it to them.

            So now we are beginning to see why God would hold the Jews more accountable for proper obedience. They were given more information and promises and more was required of them. Is this unusual???? No, not at all. Look at the following examples.

Examples

A. James 3:1 (NKJV)

1. My brethren, let not many of you become teachers, knowing that we shall receive a stricter judgment.                                

a. Here is a case where the Bible identifies a class of people who are held to a stricter set of principles than the common population.                                                                                               

b. These people are warned that their position causes them to be judged with a                                            different set of rules and laws.                                               

B. 1 Timothy 2:11-13 (NKJV)

            11 Let a woman learn in silence with all submission. 12 And I do not permit a woman to             teach or to have authority over a man, but to be in silence. 13 For Adam was formed first,                                   then Eve.

                        a. God has a special set of rules to govern a woman’s role in life.

                        b. If she disobeys these laws she will be responsible for her sin.

            So just like the Jews, who had a greater responsibility to obey the Law of Moses than the Gentiles; People of today are subject to the same types of special responsibility to God’s Laws for their special roles in life. Now would this still be a true statement today?

A. “Who will render to each one according to his deeds. To the teacher first, and also to the students”.

B. “Who will render to each one according to his deeds. To the woman first, and also to the man.

            Every role in life carries with it a special set of rules that apply specifically to the person who is responsible for his position here on the earth. Depending on the role you occupy, you may be subject to rules that will produce sin in your life that would not be sin for someone else.

            Do elders have a special set of rules for them?

            What about husbands and wives?

            There is nothing unusual about this situation. It has always been the normal way all things are. It is true in the work place. It is true in the military. It is true in the home. There is always someone who has the responsibility for certain parts of his environment and he has special rules to follow that everyone just does not have to adhere to.

Carl O. Cooper