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The complaint I hear when I talk to individuals about Christ and the Church is we are a bunch of hypocrites.  I realize this is just an excuse, but we as a church, must not ignore this finding for one simple reason.  They are right, all of us are hypocrites, and if you think you are not, it is probably a very powerful argument why you are. Paul is dealing with this issue, not only with a once pagan gentile crowd, but the moralist and the Jew also.  It is a unique time, most cities would have had one church.  In this text, Paul worked to bring different perspectives together.  He is handling different cultures, and socio-economic statuses like we see today in our churches. On top of it is the hassle of extremely different religious upbringings.  

The Roman culture was a melting pot of monotheistic, polytheistic and others.  Paul uses this moment to make the argument that ultimately we are all sinners. It doesn’t matter if I am Jewish sinner, a gentile sinner or a barbarian sinner.  It does not matter what our background was, it matters what our faith is now.  Some of the most damaging people in the Kingdom of God are those that claim to be Christian, but their actions proclaim they are lost.  I know many kids that grew up in the church, still go to church, but have completely different lives six days a week.  Some have had hypocritical parents, and some are hypocrites themselves.  These kids have been blessed immensely. I heard one student in class say he wished he would have known Jesus at an earlier age, and yet those who grew up in the church take it for granted.  

The Jews had this advantage because they were entrusted with the visions of God (Romans 3:2). But much like a child that grows up in the church, we are still responsible for our own salvation. Salvation cannot be passed down. Salvation is our own (Philippians 2:1).  We all start off as sinners separated from God’s grace. Those having heard the truth have an advantage, because we are taught the scriptures from the time we were little.  Ultimately, our parent’s faith cannot be our own.  We must bury ourselves and take up the cross.  If we know Christ, and turn away from it, then it would have been better for us to have never known him (2 Peter 2:21) This scripture tells me even though we have an advantage, if we turn away from God, there will be a higher consequence for our actions. It is such a blessing to grow up in a Christian household, but in the end if we do not accept Christ we will be turned over to our hearts’ desire.  An eternal separation from Jesus is what we will receive.