30 What does all this mean? Even though the Gentiles were not trying to follow God’s standards, they were made right with God. And it was by faith that this took place. 31 But the people of Israel, who tried so hard to get right with God by keeping the law, never succeeded. 32 Why not? Because they were trying to get right with God by keeping the law instead of by trusting in him. They stumbled over the great rock in their path. 33 God warned them of this in the Scriptures when he said, “I am placing a stone in Jerusalem that makes people stumble, a rock that makes them fall. But anyone who trusts in him will never be disgraced.”
Background Doesn’t Matter
Are you getting the point yet? Paul’s certainly trying to make it clear. It doesn’t matter if you grew up in a “church family.” It doesn’t matter how spiritual or godly your grandmother was. What matters is what will you do with Jesus?
Our relationship with God is personal. Is all about us and God. It’s not about the nation you’re from or the denomination your church is a part of.
And yet it’s so easy to focus on all those things instead of our personal relationship. It’s natural to lean on all these other things and miss the point. In Paul’s day, many Jewish people did just that. They had always been “God’s people” and so why worry about a personal relationship. Just follow the rituals and the rules that their forefathers adhered to.
I’m sure it frustrated Paul. After all, he had once been a Pharisee. A “super-Jew” if you will. He had been a religious leader, teaching others to follow the law to the fullest. And yet, when he encountered Jesus and turned his life over to God, he realized the futility in that way of thinking. His passion was to lead others to the same freedom he now experienced. I’m sure when he encountered those who refused to listen, it would have been difficult.
My prayer: Lord, each day I need to come to you and focus on the relationship I have with you. I can’t rely on the past. I want my connection with you to be fresh. Daily. May I never become content with the idea that all that matters is the church I’m a part of, or the country I live in. Those things are not as important as staying connected to you in a very personal way. Amen.
Until tomorrow.
