The Letter of St. Paul
to
The Romans
Chapter
3
¹ Then what advantage has the Jew? Or what is the value of circumcision?
(The Letter of St. Paul to the Romans Chapter 3 verse 1)
Oh God my beloved Father, the same can be said for us Roman Catholics, what is the value of baptism if we do not live according to what we believe. It is like having a barn of gold without the awareness of what one can do with such a treasure. Oh God, my Father I pray that You strengthen me so much that I will be strong enough to live the anointment of my baptism and proclaim Your name without shame or fear Amen.
² Much, in every way. For in the first place the jews were entrusted with the oracles of God. ³ What if somewhere unfaithful? Will their faithlessness nullify the faithfulness of God? ⁴ By no means! Although everyone is a liar, let God be proved true, as it is written, "So that you may be justified in your words and prevail in your judging."
(The Letter of St. Paul to the Romans Chapter 3 verses 2 to 4)
Oh God, my Father nothing that we can ever do or say can ever contradict the truth of Your Word. Many have written books to disprove this and that, however, You remain the truth and nothing but the truth Amen.
⁵ But if our injustice serves to confirm the justice of God, what should we say? That God is unjust to inflict wrath on us? (I speak in a human way.) ⁶ By no means! For then how could God judge the world? But if through my falsehood God's truthfulness abounds to his glory, why am I still being condemned as a sinner?
(The Letter of St. Paul to the Romans Chapter 3 verses 5 to 6)
Oh God my Father, arguments are built on arguments, hypotheses never stop being created, justified and contradicted, however, my faith in You remains forever. When I look at You it is as if looking at a mirror or a scanner in the sense that Your goodness and justice makes me aware of my lack of goodness and injustice. However Your permit me to receive such insights not for me to become in despair or discouraged but to become more aware of those areas that You can help me to improve in and be a better human and Christian Amen. Thank You, Jesus.
⁸ And why not say (as some people slander us by saying that we say). "Let us do evil so that good may come"? Their condemnation is deserved!
⁸ And why not say (as some people slander us by saying that we say). "Let us do evil so that good may come"? Their condemnation is deserved!
(The Letter of St. Paul to the Romans Chapter 3 verse 8)
Oh God my Father, followers of Jehovah witnesses are often accused of selecting phrases from the Bible and interpret them in their own way in order to persuade people to join them. However, it is also the case that I have heard a completely different version of You my God and Father preached by priests in different Roman Catholic Churches which have left me spiritually maimed for periods of times. I conclude oh God my Father, that not all who preach about You, have made a real and true direct experience of You, therefore they are preaching about someone whom they do not know Amen.
⁹ What then? Are we any better off? No, not at all; for we have already charged that all, both Jews and Greeks, are under the power of sin, ¹⁰ as it is Written: "There is no one who is righteous, not even one; ¹¹ there is no one who has understanding, there is no one who seeks God.
(The Letter of St. Paul to the Romans Chapter 3 verses 9 to 11)
Oh God my Father I am totally aware of my sinful nature and that naturally no good can come out of me or humanity, but it is by means of the prompting of the Holy Spirit that good acts or goodness may result for at heart I am a sinner living among sinners God have mercy Amen on me Your sinner.
¹² All have turned aside, together they have become worthless; there is no one who shows kindness, there is not even one."
(The Letter of St. Paul to the Romans Chapter 3 verse 12)
Oh God, my Father, in one way or another we are all sinners and at some point in time or another we have all given You our backs in protest, moreover, as sinners, we are indeed worthless because it is only in You that we discover our value and identity as Your sons and daughters. Oh God, my Father it is also true that when left to our own devices, we tend to become selfish and wicked especially if we are given the power to overcome others. I pray oh God my Father, that You help me conquer my natural self and its desires and inclinations Amen.
¹³ "Their throats are opened graves; they use their tongues to deceive." "The venom of vipers is under their lips."
(The Letter of St. Paul to the Romans Chapter 3 verse 13)
Oh God, my Father, I pray for Your protection, for I am surrounded by a brood of vipers who are dying to get their fangs into me and pour their venom into my bloodstream. I need You more than ever my God and Father Amen.
¹⁴ "Their mouths are full of cursing and bitterness." ¹⁵"Their feet are swift to shed blood; ¹⁶ ruin and misery are in their paths, ¹⁷ and the way of peace they have not known." ¹⁸ "There is no fear of God before their eyes."
(The Letter of St. Paul to the Romans Chapter 3 verses 14 to 18)
Oh God my beloved Father may Your name be blessed forever and ever, may positive thoughts of helping others run through the pathways of our brain and may we become positive people both in actions and in the words that we proclaim Amen.
¹⁹ Now we know that whatever the law says, it speaks to those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be silenced, and the whole world may be held accountable to God.
(The Letter of St. Paul to the Romans Chapter 3 verse 19)
Oh God my beloved Father, Your Word as in the Bible has the power to contradict all the arguments that the world can present, for it is the truth and its source is in You who is the Absolute Truth. I pray that we meditate on the Bible and let it talk to our soul and let the Word of God judge and humble us instead of our judging and criticizing it Amen.
²⁰ For "no human being will be justified in his sight" by deeds prescribed by the law, for through the law comes the knowledge of sin.
(The Letter of St. Paul to the Romans Chapter 3 verse 20)
Oh God my blessed and beloved Father, when I meditate on Your Word as in the Bible, You help me realize that I am still far away from being holy and justified in my ways. You help me realize that I am still a sinful person, however, I am consoled by the fact that I know that You still love me Amen.
²¹ But now, apart from the law, the righteousness of God has been disclosed, and is attested by the law and the prophets, ²² the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction, ²³ since all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God; ²⁴ they are now justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, ²⁵ whom God put forward as a sacrifice of atonement by his blood, effective through faith. He did this to show his righteousness because in his divine forbearance he had passed over the sins previously committed; ²⁶ it was to prove at the present time that he himself is righteous and that he justifies the one who has faith in Jesus.
(The Letter of St. Paul to the Romans Chapter 3 verses 21 to 26)
Oh God, my beloved Father You have fulfilled what had been written in the law of the Old Testament. Since we have all sinned in our lives we had all been condemned by that law, however, by the law of love and righteousness, a new opportunity to live in You has been given to us. You have paid the price for our sins, and in doing so You have given me the opportunity to live again in You and not according to the flesh Amen.
²⁷ Then what becomes of boasting? It is excluded. By what law? By that of works? No, but by the law of faith.
(The Letter of St. Paul to the Romans Chapter 3 verse 27)
Oh God my beloved Father, obedience to You and Your ways is also obedience to the Social law which is based on social order and not chaos. Social law is based on good relationships and obedience to the norms of the state which breeds stability. Amen.
²⁸ For we hold that a person is justified by faith apart from works prescribed by the law.
(The Letter of St. Paul to the Romans Chapter 3 verse 28)
Oh God my beloved Father I hold that a person is justified only if You justify that person and that justice according to the principles and values of this world is not always justice Amen.
²⁹ Or is God the God of Jews only? Is he not the God of the Gentiles also, ³⁰ since God is one; and he will justify the circumcised on the ground of faith and the uncircumcised through the same faith. ³¹ Do we then overthrow the law by this faith? By no means! On the contrary, we uphold the law.
(The Letter of St. Paul to the Romans Chapter 3 verses 29 to 31)
Oh God my beloved Father, I hold that You are the God of all or that of none at all, for I believe that as one world we are one family even though we have different or similar belief systems, that manifest the different perspectives of You my God and Father. I believe that when our time comes You will judge us each according to who and what we believe in, irrelevant in whom and what we believe in Amen.
Oh God my Father and Saviour, I would like to end this third chapter of St. Paul's Letter to the Romans with the following prayer.
May I oh God my Father, hold as being true, all that You have declared as being true, hold as being unacceptable, all that You have considered as being unacceptable, love all that You commanded us to love and avoid and consider as evil, all that You considered as being evil Amen
⁹ What then? Are we any better off? No, not at all; for we have already charged that all, both Jews and Greeks, are under the power of sin, ¹⁰ as it is Written: "There is no one who is righteous, not even one; ¹¹ there is no one who has understanding, there is no one who seeks God.
(The Letter of St. Paul to the Romans Chapter 3 verses 9 to 11)
Oh God my Father I am totally aware of my sinful nature and that naturally no good can come out of me or humanity, but it is by means of the prompting of the Holy Spirit that good acts or goodness may result for at heart I am a sinner living among sinners God have mercy Amen on me Your sinner.
¹² All have turned aside, together they have become worthless; there is no one who shows kindness, there is not even one."
(The Letter of St. Paul to the Romans Chapter 3 verse 12)
Oh God, my Father, in one way or another we are all sinners and at some point in time or another we have all given You our backs in protest, moreover, as sinners, we are indeed worthless because it is only in You that we discover our value and identity as Your sons and daughters. Oh God, my Father it is also true that when left to our own devices, we tend to become selfish and wicked especially if we are given the power to overcome others. I pray oh God my Father, that You help me conquer my natural self and its desires and inclinations Amen.
¹³ "Their throats are opened graves; they use their tongues to deceive." "The venom of vipers is under their lips."
(The Letter of St. Paul to the Romans Chapter 3 verse 13)
Oh God, my Father, I pray for Your protection, for I am surrounded by a brood of vipers who are dying to get their fangs into me and pour their venom into my bloodstream. I need You more than ever my God and Father Amen.
¹⁴ "Their mouths are full of cursing and bitterness." ¹⁵"Their feet are swift to shed blood; ¹⁶ ruin and misery are in their paths, ¹⁷ and the way of peace they have not known." ¹⁸ "There is no fear of God before their eyes."
(The Letter of St. Paul to the Romans Chapter 3 verses 14 to 18)
Oh God my beloved Father may Your name be blessed forever and ever, may positive thoughts of helping others run through the pathways of our brain and may we become positive people both in actions and in the words that we proclaim Amen.
¹⁹ Now we know that whatever the law says, it speaks to those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be silenced, and the whole world may be held accountable to God.
(The Letter of St. Paul to the Romans Chapter 3 verse 19)
Oh God my beloved Father, Your Word as in the Bible has the power to contradict all the arguments that the world can present, for it is the truth and its source is in You who is the Absolute Truth. I pray that we meditate on the Bible and let it talk to our soul and let the Word of God judge and humble us instead of our judging and criticizing it Amen.
²⁰ For "no human being will be justified in his sight" by deeds prescribed by the law, for through the law comes the knowledge of sin.
(The Letter of St. Paul to the Romans Chapter 3 verse 20)
Oh God my blessed and beloved Father, when I meditate on Your Word as in the Bible, You help me realize that I am still far away from being holy and justified in my ways. You help me realize that I am still a sinful person, however, I am consoled by the fact that I know that You still love me Amen.
²¹ But now, apart from the law, the righteousness of God has been disclosed, and is attested by the law and the prophets, ²² the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction, ²³ since all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God; ²⁴ they are now justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, ²⁵ whom God put forward as a sacrifice of atonement by his blood, effective through faith. He did this to show his righteousness because in his divine forbearance he had passed over the sins previously committed; ²⁶ it was to prove at the present time that he himself is righteous and that he justifies the one who has faith in Jesus.
(The Letter of St. Paul to the Romans Chapter 3 verses 21 to 26)
Oh God, my beloved Father You have fulfilled what had been written in the law of the Old Testament. Since we have all sinned in our lives we had all been condemned by that law, however, by the law of love and righteousness, a new opportunity to live in You has been given to us. You have paid the price for our sins, and in doing so You have given me the opportunity to live again in You and not according to the flesh Amen.
²⁷ Then what becomes of boasting? It is excluded. By what law? By that of works? No, but by the law of faith.
(The Letter of St. Paul to the Romans Chapter 3 verse 27)
Oh God my beloved Father, obedience to You and Your ways is also obedience to the Social law which is based on social order and not chaos. Social law is based on good relationships and obedience to the norms of the state which breeds stability. Amen.
²⁸ For we hold that a person is justified by faith apart from works prescribed by the law.
(The Letter of St. Paul to the Romans Chapter 3 verse 28)
Oh God my beloved Father I hold that a person is justified only if You justify that person and that justice according to the principles and values of this world is not always justice Amen.
²⁹ Or is God the God of Jews only? Is he not the God of the Gentiles also, ³⁰ since God is one; and he will justify the circumcised on the ground of faith and the uncircumcised through the same faith. ³¹ Do we then overthrow the law by this faith? By no means! On the contrary, we uphold the law.
(The Letter of St. Paul to the Romans Chapter 3 verses 29 to 31)
Oh God my beloved Father, I hold that You are the God of all or that of none at all, for I believe that as one world we are one family even though we have different or similar belief systems, that manifest the different perspectives of You my God and Father. I believe that when our time comes You will judge us each according to who and what we believe in, irrelevant in whom and what we believe in Amen.
Oh God my Father and Saviour, I would like to end this third chapter of St. Paul's Letter to the Romans with the following prayer.
May I oh God my Father, hold as being true, all that You have declared as being true, hold as being unacceptable, all that You have considered as being unacceptable, love all that You commanded us to love and avoid and consider as evil, all that You considered as being evil Amen
