Romans 3:1
1 What [tis] advantage [perissos] then [oun] hath the Jew [Ioudaios]? or [e] what [tis] profit [opheleia] is there
of circumcision [peritome]? KJV-Interlinear
1
Then what advantage has the Jew? Or what is the value of circumcision? ESV
In previous verses, being a Jew was called into
question, as to its advantages, when and if any gentile can keep the Law or the
spirit of the Law, even if they do not know of its existence. They do right as a result of their own common
sense and conscience.
But the point is not whether or not a person can
differentiate between right and wrong, even without written guidelines. The point here is that God provided those
guidelines and He provided them in writing so as to establish them from Him who
is the ultimate authority and sovereign of all of creation, and, the Jewish
peoples, whether they were a righteous lot or not, actually kept those written
words, faithfully, and not for just a few years, but over many centuries and
across the span of many generations.
For by the written word, many have come to know that
their common sense is correct, but also, common sense can be turned awry, and
therefore a standard that is absolute and unchangeable, must be in place in
order to keep man on a straight path. A
path that is not subject to compromise or manipulation or popular thought.
Furthermore, being a Jew, establishes the faithfulness
of Gods promises to Jews. Promises that
span the entirety of human history, all the way to the Second Advent. And therefore the faithfulness of Gods
promises to all.
But in every case, knowing right from wrong, whether
you gain that knowledge from the Law or from common sense, it is faith that
determines salvation, not ones personal conduct or the commendability of ones
conduct.
There is no advantage to keeping a Law when the Law is
unkeepable, over doing that which is right and comes naturally. Neither obtain salvation. Therefore neither
possess any advantage for life.
Salvation is the priority, not ones personal conduct.
