HOW BAD ARE WE REALLY?

Romans 3:9-20
Holy Bible. New Living Translation copyright © 1996, 2004 by Tyndale Charitable Trust.

All People Are Sinners

9 Well then, should we conclude that we Jews are better than others? No, not at all, for we have already shown that all people, whether Jews or Gentiles, are under the power of sin. 10 As the Scriptures say,

“No one is righteous—
not even one.
11 No one is truly wise;
no one is seeking God.
12 All have turned away;
all have become useless.
No one does good,
not a single one.”
13 “Their talk is foul, like the stench from an open grave.
Their tongues are filled with lies.”
“Snake venom drips from their lips.”
14 “Their mouths are full of cursing and bitterness.”
15 “They rush to commit murder.
16 Destruction and misery always follow them.
17 They don’t know where to find peace.”
18 “They have no fear of God at all.”

19 Obviously, the law applies to those to whom it was given, for its purpose is to keep people from having excuses, and to show that the entire world is guilty before God. 20 For no one can ever be made right with God by doing what the law commands. The law simply shows us how sinful we are.


“Hold on Paul. I’m not all that bad. I do a lot of good things. I’ve gotten praise from many people for the works I have done. I even have plaques on my walls to prove it.”

Was that your reaction when you read these verses? Can you look at those around you and say, by comparison, there are a whole lot of folks who are a lot more wicked than I am? That may be true but the problem is they are not the example. They are not the plumb line. They are not one to measure yourself against.

When we look at Jesus … fully human, yet without sin … we don’t measure up. We see how sinful we really are.

Prayer Request: Please pray for Bob Neill (we who know him from Kairos, know him as Uncle Bob). He has recently and suddenly developed a problem with an elevated blood sugar level. Pray for discernment of the source of the problem and complete healing. Uncle Bob has much work to do as state chairperson for Kairos of Mississippi.