"All Who Have Sinned... Will Be Judged."

I'm feeling overwhelmed by the pervasiveness of latent and not so latent racism in the world right now.  It feels like every last member of the human race (including me) is an unrepentant racist and no one is willing to be told or educated otherwise, add homophobe, add misogynist, add classists...  I remember a button my dad used to have that said, "Stop the world, I want to get off."


Romans 2:12-16
12 All who have sinned apart from the law will also perish apart from the law, and all who have sinned under the law will be judged by the law. ¹³For it is not the hearers of the law who are righteous in God’s sight, but the doers of the law who will be justified. ¹⁴When Gentiles, who do not possess the law, do instinctively what the law requires, these, though not having the law, are a law to themselves. ¹⁵They show that what the law requires is written on their hearts, to which their own conscience also bears witness; and their conflicting thoughts will accuse or perhaps excuse them ¹⁶on the day when, according to my gospel, God, through Jesus Christ, will judge the secret thoughts of all.


1) "doers of the law;" "...written on their hearts;" "...what the law requires;" "...to which their own conscience also bears witness;" "...their conflicting thoughts will accuse or perhaps excuse;"


2) I find some small amount of comfort in "their conflicting thoughts will accuse or perhaps excuse."  Of course, it assumes we have conflicting thoughts.  And that requires some degree of self-awareness.  I'm not convinced that we all hold the same capacity for self-awareness.  It seems to me that even a low level of self-awareness would result in greater empathy in the world.  I find myself looking forward to "the day when, according to my gospel, God, through Jesus Christ, will judge the secret thoughts of all."  But once again, Paul's argument is we are all condemned so that we can all be reconciled.  Ultimately, all who have sinned will be judged.  all who have sinned will be reconciled.  But that doesn't mean it will be easy... or pretty.


3) Clearly, the solution isn't in my hands.  Let the solution be in God's.


"Holy One, bring it on.  Bring on the day when you will judge the secret thoughts of all."


Breathprayer: "All who have sinned...will be judged"