How do people actually become right with God?
Every week Pastor Bob has been walking us through the book of Romans, and this week we were in the last part of chapter 9 and the beginning of chapter 10. The big question underneath everything was this:
"How do people actually become right with God?"
Is it by being good enough, religious enough, sincere enough?
Or is it something else entirely?
Romans 9–10 answers that in a very clear, very uncomfortable, and very freeing way.
When the “wrong” people get in
Paul is looking at something surprising in his day:
Non‑Jewish people (Gentiles) were coming to faith in Jesus in huge numbers, while many Jewish people—who had the Scriptures, the history, the temple, the law—were not.
He writes:
“The Gentiles who did not pursue righteousness have obtained it… but Israel, who pursued a law of righteousness, has not attained it.” (Romans 9:30–31)
In other words, the people who **weren’t even trying** to become “righteous” (right with God) are finding it through Jesus.
The people who were trying extremely hard are missing it.
If that feels “unfair,” that’s actually the point.
That’s what grace is: something you **don’t deserve** and **can’t earn**, given as a gift.
What “righteousness” really means
“Righteousness” is one of those words that can sound religious or abstract.
But it simply means:
Being in right relationship with God; in good standing before Him.
Romans 3 says:
"There is no difference… for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” (Romans 3:22–23)
The Bible’s claim is that:
- No matter your background, family, race, or religion,
- No matter how “good” or “bad” your story looks from the outside,
"All of us miss God’s standard."
And the standard isn’t “better than most people.”
The standard is **perfection**, because God is perfect.
That’s why Paul keeps repeating that we can’t **earn** right standing with God. The law—God’s commands—works like a mirror: it shows us what we really look like.
It doesn’t fix us; it exposes us.
Ideally, that should drive us *toward* God for help, not *away* from Him in self‑effort.
When religion becomes a substitute for God
Paul says Israel was “pursuing a law that would lead to righteousness” but never reached it (Romans 9:31).
Not because the law was bad, but because they were using it the wrong way.
They focused on "rules" instead of "relationship".
They built layer after layer of extra rules—“guardrails”—around God’s commands so no one would even get close to breaking them.
Pastor Bob used the image of bowling with kids:
When the gutters are blocked off, the ball can’t actually go in the gutter. It just bounces off the rails until it hits something. It’s fun, but it’s not really bowling anymore.
In a similar way, Israel added so many extra rules that the **process** became more important than the "heart".
Jesus confronts this mentality in the Gospels.
He heals people on the Sabbath—blind eyes, crippled bodies, tormented minds. These were obvious signs that God was at work. Yet some of the religious leaders were more upset that He “broke the rules” about what you could do on the Sabbath than amazed at what God was doing.
They missed the point.
God has always wanted the heart
This wasn’t a new idea in the time of Jesus. The Old Testament itself says repeatedly that God is after the **heart**, not just outward religious actions:
- God, through Moses:
“Circumcise therefore the foreskin of your heart, and be no longer stubborn.” (Deuteronomy 10:16)
Physical circumcision was the outward sign of belonging to God’s people, but God was clear: what He truly desires is a heart that is tender toward Him.
- God, through the prophets (Hosea, Isaiah, Malachi, Proverbs):
He rebukes His people for going through the motions of sacrifice and worship while refusing to repent or change their ways.
So this isn’t “Old Testament: law, New Testament: faith.”
It has **always** been about trusting God from the heart. The rules were never meant to be a ladder to climb to God. They were meant to reveal our need for Him.
How we do the same thing today
Most of us aren’t worried about keeping Old Testament dietary laws or temple rituals. But we’re just as capable of turning life with God into a **performance**.
Some modern versions of “works‑based” thinking look like:
- “I go to church regularly. That must count for something.”
- “I serve. I volunteer. I help the poor. I share my faith. Surely that earns me favor with God.”
- “I pray a lot, or I pray the right way, or I have a spiritual routine—doesn’t that secure my spot with God?”
All of those practices are good—church, serving, praying.
They just **can’t** make us right with God.
They are meant to be **responses** to God’s love, not **tickets** to earn it.
Religious activity can actually become a barrier if we start trusting in what *we* do instead of what "Jesus" has done.
The real stumbling block: Jesus Himself
Paul says Israel “stumbled over the stumbling stone” (Romans 9:32–33), quoting the Old Testament. He’s talking about **Jesus**.
For many in Paul’s day (and in ours), the problem isn’t religion in general; it’s **Jesus in particular**:
- Was He really God in human form?
- Was He really born of a virgin?
- Was He really sinless?
- Did He really rise from the dead?
Or, more personally:
- Do I really need someone to die for me?
- Am I really that broken, that I can’t fix myself?
Underneath many objections to Christianity lies this reality:
"Jesus is the dividing line."
You can be very spiritual, very sincere, very devoted—and still miss Him.
Paul describes his fellow Jews this way:
“They have a zeal for God, but not according to knowledge. For, being ignorant of the righteousness of God and seeking to establish their own, they did not submit to God’s righteousness.” (Romans 10:2–3)
Sincere passion pointed in the wrong direction still misses the mark.
One way sounds arrogant—until you look at it closely
Jesus made a staggering claim:
“I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” (John 14:6)
In our culture, an "exclusive" claim like that can feel offensive.
Does that mean other religions can’t save us?
- Islam?
- Buddhism?
- Traditional religions?
- New Age spirituality?
- Even versions of Christianity that have abandoned what the Bible teaches?
Paul’s answer is:
If it isn’t the real Jesus—crucified, risen, fully God and fully human—it can’t reconcile us to God.
That doesn’t mean other religions have nothing true or good in them. It does mean they don’t solve our deepest problem:
our separation from a holy God and our need for forgiveness and new life.
Couldn’t I just be “good enough”?
Paul actually asks: is it possible to be saved by perfectly obeying God’s commands?
He quotes Leviticus 18:5:
“The person who does the commandments shall live by them.”
In theory, if you **never sinned—not in thought, word, or deed—ever**, you could be right with God by your own performance.
But Romans has already told us:
"All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” (Romans 3:23)
So the path of “just be perfect” is technically there—but practically closed to every one of us.
Which is why Jesus matters so much. He is the **only** one who actually lived that perfect life. Never sinned. Always did what was right. Fully pleasing to the Father.
Then He offered His life as a sacrifice "in our place".
- Because He’s fully human, He can stand in for us.
- Because He’s fully God, His life has infinite worth—sufficient to cover all who trust Him.
The simplicity (and scandal) of the gospel
After all this dense theology, Paul brings it down to something simple and incredibly clear:
> “The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart…
> because, if you confess with your mouth that **Jesus is Lord**
> and believe in your heart that **God raised him from the dead**,
> you will be saved.” (Romans 10:8–9)
Not:
- “If you attend for 10 years,”
- “If you reach 51% good and 49% bad,”
- “If you clean yourself up first.”
But:
1. "Confess" with your mouth that Jesus is Lord.
- Agree with who He is: God, not just teacher.
- Surrender to Him as the true leader and authority of your life.
2. "Believe" in your heart that God raised Him from the dead.
- Trust that His death truly paid for your sin.
- Trust that His resurrection means sin and death are defeated.
This is "righteousness by faith"—being put right with God by trusting in what Jesus has done, not in what we do.
---
So where does that leave us?
Pastor Bob closed with a few searching questions:
1. Are you trying to prove yourself to God?
Maybe you wouldn’t say it out loud, but internally you feel:
- “If I just do a bit more, maybe God will finally be okay with me.”
- “God must be disappointed. I’d better make it up to Him.”
That is a heavy way to live.
The message of Romans is that Jesus has already carried that weight.
You don’t have to.
2. Is there something about Jesus that still trips you up?
Maybe you’re exploring faith and something about Jesus is your “stumbling block”:
- His claim to be God
- The resurrection
- The idea that you’re not basically fine on your own
Those are honest, important questions. The Bible never asks you to turn off your brain. It does invite you to wrestle with them honestly and to be open to the possibility that Jesus really is who He says He is.
3. If you are a follower of Jesus—are you living like it’s grace?
You might fully agree “we’re saved by grace through faith,” but still **function** as if it’s all on your shoulders:
- Serving to earn approval instead of out of love
- Sharing your faith to quiet guilt instead of out of gratitude
- Burning out spiritually because you’ve forgotten: you are already accepted in Christ
Serving, loving others, sharing the good news—these are all good, even necessary. But they’re meant to be "overflow", not "entry tickets".
An invitation
If you’re reading this and realize:
“I’ve been trusting in my goodness, or my background, or my religious activity—not in Jesus Himself,”
then the invitation of Romans 10:9–10 is for you:
- Turn away from trying to save yourself.
- Acknowledge your need.
- Confess that Jesus is Lord.
- Trust that His death and resurrection are enough for you.
You can express that in your own words, right where you are.
And if you’re part of our church family or nearby, we’d love to talk with you or pray with you. Pastor Bob, or anyone on our team, would be glad to listen, answer questions as best we can, and walk with you as you explore what it means to follow Jesus.
If you already belong to Him, let this be a reminder:
- You are not working **for** God’s love.
- You are working **from** it.
Scriptures Referenced
- Romans 3:21–23
- Romans 5:1–2
- Romans 9:30–33
- Romans 10:1–4
- Romans 10:2–3
- Romans 10:8–10
- Hosea 6:6
- Isaiah 1:13–15
- Malachi 1:10
- Proverbs 21:27
- Deuteronomy 10:15–17
- Deuteronomy 10:16
- Deuteronomy 30 (general context, especially near v.14)
- Genesis (circumcision of Abraham – general reference)
- Leviticus 18:5
- John 9 (healing of a blind man)
- Luke 4 (casting out a demon)
- Luke 13 (healing a crippled woman)
- Mark 3 (healing of a man with a withered hand)
- Psalm 118 (the rejected cornerstone)
- 1 Peter 3:15
- 1 Peter (reference to Jesus as cornerstone, especially 2:6–8)
- Ephesians 2:8
- John 14:6
"How do people actually become right with God?"
Is it by being good enough, religious enough, sincere enough?
Or is it something else entirely?
Romans 9–10 answers that in a very clear, very uncomfortable, and very freeing way.
When the “wrong” people get in
Paul is looking at something surprising in his day:
Non‑Jewish people (Gentiles) were coming to faith in Jesus in huge numbers, while many Jewish people—who had the Scriptures, the history, the temple, the law—were not.
He writes:
“The Gentiles who did not pursue righteousness have obtained it… but Israel, who pursued a law of righteousness, has not attained it.” (Romans 9:30–31)
In other words, the people who **weren’t even trying** to become “righteous” (right with God) are finding it through Jesus.
The people who were trying extremely hard are missing it.
If that feels “unfair,” that’s actually the point.
That’s what grace is: something you **don’t deserve** and **can’t earn**, given as a gift.
What “righteousness” really means
“Righteousness” is one of those words that can sound religious or abstract.
But it simply means:
Being in right relationship with God; in good standing before Him.
Romans 3 says:
"There is no difference… for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” (Romans 3:22–23)
The Bible’s claim is that:
- No matter your background, family, race, or religion,
- No matter how “good” or “bad” your story looks from the outside,
"All of us miss God’s standard."
And the standard isn’t “better than most people.”
The standard is **perfection**, because God is perfect.
That’s why Paul keeps repeating that we can’t **earn** right standing with God. The law—God’s commands—works like a mirror: it shows us what we really look like.
It doesn’t fix us; it exposes us.
Ideally, that should drive us *toward* God for help, not *away* from Him in self‑effort.
When religion becomes a substitute for God
Paul says Israel was “pursuing a law that would lead to righteousness” but never reached it (Romans 9:31).
Not because the law was bad, but because they were using it the wrong way.
They focused on "rules" instead of "relationship".
They built layer after layer of extra rules—“guardrails”—around God’s commands so no one would even get close to breaking them.
Pastor Bob used the image of bowling with kids:
When the gutters are blocked off, the ball can’t actually go in the gutter. It just bounces off the rails until it hits something. It’s fun, but it’s not really bowling anymore.
In a similar way, Israel added so many extra rules that the **process** became more important than the "heart".
Jesus confronts this mentality in the Gospels.
He heals people on the Sabbath—blind eyes, crippled bodies, tormented minds. These were obvious signs that God was at work. Yet some of the religious leaders were more upset that He “broke the rules” about what you could do on the Sabbath than amazed at what God was doing.
They missed the point.
God has always wanted the heart
This wasn’t a new idea in the time of Jesus. The Old Testament itself says repeatedly that God is after the **heart**, not just outward religious actions:
- God, through Moses:
“Circumcise therefore the foreskin of your heart, and be no longer stubborn.” (Deuteronomy 10:16)
Physical circumcision was the outward sign of belonging to God’s people, but God was clear: what He truly desires is a heart that is tender toward Him.
- God, through the prophets (Hosea, Isaiah, Malachi, Proverbs):
He rebukes His people for going through the motions of sacrifice and worship while refusing to repent or change their ways.
So this isn’t “Old Testament: law, New Testament: faith.”
It has **always** been about trusting God from the heart. The rules were never meant to be a ladder to climb to God. They were meant to reveal our need for Him.
How we do the same thing today
Most of us aren’t worried about keeping Old Testament dietary laws or temple rituals. But we’re just as capable of turning life with God into a **performance**.
Some modern versions of “works‑based” thinking look like:
- “I go to church regularly. That must count for something.”
- “I serve. I volunteer. I help the poor. I share my faith. Surely that earns me favor with God.”
- “I pray a lot, or I pray the right way, or I have a spiritual routine—doesn’t that secure my spot with God?”
All of those practices are good—church, serving, praying.
They just **can’t** make us right with God.
They are meant to be **responses** to God’s love, not **tickets** to earn it.
Religious activity can actually become a barrier if we start trusting in what *we* do instead of what "Jesus" has done.
The real stumbling block: Jesus Himself
Paul says Israel “stumbled over the stumbling stone” (Romans 9:32–33), quoting the Old Testament. He’s talking about **Jesus**.
For many in Paul’s day (and in ours), the problem isn’t religion in general; it’s **Jesus in particular**:
- Was He really God in human form?
- Was He really born of a virgin?
- Was He really sinless?
- Did He really rise from the dead?
Or, more personally:
- Do I really need someone to die for me?
- Am I really that broken, that I can’t fix myself?
Underneath many objections to Christianity lies this reality:
"Jesus is the dividing line."
You can be very spiritual, very sincere, very devoted—and still miss Him.
Paul describes his fellow Jews this way:
“They have a zeal for God, but not according to knowledge. For, being ignorant of the righteousness of God and seeking to establish their own, they did not submit to God’s righteousness.” (Romans 10:2–3)
Sincere passion pointed in the wrong direction still misses the mark.
One way sounds arrogant—until you look at it closely
Jesus made a staggering claim:
“I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” (John 14:6)
In our culture, an "exclusive" claim like that can feel offensive.
Does that mean other religions can’t save us?
- Islam?
- Buddhism?
- Traditional religions?
- New Age spirituality?
- Even versions of Christianity that have abandoned what the Bible teaches?
Paul’s answer is:
If it isn’t the real Jesus—crucified, risen, fully God and fully human—it can’t reconcile us to God.
That doesn’t mean other religions have nothing true or good in them. It does mean they don’t solve our deepest problem:
our separation from a holy God and our need for forgiveness and new life.
Couldn’t I just be “good enough”?
Paul actually asks: is it possible to be saved by perfectly obeying God’s commands?
He quotes Leviticus 18:5:
“The person who does the commandments shall live by them.”
In theory, if you **never sinned—not in thought, word, or deed—ever**, you could be right with God by your own performance.
But Romans has already told us:
"All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” (Romans 3:23)
So the path of “just be perfect” is technically there—but practically closed to every one of us.
Which is why Jesus matters so much. He is the **only** one who actually lived that perfect life. Never sinned. Always did what was right. Fully pleasing to the Father.
Then He offered His life as a sacrifice "in our place".
- Because He’s fully human, He can stand in for us.
- Because He’s fully God, His life has infinite worth—sufficient to cover all who trust Him.
The simplicity (and scandal) of the gospel
After all this dense theology, Paul brings it down to something simple and incredibly clear:
> “The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart…
> because, if you confess with your mouth that **Jesus is Lord**
> and believe in your heart that **God raised him from the dead**,
> you will be saved.” (Romans 10:8–9)
Not:
- “If you attend for 10 years,”
- “If you reach 51% good and 49% bad,”
- “If you clean yourself up first.”
But:
1. "Confess" with your mouth that Jesus is Lord.
- Agree with who He is: God, not just teacher.
- Surrender to Him as the true leader and authority of your life.
2. "Believe" in your heart that God raised Him from the dead.
- Trust that His death truly paid for your sin.
- Trust that His resurrection means sin and death are defeated.
This is "righteousness by faith"—being put right with God by trusting in what Jesus has done, not in what we do.
---
So where does that leave us?
Pastor Bob closed with a few searching questions:
1. Are you trying to prove yourself to God?
Maybe you wouldn’t say it out loud, but internally you feel:
- “If I just do a bit more, maybe God will finally be okay with me.”
- “God must be disappointed. I’d better make it up to Him.”
That is a heavy way to live.
The message of Romans is that Jesus has already carried that weight.
You don’t have to.
2. Is there something about Jesus that still trips you up?
Maybe you’re exploring faith and something about Jesus is your “stumbling block”:
- His claim to be God
- The resurrection
- The idea that you’re not basically fine on your own
Those are honest, important questions. The Bible never asks you to turn off your brain. It does invite you to wrestle with them honestly and to be open to the possibility that Jesus really is who He says He is.
3. If you are a follower of Jesus—are you living like it’s grace?
You might fully agree “we’re saved by grace through faith,” but still **function** as if it’s all on your shoulders:
- Serving to earn approval instead of out of love
- Sharing your faith to quiet guilt instead of out of gratitude
- Burning out spiritually because you’ve forgotten: you are already accepted in Christ
Serving, loving others, sharing the good news—these are all good, even necessary. But they’re meant to be "overflow", not "entry tickets".
An invitation
If you’re reading this and realize:
“I’ve been trusting in my goodness, or my background, or my religious activity—not in Jesus Himself,”
then the invitation of Romans 10:9–10 is for you:
- Turn away from trying to save yourself.
- Acknowledge your need.
- Confess that Jesus is Lord.
- Trust that His death and resurrection are enough for you.
You can express that in your own words, right where you are.
And if you’re part of our church family or nearby, we’d love to talk with you or pray with you. Pastor Bob, or anyone on our team, would be glad to listen, answer questions as best we can, and walk with you as you explore what it means to follow Jesus.
If you already belong to Him, let this be a reminder:
- You are not working **for** God’s love.
- You are working **from** it.
Scriptures Referenced
- Romans 3:21–23
- Romans 5:1–2
- Romans 9:30–33
- Romans 10:1–4
- Romans 10:2–3
- Romans 10:8–10
- Hosea 6:6
- Isaiah 1:13–15
- Malachi 1:10
- Proverbs 21:27
- Deuteronomy 10:15–17
- Deuteronomy 10:16
- Deuteronomy 30 (general context, especially near v.14)
- Genesis (circumcision of Abraham – general reference)
- Leviticus 18:5
- John 9 (healing of a blind man)
- Luke 4 (casting out a demon)
- Luke 13 (healing a crippled woman)
- Mark 3 (healing of a man with a withered hand)
- Psalm 118 (the rejected cornerstone)
- 1 Peter 3:15
- 1 Peter (reference to Jesus as cornerstone, especially 2:6–8)
- Ephesians 2:8
- John 14:6
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