Romans 3:5 – But if our unrighteousness serves to show the righteousness of God, what shall we say? That God is unrighteous to inflict wrath on us? (I speak in a human way.)
Welcome back to our study of Romans. In chapter one, Paul documented the sin of the Gentiles. In chapter two, he proved that all the external advantages of the Jews were insufficient to justify them in the sight of God. 
Knowing that this truth was going to produce backlash from the Jews, Paul anticipates their arguments and addresses them in chapter three through means of a literary dialogue.
The first objection centered on the advantages of the Jews, particularly that of circumcision. The Jews believed that because they were God’s people (as evidenced by circumcision, the feasts, the sacrifices, etc.), they would not be subject to judgment at the end of the world. Essentially, they believed all Jews would be found righteous in the sight of God.
When Paul refutes this by showing that the Jews would also be judged, the Jews responded by asking this: If this is the case, how were our privileges a benefit? What advantage is there in being a Jew?
Paul destroys that complaint by showing that the Jews had the oracles/laws of God. If the Jews lived by these commands they would prosper physically, mentally, spiritually, relationally and financially. Their nation would be blessed. In addition, they would have the honor and privilege of being the people who brought the Messiah into the world.
The second objection Paul addresses goes something like this: If the unbelief/unfaithfulness or disobedience of some of the Jews resulted in the promises of God being void for all of Israel, then the Jews were still in the position of being no better off for having the oracles of God.
Paul deals with this objection by proving to the Jews that the unfaithfulness/unbelief of some people does not have the power to nullify the eternal promises of God to those who embrace and believe them. God is always faithful to his promises and covenants, regardless of what individual people do.
In verse four Paul proceeds to show that the promises made to Abraham did not guarantee that all Jews would be unconditionally justified before God. In fact, the truthfulness and faithfulness of God were completely consistent with the fact that some Jews (those who did not embrace God’s truth by faith) would be condemned on the day of judgement.
In verses five through eight, Paul addresses yet another objection or more accurately a warped and deceitful false belief that was circulating among the Jews. It goes something like this:
GENERAL SUMMARY: The more faithless we (the Jews) are, the more illustrious the righteousness of God appears to the world. In other words, our sin highlights his faithfulness, goodness, favor, justification, etc. Since that is the case, God would be acting unrighteously if he judges us for our sin/unfaithfulness to him.
DIGGING DEEPER: This objection appears to have been common among the unrepentant Jews of Paul’s day. It was so widely circulated that it began to be accepted as true. For this reason, Paul could not simply ignore it. It had to be addressed before it gained any more credence.
In order to make his point, Paul speaks as if he were the person making this argument. But just so people didn’t think he actually supported this view, he made it very clear that he was ‘speaking in a human way’.
Here is his summary of the Jewish objection:
- It has been established that some Jews did not believe the promises of God. This unbelief was a sin (Romans 3:3).
- But regardless of their sin, God was still true to his promises; he is sovereign and is not limited by the actions of man (Romans 3:4).
- In a scenario where God is faithful to his promises even in the light of man’s sin, God’s character is shown to be pure, holy, true, faithful, etc.
Thus, the effect of sin was to prove (or highlight or call attention to) the righteous and pure character of God. This in turn means God received glory from man’s sin. Since that was the case, how could God punish the sin which resulted in his own glory? If he did, he was acting unrighteously or unjustly. 
Now that Paul has summed up the argument, he proceeds to give a rebuttal in verses six through eight.
It may help us to know that in verse six, Paul first expresses outrage at such a perverted idea, then he immediately jumps to the obvious conclusion that God could not judge the world if he were unrighteous.
Once that initial outburst is over, Paul gives more logical reasons for his rebuttal in verses seven and eight.
Romans 3:6 – By no means! For then how could God judge the world?
GENERAL SUMMARY: God, by his very nature, cannot be unjust. If he were somehow unjust, then he would not be qualified to judge the world or punish the unbelieving Jews. Thus, the argument of the Jews is absurd!
DIGGING DEEPER: By no means: Paul’s first reaction is to point out that the logical outcome of this argument is so ludicrous, it should be regarded with disgust and immediately discarded.
For then how could God judge the world: God is perfectly holy, perfectly righteous, perfectly faithful and perfectly just at all times. The Jews acknowledged this. They absolutely and universally accepted the truth that God is the judge of the world (Genesis 18:25, Ecclesiastics 12:14, 11:9, etc.), and that he will judge it in righteousness:
Psalms 96:13 - …He [God] will judge the world in righteousness, and the peoples in his faithfulness.
Psalms 98:9 – He [God] will judge the world with righteousness, and the peoples with equity.
Furthermore, the Jews accepted that God is immutable (he never changes):
Malachi 3:6 – For I the Lord do not change; therefore you, O children of Jacob, are not consumed.
Since God never changes, it is impossible for him to act against his perfect, righteous nature. Therefore, the idea that God judges unjustly is preposterous, and the argument of the Jews is proved false.
But supposing for a hot minute that it WERE possible for God to act in unrighteousness. If we follow this line of reasoning to its logical conclusion, another absurdity arises.
If it were unjust for God to punish sin because it highlights his own glory, then no sin could ever be judged, and no sinner could ever be punished.
The end result is that it would be impossible for God to carry out any kind of righteous judgment. There would be no day of reckoning at the end of time. There would be no rewards and punishments for mankind, based on their decisions in life. Thus, sin would become an unrestrained free-for-all with no limits, and God would lose his control of mankind. Again, this is obviously a laughable scenario and should be disregarded.
Romans 3:7 – But if through my lie God’s truth abounds to his glory, why am I still being condemned as a sinner?
The argument presented here goes something like this: My utter depravity (lies/sin) only serves to highlight or call attention to God’s righteousness (his truthfulness and faithfulness).
Since that is the case, why am I judged and condemned as a sinner, when the glory of God shines more brightly when I sin? If by our unfaithfulness the truth of God becomes more apparent and hence, he receives more glory, then it is unjust for us to be punished as sinners.
Let’s once again remind ourselves that Paul is not speaking personally; he has not been telling lies in order to commend God’s truth and hopefully bring him glory. Rather, he speaks the objections of the unbelieving Jews or of sinful men in general.
Paul speaks of ‘God’s truth’. This refers to God’s veracity (habitual truthfulness; that which is in agreement with truth or facts) as it pertains to his faithfulness and justice.
Paul also speaks of the lies of men. Lies are the antithesis of truth; they are moral deflections that naturally follow unbelief.
The bottom line is that a lie is the exact opposite of truth. A lie can never enhance or offer support for truth itself or the God of all truth. Lies bring confusion, deceit and chaos. Nothing is more contrary to the nature of God or more abominable to him, than a lie. Lies are a product of the devil and they are punishable by eternal death:
John 8:44 – You [unbelieving Jews] are of your father the devil, and your will is to do your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks out of his own character, for he is a liar and the father of lies.
Obviously, God can do anything. He could choose to use man’s sin to call attention to his glory if he wanted to. Nevertheless, God’s use of man’s sin for his own purposes cannot be the grounds or the basis for judgment. Rather, man is judged by his obedience to the law. 
Let’s look at a practical example to help us understand this concept.
Let’s suppose a person was arrested on suspicion of murder and eventually her case was brought to trial. The judge assigned to her trial may have a reputation for integrity, toughness and fairness. During the trial, the actions of the murderer might, in some small way, call attention to the honesty, equity, integrity and uprightness of the judge.
Nevertheless, the murderer’s guilt and punishment are not determined by the reputation of the judge, or the honor of the police who tracked her down, or the goodness of the lawyers. Her guilt and punishment are determined by the letter of the law.
The same is true in the case of a sinner whose sin highlights God’s righteousness – it may very well be that God’s glory is occasionally, in some small way, honored by man’s wickedness, but this will never be the grounds on which his judgment is determined. Judgement is based on the law.
Romans 3:8 – And why not do evil that good may come? – as some people slanderously charge us with saying. Their condemnation is just.
Paul again shows the absurdity of this point of view, by carrying it out to its logical conclusion.
If God is glorified by our sin and if, based on that fact, we are not going to be condemned for sin, then we should strive to do all the evil we can! In this scenario, the more we sin, the more God is glorified!
This is a conclusion so monstrous and so shocking, it was really the only argument Paul needed to dispose of this objection. Anyone capable of even rudimentary reasoning would know that unrestrained sin was not acceptable to God.
This kind of perverse, twisted logic was also being used as a weapon against the gospel message. Here is how it worked:
The apostles taught that it was right and proper to glorify God for his provision of forgiveness under the covenant of grace. This is absolutely true. God deserves praise and glory for his forgiveness.
It stands to reason that he would be glorified in proportion to the depth and degree of depravity of the sin which was forgiven. In other words, if God had forgiven me for living an unbelievably wicked life, in a sense he would receive more glory than if he forgave me for just some minor infractions against his laws.
The unbelieving Jews twisted this truth and claimed that the apostles taught men to sin as a valid way of glorifying God. Of course, this was utterly false, but I’m sure it influenced more than one person who was seeking for truth in the gospel message.
We can certainly imagine how such a slanderous lie would damage the spread of the gospel and undermine the reputation of the apostles. It could have kept people from turning to forgiveness in Christ. Paul declares that those who went around slanderously perverting the Christian doctrines of grace deserved condemnation and punishment.
Through a discussion of these objections, Paul again corners the Jews into accepting the fact that they have no means of justification before God. They, just like the Gentiles, are in need of a Savior.
Let me offer you some encouragement:
Paul addressed a slanderous charge that the unbelieving Jews were making against Christianity. The practice of perverting Christian views and doctrines still continues today.
For instance, people sometimes say that because Christians believe homosexuality is a sin, they reject all people who are homosexuals. Since they have no tolerance or acceptance for others, they are bigots and frauds, and they don’t really reflect the love of God.
Obviously, we recognize that the truth is being twisted by these people. God loves every sinner, but he hates every sin including sexual sins. He desires everyone to come to him for forgiveness, but then he requires all of us to circumcise our hearts and live lives of holiness.
If you were called upon to clarify or refute a false accusation such as this, could you do so? If not, I encourage you to put some study/thought into these issues, because twisted truth impacts people today, as much as they did back in the days of Paul.
Let me offer you some relief:
Over and over again, Paul brings the Jews back to the truth that they cannot be justified before God through their own works. They, like the Gentiles they despised, are in need of a Savior who can justify them in the sight of God. 
What about you - have you accepted Jesus as your Savior? If you still need relief from your sin, you can obtain it RIGHT NOW. Just close your eyes and speak honestly to Jesus. Ask him to forgive your sin and to justify you in God’s sight; pledge your life to him from this day forward.
Once you do that, you need to tell someone immediately. Then get to church and begin to learn how walk with God.
Let me offer you some strength:
As Christians we know that we can never justify our sin by saying that good will come from it. Yet, there are times in which we might be tempted to do that very thing! We may think that it’s only a minor sin, that it really won’t affect us or that no one will ever know. But deep down, we know that God knows!
If at any time we are tempted to justify our sin by thinking that something good may come from it, let’s pause and remind ourselves that sin can never result in goodness and God will never sanction sin for any reason. Such an idea is completely against the teachings of the bible. In fact, we are commanded to be holy in every situation we face:
I Peter 1:16 - …since it is written, “You shall be holy, for I am holy.”
There are times when doing the righteous thing will take more effort than doing the convenient thing, but in the end let’s stand in faith and place our trust in God.