Faith as performance? Faith as a work? This is quite a tricky reinterpretation of the term “faith,” although at first glance it seems to come from the Bible that way, too. Because it is said:

“But God’s righteousness through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe.”
Rom 3:22

So here it seems to read that God’s righteousness comes through my faith. The interpretation then is that faith is the instrument whereby God’s righteousness “becomes effective” for me.

Furthermore, it is readily interpreted here that this righteousness of God is exclusively for those who believe. It is a matter of exclusivity, because this is supposed to be an offer that is “only for the faithful.” God’s justice, then, is found only where it is desired.

In this way of interpretation it is that my faith brings about this righteousness (which impression is favored by the translation), so according to this way of interpretation it is always in contrast to the unbelief of others. Although “unbelief” is not mentioned here with any word, one likes to read that out. It is about something that is only for believers, and thus excludes unbelievers by definition.

However, are all these things actually in this verse? Is that how it reads in context? What is Paul all about? What does he want to convey to the Romans? Is Paul introducing the Romans to a black and white world of salvation and perdition? Is that his theme here? Is he talking about the whole world, and what people in all the world must do to become partakers of God’s righteousness? Or is this about something else? That is what is to be investigated here.

The faith of Jesus Christ

Proponents of a heaven-and-hell doctrine read here that “faith” is a “condition” that must be “fulfilled” before anything can work on God’s part. God needs us to say yes, so to speak, as a prerequisite for Him to save us.

In this understanding, then, it is not necessarily a matter of a living relationship, wherein He is the giver and man is the receiver, but a condition and prerequisite for the attainment of salvation. It’s about performance and consideration. Hell lovers hate to hear that, but it can’t be denied. So the question is: Can this really be? Or is the apostle speaking of something else? At this point we must learn to ask back, to go back to the text and context so as not to read out what was never written.

Here again the same passage, in a rendering close to the basic text:

“But the righteousness of God through the faith of Jesus Christ, which is for all, and cometh upon all them that believe. Because there’s no difference.”
Rom 3:22 (Concordant New Testament KNT)

Not the “faith in” but the “faith of” Jesus Christ is central here (in the basic text there is a genitive here). For in this faith He went the way of obedience to the cross (Phil 2:8). Through this – through Him – God’s righteousness was brought about. It is a righteousness of God through the faith of Jesus Christ – through His faith. That is what is presented to us here.

The justice of God

Many people see God as demanding God. That would be like having to make an effort to satisfy your demands, otherwise you will be punished.

What is striking in the translation close to the basic text just quoted: It is not an achievement of ours, not a demand on us, but it is the proclamation of the Gospel: Through the faith of Jesus Christ, God has been able to establish His righteousness, which may now apply to us! It is done. It is not a demand, but a joyful announcement. This is good news and not a threatening message.

The righteousness of God does not come through my faith, but through Christ’s faith. His trust made Him go the way to the cross. This is the foundation on which God builds His salvation. This is a radically different starting point that changes everything.

God achieves His righteousness quite independently of me. It’s not about what I do, because that would never be enough. It is about His righteousness, which He has already obtained. So God’s righteousness is not brought about by me, by my decision, by my faith in the first place. We are here in the heart of the Gospel. It is not about me, but about Him. It is not about my righteousness, but about God’s own righteousness, namely the righteousness that He has brought about.

To whom does this apply now?

Who are “all believers”?

Paul completes the statement with the following addition: “[die Gerechtigkeit Gottes …], which is for all and comes upon all believers. Because there is no difference”. What do we mean by that?

The usual explanation goes like this: The world is divided into believers and unbelievers. God’s righteousness comes exclusively to those who believe. The unbelievers, on the other hand, should be rejected by God, for which Bible texts are quoted arbitrarily. The interpretation would then be: Paul wants to exclude other people with his statement. According to this teaching, this should apply to the whole world, to every human being.

The conclusion of this teaching is therefore: He who does not believe does not receive God’s righteousness. Faith is my work that I must contribute so that God can work. Those who do not want to make this contribution have brought eternal damnation, hell, upon themselves. This should also apply to people who have never heard of Jesus and have no idea about the doctrine of hell.

Uh-huh.

It seems to me that this is piously disguised self-righteousness. But that’s not what it’s all about in the first place. First, we should examine whether Paul actually said and meant this. The interpretation must come from the basic text and the context.

Why is it in context? Paul is speaking here to the church in Rome and in context about two groups in the church, namely Jews and Gentiles, both present in the church in Rome. In the verses before, Paul talked about this. The Jews had come to know and obey the Law (Rom 3:19-21), which the rest of the nations had not. To the Jews in the church, Paul explains in detail what the law is all about and how it relates to God’s righteousness.

Paul is not making a statement about the world, but he is speaking to a Christian community. This cannot be emphasized enough. He addresses two groups in this community, which he mentions repeatedly in his letter. This is his statement: There is no difference between Jews and Gentiles in the church according to the gospel. God’s righteousness comes upon all believers (and not only upon certain law-keeping believers!).

The emphasis, therefore, is not on “believers” (for that can be presupposed in the congregation), but on “all.” No one is excluded. There is no two-tier community; everyone in the community is equal.

This is the context as the context presents it. The statement is clear. To extend it to all mankind, on the other hand, is an extreme misinterpretation. Paul’s purpose was merely to broaden the narrow view of some Jewish believers and to bring all believers into line with one another.

A statement for the community

These verses have been completely twisted in an interpretation with heaven and hell:

• The context is disregarded,
• the wording is disregarded,
• the emphasis is disregarded.

This is not about “faith as a condition” at all, but about the full richness of God’s grace, which now includes the believers from the Gentile peoples. All are equal before God. That was new.

This aspect was new because the Jewish people were assigned a very specific role of bringing salvation to the nations. That was the messianic expectation. However, this did not materialize. Then, in the New Testament, something unexpected happened. The nations were given access in faith without the mediation of Israel (Rom 11:11-15). Neither did the law have to be obeyed, nor did the nation believers have to be circumcised. Something new had emerged. This had to be clarified, as Paul does here in Romans.

The subject is not the condemnation of unbelievers or of the world, but it is a statement that concerns only church members.

The subject is not the condemnation of unbelievers or of the world, but it is a statement that concerns only church members. All believers come to the same level here. It is a liberating message of grace for the believers from the nations. The extension to an endless eternity in hellish torment in the case of non-belief is completely inaccurate.

Faith is with Paul what it has always been. It is not a condition, but a natural and liberating trust in God’s working. It is the liberation from the differences between believers from Israel and believers from the nations. With regard to God’s righteousness, faith has always been the right way – for both circumcised and uncircumcised people. Paul deals with this in detail in Rom 3:21-31, and again from the point of view of Abraham in Rom 4.

What God accomplishes in and through Jesus Christ should be for all in the church. Without difference. He does not even talk about those outside the community here.