¹¹ For there is no partiality with God. ¹² For all who have sinned without the Law will also perish without the Law, and all who have sinned under the Law will be judged by the Law; ¹³ for it is not the hearers of the Law who are just before God, but the doers of the Law will be justified.

Capricious God is not, nor partial in His dealings with us. All of us are equally created in His image; none are more so and none are less so. He treats us equally (see Eph 6:9, Col 3:25, Gal 3:28). That is hard to grasp, given that the human experience is one of continual struggles with the perceived differences we have among ourselves: racial, economic or cultural. Slavery, the worst form of preferential treatment, has been ubiquitous throughout human history. The ancient world of the Greeks and Romans practiced it, as did the recent Western world (through the late 1800s in North America and Europe)—even exotic paradises (like the ancient Hawaiians). Slavery still exists in third-world countries—and in developed countries in the form of human trafficking.

The Crusades of the Middle Ages, the Spanish Inquisition of the early Enlightenment period and the religious terrorism of today all show that partiality is endemic to the human experience. Class struggles, economic oppression, sexual abuse and harassment, and prejudice of all sorts abound.

The most ironic is religious partiality, where people of one religion or spiritual belief system think of themselves as having preferential status with God, simply because they are part of that group or hold to certain spiritual tenants. Catholics, Protestants, Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists, atheists and “nones” (those who claim no religious affiliations) are all infected. The constant pull to exalt oneself over others must find some rationale, and religion—rather than becoming a means of truly finding God—becomes a means of exalting oneself above others. “I am better than you because I have better knowledge about God and do the things He wants, and therefore He is on my side – I am better than you!”

The fundamental truth of the matter, though, is that based on our lives and our actions, we have all sinned. Only those who actually live out the Law of God, not hypocritically or selfishly, will be justified. On that basis, we all fall short; none of us can claim preferential treatment from God. This holds true for those “under the Law” (that is, Jews) and those without the Law (everyone else, the non-Jews). The Jews, in particular, have no free pass around God’s impartiality. Just having God’s Law is not enough; just reading it is not sufficient. We are all under God’s non-partial judgment.

Lord, I confess that I am a sinner. Any grace I have from You is completely unearned and unmerited, and certainly not based on my position in life.