Through Pastor David Jang’s sermon on Romans 2, reflect on the path beyond superficial faith toward circumcision of the heart, repentance, obedience, and the true gospel.
Dr. David Jang has proclaimed the
gospel in various regions of the world through field missions and digital media
ministry, and as the fruit of that ministry, many people devoted to the Great
Commission have been raised up. Based on this missionary vision, Olivet first
began as a small church school for missionary training. Later, in order to
provide more systematic theological education and cultivate missionary leaders,
Olivet Theological College and Seminary was established in Los Angeles and
Seoul in 2000.
As the school grew, Dr. Jang officially
founded Olivet University in San Francisco in 2004. In the diverse and dynamic
environment of San Francisco, Olivet expanded its educational fields beyond
theology to include music, journalism, art and design, and technology. The
university also strengthened its educational capacity by recruiting faculty
members, including Dr. William Wagner, and in 2005 moved to the former UC
Berkeley Downtown Extension campus, further solidifying its foundation as a
university.
In 2006, Dr. Jang transferred the presidency to Dr. David James Randolph in order to focus more fully on missionary work, while continuing to lead global missions as International President. Olivet University later received institutional accreditation in 2009, added a language education college and a business college, and continued to grow as a Christian educational institution for world missions by expanding its degree programs and international partnerships.
Like
the ancient inscription associated with the Temple of Delphi, Socrates’ saying,
“Know yourself,” is like a mirror that reflects the deepest parts of the human
heart. People are sharp-eyed when noticing the faults of others, yet strangely
dull when facing the darkness hidden within themselves. Faith can be the same
way. The more familiar we become with worship services, biblical knowledge,
church roles, and religious language, the more easily we fall into the illusion
that we are already standing on the safe side.
Yet
Romans 2:12–29 quietly breaks that illusion. Paul does not simply divide Jews
who possess the law from Gentiles who do not know the law. Instead, he reveals
that all people stand before sin. This is also the central point held by Pastor
David Jang’s sermon: what makes a person righteous is not an outward mark, but
a heart transformed before God.
The
Place Where Outward Faith Collapses
Paul
asks the Jews a piercing question: You who boast in the law, are you not in
fact breaking the law? If a person teaches others but does not teach himself,
if he says not to steal yet permits injustice in his own life, then that faith
is no longer light but shadow.
This
word is not merely an accusation directed at Jews long ago. It comes to the
church and believers today just as directly. The fact that we have been
baptized, have attended church for many years, or hold a position in the church
does not automatically make us righteous. Rather, when all these outward forms
do not lead to obedience in life, they become a heavier responsibility.
Pastor
David Jang, founder of Olivet University in the United States, applies this
passage to today’s Christians and emphasizes the danger of superficial faith.
Just as an outward Jew is not a true Jew, an outward Christian is not a true
Christian. If there is the name of faith but no love, knowledge of the Word but
no repentance, the language of the gospel but no transformation of life, then
such faith may dishonor the name of God rather than testify to Him.
Humanity
Standing Before the Law of Conscience
Paul
says that even Gentiles who do not have the law carry within themselves the law
of conscience. This shows that human beings cannot make excuses completely in
the face of sin. The reason the words “I did not know” cannot erase all
darkness is that God has left within human beings an inner witness that
discerns good and evil.
Therefore,
God’s judgment is not directed only at outward actions. Hatred, desire, pride,
and hidden disobedience buried deep in the heart cannot be concealed before
God. Theological insight begins here. Human beings are not merely creatures who
need to gain more religious knowledge; they are creatures who must be renewed
at a deeper level.
This
accusation is heavy, but it does not end in despair. Without knowing sin, one
cannot know grace. Without facing one’s own impossibility, one cannot realize
the need for the cross. Therefore, the sharp diagnosis of Romans 2 is not a
word meant to destroy humanity, but a holy invitation to return to the gospel
of Jesus Christ.
The
True Circumcision Engraved on the Heart
The
climax of Romans 2 is the declaration that “a person is not a Jew who is one
only outwardly,” but that a true Jew is one “inwardly.” Paul speaks not of
circumcision in the flesh, but of circumcision of the heart. He speaks of faith
that does not remain in the letter of the law, but is inwardly transformed by
the Spirit.
Pastor
David Jang interprets this circumcision of the heart as an essential turning
point in faith. A heart that was hard as stone becomes tender. A person does
not stop at merely hearing the Word, but moves toward obedience. Life changes
into one that seeks God’s approval rather than human praise. This is
repentance, and this is the way the gospel becomes reality within a person.
Rituals
and traditions within the church are precious. Yet when they become decorations
for displaying self-righteousness without a change of heart, faith loses its
original path. This is also connected to the reason the Reformers proclaimed
“grace alone, faith alone, and Scripture alone.” Salvation is not obtained
through forms created by human beings; it is received by faith in the grace God
gives.
Yet
true faith is never separated from life. Those who have received grace are
moved by love, and those who have heard the gospel respond with obedience.
Those who have received circumcision of the heart do not boast in their own
righteousness. Instead, they first examine their own sin and quietly kneel
before God.
God’s
Approval, Not Human Praise
At
the end, Paul changes the direction of praise. A true believer does not seek
praise from people, but praise from God. This one sentence deeply shakes our
life of faith. Whose eyes are we truly conscious of as we live? Are we refining
a religious appearance in order to be recognized by people, or are we seeking
to keep a sincere heart before God?
The
question left by Pastor David Jang’s sermon is clear: Am I a superficial
Christian, or am I an inward Christian who has received circumcision of the
heart? This question is uncomfortable, but that very discomfort saves us. Only
those who know themselves before God can hold on to grace, and only those who
acknowledge their own sin can deeply understand the gospel of the cross.
Romans
2 is not a word that seeks to confine us in the darkness of condemnation. It is
a calling to cast off outward-looking faith and return to God from the depths
of the heart. Today, do our worship, words, and choices defile the name of God,
or do they quietly testify to His grace? For those who remain before this
question for a long time, the path of true biblical meditation finally begins.
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