Standards.
We all have standards that we live by. For most of us the standards are based on various truths and laws. Most of us were raised by parents who taught us right from wrong based on scripture or conscience. We were taught to be kind, to think of others, or to treat others the way we would like to be treated. Our standards were human standards for the most part. If we were exposed to the Bible through congregational life, many of our standards are based on what the Bible teaches. Paul teaches that everyone has standards. Some base their standards on religious conviction. Others base their standards on an internal conviction about right and wrong. The problem is that no one can keep all the standards all the time. Paul writes that the standard that matters is found in Jesus Christ. To place faith in a set of religious convictions is to deny the work of Jesus. To place faith in one’s own convictions ignores the reality that there is a Creator. Through faith in Jesus we come into a right relationship with God. Both internal convictions and external rules demonstrate that we are painfully inadequate. We fail miserably at times. They both reveal how sinful we really are. God through Jesus and the power of the Holy Spirit is able to deal with our sin fully. How thankful we are.