Stop Judging

The Law of Moses was NOT Perfect

Daniel A Fresh View of God, Obsolete Laws, Stop Judging

041A.Moses_Breaks_the_Tables_of_the_Law

How many times have you heard Christian preachers or your church pastor or someone on the radio or TV espousing the dogmatic view that the Law of Moses, delivered by angels to the prophet on the mountain, was “PERFECT” or the “ultimate standard of right and wrong?”

I mean, at first glance, this viewpoint would seem logical. After all, how could God or His holy angels transmit a set of laws or commands that are anything less than perfect?

Well, I’ve got some news for you: Jesus and His disciples did not view the Mosaic Law as God’s perfect, infallible, unchangeable rules for all-time. And before you assume I’m only talking about the so-called “ceremonial laws” or “dietary restriction rules,” let me stop you right there. Most Christians and churches already acknowledge that Jesus cancelled out all the dietary and ceremonial laws having to do with sacrifices, Temple worship, priests, unclean animals, etc.

No, this blog post is focused on the entirety of the Law of Moses, the whole shebang with all its 613 commands, not being God’s ideal standard of right and wrong. Why would I say this? Because Jesus said this:

Jesus said to them, “Moses permitted you to divorce your wives because of your hard hearts, but from the beginning it was not this way.  Now I say to you that whoever divorces his wife, except for immorality, and marries another commits adultery.” (Matthew 19:8-9, NET)

Our Lord is teaching us that Moses made at least some alterations to God’s ideal standards, to accommodate the attitudes and tendencies of imperfect human beings, and their proclivity to have “hard hearts,” not doing things God’s way. Jesus is drawing a stark contrast here between certain commands Moses gave, and the perfect way that God intended “from the beginning.” Remember, the Jewish people back then almost worshiped Moses, and they elevated the Mosaic Law higher than anything else. But Jesus came along and is shaking everything up by basically saying, ‘No, look guys, Moses was a great prophet for God, but God’s ways were much higher and better than the rules Moses gave you guys. Moses gave you these rules to accommodate your sinful habits and bad attitudes.‘

But this isn’t just one isolated passage of the Bible that shows this view of the Law of Moses. Check out what the Bible book known as “Hebrews” says:

But now Jesus has obtained a superior ministry, since the covenant that he mediates is also better and is enacted on better promises. For if that first covenant had been faultless, no one would have looked for a second one. But showing its fault, God says to them, “Look, the days are coming, says the Lord, when I will complete a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah.” (Hebrews 8:6-8, NET)

Here we can see that God found fault with the Old Testament Law of Moses, also known as “the First Covenant.” God views the teachings of Jesus, His Son, to be “superior,” “better,” and “faultless,” whereas it says God views the Mosaic Law as faulty and inferior.

But the author of Hebrews was not yet finished. Look what he continues to say in chapter 8 regarding the Law of Moses:

When he speaks of a new covenant, he makes the first obsolete. Now what is growing obsolete and aging is about to disappear. (Hebrews 8:13, NET)

God has made the Law of Moses “obsolete,” and in the 1st Century A.D., this Law was already “aging and about to disappear,” likely either a reference to the Jewish Temple worship ending after the Romans destroyed the Temple in 70 A.D., or referring to Jewish Christians putting aside their old customs and burdens of the Mosaic Law.

So both Jesus and His disciple who wrote the Epistle to the Hebrews clearly did not view the Law of Moses as God’s perfect, infallible standard of right and wrong for Christians to base their lives around.

Going even further, Christ’s Apostle to the Nations, Paul, wrote this:

He has destroyed what was against us, a certificate of indebtedness expressed in decrees opposed to us. He has taken it away by nailing it to the cross.  Disarming the rulers and authorities, he has made a public disgrace of them, triumphing over them by the cross.(Colossians 2:14-15, NET)

Paul’s inspired understanding was that Jesus, by His sacrifice on the cross, completely took away and wiped out the decrees and rules of Moses, triumphing over them in His death.

Let’s look at even more of Paul’s views on the Law of Moses:

So, my brothers and sisters, you also died to the law through the body of Christ, so that you could be joined to another, to the one who was raised from the dead, to bear fruit to God.  For when we were in the flesh, the sinful desires, aroused by the law, were active in the members of our body to bear fruit for death. But now we have been released from the law, because we have died to what controlled us, so that we may serve in the new life of the Spirit and not under the old written code. (Romans 7:4-6, NET)

When Jesus died for us, and was raised up, He elevates everyone who believes in Him also, causing them, in a sense, to die toward the Law of Moses, and be lifted up to a new life in the Law of Christ, a life of living by His teachings about loving God and loving neighbor, a life in the Spirit and in faith.

My hope is for all Christian preachers or church leaders who are telling people to obey the Law of Moses, or that the Mosaic Law is “perfect,” or “God’s ideal standard,” to meditatively reflect on the words in this blog, and I leave you with more of Paul’s inspired words:

For freedom Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not be subject again to the yoke of slavery. Listen! I, Paul, tell you that if you let yourselves be circumcised, Christ will be of no benefit to you at all! And I testify again to every man who lets himself be circumcised that he is obligated to obey the whole law.  You who are trying to be declared righteous by the law have been alienated from Christ; you have fallen away from grace!  For through the Spirit, by faith, we wait expectantly for the hope of righteousness. For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision carries any weight – the only thing that matters is faith working through love. (Galatians 5:1-6, NET)

God Loves Gay, Lesbian, and Transgender People

Daniel Obsolete Laws, Progressive Christianity, Stop Judging

Why should anyone care what I have to say on this topic? I am not a priest. I am not a pastor, nor am I a deacon, televangelist, a mega-church preacher, or a rabbi. Heck, I didn’t even go to college. My sexual orientation is also heterosexual, not homosexual. I am just a humble servant of God, and I am absolutely not inspired or infallible. So, your first thoughts may be, ‘Why on earth should I listen to this guy speaking on the topic of homosexuality and the Bible?‘

To be blunt, you shouldn’t listen to me, except when I make appeal to common sense, logic, reason, science, and Scripture which you agree with in your heart and in your mind. After all, you don’t need to be a rocket scientist or have a college degree in order to know what is right and wrong, and to have good morals. In fact, you don’t even need to be religious to be a good, moral person.

I just want to appeal to your inner morals, ethics, and sense of justice. If you consider what I have to say, and you don’t agree, you’re free to reject it. That’s the beauty of God’s gift of free will, and the Founding Fathers’ providential Bill of Rights for all Americans.

What I am going to say may offend or stumble many of my fellow Christians, but that is not my intention or goal. My aim here is solely to promote the use of common sense, reasoning, and logic, along with glorifying the teachings and commands of our Lord Jesus Christ found in the Holy Word of God.

Gay and Lesbian Equality in the Bible

First off, the Scriptures are clear that God doesn’t view homosexuals any differently than any other human beings on earth–

“there is no distinction: for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:22-23, ESV)

“what they were makes no difference to me; God shows no partiality“ (Galatians 2:6, ESV)

“Show no partiality as you hold the faith … But if you show partiality, you are committing sin“(James 2:1, 9, ESV)

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.” (John 3:16, ESV)

Note: None of those verses say “Except for gays and lesbians.”

How did Jesus view Gays and Lesbians? 

We have zero written records of anything Jesus said specifically regarding gays or lesbians, unless you count what He said about eunuchs (which was positive, at Matthew 19:12). But, we have many records of Jesus teaching how much God loves all people, with no clauses excluding homosexuals. Here is just one example:

Luke 6:31-42 (ESV): “And as you wish that others would do to you, do so to them. If you love those who love you, what benefit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them. And if you do good to those who do good to you, what benefit is that to you? For even sinners do the same. And if you lend to those from whom you expect to receive, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, to get back the same amount.

“But love your enemies, and do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return, and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High, for he is kind to the ungrateful and the evil. Be merciful, even as your Father is merciful.
  
“Judge not, and you will not be judged; condemn not, and you will not be condemned; forgive, and you will be forgiven; […] Why do you see the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye?...”

Jesus sternly commands us Christians to never judge or condemn others, and to never hypocritically speak about someone else’s sin without addressing our own sins first. Then He gave the toughest commandment in the entire Bible: “Love your enemies, and do good to them.” Usually gays and lesbians should not even be viewed as our “enemies,” but here, Jesus says that you must love even those people who are your enemies and who hate you. Well, it’s not rocket science to see that we must also love gays and lesbians, who are not even our enemies.

Even if you (or your church) strongly view homosexuals as “evil,” notice Luke 6:35-36 where Jesus commands us to love those who are evil, just as God loves them too.

Now let’s look at another story from the life of Jesus:

John 8:3-11 (ESV):  The scribes and the Pharisees brought a woman who had been caught in adultery, and placing her in the midst they said to him, “Teacher, this woman has been caught in the act of adultery. Now in the Law Moses commanded us to stone such women. So what do you say?” … 

Jesus … stood up and said to them, “Let him who is without sin among you be the first to throw a stone at her.” … But when they heard it, they went away one by one, beginning with the older ones, and Jesus was left alone with the woman standing before him. Jesus stood up and said to her, “Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?” She said, “No one, Lord.” And Jesus said, “Neither do I condemn you; go, and from now on sin no more.”

This is one of the most powerful moral lessons in the entire Bible. What we learn here is that, even if homosexuality is a sin, and even if you think you’ve “caught them in the act,” Jesus declares that the only people who have a right to condemn them are people who have never committed a sin. There has only been One Person who never sinned, and that was Jesus.

Then, very powerfully, Christ says that He, the sinless One, chooses not to condemn sinners either, even though He has the right to!

As Paul so bluntly put it:

“Who are you to pass judgment on the servant of another? It is before his own master that he stands or falls,” and “What have I to do with judging outsiders? … God judges those outside.” (Romans 14:4; 1 Corinthians 5:12-13)

James, the brother of Jesus, also added:

 “There is only one lawgiver and judge, he who is able to save and to destroy. But who are you to judge your neighbor?” (James 4:12)

So, if you’re focusing on bashing gays or speaking against homosexuality, isn’t it time to do some soul-searching after reading the Scriptures above?

The Argument Based on Liberty and Law

Almost all Christians strongly support the Constitutional liberties guaranteed in the Bill of Rights, including freedom to worship any gods any way you desire. This actually allows the freedom to commit idolatry and blasphemy against the Christian God. But Christians support this because they recognize it also guarantees their own rights to worship as they please. It also respects the God-given free will each of us is born with.

But, if Christians strongly support the legal right to commit idolatry and blasphemy, why do so many Christians vehemently oppose the legal right to have freedom to marry someone of the same sex? It is the height of hypocrisy, and also is very illogical, to support the freedom of idolatry while opposing the freedom of gay marriage.

The Argument Based on Harming Your Neighbor

The New Testament appears to teach that the only things which are actually sins in God’s eyes are things which harm your neighbor. For example, Paul, James, and John all say that the only commandments are to love God, love others, and do no harm to your neighbor. (See Romans 13:8-10; James 2:8; 1 John 3:23)

Paul even goes so far as to declare that nothing is sinful in itself, but it becomes sinful if you hurt others by your actions:

Romans 14:20-22 (ESV):  “…Everything is indeed clean, but it is wrong for anyone to make another stumble by what he eats. It is good not to eat meat or drink wine or do anything that causes your brother to stumble…“

Romans 14:13-14 (ESV):  “…I know and am persuaded in the Lord Jesus that nothing is unclean in itself, but it is unclean for anyone who thinks it unclean.”

Titus 1:15 (ESV): “To the pure, all things are pure, …”

1 Timothy 4:3-5 (ESV): “…For everything created by God is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving, for it is made holy by the word of God and prayer.“

A couple very important, thought-provoking questions to ask yourself, are: How is gay marriage or homosexuality harming other people? If gay marriage or homosexuality is doing no harm to anyone else, then why do you focus on attacking it so often and so strongly? 

Why do so many Christians condemn gays and lesbians?

Sodom and Gomorrah

A large number of Christians believe the Bible teaches that God destroyed the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah for homosexuality. This is actually taught nowhere in the Bible. The actual sins of Sodom listed in the Scriptures are:

  1. Attempted rape of angels (Genesis 19:5)
  2. Pride (Ezekiel 16:49)
  3. Excess of food without sharing (Ezekiel 16:49)
  4. Living in prosperous ease without helping the poor (Ezekiel 16:49)
  5. Haughtiness before God (Ezekiel 16:50)
  6. Buying, selling, planting, and building while paying no attention to God (Luke 17:28-29)
  7. Being ungodly (2 Peter 2:6)
  8. Sexual immorality and lusting after strange flesh [angels?] (Jude 1:7)

So, as you can see, the sin of Sodom was not primarily (or perhaps, even at all) homosexuality.

Jude 1:7 is the only verse which could be interpreted as referring to homosexuality, but more likely, it refers to the gang attempting to rape the angels in Genesis 19:5.

An entire false tradition has arisen among many Christians that God destroyed Sodom because of their homosexuality, when, as you can see, is not taught in the Bible. There may have been many homosexuals living in Sodom, but that is not the reason God destroyed the city.

(The sin of Sodom actually appears to have been much closer to the current behavior of the rich and powerful Republicans and Tea Party in the United States.)

Romans 1:21-28 (ESV):  “…they did not honor him as God … and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things. Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts … because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, … 

God gave them up to dishonorable passions. For their women exchanged natural relations for those that are contrary to nature; and the men likewise gave up natural relations with women and were consumed with passion for one another, men committing shameless acts with men and receiving in themselves the due penalty for their error. And since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, God gave them up to a debased mind to do what ought not to be done.” 

A close look at the first chapter of Romans will reveal that the Apostle Paul is condemning the different practices and rituals connected to the pagan worship of idols, including the burning lust involved in temple sex and orgies. Paul isn’t speaking of monogamous, loving, committed relationships between two gay men or two lesbian women. Since Paul is focusing on the sins of idolatry and lust here, I don’t see how it is proper to try to use this chapter to condemn all homosexuality.

Christians don’t say that all heterosexual sex is sinful just because Jesus condemned lustfully looking at women, so why should we say that all homosexual sex is sinful when Paul condemns “burning with passion/lust” in Romans 1. I believe that would be “going beyond what is written.” (1 Corinthians 4:6)

In addition, even though Paul seemingly wrote that lesbianism was “contrary to nature,” Paul said the same thing in 1 Corinthians 11:14-16 regarding women having short hair. So it’s possible Paul used this term regarding things which were looked down upon by the local community. The Apostles often wrote about forsaking certain things because people in the immediate area condemned those things. (Acts 15:19-21; 1 Corinthians 9:22)

Leviticus 20:13 (ESV): “If a man lies with a male as with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination; they shall surely be put to death; their blood is upon them.”

First off, as Christians, we can safely set aside the statements on homosexuality in the book of Leviticus or other Old Testament Laws of Moses, because (1) these were only given to the Jewish people, (2) they were only temporary, and (3) they have expired. (See Hebrews chapter 8) In addition, if we are going to follow Leviticus, then Paul and James, the brother of Jesus, both say that we must follow the entire Law of Moses. (Galatians 5:3; James 2:10)

Look at some of the commands in Leviticus before and after the homosexuality command:

Leviticus 19:19 (ESV): “You shall keep my statutes. … You shall not sow your field with two kinds of seed, nor shall you wear a garment of cloth made of two kinds of material.”

Leviticus 19:27 (ESV): “You shall not round off the hair on your temples or mar the edges of your beard.”

Leviticus 20:18 (ESV): “If a man lies with a woman during her menstrual period and uncovers her nakedness, he has made naked her fountain, and she has uncovered the fountain of her blood. Both of them shall be cut off from among their people.”

So if Christians must condemn homosexuality based on Leviticus, Christian men must also have beards and you must never sleep next to your wife during her period. In addition, Christians would never be able to wear modern clothing made of different materials.

A lot of Christians make a big deal about the fact that Leviticus refers to homosexual intercourse as an “abomination.” However, the Law of Moses also says eating pork, rabbit, or lobster is an “abomination” too. (Deuteronomy chapter 14) If you’re going to follow the homosexuality commands of the Mosaic Law, then you should follow the rules against eating pork and lobster. Otherwise, you are being a hypocrite.

The book of Leviticus, in the very same chapter as the command against gay sex, explains why all these commands were given:

“And you shall not walk in the customs of the nation that I am driving out before you, for they did all these things, and therefore I detested them. … I am the LORD your God, who has separated you from the peoples. You shall therefore separate the clean beast from the unclean, and the unclean bird from the clean. 

You shall not make yourselves detestable by beast or by bird or by anything with which the ground crawls, which I have set apart for you to hold unclean. You shall be holy to me, for I the LORD am holy and have separated you from the peoples, that you should be mine.” (Leviticus 20:23-26, ESV)

These commandments were primarily given by Yahweh to show a distinction, a separation in the eyes of the world, of God’s chosen nation, to make them different and unique compared to all other nations on earth at that time. God was also banning things which the pagan nations associated with worshiping idols, such as orgies, temple sex, and prostitution. The Law of Moses was never intended to be permanent requirements for all people at all times, as Paul writes so eloquently in Galatians:

“So then, the law was our [the Jews’] guardian until Christ came, in order that we might be justified by faith. But now that faith has come, we are no longer under a guardian, for in Christ Jesus you are all sons of God, through faith. For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.” (Galatians 3:24-28, ESV)

But what about 1 Corinthians 6:9 and 1 Timothy 1:10?

Context is king. We must examine the surrounding passage instead of basing our doctrines on isolated verses.

1 Corinthians 6:8-12 (ESV): “But you yourselves wrong and defraud—even your own brothers! Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality, nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. And such were some of you. 

But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God. ‘All things are lawful for me,’ but not all things are helpful. ‘All things are lawful for me,’ but I will not be dominated by anything.“

First off, there is some dispute among scholars and experts on the meaning of the Greek word [arsenokoitai] rendered in the ESV as “men who practice homosexuality.” The King James Version rendered it as “abusers of themselves with mankind.” The word literally translated is “man-beds.”

Some interpret this word to refer to male prostitutes involved in pagan temple worship, or to pimps, pedophiles, or rapists. The context is very clear that it refers to something that is harming your fellow Christians, and is listed together with thieves, greedy, and swindlers.Obviously there is more involved here than merely a private monogamous loving relationship between two gay men.

For further research on this Greek word, I refer you to ReligiousTolerance.org, Our Spirit, and this article.

For the sake of argument, lets say this Greek word does refer to all homosexuality. Immediately after Paul listed these sins, he then declares, in 1 Corinthians 6:12, that “all things are lawful” for Christians, but not all things are beneficial. He is declaring that none of these things are sin, UNLESS they are not beneficial or are harmful. So that is the key thing to consider: Does this action harm my neighbor or myself? Is this action beneficial to my neighbor or to myself?

1 Timothy 1:10 (ESV):  “the sexually immoral, men who practice homosexuality, enslavers, liars, perjurers, and whatever else is contrary to sound doctrine,“

Again, the context shows that this is referring to some action which is harmful to others, in the same category as slave-traders, liars, and perjurers. It would make more sense for this to be male prostitution in temple worship or pedophilia, not monogamous homosexual relationships. Please see what I wrote above regarding the Greek word which is rendered “homosexuality” in many modern Bibles.

In conclusion, even if all homosexual sex were a sin in God’s eyes, homosexuals can freely receive the same forgiveness and mercy from Jesus that all of us other sinners receive:

“I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world.” (1 John 2:1-2, ESV)

Picture Credit: “Rainbow flag and blue skies” by Ludovic Bertron from New York City, Usa – https://www.flickr.com/photos/23912576@N05/2942525739. Licensed under CC BY 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons – https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Rainbow_flag_and_blue_skies.jpg#/media/File:Rainbow_flag_and_blue_skies.jpg

There are GOOD Unbelievers!

Daniel A Fresh View of God, Fusion Theism Movement, Simplified Scriptures Series, Stop Judging

(Very important! I have updated my view somewhat on this topic. After reading this post below, please see my newer blog post: Preaching is Important!)

Many Christians today teach that there are only two types of people in the world:

  1. The saved (believers in Jesus) who go to heaven
  2. The lost (unbelievers) who go to hell

I think this is based on a misunderstanding of several Bible passages. Lets look at a few Scriptures:

 “For it is not the hearers of the law who are righteous before God, but the doers of the law who will be justified. For when Gentiles, who do not have the law, by nature do what the law requires, they are a law to themselves, even though they do not have the law. They show that the work of the law is written on their hearts, while their conscience also bears witness, and their conflicting thoughts accuse or even excuse them on that day when, according to my gospel, God judges the secrets of men by Christ Jesus.” (Romans 2:13-16 ESV)

 “For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit. For to set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace. For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God’s law; indeed, it cannot. Those who are in the flesh cannot please God.” (Romans 8:5-8 ESV)

The Two Types of Unbelievers:

From what I’ve seen, most Christians today use Romans 8:5-8 as support for their idea that all unbelievers are going to hell because they cannot please God.

However, by comparing that passage to the passage from Romans 2 above, we can see clearly that the Apostle Paul believed that there are two different types of unbelievers — Those who obey their God-given conscience and those who set their minds on the evil fleshly desires.

The unbelievers who obey their God-given conscience, the inner moral law written on their hearts by God, may be excused from punishment on the Day of Judgment when Jesus judges their secret thoughts and desires. (Romans 2:13-16) Whereas, the unbelievers who set their minds on the evil flesh instead of the God-given conscience, will not escape punishment. (Romans 8:5-8)

Unbelievers are Condemned for Rejecting Jesus, NOT for Ignorance

The Bible actually teaches that unbelievers are condemned by God after they have received the knowledge of Jesus, but have chosen to reject this truth. Unbelievers are NOT condemned by God if they are truly ignorant and have never received the knowledge of Jesus (with the exception of the evildoers from Romans 8:5-8 who set their minds of evil desires instead of their consciences). Examine the Scriptures below:

 “For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. 

Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God. 

And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil. 

For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his works should be exposed. But whoever does what is true comes to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that his works have been carried out in God.” (John 3:17-21 ESV)

 “Jesus said, ‘For judgment I came into this world, that those who do not see may see, and those who see may become blind.’ Some of the Pharisees near him heard these things, and said to him, ‘Are we also blind?’ Jesus said to them, ‘If you were blind, you would have no guilt; but now that you say, “We see,” your guilt remains.’” (John 9:39-41 ESV)

So we can see Jesus Himself taught that God would judge people based on how much “light” or truth they had received about God and Jesus, and that the basis for condemnation of unbelievers, is whether they had rejected the light that they had been given. If unbelievers have received no light about Jesus, they will not be condemned (unless they set their minds on evil, as Romans 8:5-8 says).
What about Ephesians 2?

Many Christians use Ephesians chapter 2 to show that God views all ignorant unbelievers as evil slaves of Satan, even those who have not heard about Jesus. Look at the relevant verses here:

     “And you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience—among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind.” (Ephesians 2:1-3 ESV)

 “Therefore remember that at one time you Gentiles in the flesh, called “the uncircumcision” by what is called the circumcision, which is made in the flesh by hands—remember that you were at that time separated from Christ, alienated from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. 

But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. For he himself is our peace, who has made us both one and has broken down in his flesh the dividing wall of hostility by abolishing the law of commandments expressed in ordinances, that he might create in himself one new man in place of the two, so making peace, and might reconcile us both to God in one body through the cross, thereby killing the hostility. 

And he came and preached peace to you who were far off and peace to those who were near. For through him we both have access in one Spirit to the Father. So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God,” (Ephesians 2:11-19 ESV)

If you look very carefully here, especially taking note of Ephesians 2:11, you can see that it is talking about how the Jews view the Gentiles, NOT how God views the Gentiles. Notice how it says that the Gentiles are called “the uncircumcision” by the Jews. Paul is showing how the Jewish believers viewed the Non-Jews.

We know that God has always had a different view of Gentiles than this, because Acts chapter 10 declares this:

 “At Caesarea there was a man named Cornelius, a centurion of what was known as the Italian Cohort, a devout man who feared God with all his household, gave alms generously to the people, and prayed continually to God. About the ninth hour of the day he saw clearly in a vision an angel of God come in and say to him, ‘Cornelius.’ And he stared at him in terror and said, ‘What is it, Lord?’ And he said to him, ‘Your prayers and your alms have ascended as a memorial before God.’” (Acts 10:1-4 ESV)

 “So Peter opened his mouth and said: ‘Truly I understand that God shows no partiality, but in every nation anyone who fears him and does what is right is acceptable to him.’” (Acts 10:34-35 ESV)

So, in summary, Ephesians chapter 2 is speaking about the way that Jews had viewed Gentiles — as being hopeless sinners, outside of the bounds of God’s love, doomed because they were not given God’s Laws. God has always loved the Gentiles (John 3:16)

 “And he made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined allotted periods and the boundaries of their dwelling place, that they should seek God, and perhaps feel their way toward him and find him. Yet he is actually not far from each one of us,” (Acts 17:26-27 ESV)

What about Romans 3?

At first glance, Romans 3 appears to be a scathing condemnation of ALL unbelievers in all of history:

 “What then? Are we Jews any better off? No, not at all. For we have already charged that all, both Jews and Greeks, are under sin, as it is written: ‘None is righteous, no, not one; no one understands; no one seeks for God. 

All have turned aside; together they have become worthless; no one does good, not even one.’ ‘Their throat is an open grave; they use their tongues to deceive.’ ‘The venom of asps is under their lips.’ ‘Their mouth is full of curses and bitterness.’ ‘Their feet are swift to shed blood; in their paths are ruin and misery, and the way of peace they have not known.’ ‘There is no fear of God before their eyes.’

Now we know that whatever the law says it speaks to those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be stopped, and the whole world may be held accountable to God. For by works of the law no human being will be justified in his sight, since through the law comes knowledge of sin.” (Romans 3:9-20 ESV)

Paul was quoting from Psalms here, and in those Psalms, there was a distinction being made between righteous people and evil people. The Psalms were saying that not one person on earth was righteous except for those who were doing good things, which were few in number. Paul here also applies these Psalms to the Jews, because he says that they apply to those “under the Law.” This would mean Paul’s point is that there are many evil Jews out there, just as bad or worse than any of the Gentiles. This point agrees perfectly with Romans 3:9.

Paul is NOT contradicting himself (from Romans 2:13-16 or Acts 17:26-27) by saying that ALL Gentiles are evil sinners, no, rather, Paul is pointing out that many Jews are evil sinners similar to how the Jews view the Gentiles.

Even if Paul was saying that all human beings on earth were evil sinners who deserved condemnation (which, from above, I don’t think is accurate), look at what Paul says right below in Romans 3:

 “whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God’s righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins.” (Romans 3:25 ESV)