Romans 2:17

Romans 2:17 says, Behold, thou art called a Jew, and restest in the law, and makest thy boast of God,  Paul was pointing out that those that called themselves Jews were proud of the fact.  They boasted about God, but that was not what they were called to do.  God did not chose them because they were special, but they were special because God chose them.  We as followers of Christ have no reason to think that we by nature are any better than anyone else.  Matthew Henry says of this, "A believing, humble, thankful glorying in God, is the root and summary of all religion, Psa 34:2; Isa 45:15; Co1 1:31. But a proud vainglorious boasting in God, and in the outward profession of his name, is the root and summary of all hypocrisy. Spiritual pride is of all kinds of pride the most dangerous."  The Jews then and we as followers of Christ today are called to a humble glorifying of God, not a proud and self-righteous outward profession of a belief in God. Verse eighteen adds, And knowest his will, and approvest the things that are more excellent, being instructed out of the law;  Those who profess to know God should know His will.  It is not enough to know the truth of God without knowing the will of God.  Many people today know about Christ, some even accept Him as a historical figure, but they do not acknowledge the will of God for Christ to be their Redeemer.  Paul was speaking to God's chosen people in these verses, so it is safe to say that many professed themselves to be Jews without acknowledging the will of God.  There are likewise those today who profess themselves to be followers of Christ who do not acknowledge the will of God.  We can know every verse of the Bible and attend every worship service, but still not acknowledge God's will for our lives.  We are called to humbly serve God and share the gospel, and not to stand in pride condemning others.  Verse nineteen continues, And art confident that thou thyself art a guide of the blind, a light of them which are in darkness,  We, as followers of Christ, are called on to be a guide to salvation to those who are lost, just as the Jews were in Paul's day.  They were failing in their calling, and we must be careful that we do not do the same.  Verse twenty concludes, An instructor of the foolish, a teacher of babes, which hast the form of knowledge and of the truth in the law.  Paul continued his statement as to what the Jews were to be, and this also tells us what we are to be.  We teach those who do not believe, the foolish, about God. We are to teach them the truth of God, and not just some form of that truth.  We can never rely on anything less than a true relationship with God if we are to teach others about Him.  We cannot proclaim a form of the gospel based on our own goodness or ability but must rely on our relationship with God to guide us.