“For there is no partiality with God.” — Romans 2:11
This verse silences those who believe they are more accepted by God because of their background, position, or gender.
Salvation is not only for certain ethnics or backgrounds. It is for everyone.
In this passage, Paul is speaking to the Jews, who were confident that being descendants of Abraham made them righteous in God’s sight. However, Paul explains that salvation does not come through the Law of Moses or by being Israelites, but through faith in Jesus Christ alone. John the Baptist also warned them against this false confidence when he said that God could raise up children for Abraham from the very stones (Matthew 3:9).
Their belief contained a portion of truth, for God did choose Israel to receive His covenant. As Paul writes in Romans, “They are beloved for the fathers’ sakes” (Romans 11:28). And again, “And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, There shall come out of Sion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob” (Romans 11:25–26). Yes, through their fathers they obtained favor from God, but confidence in their ancestry and the Law cannot bring them into God’s Kingdom. They must still repent and believe in LORD Jesus Christ to be saved.
Their repentance will come one day when all Israel will finally recognize the LORD Jesus as their true Messiah, they had been waiting for. Yet what they were expecting to see in His first coming will actually take place in His second coming. Zechariah foretold this moment, saying, “They shall look upon Me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for Him, as one mourneth for his only son, and shall be in bitterness for Him, as one that is in bitterness for his firstborn” (Zechariah 12:10). On that day, they will look upon the LORD Jesus and finally believe that He is truly the Messiah they have long awaited. They will weep in deep sorrow, showing repentance for what they did to Him and for failing to recognize Him because of their hardened hearts. But this reveals to us that they, too, must go through the same process as we all do, they must repent and believe in the LORD Jesus Christ to be saved.
Jesus made this truth clear when He spoke with Nicodemus. When He said, “For God so loved the world,” those words were radical. To Nicodemus, a Pharisee and teacher of the Law this was shocking because the Jews had long believed that God’s love and salvation were reserved only for them. Yet Jesus revealed that God’s love extends to all humanity. Every person has fallen short, every person has sinned, and all stand condemned, for “the wages of sin is death” (Romans 6:23). Therefore, everyone whether Jew or Gentile must believe in Jesus Christ and be born again of the Spirit and of water to enter the Kingdom of God. We understand that salvation is found only through Jesus Christ. There is no other way, no other name, and no other person through whom we can be saved. As Jesus Himself declared, “I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me” (John 14:6).
Why does God show no partiality to anyone?
Isn’t it we are all created in His image and in His likeness? Because in the sight of God every person has equal worth and value. As the book of Job says, “He shows no partiality to princes, nor regards the rich more than the poor; for they are all the work of His hands” (Job 34:19). God does not look at our wealth, position, or power. Whether rich or poor, strong or weak, every one of us was formed by His hands, and even the breath we breathe is borrowed from Him. Everything we have and everything we are comes from God.
The apostle Paul also spoke about this truth. During a time when slavery and social divisions were common, he instructed masters to treat their servants with kindness and respect, saying, “And you, masters, do the same things to them, giving up threatening, knowing that your own Master also is in heaven, and there is no partiality with Him” (Ephesians 6:9). Paul was teaching that no one should treat others as less than human, regardless of their position or status in life. In this world, people are often divided by class, wealth, and power, but these distinctions hold no value in the sight of God. Before Him, all people are equal. The one who leads and the one who serves are both created in the image of God, and both are precious in His sight. One day, everyone will stand before the judgment seat of Christ. Each person will give an account of their life to God (Romans 14:12). On that day, it will not matter how much wealth, power, or fame anyone had on earth. What will matter is whether we believed in Jesus Christ and walked in obedience to His Word.
Many people say that women should not be pastors, leaders, or hold positions of authority in the church simply because they are women. But isn’t that also partiality? The Word of God clearly teaches that He shows no favoritism. So, if God is impartial when it comes to race and status, would He then show partiality when it comes to gender? Of course not.
Many men quote Paul’s words, “I do not permit a woman to teach or to have authority over a man” (1 Timothy 2:12), and use them as propaganda to discriminate against women. But they often forget that Paul also spoke highly of many faithful women who served God in leadership and ministry. For example, he commended Phoebe, a servant (deacon) of the church in Cenchrea (Romans 16:1–2), and Priscilla, who, together with her husband Aquila, taught Apollos more accurately in the Word of God (Acts 18:26). He also praised Tryphena, Tryphosa, and Persis, women who “labored much in the Lord” (Romans 16:12). Paul greeted Mary, who also “bestowed much labor on us” (Romans 16:6), and Junia, who was “of note among the apostles” (Romans 16:7), meaning she was respected and recognized as a fellow laborer in spreading the Gospel. He also mentioned Chloe, whose household was strong in faith and leadership within the church of Corinth (1 Corinthians 1:11). Euodia and Syntyche were two women Paul called his “fellow laborers in the gospel” (Philippians 4:2–3). These were women who ministered, taught, and served alongside Paul in the work of the Lord.
So when people use one verse to silence all women or any ethnic group, they twist the Word of God out of context and ignore the full picture of Scripture. Paul never denied women their calling; he simply taught order and godly conduct in worship, not gender-based exclusion. Even Paul said, “For there is no difference between the Jew and the Greek: for the same Lord over all is rich unto all that call upon Him” (Romans 10:12). Because in the sight of God each one of us is precious in His sight, It does not say “Jew” or “Roman,” but “His saints.” What matters to God is an individual who believes, follows, and obeys His Word.
When Christ came, He revealed this in His conversation with Nicodemus, saying in John 3:16, “For God so loved the world” means that salvation is offered to all who believe in Him it does not matter where ethnic background they belong. Paul expand more this in Galatians 3:28, “There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus.” He clearly says in God’s sight, there is no distinction of class, status, wealth, or position. We are all equal in value because we are all created in His image and likeness. Paul further explained this balance between man and woman, saying, “Nevertheless neither is the man without the woman, neither the woman without the man, in the Lord. For as the woman is of the man, even so is the man also by the woman; but all things of God” (1 Corinthians 11:11–12). All of Paul’s instructions were never meant to divide but to maintain order within the body of Christ. As a woman serving in the church and in leadership, I do not seek recognition for my position or title, because at the end of the day, God will not commend me for the rank I held, but for the obedience I showed that I fulfilled His will for my life and completed the work He called me to do.
When it says, “For there is no partiality with God,” it reminds us that every one of us is equal in His sight. The Word of God was never given to divide or to put others down, but to unite us and bring order among His people. Its purpose is to edify, correct, and equip us so that we may grow in faith and draw closer to God. Let us never twist the Word of God for our own agenda or personal gain. Instead, let the Word of God lead us closer to Jesus, shaping our hearts to reflect His love, His humility, and His character.
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