Quote from Forum Archives on June 9, 2002, 12:46 pm

Posted by: jmichaelwalls <jmichaelwalls@...>

THE PROVISION AND PLACE OF JUSTIFICATION
Romans 3:21-31
Introduction: You could say that verses from Romans 1:18 through Romans
3:20 are pretty dismal. It strips all the arguments, self-confidence,
self-righteousness and selfish religion away and leaves a person open
before God. It causes him to examine himself in the light of what God
pronounces as righteousness. The man who thinks he rely upon his
conscience to steer him in the direction of heaven finds himself guilty
before God. The man who thinks that he is morally superior finds himself
in the position of guilty before God. For those who believe that their
religion will be the ticket to heaven finds him also in the place of
guilty. Then Paul completes his presentation for those who stubborn
ignore the other positions have say without reservation that he is guilty
before God also.
The thought should bring conviction and fear to a man that within him
there is no hope of heaven. It stuns him to silence before God. This
thought brings us to our scripture for today. He is open and stripped of
all of self-righteousness and selfish religion before God. If this was
all there was, it would probably all right to commit suicide.
Then we come to those two words in verse 21: "But now". These words
indicate a turning point or a turning a corner to a different avenue that
can be traveled by anyone. It is marked as "Whosoever will". Thus far
everything has to say has been "bad news." He has clearly shown man's
guilt and condemnation. Paul has shown every man, woman, boy and girl to
be a lost and doomed sinner who is "guilty before God." BUT NOW Paul
begins to share the "GOOD NEWS"! The good news is this that God has a
wonderful plan of salvation or justification whereby sinful men may be
declared righteous before a holy God. "But now" indicates a drastic
change in the movement of this important Book of the Bible. One man
stated that this section is the very heart of the book of Romans.
As I did in the previous messages, I will be answering some questions.
How is it possible to restore guilty man to a righteousness God can
accept?
Have we any basis for boasting?
Let’s proceed through this passage which one preacher called the very
heart of the Book of Romans.
I. THE ANSWER OF GOD Vs. 21
"But now the righteousness of God without the law is manifested, being
witnessed by the law and the prophet"
Clearly Paul tells us that no self-effort is going to do in the matter of
salvation and justification. This is the first time since the
righteousness of God is mentioned since chapter one and verses number
seventeen.
"For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as
it is written, The just shall live by faith."
We need God’s righteousness. The justification that is provided must come
from the Lord. How much do we need that righteousness? Romans 3:10
"As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one"
II. THE ATTAINMENT FROM THE LORD
Vs. 22-24
"Even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all
and upon all them that believe: for there is no difference: For all have
sinned, and come short of the glory of God; Being justified freely by his
grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus"
The ground at the cross is level for all men. All have sinned. All can be
saved. 2 Peter 3:9
"The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count
slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should
perish, but that all should come to repentance."
There is no badge of distinction here. All need salvation. It does not
matter if you have a baptism certificate from every church in the country
or church membership in every church in the country. It does not matter
whom your parents or grandparents were. Without Jesus, you won’t make
heaven.
There is a teaching that abounds in many churches. It called
universalism. It teaches that man will eventual get saved. The Bible
teaches just the opposite. It teaches a salvation that is universal only
for those who believe. John 3:16
"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that
whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life."
Revelation 22:17
"And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say,
Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take
the water of life freely."
John 11:25-26
"Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that
believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live: And whosoever
liveth and believeth in me shall never die. Believest thou this?"
All men have fallen short. All men are in the same boat and the boat is
sinking. But God in his infinite mercy has provided a wonderful free
salvation for all doomed sinners who put their trust in Him.
There is a word that is found in verse twenty-three that is so important.
It is the word "ALL". All means all and that is all that all means. There
is only one exception to this sweeping statement and that is the Lord
Jesus Christ. He was without sin. 2 Corinthians 5:21
"For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be
made the righteousness of God in him."
This sweeping statement that all have sinned even included His mother
Mary. She had sin. She is in Heaven today by that the same token everyone
else is there and will be there: By the blood of Jesus Christ.
"All have sinned" is a vital Bible truth. It is repeated man times in the
Bible. Isaiah 53:6
"All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own
way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all."
1 Kings 8:46
"If they sin against thee, (for there is no man that sinneth not,) and
thou be angry with them, and deliver them to the enemy, so that they
carry them away captives unto the land of the enemy, far or near"
The word "sin" or sinned in the Bible means "to miss the mark" or "to
come short of some standard". Let me illustrate this way. Let’s say that
before a man could be a member of the police department he had to be six
foot and six inches tall and I came to apply for the job, then I would
not meet the requirement. Why? I am only five foot and eight inches. I
missed the mark by ten inches. But Ben misses the mark by six inches.
Both of us miss the mark of six foot six inches. We came short.
Here is the question: Do I measure up to the Glory of God or do I fall
short?
God is holy. Am I as holy as He is?
God is righteous. Am I as righteous as He is?
God is loving. Am I as loving as He is?
God is truthful. Am I as truthful as He is?
God is kind. Am I as kind as He is?
This list of questions could go on for a long time. The answer would be
no.
There is another way to look at it. Suppose I stood next to the Lord
Jesus Christ Himself (the Sinless and Spotless One). How would I measure
us to Him? Would I measure up to His righteousness or would I come short?
People always want perfection. Here is the only perfection I know will
and has ever existed. Jesus Christ is God’s standard of perfection for
every man; woman, boy or girl ought to be.
God knew that we would be falling short of His perfection so He provided
a plan of salvation that make it possible for all that believe can be as
righteous as Jesus Christ.
This word "justified" means to be declared righteous, pronounced
righteous. It literally means that in the sight of God Almighty, it is
just as if I have never sinned one day in my life nor will never sin one
day in my life. It makes it possible for me to keep the greatest of all
the commandments found in Matthew 22.
Matthew 22:36-40
"Master, which is the great commandment in the law? Jesus said unto him,
Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy
soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And
the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. On
these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets."
Where do I live in God’s economy today? I live in 1 John 3:7. ("Little
children, let no man deceive you: he that doeth righteousness is
righteous, even as he is righteous.) My righteousness is not by my own
merit. The Lord freely gave it to me. It is like when Adam and Eve sinned
in the Garden of Eden and tried to cover up with fig leaves. God clothed
them in coats of an animal. Adam and Eve’s attempt to cover their sin
left them exposed very quickly after they took the fig leaves off the
branch.
Think of it this way. We got God’s grace. That is what God gave us that
we did not deserve. We got it by God’s mercy that did not give us what we
deserve. If it had not been for the mercy of God, we would all be
inhabitants of hell the moment we die sitting under the condemnation of
that punishment for our sins as long as we lived.
The word "redemption" means to be set free or set free by the payment of
a price. That price was the death of Saviour. 1 Peter 1:18-19
"Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things,
as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition
from your fathers; But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb
without blemish and without spot"
Our salvation may be free but it was not cheap. It took the death of
Jesus Christ the righteous Son of God to deliver me from my sin.
There are four aspects of the justification that God gives.
I have JUSTIFICATION BY GRACE. The source is found in the unmerited favor
and undeserved kindness of God.
I have JUSTIFICATION BY THE BLOOD OF CHRIST. It is the basis of my
justification by the blood shed on Calvary’s cruel cross.
I have JUSTIFICATION BY FAITH. It is the channel through which I attained
my righteous. By simple child like faith in Jesus Christ! It is the only
way justification comes. It comes by faith.
I have JUSTIFICATION BY WORKS. This is the evidence that I am saved. I do
not do the work of God in order to be saved. I do the work of God because
I am saved.
THE ACCEPTABILITY FROM GOD
Vs. 25-31
"Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood,
to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past,
through the forbearance of God; To declare, I say, at this time his
righteousness: that he might be just, and the justifier of him which
believeth in Jesus. Where is boasting then? It is excluded. By what law?
of works? Nay: but by the law of faith. Therefore we conclude that a man
is justified by faith without the deeds of the law. Is he the God of the
Jews only? is he not also of the Gentiles? Yes, of the Gentiles also:
Seeing it is one God, which shall justify the circumcision by faith, and
uncircumcision through faith. Do we then make void the law through faith?
God forbid: yea, we establish the law."
A. Its power vs. 25
It is seen in the public display of Jesus Christ’s death. His death was
not done in secret nor did it remain in secret. When most of us die, most
people will never remember our names. One hundred years from now, no one
will remember the name John Michael Walls, Jr. One hundred years from
now, they will not remember the day or way I died. But the death of Jesus
Christ is and will always be a constant memorial to the grace of God.
There is a penalty for breaking the law and this penalty must be paid!
Every lawbreaker must die! God’s justice will not be satisfied until the
penalty is paid in full! Only the death of Jesus Christ can be the
payment for the sins for all men.
The power is that it is for everyone who believes. If a person does not
accept this work of Calvary that must be personally applied and
personally appropriated by faith, nothing else works. Paul made sure that
folks understood this in the previous verses.
There is power in the blood of the Lamb. There is healing in the touch of
His hand. But the greatest of all miracles is the day Jesus saved my
soul. How could a person not be excited over that transformation? The
devil moved out and Jesus moved in.
B. Its provision vs. 25-26
How is it possible that a Holy God allow sin to go unpunished? The cross
is the fact that sin has never and will never be unpunished. God deals
with sin severely.
In one way you could say that the Old Testament saints went to heaven on
credit. They offered up the sacrifices for sin but that did not obtain
their salvation. It took the death of Jesus Christ to but their salvation
also. God’s righteousness shown at the cross shows that God righteously
judged and punished every last sin that man has ever or will ever commit.
God’s gracious gift of justification is offered to all. But it must be
personally received.
Romans 5:17
"For if by one man's offence death reigned by one; much more they which
receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness shall reign
in life by one, Jesus Christ."
John 1:12
"But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of
God, even to them that believe on his name"
John 6:37
"All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to
me I will in no wise cast out."
C. It’s preciousness Vs. 27-31
There is no boasting that we can make. God did it all. Jesus paid it all.
The Holy Spirit planted it all. It is was His plan, His salvation, His
blood in which we only can rest and praise. We are saved by His WORTH,
the WORK He did on Calvary and the WORD of God that plainly tells it all
to us.
Ephesians 2:8-10
"For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it
is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast. For we are
his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath
before ordained that we should walk in them."
Some people try to boast that look what God got when He got them. He did
not get a bargain when He got me. I was a lost, hell bound,
hell-deserving sinner when He obtained me. It is only by Him am I
acceptable to Him.
It is precious because it is by faith and not works. If it was works that
takes us to heaven, then the Mormons and the Jehovah Witnesses has us all
beat. It is by the blood and death of Jesus Christ. It is faith in that
that makes us acceptable in the sight of God Almighty, the Holy One.
Conclusion: Three important truths end this passage.
Who can boast? The answer is absolutely no one. We can not look down up
the sodomite and boast. We can not look down upon the moralist and boast.
We can not look down upon the religionists and boast. If you have any
boasting to make, it has to be in the blood of the Lamb’s work in your
life.
Who is excluded from grace? The answer is absolutely no one who put his
faith in Jesus Christ. There is no most favorite nation status here.
There is not three God’s to be worshiped. There is not a Jewish God for
the Jews. There is not a Gentile God for the Gentiles. Nor is there is an
Allah for Muslims. The ground at the cross is level for all men.
Does this cancel out the Law? Or do we no longer need the Law? No, the
death of Jesus Christ fulfills the Law and all it requirements. Christ
gives the very righteousness demanded by the Law to us the moment we are
saved.

Pastor Mike Walls
Freedom Baptist Church Smithfield, NC
All scriptures are King James Bible
Isa. 41:10