After Paul has made a great case against us with regards to our unrighteousness before God (because of our sin) we get to the good news in Romans 3:21-26.
But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, although the Law and the Prophets bear witness to it (21)
Here is the good news. We were told in verse 20 that we could not justify ourselves (make ourselves righteous) by the Law. But God has provided us a way to obtain righteousness before him. This way was foretold by the Old Testament prophets and the Law pointed to it.
the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe.(22)
Here is the way. We can obtain righteousness before God through faith in Jesus Christ. We are reconciled with God through our faith. To believe in Jesus Christ means to trust in him, rely on him, obey him. Genuine faith is not a one-time statement of belief, but an ongoing condition.
For there is no distinction: for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, (22-23)
We are all sinners and have no hope of attaining righteousness before God on our own.
and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, (24)
Justified means to be declared righteous. It is an unmerited (by grace) gift from God through Jesus’ death on the cross. The payment for our penalty was made by Jesus – we are redeemed by His blood.
whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. (25)
God’s offended holiness was appeased by the Jesus’ sacrifice. Our sins were placed on Jesus (who knew no sin) and his righteousness was imputed to us who believe. Jesus died in our place, he paid the penalty for our sins. God’s wrath is no longer on us if we accept his sacrifice through faith.
This was to show God's righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins. (25)
God could have passed judgment on Adam and Eve immediately (and with that destroyed the human race), but he withheld His judgment until Christ to offer us His mercy.
It was to show his righteousness at the present time, so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus (26)
God’s great plan of salvation allowed Him to be just while also merciful to us since Jesus was punished in our place. Our sin was given to Jesus on the cross and his righteousness is given to us upon faith. Through faith in the Lord Jesus, we are saved and we are justified.
For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, Romans 1:16
I delight greatly in the LORD; my soul rejoices in my God. For he has clothed me with garments of salvation and arrayed me in a robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom adorns his head like a priest, and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels. Isaiah 61:10
Saturday, September 2, 2006
Friday, September 1, 2006
The Gospel Defined by Romans
The unfolding of God’s salvation plan is beautifully laid out in the Book of Romans. After Paul briefly introduces the Gospel (1:16-17) he moves into explaining God’s wrath and judgment on the unrighteous which continues into the third chapter where it is declared that ALL are under sin:
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." Romans 3:9-12
But not only are we ALL sinners, but there is nothing that we can do on our own to rectify this problem:
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 3:19-20
We have all sinned and are unrighteous before God. The Jews had the written law through Moses (Romans 3:2) and the Gentiles had the law written on their hearts (Romans 2:15). Through the Law we are made aware of the depth of our sinfulness and shown that we can not redeem ourselves. The verdict is Guilty – no one escapes the verdict and all incur the penalty.
But there is good news which is outlined in the next section of Romans:
But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, although the Law and the Prophets bear witness to it-- the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction: for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, 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. It was to show his righteousness at the present time, so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus. Romans 3:21-26
The Gospel message is the power of God for salvation (Romans 1:16). The good news (gospel) is that the penalty for our sins has been paid by Jesus’ death on the cross for those who accept the payment through faith. And through this faith we are also justified (declared righteous) before God, something we can not do on our own. Our sin no longer separates us from God (we are saved or delivered ) because of what Jesus has done for those who accept Him by faith.
In the next post I would like to go through Romans 3:21-26 in more detail.
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." Romans 3:9-12
But not only are we ALL sinners, but there is nothing that we can do on our own to rectify this problem:
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 3:19-20
We have all sinned and are unrighteous before God. The Jews had the written law through Moses (Romans 3:2) and the Gentiles had the law written on their hearts (Romans 2:15). Through the Law we are made aware of the depth of our sinfulness and shown that we can not redeem ourselves. The verdict is Guilty – no one escapes the verdict and all incur the penalty.
But there is good news which is outlined in the next section of Romans:
But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, although the Law and the Prophets bear witness to it-- the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction: for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, 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. It was to show his righteousness at the present time, so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus. Romans 3:21-26
The Gospel message is the power of God for salvation (Romans 1:16). The good news (gospel) is that the penalty for our sins has been paid by Jesus’ death on the cross for those who accept the payment through faith. And through this faith we are also justified (declared righteous) before God, something we can not do on our own. Our sin no longer separates us from God (we are saved or delivered ) because of what Jesus has done for those who accept Him by faith.
In the next post I would like to go through Romans 3:21-26 in more detail.
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