Hear now the word of God. But now, apart from the law, the righteousness of God has been manifested, being witnessed by the law and the prophets, even the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all those who believe, for there is no distinction. For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified as a gift by His grace through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus. whom God displayed publicly as a propitiation in his blood through faith. This was to demonstrate his righteousness, because in the forbearance of God he passed over the sins previously committed for the demonstration, I say, of his righteousness at the present time, that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus. Where, then, is boasting? It is excluded. By what kind of law? Of works? No, but by the law of faith. For it we maintain that a man is justified by faith apart from the works of the law. Or is God the God of Jews only? Is He not the God of Gentiles also? Yes, of Gentiles also, since indeed God, who will justify the circumcised by faith and the uncircumcised through faith, is one. Do we then nullify the law through faith? May it never be. On the contrary, we establish the law. Now, please leave your Bibles open, because I want to stick pretty close to this portion of Scripture this morning and not deal with this particular teaching from God's Word in a topical fashion. October is the month in which we celebrate Reformation Day, and we remember what Martin Luther did when he nailed those issues for debate on that castle door of the church in Wittenberg, October 31st, the year 1517. We have a conference here. We call it our Reformation Conference. We want to be reminded, and we want the truths of God to be rediscovered by the people of God, and we want to see God's truth applied to all of life. And we have this rich privilege of inviting speakers in whom God is blessed to teach us and instruct us, and we are able to come together and grow in grace and be in encouragement with one another just to sit under the teaching of the Word of God. The Reformation had slogans for it. It had mottos. when it all came about. Those slogans were grace alone, Christ alone, faith alone, God's glory alone, and Scripture alone. And we're going to hit on at least three of those real good this morning as we come to this particular teaching from the Word of God. A couple of weeks ago, I preached on the subject of effectual calling, that work of God whereby in His grace He calls His people unto Himself. And following effectual calling is this work which is labeled or termed justification. And this is not something in which we have somehow come up with our theological systems. It's that which God shows us in His Word. If you turn over to Romans chapter 8 and verse 30, you read that it says, And whom He predestined, these He also called, and whom He Paul, these he also justified, and whom he justified, these he also glorified." Now, we also stick in between justified and glorified. We stick in sanctification or sanctified, not like we're adding to the Scripture, but because we know elsewhere, as Paul teaches in Romans itself, that there is that sanctifying work that goes on in the lives of people before they are glorified in heaven. Now, the plan for this morning's preaching of the Word is for me to take this passage here in Romans chapter 3 and open it up, attempting to explain to us the doctrine that is given here, which is the doctrine of justification by faith in our Lord Jesus Christ. The apostle begins here in verse 21 speaking about the subject of the righteousness of God, and he's going to explain a number of things with various phrases about the righteousness of God. For instance, he says that the righteousness of God has been manifested in verse 21. But now, apart from the law, the righteousness of God has been manifested. In other words, it's something that's been revealed. It's something that is seen for us. It's something that God has done to act. He has given us understanding of something. He has given revelation of something. He has shown His righteousness in some way. The righteousness of God, we would say, would have to be a perfect righteousness, right? It would have to be something that is infinitely pure and unique and special, that which characterizes God, that which is revealing Him, that which is God Himself, that displays God unto us. And if you read more about what the Apostle Paul is teaching here in Romans, you must understand that he's not only, when he talks about the righteousness of God, he also speaks in reference to the righteousness of man. And what he's doing here is he's telling us about the righteousness of God so that he can show how it's contrasted or compared to the righteousness of man. And he's going to explain to us that the righteousness of man is a righteousness that's characterized by the fact that all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. So the righteousness of God, you see, is something that is pure, but that righteousness of man is that which is characterized itself by sin. So the righteousness of God has been manifested. And he says, secondly, that it's been manifested apart from the law. But now, apart from the law of God, the righteousness of God has been manifested. What does he mean, apart from the law? Well, he means it would appear from this and much else that he writes elsewhere that he's saying, he's speaking about people obeying the law. You know, Paul was one who was working hard at this. He was working real hard at obeying the law of God in order for God to accept him as righteous. And many people in his day were the same way. Many of the Pharisees, you remember, who Christ spoke with, according to the law of God, and many laws that they had added to God's law, man-made laws, they were obeying and keeping these, thinking that through the keeping of these things, they achieved a certain amount of righteousness. And so Paul is saying the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, not with the law-keeping of people, but our keeping it so as to show the righteousness of God. But in some other way, this righteousness has been revealed. We might stop here to say that this was not just a problem in Paul's day, but it's a problem in our own day as well. There are many people who believe that by keeping the law, they do obey God in such a way they earn righteousness. And some people don't refer to the law, but they just think that by living a good life and doing good works, they achieve a righteousness that God somehow accepts. And there are many Jews and many Roman Catholics and many Protestants that believe that God accepts them because they're good people and they do good deeds and they work hard and they try to live good lives. But the Bible does not teach that. And there are many people in other religions, and there are many people who have what they say is no religion, but no religion is their religion. Anyway, they think that somehow they're acceptable for things they do or something like that too. But the Scriptures teach otherwise. The Scriptures teach us that there is a righteousness that God accepts, and it's His righteousness. We're told also here that this righteousness has been spoken of previously by the Law and the Prophets. In other words, it's not something new that God had just revealed in the time of Paul. Paul doesn't say, hey, we're in the New Testament times and I'm telling you something totally and entirely new. Not at all. He says, this was spoken to you long ago in the Law and the writing of Moses and the Prophets. Men like Isaiah, whom we read this morning. And if you turn over to Romans chapter 4, you'll see that there he refers to Abraham and David as men who did know something of the righteousness of God and men who were justified in their faith the same way that people in Paul's day and our day would come to being acceptable in the sight of God. It's not anything new. Another thing that we notice about this righteousness is that it comes through faith in Christ for all who believe. It is not through what people can do, but it comes through faith in Christ and how beautifully the confession of faith sets this out for us so that we must not have any misunderstanding. Even our faith is not a work that we perform. We know from Ephesians 2 that it is a gift of God. And when we talked about effectual calling and free will, we spoke about how it's a gift that comes that God gives us and then we exercise that faith. Notice here that what he says in verse 22, even the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe, for there is no distinction. It is not just faith. There are people today who say, oh, I have faith, but it's not just faith that somehow saves anyone. It must be faith in Jesus Christ and Christ alone. It is not. faith in someone else or faith in some other religion, it must be faith in Christ. There is a righteousness that comes from God only through faith and faith in Jesus Christ and in Him alone. Many people today suppose that they receive the righteousness of God and that they are acceptable to God because they've been baptized or because they receive the Lord's Supper and they treat these sacraments of the church almost in a magical way that once these things have taken place, They are automatically received into the kingdom of God. And they put their confidence in these acts, acts which are commanded by God, but are not the basis for our receiving the righteousness of God. Others think that because they are sincere, because they're honest—I've asked people if they're Christians before, and they've told me about their relatives who were preachers. I told my kids, if anybody ever asks them if they're a Christian, don't you dare ever tell them you're Dave's a Christian. It has nothing to do with their salvation. People put their confidence in all these things. Our confidence is to be in Christ. And then the apostle also shows us that it is needed by everyone, this righteousness of God. It's needed by everyone. Verse 23. For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. This includes everyone. Abraham and David and the Virgin Mary and the Apostle Paul and Charles Manson and Adolf Hitler and everyone else. It includes everyone. For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. And again, we must be reminded of our Lord's Day, how the Pharisees were so infuriated with Jesus, because He told them they needed to be cleansed, and they were dirty before God. They didn't like that, because through all their obedience they were acceptable, they had the righteousness of God upon them. And how today, how today it is so common in our land for people to laugh and to make fun of the doctrine of sin. Christ would have no better hearing today than he had in his day, nor than what we have today when we speak the truth, that the Scriptures teach that man does not have any righteousness whereby he can commend himself before God, because God is infinitely pure and holy. And people today reject the thought that somehow we are sinful and unclean and filthy and dirty and in need of cleansing before God. Many liberal churches have excluded these statements of truth from these grand old hymns because they detest this truth that our Lord taught. But it is true, and everywhere taught in Scripture, that you and I are sinners before God. We need the righteousness of God to be accepted by God, and this righteousness comes to us through what we call the doctrine of justification. And the word justified itself is used in verse 24. It's not somewhere trying to come up with theological terms. This is a term that comes directly out of the scripture. Verse 24, being justified as a gift by His grace through the redemption which is in Jesus Christ. Now, what is justification? Justification is God's declaration of a person to be righteous, to have the righteousness of God upon them, being justified as a gift by His grace through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus. God declares people to be righteous, to have this righteousness upon them. We need righteousness because we've all sinned. That's what verse 23 says. And because God is infinitely holy, we can't just settle for some inferior righteousness. It has to be a righteousness that God accepts, and it is that righteousness that He bestows and declares upon people. It's not something that we work for. Look at verse 24. It's a gift. It comes by His grace. We cannot make it happen. We cannot earn it. We cannot achieve it. This word justified or justification is a legal term like in a court of law. The opposite of it is to be condemned. If you're condemned, you're not justified. If you're justified, you're not condemned. It has to do with our standing before God. Are we guilty of sin? You bet we are. Verse 23 says we are, all of sin. And when God justifies people, what He does is He declares them not guilty. We stand before Him in the courtroom and He says, and the charges are read against us of our sins. And how must we plead? We must plead guilty. And then what does He do? He declares us not guilty. Why? Because he is just some happy, benevolent God? Because he can just sort of somehow forget about our sins and graze on the curb, that type of thing? No! He does this because he has worked out a process whereby all those sins that we have committed will be satisfied, will be paid for. And he won't have to compromise his infinitely holy and pure and just character by declaring us not guilty. He does this by what the Scriptures teach us when it talks about imputing or reckoning something to someone's account. The Confession says that God imputes to us the righteousness of Christ. That means that He applies it to our account. Here is Jesus Christ. He is perfectly obeyed. That perfect obedience is imputed to us. It counts for us. Here is Jesus Christ. He has suffered on the cross. He has paid for the sins of His people who are guilty before God. And that suffering counts for them. It is imputed to their account. It is wrong to think that somehow God infuses His righteousness into us. Sometimes when I'm very tired, I'll tell my wife, Honey, that great cosmic vacuum has come down and sucked all the energy out of me, and I'm tired and I'm worn out." Well, sometimes people have this idea about God. He is this great cosmic energy, and when He saves people, He comes and He Instead of sucking out, he pushes in and he infuses his righteousness in people so that we are now Christians and we have somehow the infusion of the righteousness of God in us. That's not true. It is true that we receive a new heart. But apart from receiving the new heart and having this new desire, new will, it doesn't mean that somehow we ourselves and our persons have become righteous like God is. No, it has to do with our standing before God. This is what messes up so many Christians after they become Christians. They know they have a new heart, and they want to do God's will. They want to serve Him, and they get so frustrated because of their sin in their life. Well, I'm not a Christian. Why am I still sinning, they say. Well, it's because you misunderstand justification. Justification is not God infusing His righteousness into you so that you never sin again. It is His taking care of your standing before God so that when you stand before Him, as guilty as you can be, He says, not guilty. He declares you not guilty on the basis of what Jesus Christ has done, on the basis of the righteousness that is in Jesus Christ. And this, my friend, is the gospel of Jesus Christ. Justification is made possible only through the redemption that is in Jesus Christ. The Lord, our righteousness, He has called in Jeremiah. Listen to this prophecy concerning Christ. Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when I shall raise up for David a righteous branch, and he will reign as king and act wisely and do justice and righteousness in the land. And in his days Judah will be saved and Israel will dwell securely. And this is his name by which he will be called the Lord, our righteousness. Paul writes to Titus, He saved us not on the basis of deeds which we have done in righteousness, but according to His mercy, by the washing of regeneration and the renewing of the Holy Spirit, whom He poured out upon us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, that being justified by His grace we might be made heirs of the hope of eternal life. Remember 2 Corinthians 5.21, He made Him, meaning Jesus Christ, who knew no sin, to be sin on our behalf, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him. Here's that very phrase, the righteousness of God. How do we become the righteousness of God? Well, God made sin, made Christ to be sin on our behalf, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him. Christ is the righteousness of the one who has faith in Him. And the Scriptures tell us here in verse 24 that this comes through the redemption that is in Jesus Christ. We studied a few weeks ago about Christ our Redeemer, about how a Redeemer is someone who delivers people, and they have to pay a price for their deliverance. And Christ is that deliverer, and Christ paid the price of dying for His people and satisfying their debt to God for their sins, that they might be delivered into the family of God. This is further explained in verse 25, when God displayed publicly as a propitiation in His blood through faith. Christ was what we could call this word propitiation. We could say He is a propitiatory sacrifice. And this word implies the idea or teaches the idea that God's wrath is due to people for their sin. This is one of those words in the Bible that liberals hate because they don't mind seeing Christ as an example or reconciling people to be friends with God. But this business that God actually has, wrath, is something that is horrendous for us. But this word, or horrendous to them, but this word, propitiation, is the word that's saying that Christ has satisfied that wrath. Christ has turned away that wrath. So that wrath does not come upon people. That we are His enemies, and only in Christ are we brought near. Turn over to chapter 5. Look in chapter 5 at verse 8. But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Look at verse 10, what we are called, for if while we were enemies, enemies to God. We were reconciled to God through the death of His Son. Much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life." On a particular day in history, just like today, the sun was shining. You could have walked down by the seashore at the Mediterranean Sea, and you could have seen the waves, and you could hear the water as it It was a real day, just like today, and the wind was blowing and various things were going on. It was a day like any other day in history, but it was a special day in history because it was the day that Jesus Christ died and took the wrath of God. In history, in time, He came and He did this, that those who have faith in Him might dwell with Him through all eternity, that they might be saved. that they might be forgiven, that they might become the children of God and beloved of God. And His righteousness is the righteousness of God that counts for us. And so we come to God and our clothing reveals on our own, our clothing is that which declares that we are sinners. But it's as though Christ becomes that new suit of clothes that we wear. And God accepts us in the righteousness of God that is Jesus Christ. So that in that same chapter 5 of Romans, the apostle begins by saying, Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. He's not talking about the feeling of peace. He's talking about the war is over. Being enemies to God is over. We're now friends. We've been justified. We have been made friends to Him through Jesus Christ. And this is that righteousness that the Apostle Paul spoke of in his own personal testimony in Philippians 3, verses 8 and 9. And this must be the testimony of every person in this room if we are truly Christians, that we do not trust in anything that we do or in any person of who we are, but we trust only in Jesus Christ. And the Apostle Paul says in Philippians 3, more than that, I count all things to be lost in the view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus, my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things. He didn't put any confidence in who he was or what he had done. He counted all these things as rubbish in order that he may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own derived from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which comes from God on the basis of faith. And that must be our testimony as well. This is what Isaiah tells us that Christ was doing for us when we read it a while ago. He was crushed for our iniquities. He was pierced through for our transgressions. All of us, like sheep, have gone astray. Each of us has turned into his own way, but the Lord calls the iniquity of us all to fall on him. As a result of the anguish of his soul, he will see it and be satisfied, and by his knowledge The righteous one, my servant, will justify the many, as he will bear their iniquities." So, you see, you and I can appear before God. We don't have to worry. It should never concern us that our works are not pleasing in order to be accepted by God. Not at all. We are accepted by God alone through Jesus Christ. Yes, we can grieve God as our Heavenly Father. Yes, we can grieve His Holy Spirit. And I'll deal with that in just a moment. But the point that I'm getting at here is our standing before God is alone based upon the Lord Jesus Christ. In all this, God shows that He is just and He is the justifier of the one in faith in Christ. In verse 26, In all this plan, God demonstrates His righteousness, that He might be the just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Christ. He is the justifier, He declares people righteous, and He is just. He does not compromise His holiness or His righteousness in any way. Sin is dealt with. We are accepted. God is the one who has designed the plan, the way, whereby He doesn't have to compromise His perfect character. And he can still save a people for himself, and he does this in Jesus Christ. We're also told in this passage that justification eliminates all boasting. Verse 27 and 28. Here is Paul writing to these believers, and he's telling Jew and Gentile alike that we cannot boast in what we do. We can only boast in Christ. And then in verse 29 and 30, he tells them that every person with faith in Christ is in Christ without distinction. It's not a Jew thing or Gentile thing. It's not an American thing. It's not a white race thing. All those who are in Christ are in Christ. God is the God of all those who have faith in Christ. That's why when we think about these believers who are in other parts of the world who are undergoing suffering, it's not their problem only. It's our problem too. Because we are united to them in the Lord Jesus Christ. And we are not any more important than they are. Now, what other applications can we draw from this passage? We should understand that justification must be understood as distinct from sanctification. I've touched on this. But understand that in justification, justification is a once-for-all act. In Romans 8, it says, verse 1, There is, therefore, now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. There is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. That's justification. No one can condemn us. Look over in the last part of chapter eight. 33, who will bring a charge against God's elect? God is the one who justifies. Who is the one who condemns? Christ Jesus is he who died. Yes, rather, who was raised. Alright? So our standing before God, our acceptance before God, is in Jesus Christ. Not guilty. Justification is a once and for all act. Sanctification. It's something that we generally think of as something that continues. Even though Christ, the Bible does say, has become to us our sanctification, nevertheless, this living for Christ and following Christ is a continuing work. Go back to Romans 6. In chapter 6, certainly he's talking to the same people. He tells them there's no condemnation. But now he's talking about sanctification in verses 12 and 13, where he talks about living this life. And he says, Therefore, do not let sin reign in your mortal body, that you should obey its lust. And do not go on presenting the members of your body to sin as instruments of unrighteousness. And present yourself to God as those alive from the dead, and so forth. Now what has Paul done here? Does he think, well in chapter 5 they've got their salvation, chapter 6 they've lost it, chapter 8 they've picked it back up again? No, no, no, no, no! He's saying that they're Christians! But in living the Christian life, we have not been glorified. We're not in heaven. We still struggle with sin. And he presumes, in telling them not about this struggle, he presumes that there is this temptation. He presumes there is this battle. He presumes that there are these failings. He presumes that there has to be this going to God for cleansing and strength and all this to follow the Lord, this sanctifying work of the Spirit of God. This is the trouble sometimes that you get into, isn't it? You say, how can I be a Christian if I'm still sinning? Sometimes it's good to ask ourselves that, because it's a good rebuke that we need. It's a good rebuke we need. I'm in the Lord's, and I'm doing business acting that way. We need that rebuke. But bottom line, in considering it, we must understand that in this life, Christians continue to do battle with sin. God declares us righteous. He makes us members of His family. He never disowns us. But even as His children, we struggle with obedience. We whine, we question, we rebel. We have to be chastened and disciplined. And we are still loved by Him. We are not cast off from Him. He does not disown us. We are His people. His Son has shed His blood on our behalf. Christ didn't bleed and die in vain. He saves those whose hearts He changed. and justifies. Secondly, justification is no enemy to the law of God. R2, does it promote lawlessness? In chapter 3, verse 31, Paul states that it's not an enemy to the law of God. How do we know what is righteousness? We look at God's law. We look at Christ's obeying. How do we know if the law is righteous? Then that reveals to us the will of God, and we don't have time to go into all that. But it's true. Justification is not an enemy to lawlessness, or to the law. Neither does it promote lawlessness. This is what they told Martin Luther. You go preaching this justification by faith business, and if you don't hold over the people the burden that they've got to obey in order to be acceptable to God, they'll just live like any way they want to. Well, you know why they developed that theology? They developed it because it was man's theology, not out of the Word of God. Because the Word of God teaches that when God changes people's hearts, He gives them a new heart, and they have a desire to follow Him. And He will make them miserable, and they will be miserable when they do fall into sin, and He will bring them back, and they will return unto Him. And people who are afraid of justification because it will promote lawlessness don't understand the Spirit of God, and the work of God, and are the power of God. And this is what the Scriptures teach. Thirdly, justification is so important to be understood by Christians in various states and conditions, Christians with legalistic mentality and personalities. There are even Christians who run around saying they love the gospel, and yet they're so bound to other types of legalism that they have come up with, or bound by legalism they've come up with. They're supposed to read their Bibles. They're supposed to pray. It's an evidence of their love for the Lord. It's an evidence of obedience to the Lord. And yet, they're supposed to keep His laws and all this. But they're so tied, these things, to what they can do, they can do, they can do, that their minds are taken away from Christ. You see, we're supposed to look at Christ. And in looking at Christ, then we say with the Apostle Paul, the love of Christ constrains us. And we don't look at a list of rules for the Christian life, but we look at these things that are our privileges to do. We look at the love of Christ, and we know that He knows best what is best for us, and we want to do these things because God has His best interest in mind for us. We need to understand justification to fight off this legalistic mentality. Secondly, we need to understand this doctrine because of little or weak faith. Christians who have a hard time believing, they pray often, O Lord, I believe, help thou my unbelief. They have trouble trusting the Lord, and they're often fighting their fears. And you need to understand this doctrine of justification. There are different degrees of growth and grace in the Christian life, but there is only one kind of justification by faith in Jesus Christ. One person is not more justified than another person. Boy, now they're really justified. No! Everyone is equally justified in Christ. Some are growing in grace at different levels, but all, if justified, are equally justified in Christ. Oh, but my faith is weak. What do you have to have? Twenty percent? of perfect faith. It's not a matter of how strong your faith is. It's a matter of whether Christ has made satisfaction for your sins. You see, as long as you look to your faith and your works, you'll be miserable and you'll be robbed of assurance, and well, you and I should be. God forbid that we ever put assurance in our faith and in our works. Our assurance must be in Jesus Christ. When our faith isn't healed, we understand that even if it's weak faith, Christ is the one who saves. We lack assurance of God's love and care. Yet the Scriptures teach us that if He has died for us, He will not keep from us anything which we need and which is necessary for us. We are His people. We are those that He has clothed in the righteousness of God and Jesus Christ. We are loved by Him. And even when you and I are so cast down because life seems to be so confusing and seems to be so unfair and seems to be so hard and so terrible to us, we misunderstand that we are those who are in Christ, and God is still even behind All the frowns, it seems. He is one who loves us, and we must do as the choir sang. We must stand upon his promises. And how we need this doctrine for us who have cold and sluggish hearts, to understand justification not only with our heads, but with our hearts. Great medicine to our souls. The fuel to energize us to greater faithfulness in living for Christ. That you meditate upon this, that you take time to not read or watch television or not do this or not do that, but you just take time to meditate and to think upon Christ and God the Father and the Holy Spirit and the love of God for you. And that you labor to stir up your heart in the knowledge of Him. And you don't resort to all the gimmicks that are going on in the church today to get pumped up. But like we began this worship service, you have your soul pumped up with the truth of God. And it's a real true and substantial encouragement that can come to our souls. So Christ is the one who gives himself on behalf of his people, by faith they look unto him, and God declares them righteous. And you this morning, every one of us, must understand that we have all sinned and fallen short of the glory of God, and only in Christ is there our justification, and in Him alone. We have much to rejoice in, and some may have that to inquire much deeper into as to whether they indeed are looking to Christ as their Lord and Savior. Let us pray. Thank You, Heavenly Father, for giving us Your Word and Your Spirit. Thank You for blessing us. Almighty God, we pray that you would make us to rejoice in the Lord Jesus Christ, to live our lives as those who are constrained by His love for us, by your love for us as our Heavenly Father, by the Spirit's love for us in changing us, in teaching us, in correcting us. Lord, we pray that you would work in the hearts of any this morning here in this room who are trusting in the fact of who they are, good people, their faith, their works. They're going to church and taking the sacraments and living a halfway decent life. God, show them it just isn't going to work. Bring them to an end of themselves. Show them that they are wretched sinners, that they must cry out with the man that Christ commended, God, be merciful to me, the sinner. and that then they might find great joy in rejoicing, not in themselves, but in Christ, the righteousness of God. We pray in his name. Amen.