Faith and the Righteousness of God (Rom. 3:21-31)

[Sung Psalm: 119:137-144]

Before the coming of Christ we heard many voices in the Old Testament proclaiming that God is righteous, and we saw many pictures that bore witness to the righteousness of God.

But it is only in the gospel that the righteousness of God is revealed. What is the difference between witnessing to the righteousness of God and revealing (or manifesting) the righteousness of God?

Moses bore witness to the righteousness of God when he led Israel out of Egypt, testifying that God delivers his people from bondage.

The sons of Aaron bore witness to the righteousness of God when they offered sacrifices on the altar, testifying that without the shedding of blood there is no remission of sin.

King David bore witness to the righteousness of God when he established his throne in Jerusalem, testifying that the kingdom of God endures forever.

We could multiply examples of words and signs in the OT, all of which testified to the righteousness of God – all of which pointed forward to the coming of the Messiah.

But it is only in the death and resurrection of Jesus that we see clearly the manifestation of the righteousness of God.

We saw this at the beginning of Romans 1 – where Paul says that the gospel of God is all about his Son – descended from David according to the flesh – but declared to be the Son of God in power according to the Spirit of holiness by the resurrection from the dead.

In the resurrection of Jesus Christ we see the righteousness of God made manifest...