JUSTIFICATION - - Rom 3:24-26, Rom 4:5, Rom 4:23-25
I. INTRODUCTION
A. God's justification of the sinner is the very heart of the Gospel
I. Paul in Rom 1:16 says that in this gospel the righteousness of God is revealed.
2. Throughout the book of Romans these two words justification and righteousness always seem to be linked together.
3. We could go so far as to say the two words are interchangeable.
B. The reason we can do that is because they both come from the same root word in the Greek.
I. Righteousness is the noun and the word justify is the verb.
2. The English .translators have to use two different words because they would sound strange to our ears.
3. To translate justify we would have to come up with the word righteously.
4. Of course we have no English word like that but it does tell us what God does when he justifies the believing sinner- He righteousifies him.
5. God imputes to him a righteousness he does not otherwise possess.
II. Once Again It is God Acting in Grace
A. It is as if God is saying; even though you have nothing to your credit, if you have faith as a grain of mustard seed than God has something good for sinners.
I. What is it that he offers sinners freely-He makes ungodly people righteous!
2. God counts your feeble faith in the blood of His Son as a righteousness that is entirely satisfactory to Him.
B. Lets Define Paul's Use of the Word Righteousness
I. He does not use it in Romans as a persons personal righteousness of character but of his standing before God.
2. Rev. Guy King in his notes on Romans regularly translates the word righteousness as "Rightness with God"
3. From that rightness flow all the other forms of righteousness.
4. But if a person is not right with God I can assure you that they are not right anywhere.
5 The Bible clearly states that there are none righteous no not one. Rom. 3:10
C. The Gospel tackles this foundational need of mankind.
1. It offers to the sinner a perfect righteousness wholly acceptable to God Himself because He is the one who has provided it.
2. It is called the righteousness of God because it is in contrast to the righteousness man has been trying to achieve for himself.
3. God is willing to reckon His righteousness to the sinner solely on the ground of His faith in Jesus.
4. The moment we believe, God righteousifies us by faith.
5. This is the message of the book of Romans
D. I am not saying at this point that God imparts righteousness to the sinner, but that He imputes His righteousness which carries a judicial connotation.
1. God as Judge declares me righteous in the court of heaven.
2. As a consequence, the Holy Spirit imparts a righteousness that is progressive. It grows and develops in measure as I am filled with the Spirit.
3. God counts me righteous even though at the moment my life may be in rags.
4. It was while the prodigal was still in rag the Father said: Bring forth the best robe and put it on him.
5. Note it was the best robe because it was the robe the Father provided not one he made for himself.
6. Paul in Rom 4:6 uses David as the example of imputed righteousness-God imputeth righteousness without works to David.
7. Praise God, He does the same for us.
E. When God declares you righteous by the blood of Jesus not even the archangel Gabriel has a better righteousness before God
1. As a matter of fact, I Cor. 1:30 says: Christ Himself is made unto me righteousness
2. This verse was the liberating truth for John Bunyon.
Lacking assurance, and fearful lest he committed the unforgivable sin, he was pacing his garden when there fell a voice from heaven's He searched his Bible to find where such a (Verse might be, and he found it: "Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us .. . righteousness."
III. Righteousness Apart From Works (Rom 3:28)
A. Because Christ is made unto me righteousness, I am declared righteous without (apart from) the deeds of law.
I. The word without is better translated-without any reference to.
2. Righteousness has no reference to works whether good or bad.
3. Your good works can't help you and your bad works don't hinder you-if you confess what they are.
B. The way of works is really an attempt to put God in our debt.
I. In Rom. 4:4 we are taught that very clearly.
2. Can you believe that! a person is viewed as putting God in his debt so that God owes him salvation.
3. That is something God will never permit. (Rom 11:35)
4. We shall never get anything from God as a matter of debt.
5. What God does for us is done in grace-He does it freely as a gift. (Rom 6:23)
C. The poet expresses this truth in these words:
I. I cannot work my soul to save-For that my Lord hath done.
2. But I would work like any slave-For love of Gods dear Son.
IV. How Do We Get This Righteousness of God?
A. We believe on a God who declare him to be right who confesses himself to be wrong.
I. Look for a moment at the parable of the Pharisee. Luke 18:13-14
2. The publican stood afar off and smote on His breast-God be merciful to me a sinner.
3. What he said in effect-I am the one who is wrong-wrong with you o God and I admit that I am a sinner.
4. What was the response of God to that broken man-Jesus said; He went down to his house justified.
5. Jesus declared him to be right who confessed he was wrong.
B. The Pharisee on the other hand boasted of what a good man he was. Bible says, he prayed thus with himself.
I. In other words God has no time for self righteous people.
2. When he confessed himself to be right-God said my friend you are wrong.
3. Wrong first of all with God and that's all that matters.
V. We Have Two Battles in Life.
A. First, I hate to admit that I'm wrong and a sinner.
I. Its our pride and - self righteousness that makes me this way.
2. Having come to the place that I acknowledge I'm a sinner I then have a second battle.
3. That battle is with my accusing conscience. It tells me even though I receive Jesus as Savior, I'm still not good enough.
B. I have to win that battle and believe that the blood of Jesus is sufficient to cleanse me from sin Rom 3:25 Rom 4:5
I. If the blood was sufficient for God-it is surely sufficient for me.