THE BLESSING OF JUSTIFICATION

Transcription

1 INTRODUCTION THE BLESSING OF JUSTIFICATION (Romans 3:9-26) Today I want to preach on something that God does for us in salvation that is absolutely critical for us to get right in our understanding, preaching, and believing. When I say get it right, I mean to understand, preach, and believe it as the Bible teaches it. Our understanding of it will affect how we view the grace of God and the nature of God. It will affect how we view Christ and his atoning death. It will affect how we view the work of the Holy Spirit in applying salvation to us. It will affect how we view the nature of man as created by God and as fallen into sin. It will affect how secure is our assurance of salvation. It will affect how we make progress in our sanctification. It will affect how we see ourselves as believers. Therefore we must see and believe how the Bible presents this great act of God for us. Sad to say, the Biblical view of this act of God is being muddled, neglected, and even denied today by many in the church at large. Even many evangelical preachers are moving quickly away from preaching this. Martin Luther expressed it importance in his memorable statement when he said, It is the article on which the church stands or falls. If the church stands on this truth the church will stand, but if the church falls or fails to proclaim this truth, the church will fall. Calvin referred to it as "the main hinge on which religion turns," and "the sum of all piety." What is this act of God in our salvation that I am talking about? It is the act of God of justifying us through grace alone, by faith alone, in Christ alone, for the glory of God alone. It is the truth of what is called Justification by faith. What does it mean to be justified? What is the ground of our justification? What are the personal blessings of being justified? Let s consider these questions. THE NATURE OF JUSTIFICATION What is it that God does when He justifies us? What is being talked about when the Bible says that we are justified by faith? The word justify is a courtroom term. It is a forensic act. A forensic act has to do with a legal action of a court. It is the act of a judge. July 29, 2018 Corntassel CP Church Page 1

2 How many of you have ever stood before a judge to hear his verdict? I recall a time about 10 years ago I have to go before a judge for a speeding ticket I got in Ashland City, Tn. Since my last name started with W I was at the end of the line of several others that was there for the same purpose. When he read us our violation, he would ask how we plead. Some tried to argue with the ticket and the judge would determine that they were guilty as charged and were fined. I learned just to plead guilty, because I saw that it was no use to try to argue my way out of it. A judge s responsibility is either to justify a person and declare the person not guilty or condemn them and declare the person guilty as charged. The term justify in the Bible refers strictly to a forensic act of God in declaring the believer not guilty and declaring them righteous. What is the Biblical evidence for this forensic nature of justification? Let s look at a few verses that inform us that the term justify is a term used in a court-room setting. Deuteronomy 25:1 NKJV "If there is a dispute between men, and they come to court, that the judges may judge them, and they justify the righteous and condemn the wicked, This passage is very clear about justification is a forensic act of a judge. Proverbs 17:15 NKJV He who justifies the wicked, and he who condemns the just, Both of them alike are an abomination to the LORD. Here we see that for a human judge to declare the wicked not-guilty and if a human judge declares the righteous to be guilty is an abomination. Now let s go to the New Testament. Romans 8:33-34 NKJV Who shall bring a charge against God's elect? It is God who justifies. (34) Who is he who condemns? It is Christ who died, and furthermore is also risen, who is even at the right hand of God, who also makes intercession for us. In this passage it is clear that God is the one who justifies or declares the believer to be righteous and no one can overturn that verdict. No one can bring a July 29, 2018 Corntassel CP Church Page 2

3 charge against God s elect; because God has declared him to be not-guilty, based on what Christ has done in his cross and resurrection. When God justifies a person in salvation He declares them righteous. (Let s everyone say Declared righteous ) Justification is the act of God in declaring the guilty sinner righteous. The Biblical use of the term justification is clearly a court-room term, i.e. a forensic term. Why am I stressing this so? It is because even many evangelicals are wanting to deny that our relationship with God is based on Christ satisfying the law of God by being our substitute. They want to move from court-room language to the family-room language. Now the Bible presents God as more than our Judge, He also is our heavenly Father. The Bible does use family-room terminology for this relationship. And we will deal with that relationship next week, when we look at adoption. But leaving the term justification in the court-room of God is essential for understanding the Biblical basic of our salvation. Justification as a court-room term is built on the assumption that God is the law-giver and that he judges all men based on their deeds in relation to his holy law. It is built on the assumption that all men stand guilty before God. Justification deals with our guilt. The argument of Romans 3 is that we are all guilty as charged. Romans 3:19 NKJV Now we know that whatever the law says, it says to those who are under the law, that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God. The argument in Romans three is that there is none righteous (3:10), there is none that does good (3:12); we are all sinners (3:23). We all need to be righteous before God to be accepted by God. We cannot create our own righteousness by our good works, even keeping the law. We need a perfect righteousness. The question that Paul is answering in Romans 3:21-22 is How can a guilty person be right with a holy God? Where and how can this perfect righteousness be attained? Let s see what our passage in Romans says. THE BASIS OF OUR JUSTIFICATION This perfect righteousness is a gift of God. It is freely given to us by God through faith. Look at Romans 3:21-22: July 29, 2018 Corntassel CP Church Page 3

4 Romans 3:21-22 NKJV But now the righteousness of God apart from the law is revealed, being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets, (22) even the righteousness of God, through faith in Jesus Christ, to all and on all who believe. The basis of God justifying the guilty sinner is the righteousness of Christ credited to us by God s grace. This perfect righteousness as a gift of God is the basis for him justifying us or declaring us righteous. This righteousness of God is the righteousness of Jesus Christ which God credits us with. To use the theological term God for crediting it us it God imputes Christ s righteousness to us. Christ is our righteousness. 2 Corinthians 5:21 NKJV (21) For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him. God has credited us with the very righteousness of Christ. When He declares us righteous it is based on Christ s righteousness imputed to us, not any righteous worked by us or even in us by God. Is the righteousness of Christ imputed to us the intrinsic righteousness of Christ in his divine nature as the God-Man? No, not exactly. It is the righteousness of his perfect obedience to God s holy law. Philippians 2:8 NKJV And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross. Some divide his perfect obedience into two components; one is his active obedience, the other is his passive obedience. Christ s active obedience is his perfect obedience in fulfilling the law and will of God when He walked on this earth. Jesus perfectly obeyed the Father not only in the Mosaic Law but by doing the will of the Father who sent him to this world... This active obedience is given to us as gift. This active obedience is imputed to us and God sees our life as a life of perfect obedience to Him, therefore He can declare us righteous. Because we have been clothed in the righteousness of Christ. Christ s passive obedience is his being obedience unto death, even the death of the Cross as Philippians 2 states it. Christ s passive obedience is when Christ went to the cross and paid the debt for all our sins. Christ, who knew no sin, was made sin for us. Christ died for our sins, not his sins. Christ s death on the Cross was a substitutionary death. He died in our place. This is the basis of God July 29, 2018 Corntassel CP Church Page 4

5 pardoning or forgiving us of all our sins, which is also part of justification. This righteousness takes away the guilt of our sins. Hallelujah, what a great salvation we have. Hallelujah, what a great Savior we have. Hallelujah, what a great God we have. If God is for us, who can be against us? Who can bring any charge against God s elect? It is God who justifies, who can condemn us? The ground of our justification is the righteousness of Christ imputed to us. (Let s everyone say, I have been given the righteousness of Christ ) THE FRUIT OR BENEFITS OF JUSTIFICATION Now let me mention some of the fruit or benefits of justification through the imputed righteousness of Christ. First, it is great benefit for God. It is the great solution to the problem of how a holy God can justify guilty sinners and remain just. Recall in Proverbs 17:15 it said that if a human judge declares the wicked to be righteous it is an abomination with God. Well the same goes for God. God, just out of His sovereignty, can t do what He says is an abomination to Him. Christ s substitutionary death and imputed righteousness is the way that God can remain just and the justifier of those who have faith in Jesus. This is the argument of Romans 3:24-26 Romans 3:24-26 NKJV being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, (25) whom God set forth as a propitiation by His blood, through faith, to demonstrate His righteousness, because in His forbearance God had passed over the sins that were previously committed, (26) to demonstrate at the present time His righteousness, that He might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus. God is just in justifying sinners who have faith in Jesus because His holy law, His holy will has been satisfied, i.e. propitiated, through the blood of His Son. Therefore He can clothe us with the righteousness of Christ and fully pardoned us of the guilt of our sin and be just in doing it. When God declares us righteous, He is speaking the truth for we are righteous in Christ and our sins have been paid for! Next we have the personal benefit of having peace with God in our justification. July 29, 2018 Corntassel CP Church Page 5

6 Romans 5:1 NKJV Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, We are no longer an enemy of God; we have been reconciled to Him. Next we are under no condemnation, either now or in eternity. John 5:24 KJV Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life. God s eternal and final verdict that He will issue to each and every person on that great Day of Judgment has already by issued to the believer. The believer in Jesus is declared righteous. Romans 8:1 says that there is now no condemnation to those in Christ Jesus. Another benefit is that we are heirs of eternal life through our justification. Titus 3:7 NKJV that having been justified by His grace we should become heirs according to the hope of eternal life. We have the guarantee of eternal life. Wow! Such are the benefits of being justified, declared righteous, and given the righteousness of Christ as our righteousness before God: Peace with God, no fear of condemnation, heirs of eternal life. And there are many more CONCLUSION No wonder Martin Luther said that the church stands or falls on this truth. It is the heart of the Gospel. It is the heart of our salvation. May we ever proclaim it, believe it, and fully embrace it by faith. May we never move from this understanding of the basis of our salvation. We have been justified by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone, to the glory of God alone. Look to Jesus perfect obedience and thank God that He has freely given that to you through faith in Christ. Look at Jesus perfect sacrifice on the cross in your behalf and thank God that He has credited that payment for your sins to your account. One final quote from Martin Luther. Every week I preach justification by faith to my people, because every week they forget it. May we never forget it. Amen? Amen! July 29, 2018 Corntassel CP Church Page 6