Grace or Debt

For what saith the scripture?  Abraham believed God, and it was counted unto him for righteousness.  Now to him that worketh is the reward not reckoned of grace, but of debt.  But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness.

Romans 4:3-5

The book of Romans makes the way of salvation very clear for us.  We do not work for our salvation.  We do not earn our salvation.  As these verses tell us “Abraham believed God, and it was counted unto him for righteousness.”  Was Abraham perfect?  Far from it.  Did Abraham never make any mistakes or do anything stupid?  Of course he made mistakes and did stupid things – we can read all about them in the book of Genesis.  But he believed God.  That faith was “counted unto him for righteousness.”

It is the same with us.  Verse 5 tells us that he that “worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness.”

The reason for this is also found in this passage.  “…to him that worketh is the reward not reckoned of grace, but of debt.”  If we were to earn our salvation, there would be no measure of grace.  If we could earn our salvation, God would not be showing us mercy or grace by saving; He would simply be paying a debt that He owed to us.  Of course, we know that this whole concept is ridiculous.  God does not owe us anything.  He never has and He never will.  He is not indebted to any man.

Salvation is available because of the grace and mercy of God, not because of a debt He owes us for all of the good works that we have done.  To think otherwise would be to think outside of the Bible!

 

 

Only Through Faith

Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith without the deeds of the law.  Is he the God of the Jews only?  is he not also of the Gentiles?  Yes, of the Gentiles also:  Seeing it is one God, which shall justify the circumcision by faith, and uncircumcision though faith.

Romans 3:28-30

One of the key tenets of the Protestant Reformation was the idea of “sola fide” or “by faith alone.”  The Catholics had long preached and taught that salvation came from doing good works and from being obedient to the church’s teachings.  The return to reading and believing the Bible brought many back to this idea of justification by faith found in these verses.  Of course, those who continued to read and believe the Bible had known about this teaching long before the Reformation, but that is a subject for the different day.  Today, we are looking at this passage and the fact that our salvation is truly “by faith alone” apart from the works of the law.

These verses tell us that God is the God of both the Jews and the Gentiles.  And He further goes on to explain that both Jews and Gentiles now come to Him in exactly the same way: faith.  “…a man is justified by faith without the deeds of the law.”  “…one God, which shall justify the circumcision (Jews) by faith, and uncircumcision (Gentiles) through faith.”  If a Jew is going to get saved, He is going to have to come to God by faith in Jesus Christ.  If a Gentile is going to get saved, he is going to have to come to God by faith in Jesus Christ.

Salvation is through faith alone.  There is no getting around that fact.  Man often wants to contribute something to his own salvation.  We want to add good works or keeping the Ten Commandments.  But what God demands is simply faith.

Where is Boasting?

Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus: Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God; To declare, I say, at this time his righteousness: that he might be just, and the justifer of him which believeth in Jesus.  Where is boasting then?  It is excluded.  By what law? of works?  Nay: but by the law of faith.  Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith without the deeds of the law.

Romans 3:24-28

After having learned of God’s wonderful plan for our salvation, we come to verses 27 and 28.  We can be justified freely.  We can have the perfect righteousness of Jesus Christ on our account simply through faith in Him.

Since that is true, “Where is boasting then?”  When God has done everything to justify us and all we have to do is accept His sacrifice, what place do we have to boast?  What can we say?

If we were told to work for our salvation or that our salvation would come through a diligent keeping of the law, we might have room for pride.  We might work hard and be tempted to look at all that we had done to earn our salvation.  But, since we cannot work for nor earn our salvation, we have no reason to be boastful nor proud.

Faith seems to be such a simple thing.  Jesus died for our sins, was buried and rose again on the third day.  If we believe in Him and accept what He has done for us, He freely gives us salvation.  We didn’t earn it.  We didn’t work for it.  We didn’t deserve it.  He gave it to us “freely.”  Instead of being filled with pride, let us be filled with thankfulness and gratitude!

 

Onward, Christian Soldiers (Hymn)

Onward, Christian Soldiers
Sabine Baring-Gould (1865)

Onward, Christian soldiers, marching as to war,
With the cross of Jesus going on before.
Christ, the royal Master, leads against the foe;
Forward into battle see His banners go!

Refrain
Onward, Christian soldiers, marching as to war,
With the cross of Jesus going on before.

At the sign of triumph Satan’s host doth flee;
On then, Christian soldiers, on to victory!
Hell’s foundations quiver at the shout of praise;
Brothers lift your voices, loud your anthems raise.

Refrain

Like a mighty army moves the church of God;
Brothers, we are treading where the saints have trod.
We are not divided, all one body we,
One in hope and doctrine, one in charity.

Refrain

What the saints established that I hold for true.
What the saints believèd, that I believe too.
Long as earth endureth, men the faith will hold,
Kingdoms, nations, empires, in destruction rolled.

Refrain

Crowns and thrones may perish, kingdoms rise and wane,
But the church of Jesus constant will remain.
Gates of hell can never against that church prevail;
We have Christ’s own promise, and that cannot fail.

Refrain

Onward then, ye people, join our happy throng,
Blend with ours your voices in the triumph song.
Glory, laud and honor unto Christ the King,
This through countless ages men and angels sing.

Refrain

This classic old song helps to remind us that we are in a spiritual battle.  We are soldiers in the army of the Lord, battling the darkness of Satan and sin.  And we should always be pressing forward in the strength of the Lord Jesus, for He has promised us the victory if we will but follow Him.

 

Saturday Psalm (4b)

Hear me when I call, O God of my righteousness: thou hast enlarged me when I was in distress; have mercy upon me, and hear my prayer.  O ye sons of men, how long will ye turn my glory into shame?  how long will ye love vanity, and seek after leasing?  Selah.  But know that the Lord hath set apart him that is godly for himself: the Lord will hear when I call unto him.  Stand in awe, and sin not: commune with your own heart upon your bed, and be still.  Selah.  Offer the sacrifices of righteousness, and put your trust in the Lord.

Psalm 4:1-5

In verse 5, we are told to “offer the sacrifices of righteousness.”  In the Old Testament, the Israelites were told to offer and did offer many sacrifices.  They sacrificed everything from bulls to pigeons.  At first, they did it out of obedience to the Lord.  But, over time, they lost the heart for the Lord that they had started with.  Over time, their sacrifices became nothing more than shows of religion.  They became empty and vain.  And God was not interested in their empty and vain shows of religion.

What God wanted then and what God wants now are the “sacrifices of righteousness.”  He simply wanted them to do right.  He simply wants us to do right.

It sounds simple and it is.  If we want to please God, we just need to do right.  We need to find out what God wants us to do and then do it.

Are we offering the empty and vain shows of religion like the Israelites of old did or are we offering the sacrifices of righteousness?  Are we trying to just look right or are we truly trying to do right?

Just and the Justifier

Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus: Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God; To declare, I say, at this time his righteousness: that he might be just, and the justifer of him which believeth in Jesus.

Romans 3:24-26

This is a passage that is rich in doctrine.  The previous verses in chapter 3 tell us how far from God we are and how that all men are sinners and are unrighteous in the eyes of a holy God.  But now we come to these verses.  Verse 24 tells us that we can be “justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.”

Verse 26 goes on to further explain that verse.  “To declare, I say, at this time his righteousness…”  We have no righteousness of our own.  But we can have, by faith, the perfect righteousness of Jesus Christ Himself.

God is just.  He cannot accept nor look upon sin.  So that creates an infinite chasm between Him and us.  If He accepts us as we are, because we are all guilty sinners, He is no longer just.  But, if He gives us the perfect righteousness of Jesus Christ, He is just, “and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus.  He is just – the sentence against our sin has been carried out; the penalty of death for our sin has been paid.  He is also the justifier – He accepts the payment of the Lord Jesus on our behalf, if and when we believe in Jesus.

Only God Himself could come up with a plan so wonderful.  Only God Himself would love us so much that He would make salvation available to us.  What a wonderful God and a wonderful Saviour!

Justified Freely

Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus: Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God; To declare, I say, at this time his righteousness: that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus.

Romans 3:24-26

Romans 3:24 is the verse from which this blog takes its name.  When I started writing these posts several years ago, I thought for a while about what to call this blog and finally settled on “justified freely” because of the glorious truth it represents.  To me, it is one of the most amazing thoughts and doctrines in the entire Bible.  We will look at it today.

The definition of “justify” is this : “to judge, regard, or treat as righteous and worthy of salvation.”  Let that definition sink in for a minute.  That is what God has done for us.  He has judged or regarded us as righteous and worthy of salvation.  How is that even possible?  

The previous verse (23) tells us “For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God.”  The entire passage before that, starting in verse 10, tells us just how unrighteous mankind is.  But here the Bible tells us that we can be “justified freely,” despite all of that sin and unrighteousness.  How can that be?

Simple: “…by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus…”  It’s that simple.  We are justified, not by our own works, but by the grace of God through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.  Only through God’s grace and only through Jesus Christ can we find this free justification.  We don’t deserve it, but He offers it to us freely!  What a powerful doctrine and a powerful thought!

 

No Difference

Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin.  But now the righteousness of God without the law is manifested, being witnessed by the law and the prophets; Even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe: for there is no difference: For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God

Romans 3:20-23

In this passage we find a small phrase that I think we need to notice.  It is found at the end of verse 22: “…for there is no difference.”  That is an important phrase for Christians and for those who would be Christians.  There are two areas mentioned in this text in which “there is no difference.”

The first thing that we all have in common is the fact that we have no righteousness on our own.  Verses 10-20 make that abundantly clear.  None of us are righteous and none of us have our own righteousness.  Verse 23 repeats this for us: “For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God.”  We are all sinners.

The second thing that we all have in common (as Christians) is the fact that we have the imputed righteousness of Jesus Christ: “…the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe: for there is no difference.”  We all have the same Saviour and the same faith in Him.  There is no difference between Christians.

This is a glorious truth.  We all come to Jesus Christ in the way.  The circumstances surrounding it may be different, but we come in faith and receive the same righteousness – “upon all them that believe.”  What a wonderful Saviour!

 

The Righteousness of God

But now the righteousness of God without the law is manifested by the law and the prophets; Even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all them that believe: for there is no difference

Romans 3:21-22

This is a pivotal passage in the Scripture.  After spending several verses detailing just how far man is from God and how that there are no righteous men at all, we come to these verses.  If we stopped at verse 20, what a sad a demoralizing ending we would have.  But the passage does not stop there.  It goes on to tell us of the wonderful story of God’s redemptive plan for mankind.  “But now the righteousness of God without the law is manifested, being witnessed by the law and the prophets; Even the righteousness of God…”  Man has no righteousness of his own.  Man is hopelessly lost in his own sin.  But God has perfect righteousness.  And God made a way for man, through Jesus Christ, to have that perfect righteousness of God Himself!  It is almost too wonderful to believe.  If it were not written in the pages of the Bible, we probably wouldn’t believe that God would make His own righteousness available to us.

What must we do to claim this perfect righteousness?  Surely it would cost us a great deal and we would surely be willing to pay whatever it cost.  But here it gets even better – “…the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe…”

The perfect righteousness of God comes through faith in Jesus Christ.  And who can have this righteousness?  “All them that believe.”  I think that it is important for us to dwell on these verses and meditate on them from time to time, just to remind ourselves what a wonderful Saviour we have!

But Now…

Now we know that what soever the law saith, it saith to them who are under the law: that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God.  Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin.  But now the righteousness of God without the law is manifested, being witnessed by the law and the prophets

Romans 3:19-21

We looked a while ago at this passage and what it has to say about the law.  The law cannot and does not justify anyone.  It does not take anyone’s sin away.  It only shows us our sin and makes our guilt crystal clear both in our eyes and in God’s eyes.  The law stops our arguments and “makes all the world… guilty before God.”

If we stopped our reading there, it would be a most depressing passage.  But, thankfully, it does not end there.

Verse 21 goes on to say “But now the righteousness of God without the law is manifested…”  The law was manifested to the nation of Israel in the Old Testament.  “But now…”  Here, after the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ, there is something new that is being manifested.  “But now the righteousness of God without the law is manifested.”

We have seen what our “righteousness” looks like.  We can find the best man can do in verses 10-18, and it is not pretty.  None of us are righteous.  The law condemns every last one of us.  “But now the righteousness of God without the law is manifested.”  Seeing that we completely lack righteousness, we can now have “God’s righteousness.”  We don’t have to live in verses 19-20, fearing the law and being condemned by it.  We can live in verse 21, finding salvation in the Lord Jesus Christ and receiving His own righteousness.  I am very thankful for that “But now…”  that was put in the Scripture.  What a wonderful Saviour!