[0:00] Welcome to our service this evening, and as we come together in this act of worship, let us seek the Lord's blessing upon us. Let us pray.
[0:14] Let us pray.
[0:44] Our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ. And, O Lord, as we come before thee at this hour, we are so conscious that thou art the all-knowing God, that thou art the omniscient God, and that we can draw near to thee with the words of another who said, O Lord, thou hast me such to know.
[1:14] Thou knowest my sitting down and rising up. Yea, all my thoughts afar to thee are known. My footsteps and my lying down.
[1:25] Thou compasses always. Thou also most entirely art acquainted with all my ways. For in my tongue before I speak not any word can be.
[1:37] But altogether, O Lord, it is well known to thee. Grant to us that we would humble ourselves.
[1:48] That we would come and acknowledge our sinnership. That we would seek that cleansing that thou alone can give to us through the efficacy of the finished work of thy Son upon the cross of Golgotha.
[2:08] O, we give thanks that when we were in a helpless and hopeless condition, that thou did intervene into our lives.
[2:20] We give thanks to thee for the wonderful work of thy grace in the hearts of sinners such as we are. That enlightens our understanding to know our great need.
[2:36] And to show us the sufficiency of the provision that thou hast made in thy Son. To meet with that need. The drawing power of thine own Spirit upon sinners such as we are.
[2:52] To embrace by faith that provision which thou hast made known to us. And which thou hast given to us in thy love, in thy grace and in thy mercy.
[3:08] O, that we would have the assurance today that we are indeed clothed with the righteousness of Christ. That his righteousness has been imputed to us.
[3:22] So that we can have a standing before a holy God. A God to us of pure eye then. To look upon sin.
[3:34] We seek thy blessing to be upon us as we come around thine own word. As we read thy word and as we meditate upon it.
[3:44] Seeking that thy spirit would apply thy word to our hearts. That it may bring forth fruit in our lives. We ask thy blessing upon our homes and our families.
[3:58] Upon all our loved ones wherever they may be. O Lord that thou would meet with them. Out of the riches of thy grace.
[4:09] At their point of need. We remember our young people and our children. And pray that a generation would rise up that would fear the Lord.
[4:21] And who would be thy witnesses in this world. We pray for thy redeemed people. O grant to us O Lord. That we may be faithful to thee in this world.
[4:34] That we would walk worthy of the gospel. We pray for those who are ill. And seek that thine healing hand may be upon them.
[4:44] And those who mourn over the passing of loved ones. We pray O Lord. That the emptiness that they find in their hearts this evening. May be filled by the comfort of thine own spirit.
[4:58] O that thou would meet with them. At their point of need. Remember those who O Lord are in hospital. Set aside in homes.
[5:10] And we pray O Lord. That thou would draw near to them. And grant to bless those who care for them. We pray that thy gospel would go forth.
[5:21] And the power and demonstration of thine own spirit. O Lord that it would go out. Convicting and converting. And building thine own church here on earth.
[5:33] And bless all thy servants who have gone forth with thy word. Who proclaim the gospel this evening. O Lord we pray that they may know the action of thine own spirit.
[5:46] upon them. That they may proclaim thy truth with all boldness. And with all confidence. Bless thy gospel to the ends of the earth.
[5:58] And as we come before thee O Lord at this evening hour. We give thanks for the ministry of thy son. On our behalf at thine own right hand.
[6:09] In the intercession that he makes for us. And we give thee thanks for the great promise that thou has given to us. That he shall return.
[6:19] And that he shall return not to offer himself again as a sacrifice for sin. But that he shall return to and gather his people. And to bring them in body and soul.
[6:32] Into the inheritance that he has prepared for them. O we give thanks that we can have that living hope. Through our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.
[6:43] We ask O Lord that thou would continue with us now as we wait upon thee. And O Lord we ask for the forgiveness of our many sins. And for all our shortcomings.
[6:54] It's in Jesus name and for his sake. Amen. Let us now read the word of God. As we find it in Paul's letter to the Romans.
[7:06] And chapter 3. What advantage then hath a Jew? Or what profit is there of circumcision? Much every way chiefly because that unto them were committed the oracles of God.
[7:21] For what if some did not believe? Shall they unbelief make the faith of God without effect? God forbid. God forbid. Yea, let God be true but every man a liar.
[7:34] As it is written that thou mightest be justified in thy sins. And mightest overcome when thou art judged. But if our unrighteousness commend the righteousness of God.
[7:45] What shall we say? As God unrighteous who taketh vengeance. I speak as a man. God forbid. For then how shall God judge the world?
[7:58] For if the truth of God hath more abounded through my lie unto his glory. Why yet am I also judged as a sinner? And not rather as we be slanderously reported.
[8:10] And as some affirm that we say. Let us do evil that good may come. Whose damnation is just. What then? Are we better than they? No and no wise.
[8:22] For we have before proved both Jews and Gentiles that they are all under sin. As it is written there is none righteous. No, not one. There is none that understandeth.
[8:33] There is none that seeketh after God. They are all gone out of the way. They are together become unprofitable. There is none that doeth good. No, not one.
[8:45] Their throat is an open sepulchre. With their tongues they have used deceit. The poison of asps is under their lips. Whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness.
[8:56] Their feet are swift to shed blood. Destruction and misery are in their ways. And the way of peace have they not known. There is no fear of God before their eyes.
[9:07] Now we know that what things however 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.
[9:20] 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.
[9:36] 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.
[9:50] 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 passed through the forbearance of God.
[10:06] To declare, I say, at this time his righteousness, that he might be just and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus. Where is posting then?
[10:17] 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.
[10:28] 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 through faith.
[10:44] Do we then make void the law through faith? God forbid. Yea, we establish the law. May the Lord bless unto us the reading of that portion of his word.
[10:57] And seeking his help and blessing, let us turn again to verse 27. That is Romans chapter 3 at verse 27. Where is posting then?
[11:10] 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.
[11:22] 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 through faith.
[11:37] Do we then make void the law through faith? God forbid. Yea, we establish the law. Now this evening we shall continue our study on this passage of Romans chapter 3.
[11:54] So far we have noted that we are all sinners and as sinners we are lawbreakers. We are broken and do break the law of God.
[12:05] Therefore as lawbreakers of the law of God we are under the condemnation and curse of the law and hence we have to be punished. No man is able to keep the law.
[12:16] Therefore we are open and naked and deserve to be punished. We need a righteousness therefore that can satisfy God's justice.
[12:28] And as we saw Paul lays emphasis in this chapter that this righteousness that we need in order to satisfy God's justice is provided by God.
[12:43] God has provided our righteousness. He had promised it before but now he has revealed it. It is God himself who has provided this righteousness our way of salvation.
[12:56] And he has revealed it. He has provided this righteousness through his Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. This morning we saw that this passage brings us to an especially important doctrine.
[13:14] The doctrine of justification. Which is a word borrowed from the law courts. And means that when God as the judge of all the earth justifies a sinner that he makes a declaration in which he declares the sinner as righteous.
[13:32] It does not mean that we are made righteous but that God regards us as righteous and declares us to be righteous.
[13:44] He declares us as righteous not because for anything done by us but for what is done for us. God accepts us as righteous as righteous because of what Jesus did.
[14:05] And justification as we saw is an act of God done once never to be repeated. It is not continuous or something that can be improved upon over time.
[14:20] We saw that when a sinner trusts in Jesus the righteousness of Jesus is imputed to that sinner. Therefore any condemnation for believers is quite unthinkable in view of what God has already done for us in and through his Son the Lord Jesus Christ.
[14:44] Later on in this letter in chapter 8 Paul writes He that spared not his own Son but delivered him up for us all how shall he not with him also freely give us all things?
[14:59] Who shall lay anything to the charge of God's elect? It is God that justifieth who is he that condemneth. It is Christ that died yea rather that is risen again who is even at the right hand of God who also maketh intercession for us.
[15:20] Now we ended this morning on another important point in verse 26. To declare I say at this time his righteousness that he might be just and the justifier of whom which believeth in Jesus.
[15:40] As we noted this righteousness is not the one that God gives to us that we have mentioned of in verse 21 and 22. But here rather the righteousness is the righteousness that belongs to God the righteousness that belongs to him.
[16:00] God is declaring his own righteousness his own righteous character. The first letter of John he writes if we confess our sins he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
[16:22] You see the integrity of God's character is maintained when he forgives us our sins and when he declares us righteous on the basis of Christ's life and death.
[16:37] death. He is righteous when he imputes the righteousness of Christ to us to our account.
[16:50] Paul goes on to say that in the matter of our justification there can be no boasting. Where is boasting then? It is excluded by what law of works?
[17:04] Nay, but by the law of faith. That is the lesson that Paul had to learn. For before his conversion as we saw from our study on Philippians chapter 3 Paul was a very boastful man.
[17:21] He said though I myself have reason for confidence in the flesh also if anyone else thinks he has reason for confidence in the flesh I have more.
[17:31] but there came a time in his experience when he had to say whatever gain I had I counted as loss for the sake of Christ.
[17:46] Where is boasting then? It is excluded by what law of works? Nay, but by the law of faith.
[17:58] When Paul accepted Jesus Christ for his salvation any boasting he made was pointing then in another direction. For we read in Galatians chapter 6 where Paul says God forbid that I should glory save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ by whom the world is crucified unto me and I into the world.
[18:24] For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision availeth anything nor uncircumcision but a new creature. You see in the matter of our salvation there can be no boasting either to our family roots.
[18:43] You see this was a great problem with the Jews as Paul says here in chapter 2 Behold thou art called a Jew and restest in the law and makest thy boast of God.
[18:55] You see the Jews said I am one of God's people. The Jews boasted that they had the law. They boasted of circumcision and they despised the Gentiles.
[19:11] Remember how John the Baptist had to rebuke many who came to be baptized by him with these words bring forth therefore fruits worthy of repentance and begin not to say within yourselves we have Abraham to our father for I say unto you that God is able of these stones to raise up children unto Abraham.
[19:36] In the Gospel of Luke chapter 18 Jesus in the parable of the Pharisee and the publican draws a perfect picture for us when we are told that the Pharisee went as far forward as he could and he prayed with himself and here is prayer God I thank thee that I am not as other men are extortioners unjust adulterers or even as this publican I fast twice in the week I give tithes of all that I possess now the thing is that the Pharisee was not lying he did all that he said and went and did more than the law required for him to do but in all this he boasted in his own works and deeds but this is not only the trouble with the Jew or the Pharisee but it is a trouble still with unregenerate people so many people today boast in their family roots they boast regarding their parents and grandparents and sadly they boast in the church that they belong to and so on
[20:54] Paul has just been expounding to us God's way of salvation and Christ alone he has held out to us what happened at the cross of Golgotha and the death of God's beloved son and he asks where is boasting then how can we boast in anything if it be true of us that we have properly understood the event of Golgotha if we have properly understood what took place at the cross of Golgotha how can we boast are you still boasting are you still holding on to something in which you boast apart from Jesus Christ in regard to your salvation is there moral boasting in your life like the Pharisee I am not like other men see I do my best
[21:58] I attend church I was baptized or is there religious boasting my parents were godly I belong to such and such a church our church is the true church and so on and this is a frightening thing that boasting is always near our door we can boast in the fact that we are believers and therefore we must always be on guard against boasting in anything but in Jesus Christ and him crucified Paul writing to the Corinthians in his first letter in chapter one writes he that glorieth let him glory in the Lord the word glorieth is the same word that we find here translated as boasting what Paul is really saying is let him that boasteth let him boast in the Lord oh where is boasting then it is excluded by what law works nay but by the law of faith
[23:13] Paul attests that boasting is excluded on the principle of faith so here in Romans chapter 3 Paul goes on and says therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith without the deeds of the law now as we have already said on numerous occasions this does not mean that God has reduced his demands that the law still makes it demands it is still the basis of judgment the person outside the salvation of Christ is a person who is under the law and the law still makes its demands and as we have seen we cannot keep the law however hard we may try we cannot keep the demands of the law because of sin but here is the wonderful news here is the gospel
[24:25] God's way of salvation declares to us that the law has been kept and fulfilled for us not by us but for us and the life and work of the Lord Jesus Christ as we have already noted in our justification our own works do not come in at all as we see in verse 21 but now the righteousness of God without the law is manifested last week we saw that Paul is saying that our attempting to keep the law perfectly ourselves as a means of salvation has been entirely set aside not because the law no longer applies but because another has rendered this perfect obedience to the law on our behalf
[25:26] God's righteousness is now attained without any contribution from us in keeping the law Paul says that a man is justified by faith without the deeds of the law this does not mean that we are justified because of our faith or on account of our faith faith is just the instrument of our salvation it is not our faith that saves us what saves us is the Lord Jesus Christ he saves us by his life by his death by his resurrection by his ascension by his heavenly ministry it is because of the life work and ministry of the Lord Jesus Christ that God is justified in putting
[26:27] Christ's righteousness to our account and to save us as we have just seen that God is just God is righteous in putting Christ's righteousness to our account and to save us because of the life work and ministry of his son Jesus Christ and that is the righteousness that saves the righteousness of Christ imputed to us the righteousness of Christ put to our account by God faith is but a channel or instrument by which Christ's righteousness becomes ours the righteousness is entirely Christ's faith is not our righteousness but faith links us to the Lord Jesus Christ and his righteousness faith is a channel or instrument by which we are linked to the
[27:34] Lord Jesus Christ and his righteousness last week we noted what makes up faith we noted that there are three elements in faith a knowledge of truth a sense to the truth and a trust in the truth that teaches us that faith is never alone faith is always linked to an object and in the case of saving faith the object is the Lord Jesus Christ faith links us with the Lord Jesus Christ and his righteousness and thereby faith brings his righteousness to us 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 your works and mine in response to the demands of the law do not come in at all the law still makes its demands as we saw and we cannot keep its demands so the law condemns us but
[28:51] God in his grace through his son Jesus Christ has delivered us from that condemnation on the basis of the life and death and resurrection of Jesus Christ now someone may say is there not a contradiction between Paul and James for in the letter of James chapter 2 we read in verse 24 ye see then how that by works a man is justified and not by faith only Paul says as we have noted we conclude that a man is justified by faith without the deeds of the law now I think that probably one would need more time to look at this in more detail but I am going to attempt to say a few words hoping that they will not be causing more confusion there is always the danger that when we pick up a verse or verses that we can so easily draw the wrong conclusion simply because we have not taken the trouble to read into the context
[29:58] Paul and James were setting out to do two different things Paul was concerned to show that our works under the law do not count at all in salvation James on the other hand was concerned to correct a problem that had arisen in the early church regarding faith there were those who were saying I have faith I am a believer and who concluded that it did not matter what they did in verse 14 of the second chapter of James he writes what did it profit my brethren though a man say he hath faith and have not works can faith save him James then gives an illustration of what he means if a brother or sister be naked and destitute of daily food and one of you say unto them depart in peace be ye warmed and filled notwithstanding ye give them not those things which are needful to the body what does it profit then he applies what he has been saying in verse 17 by saying even so faith if it hath not works instead being alone in chapter one of his letter
[31:23] James says be you doers of the word and not hearers only deceiving your own selves in other words what James is saying is that through faith shows itself in actions
[32:35] Christ and Christ but James on the other hand is emphasizing that true faith is always accompanied by works works are the necessary results of spiritual life where there is true faith there are always works not that we are justified by our works but the faith that brings us justification is always accompanied by works we are not saved by our own works but true faith is always accompanied by works Paul and James were not in any disagreement about that a man is justified by faith without the deeds of the law neither were they in disagreement that true faith which is a channel or instrument by which we are linked to Jesus Christ and his righteousness is accompanied by works maybe simpler still what James is concerned about are those who say that they have faith but their behaviour is not according to what they profess for instance a person can adhere to orthodox evangelical theology a person can accept that which we have been looking at over the past weeks the biblical diagnosis of the human condition that we are sinners they understand how the life death and resurrection of
[34:09] Jesus is the cure for one's estrangement from God a person can go to church they can be baptised they can even partake of the Lord's Supper they can know the central teachings of the Christian faith they can be pleasant people people whom you would like to be your friends and neighbours and yet in their life in their behaviour there is no trust no commitment or no obedience to the Lord Jesus Christ our works the works that comes from faith vindicate God's declaration that we are right with him that we have been justified our works is that which will show that our faith is genuine that that channel that brings us and links us to
[35:16] Jesus Christ and his righteousness is genuine wine Jesus gives us a solemn lesson in the gospel of Matthew chapter 25 where he states that on the last day Jesus will grant the kingdom to those who have fed the hungry who have welcomed the stranger who have clothed the naked but he will send away those who have done nothing the gospel reminds us that we know the disciples of Jesus by their fruit now what we must remember is that while Paul says that no one can be saved by works he nevertheless stresses the need for good works just as much as Jesus and James do Paul and James agree that the only faith that justifies is the one that is accompanied with works not that our works justifies us but the faith that links us to
[36:26] Jesus Christ and his righteousness is always accompanied with works Luther in his lectures on Galatians says he who wants to be a true Christian must be truly a believer but he does not truly believe if works of love do not follow his faith therefore Paul in 2nd Corinthians chapter 13 says examine yourselves whether ye be in the faith prove your own selves then we see here in Romans 3 that Paul says he that 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 through faith
[37:28] Paul abolishes all all distinctions between Jews and Gentiles in matter of salvation he has already demonstrated that there is none righteous no not one for all have sinned and come short of the glory of God every distinction and division has been entirely abolished by the cross of Jesus Christ for he only is the one way of salvation Paul writing to the Ephesians in chapter 2 says but now in Christ Jesus he who sometimes were afar of are made nigh by the blood of Christ for he is our peace who hath both made one and have broken down the middle wall of partition between us all the rituals and forms of worship given to the Jews which were intended to humble them and lead them to Christ for they were all a shadow of good things to come but instead the Jews erected them up as barriers which filled them with pride self centredness but the wall has been broken down the
[38:36] Jew and the Gentile now come together in Christ there is only one way of salvation and the one way of salvation is for all who are saved there is no alternative salvation is only in Jesus Christ and finally here we see that Paul asks do we then make void the law through faith God forbid we establish the law Paul is telling us that God's way of declaring those who believe in Christ to be righteous establishes the law how well Paul writing to the Galatians says Christ was made of a woman made under the law he deliberately placed himself under the law as a man and as such he obeyed and honoured God's law he kept God's law perfectly he as a man gave perfect obedience to the law he could say the prince of this world cometh and hath nothing in me but you know that the law not only demands obedience but it also pronounces judgment upon failure to keep it the law makes a clear claim upon its penalty for breaking the law and the death of
[40:03] Jesus Christ on the cross of Golgotha by taking upon himself the punishment of our sins that was demanded by the law in that he did that he established the law when theologians speak of the death of Christ the life and death of Christ they refer sometimes to the active and passive obedience of Christ but we must be extremely careful when using these terms and generally the term passive obedience is applied to Christ on the cross now that would make a person to think as if Christ's actions on the cross were purely passive such as you would see Christ as a victim as if he was letting things to be done to him as if he was in a state of total helplessness but you know the cross was actually the climax of his obedience because
[41:08] Jesus is active on the cross no one took his life from him he laid it down he obeyed even to the extent of dying and meeting with the cursed death of the cross his whole life was an act of obedience his whole life was an act of atonement his whole life was an establishment of the law in his life and in his death he established the law and it is this righteousness of Christ that can be imputed to us by which God declares us righteous in his sight we become the righteousness of God and Jesus Christ we can sum it all up in the words of Paul in 2nd
[42:08] Corinthians chapter 5 where he says for he hath made him to be sin for us who knew no sin that we might be made the righteousness of God in him that is really a summary of what we have been trying to set before you he made him that is God made his son to be sin for us he laid on him the iniquity of us all he made him to be sin for us he made him to be a sin offering for us he who knew no sin he who had never experienced sin why so that we might be made the righteousness of God in him or where is supposed to then it is excluded by what law of words nay but by the law of faith my friend the great examination for me and you tonight is this how we this assurance that the righteousness of
[43:33] Christ has been imputed to us are we clothed in the righteousness of Christ when we stand before the judgment seat of God the judgment seat of Christ will he see us as those who are clothed with his righteousness with the righteousness that he has purchased for us at the cross of Golgotha for all those who will trust and commit and obey him to may our faith be a faith that is known by its works those works of trusting in Christ of commanding ourselves to Christ and of being obedient to Christ may the
[44:34] Lord bless our thoughts let us pray O Lord we give thanks unto thee for the revelation of the gospel of the good news of Jesus Christ and him crucified the good news that thou art the God who delighteth in mercy and for whom judgment is a strange work we give thee thanks that thou art the covenant God that thou art the God of all grace and the God of all love and the God of all mercy and we give thanks that tonight that we are called upon to draw near to you to draw near to the God who has made a revelation of himself through his son Jesus Christ and to embrace to trust to commit and to obey by leaning upon Jesus
[45:34] Christ totally and absolutely that we can be clothed with the righteousness that is his and by which we can have a standing before a holy God or that we may have that assurance tonight that that is a position before God not as those who are there by their own works but that we are those who are there simply and absolutely through the righteousness that there is in Jesus Christ may the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all now and forever more Amen