Good job, Clark.
Thank you very much.
What is special about October the 31st?
What happens, okay, Halloween, October the 31st.
First thing that comes into your mind, a lot of people, Halloween.
You know what that says about you, don't you?
You're a pagan.
Absolute pagan for thinking.
October the 31st is all about Halloween.
No, I'm joking.
If you've got a calendar on your calendar,
most likely there's little writing that says October the 31st is Halloween.
But there is a much more significant celebration, observation,
that we should be acknowledging on October the 31st.
What is it?
Somebody say the Reformation?
October the 31st is Reformation Day.
And this year, in 16 more days,
this will be the 500th anniversary of the beginning of the Protestant Reformation.
It all began on October the 31st, 1517,
when a Roman Catholic monk by the name of Martin Luther,
I've got to move this or I might break out into song.
And that would clear this building quicker than a fire.
A Roman Catholic monk named Martin Luther
posted his 95 theses
on the door of the Castle Church in Wittenberg, Germany.
Now that was like a community bulletin board.
I'm sure from history or in some place,
you are familiar with Martin Luther posting these 95 theses
on that castle door.
What's not always known is
that was like a community bulletin board.
And Luther posted that to get a discussion started
mainly among scholarly people,
church theologian types.
But what those 95 theses,
what those 95 protests or criticisms were
was of the Roman Catholic practice of selling indulgences.
Now an indulgence was something like a pardon,
a pardon for your sin.
It was a gift of forgiveness granted by the Pope
for a price.
You heard me right.
The Roman Catholic Church was selling,
for all practical purposes,
the forgiveness of sins.
Now you think, well that couldn't happen.
That's not possible.
Well, truly it couldn't really happen,
but they did it.
And the people,
wherever this was done,
people lined up
to buy their way into heaven
or to pay the price
for their relative to get out of purgatory.
That was part of what the indulgences were.
You can buy forgiveness from the Pope,
bypass purgatory,
go straight into heaven.
Or for your relatives.
I mean, you think about it.
If you didn't know any better,
you've got a mother or father,
brother or sister who's died,
and you think they're in purgatory,
which by the way does not exist.
But you're told by the authorities from the church,
if you pay this amount,
you can get them out of purgatory
and on into heaven.
Well, one well-known preacher of that day,
Johann Tetzel,
he went around Germany selling indulgences.
He was a real salesman.
He knew how to attract the crowd.
He had little jingles that he would say or sing.
And one of them,
his most well-known was this.
As soon as the coin in the coffer rings,
the soul from purgatory springs.
And that was not intended to be funny.
That was intended to say to people,
you can buy your way out of purgatory
or your relative's way.
Well, that enraged Luther,
who was a Roman Catholic monk.
But he knew that was not right.
He knew that they were leading people astray.
And so he wrote those 95 articles of protest.
And what he wrote was so well-received
that it was published
and widely circulated.
And Luther's protests
were the sparks that ignited the fire,
the fire of change
that started the Protestant Reformation.
As we are approaching this significant milestone,
the 500th anniversary,
it's important for us to understand
that the Protestant Reformation
was one of the most important,
most significant events,
not just in the history of the church,
but in the history of the world.
Over time,
it changed
not only the religious practices,
but the political, social,
and intellectual practices
of Western civilization.
Now, what I want us to do today
is to focus on the most important contribution
of the Reformation,
really to all the world,
the recovery of the gospel.
Yes, the Protestant Reformation
was what really brought back
to the forefront
the biblical truth
of how a person is made right with God.
What salvation really is,
is by the grace of God
through faith in Jesus Christ.
The underlying problem
in the Roman Catholic Church at that time
was that they lost the gospel.
Or they changed the gospel.
And that's what led to things like
the selling of indulgences.
They were basically teaching
that salvation comes from the church.
And salvation is dependent upon
how good you are,
how righteous you are personally,
what you do,
what you don't do.
Well, the Reformers,
like Luther,
and the other major ones,
like Calvin, Zwingli,
there were many.
The Reformers challenged
those false teachings
by calling attention
to what the Bible said.
They called attention
to what the Scripture
clearly taught
about these matters.
They emphasized
the authority of Scripture
over the authority
of the church.
And they recovered
the biblical gospel
that salvation
has always been
and still is
by the grace of God
through faith in Jesus Christ
plus nothing.
It's all of God.
What He's done for us
in Christ.
And our response
is simply to believe it.
As we prepare to observe
the Lord's Supper this morning,
I want us to look at
the way this discovery
of the gospel
is usually explained.
It was recovery
of the Bible's teaching
about justification.
How we are made right
with God.
If you want to look
in your Bible,
I'm going to put most of this
on the screen,
but look in Romans chapter 3,
and I want to see
how this important concept
of being declared
right with God,
being justified,
is the only way
that anyone
has ever,
can ever
be made right
with God.
Let's read in Romans 3,
verse 21,
to start with.
21 through 24.
But now,
apart from the law,
the righteousness of God
has been made known
to which the law
and the prophets testify.
That last phrase,
to which the law
and the prophets testify,
what Paul was writing is,
saying is,
the Old Testament.
The Old Testament writers,
they spoke
about how salvation
comes through faith.
The Old Testament,
where it all begins,
Genesis chapter 12.
Abraham,
the father of all
the faithful.
Abraham believed God,
it says,
and it was credited
to him as righteousness.
Genesis 12
and Genesis 15.
Abraham believed God
and his faith
in God's promise
is the reason God
declared him
to be right.
Not because of what he did,
but because he trusted God.
But now,
look at it again,
verse 21.
But now,
apart from the law,
apart from keeping the law,
apart from you trying
your best
to do what God says,
the righteousness of God,
being right with God,
has been made known
to which the law
and prophets testify,
this righteousness
is given
through faith
in Jesus Christ
to all who believe.
There is no difference
between Jew and Gentile,
for all have sinned
and fall short
of the glory of God,
and all are justified
freely by his grace
through the redemption
that came by Christ Jesus.
Look at verse 28.
For we hold
that one is justified
by faith
apart from works
of the law
or apart from any good works.
Romans 5.1.
Therefore,
since we have been justified
by faith,
declared right with God
by faith,
we have peace with God
through our Lord Jesus Christ.
Let's think about it.
What does it mean
to be justified?
Justification is God's response
to our faith
in the Lord Jesus.
That's what we've
just been reading.
Look at a very simple definition
of what justification is,
to be declared righteous,
to be declared right with God.
It is important
that we understand that.
Every person in here,
most every person in here,
has some kind of interest
in being right with God
or you wouldn't be here,
I'm going to guess.
We need to understand
fully, clearly,
what the Bible teaches
about how anyone,
you and me,
can be right with God.
A person who is right with God
is someone who has been
declared right with God
by God Himself.
To be justified
means to be declared righteous,
to be declared right with God.
But let's look at a more
detailed definition
from Wayne Grudem.
He says justification
justification is an instantaneous,
legal act of God
in which He,
number one,
thinks of our sins
as forgiven
and Christ's righteousness
as belonging to us.
And number two,
declares us to be righteous
in His sight.
Let's look at the second part
of that definition first.
Justification is a legal declaration
by God.
justification,
God declaring
that you are right with Him
is something that God
actually does to us
is not something
that God does to us
but something
that He declares about us.
Justification,
being declared right with God.
That's something
that God declares
is true about us.
It's not something
that He really does
to make us that way.
Now don't misunderstand.
When God saves a person,
He brings about a new birth.
It's called regeneration.
When God saves a person
who turns from their sin
and puts their trust in Jesus
as their Savior,
God brings about
new life,
a new way of looking at life.
He puts His Spirit in us.
So in that way,
we certainly are changed
when we become a Christian.
But we are still sinners.
We're not perfect.
So God declares us to be right
like a judge would declare
someone who stood before Him
guilty or innocent.
Think about it.
A judge would,
if you had to go to court tomorrow
and your case was going to be
before the judge,
he was going to make the decision.
No jury, just the judge.
If He declares that you are not guilty,
then legally you are not guilty,
even if really and truly you are.
If He says you are guilty,
but you really aren't,
legally you're guilty
and you're going to jail.
Justification
is God's declaration.
And whatever God declares,
it's the way it is.
He's the greatest judge.
If God declares that we are right
in His sight,
that means we're no longer guilty.
It means we no longer have to fear judgment
if God declares that we're right.
And unlike a human judge,
God's always right.
He never makes a mistake.
He knows who we are,
how we are,
and when God declares us
to be right with Him
because we're trusting in His Son,
Jesus is our Savior,
we are right with Him.
We are no longer guilty.
Now, a natural question comes up,
how can this be?
I know most everybody in here.
And you know me.
And I know you're not perfect.
And if you have any slight knowledge of me,
you know I'm not perfect.
So how in the world
can we sit here,
stand here,
and think to ourselves,
I'm right with God.
I'm going to heaven when I die.
I'm no longer held responsible for my sin.
When you know well and good
that you are guilty still
of sinning against God,
living life your way instead of His way,
being selfish a lot of the time,
not pleasing God a lot of the time,
well,
here's how it happens.
Our justification,
our being declared right with God
is based on the fact
that we are united with Jesus.
We're one with Him.
He is in us.
We are in Him.
Think about it this way.
When we turn from our sin
and put our faith and trust in Jesus,
from God's perspective,
we are one with Christ.
We are in Him.
In Christ.
Paul uses that little phrase
over and over again in his letters.
That means what Jesus Christ did
in His life and His death,
that's credited to us.
Think about it this way.
Jesus died on the cross
to pay the penalty for our sin.
His death is credited to us
when we trust in Him.
Therefore, we are forgiven.
The penalty for our sin has been paid.
Jesus lived a perfect life.
He perfectly obeyed God,
perfectly obeyed God's law.
So His perfect obedience
is credited to us
when we trust in Him.
Therefore,
that's how we can be right with God.
That's what God declares
our condition to be
by virtue of our faith in Christ.
Look at how Paul says it in Romans 8.1.
There is therefore now
no condemnation for those
who are in Christ Jesus.
Now,
this is maybe hard to grasp hold of,
but you need to understand.
You and me right now,
if we're trusting in Jesus,
we're one with Him.
And even though we are not perfect,
God declares us to be
because of the perfect life of Jesus.
That's credited to us.
We haven't done anything
to suffer for our own sins.
We haven't paid for our own sins.
Jesus did, though,
when He died on the cross.
He suffered the wrath of God against sin.
When we trust in Jesus,
the penalty for our sin has been paid.
Jesus did it for us.
We didn't do anything.
We might picture it like this.
God accepts us
based on Jesus,
on the merit,
the value,
the love He has for Jesus.
Let's put it this way.
Suppose you have a daughter
who marries a man
that you consider
unworthy of her.
And some of you,
I can see it right now,
my daughter did that.
I was originally
going to tell this
in the form of,
suppose you had a son
who married a girl
who was unworthy
of your son.
But I didn't want
my daughters-in-law
to read anything into that.
Because I'm glad
that my daughters-in-law
married my boys
and took them away.
I'm no longer responsible.
They are now responsible.
No, I love my boys
and love my girls.
But I want you
to think with me.
Suppose you have a daughter
or, if it's true,
have a son.
You have a daughter
who marries a man
you consider unworthy of her.
Even though that man
in and of himself
is unworthy,
you receive him
into your family
because of your daughter.
By the way,
that's what good parents
do when at all possible.
When you look at that guy,
you see your daughter's husband.
You focus on your daughter.
He's accepted,
not because of who he is,
what he's done,
but because he is married
to your daughter.
He is united
to your daughter
in marriage.
As Christians,
our acceptance by God,
our forgiveness,
our right standing with him
has absolutely nothing to do
with who we are
or what we've done.
It has every single thing
to do with
who Jesus is
and what Jesus
has done
for us.
none of us
can undo our past.
None of us
can start right now
being perfect.
But the good thing is
we don't have to.
If we have truly
repented of our sin,
we hate it,
we've turned from it,
we've put our trust
in Jesus'
absolute confidence.
He paid the penalty
for our sins
when he died on the cross.
We're trusting him
and him alone
for our salvation.
That our sins
are forgiven.
He paid the penalty.
We are accepted by God.
We are right with God
because Jesus is perfect.
And that is credited
to us.
The importance
of this Reformation's
emphasis on
justification by faith
cannot be overstated.
The fact that God
accepts us
when we are
united to Jesus
by faith
means
some very important things
that we need to think about
right now
just quickly.
Number one,
we can have confidence
that our sins are forgiven.
You can be certain
right now
if you are united
to Jesus in faith
your sins
are forgiven
because of him.
You don't have to worry
about being good enough
for God.
You aren't.
I'm not.
And never will be.
But God accepts us
based on
the perfect life
of Jesus
and not our own.
And this means,
listen to this,
we can offer genuine hope
to the worst
of sinners.
No matter what a person
has done,
they can be forgiven,
made right with God,
accepted by God
because it's Jesus.
Think with me for a moment.
What if this morning
you think about it personally,
the worst human being
you know
was standing right there.
The absolute worst,
sorriest,
low down,
sinful person you know
on the face of the earth
was standing right there.
And over here
is the best,
most kind
and gracious
human being
you know
standing right there.
If they both
were standing there
and they looked up
and said to us,
I'm not a Christian.
But I right now
want to turn from my sin,
admit it,
I hate it,
I'm sorry,
I truly trust
that Jesus died for me.
I'm counting on him
and him alone
for my salvation.
God would save them both
the exact same way
they don't,
either one deserve it.
It's by his grace.
He's going to save them
because they're trusting in Jesus.
Jesus lived a perfect life.
Even the best person you know
is not perfect.
And Jesus paid the penalty
for the worst person you know sins.
That's how we all
come to faith in Christ.
That's how we all
experience salvation
or rightness with God
if we are Christians.
So when you partake
of those elements
of the Lord's Supper
this morning,
you think about what
God has done
for you in Christ.
You think about Jesus
giving up his life
to die for you.
But also you think about
how he lived
a perfect life
in this world
for you.
Let this be a time
of real worship
and thanksgiving
before God.
And if you're not a Christian,
right now I encourage you
if you want to be different,
you want God to save you,
you're tired of living
for yourself,
you will turn from your sin.
If you will do that
and put your trust in Jesus
and call upon him
to save you,
he will.
And let's just all
bow together right now
and I want to encourage you
if you're not a Christian
call upon Jesus
to save you,
trust him.
He will.
If you are a Christian,
thank God
for what he has done
for you.
Thank him
for the salvation
that is yours
as a gift of his grace
through faith in Jesus,
his perfect life
and his death on the cross
for your sins.
Let's all pray together.
Dear God,
help us now
to respond to you
appropriately.
Help every Christian
in here to prepare
to observe
the Lord's Supper
together.
and in an attitude
of prayer,
let's get ready
to do that.
Thank you.