Welcome to Reign of Grace. This
program is brought to you by Reign of Grace Media Ministries,
an outreach ministry of Eager Avenue Grace Church in Albany,
Georgia. It is our pleasure and privilege
to present to you the gospel message of the sovereign grace
and glory of God in the person and work of the Lord Jesus Christ. We pray that today's program
will be a blessing to you. Thank you for listening. And
now for today's program. Welcome to our program today.
I'm glad you could join us. If you'd like to follow along
in your Bibles, in the message today, I'm going to be preaching
from the book of Romans, chapter 8. Romans, chapter 8. And I'll begin in verse 31 of
this book. I'll be reading other passages
of scripture. But what I'm going to do, we
have a new booklet that we're offering. It's free of charge.
We have it on our website. And it's called Essentials of
Justification. It's a short booklet, Essentials
of Justification. And I urge you to get a copy
of it or go to our website and read this booklet, it's short.
And it's dealing obviously with the doctrine of justification. And the title of this message
today is Essentials of Justification, Part One, from the book of Romans. The doctrine, the biblical doctrine
of justification is in itself essential to an understanding
of the gospel. In fact, justification lies at
the heart of the gospel. And when we understand what justification
really is, it's a real eye-opener, it's a joy for believers to understand
this. Now understand, the word justification
means to be right with God. And the question comes, how can
a sinful person, sinners like you, sinners like me, how can
we be right with God? And the doctrine of justification
answers that. The gospel speaks of justification. And the word just, when you see
in the Bible, in the Old Testament and the New, even in the Hebrew
and the Greek language, the word just means right. The word justice or justice means
righteousness or to be put right with God, made right with God. They can be interchanged, those
terms, just and right. A person who is just is right
with God. A person who is justified has
a righteousness before God. But what does the Bible say about
us? Before we get to our text here, and I'll just read the
first part of my text, is verse 31 of Romans 8, where it says,
what shall we then say to these things? Now the things that Paul
is talking about here is the issues of salvation. which includes
justification, sanctification, reconciliation. All of those
terms apply in salvation. And Paul had made it clear that
it is all by the grace of God. It is not by the works of man. It's not by any work we do or
any decision we make. It's all by the sovereign free
grace of God through the Lord Jesus Christ. And he'd made that
clear. So he says, in verse 31, what
shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be
against us? If God is on my side, maybe you
could say, I know people say, well, you know, God's not on
our side, we're on his side. Well, it's true. But if God be
for us, who can be against us? And that issue is very important
to understand. If God is for me, for my good,
and he'd already said that back up in verse 28, we know that
all things work together for good to them that love God, to
them who are the called according to his purpose. Who are the called?
They're believers. And so if you're a believer,
God is for you. So what shall we say? If God's for us, who can be against
us? The issue there he's talking about is if God is for me, there's
no way that I can die in my sins and perish. I will be saved if
God is for me. Now, people today in false Christianity
say, well, God is for everybody, isn't he? And the answer is no,
he's not for everybody. He's for his people in Christ. How do you know who they are?
They're believers, they're the call. Look at verse 29 in Romans
8. For whom he did foreknow. Now
the word foreknow there doesn't mean just not knowing something
beforehand. In the Greek it means foreordained. Predetermined. And that's what
he says in the next line, for whom he did foreknow, he did
also predestinate. I know people don't like that
term today. They steer away from it. Preachers steer away from
it, but it's in the Bible. And that's where we have to go
to find truth. He predestinated to be conformed
to the image of his son, to be like Christ. And he says that
he might be the firstborn among many brethren. The firstborn
mean he has the preeminence. It's all in Christ. And then
he says in verse 30, moreover, whom he did predestinate, them
he also called. He calls them by the gospel,
by the Holy Spirit in power. The gospel is the power of God
unto salvation, for therein is the righteousness of God revealed,
see? That term justified righteousness. And it says, whom he called them,
he also justified. That calling. that brings a sinner
to faith in Christ and repentance of dead works, that brings a
sinner by the grace and power of God to persevere in the faith
unto the end, that calling, that effectual, invincible calling
of the Spirit is the evidence that I'm justified in God's sight,
that I'm righteous in His sight, that I've been made right with
God. and whom he justified, them he also glorified. And if I'm
right with God, I will be in glory with him. And so then he
says, what shall we then say to these things? If God be for
us, who can be against us? But here's the thing, here's
where we need to go to. Back in Romans chapter three. In the book of Romans, the apostle
Paul starts out by identifying that the gospel is of God, not
of man, and it concerns a person, the Lord Jesus Christ, who is
God and man in one person, made of the seed of David according
to the flesh, declared to be the Son of God with power by
the resurrection from the dead. He's God and man in one person. See, you cannot preach the gospel
without preaching the person of Christ as he's identified
in the word, and the work of Christ. where he talks about
what Christ accomplished in his death, burial, and resurrection
as the surety, the substitute, the redeemer of his people, and
the work that he accomplished on the cross in his obedience
unto death, the entire merit and value of it is called the
righteousness of God, the justice of God, if you will. And that's
what Paul writes in Romans 1, 16, and 17 when he says, for
I'm not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power
of God unto salvation to everyone that believeth, to the Jew first,
the Greek also, or the Gentile. For therein is the righteousness
of God revealed, the merits, the value, the worth of the obedience
unto death of Christ for the people, for his people, his sheep,
And he says, from faith to faith, from knowledge revealed to knowledge
received, believed, depended upon, looking to Christ. And
he says, for it is written, the just shall live by faith, the
righteous shall live by looking to Christ. In other words, if
I'm justified, at some point in time, the Holy Spirit's gonna
bring me under the preaching of the gospel, reveal Christ
to me, and I'm going to live my life looking unto Him, the
author and the finisher of my faith, believing in Christ, depending
upon Him for all righteousness. So the Apostle Paul then begins
in Romans 1, and you can look at this in verse 18, we're not
gonna go there. Why do we need the righteousness of God? Why
do human beings need the righteousness of God? So from Romans 1, 18,
all the way over to chapter three, He brings in the whole human
race as being guilty of sin, deserving of damnation. Everybody, not just some, not
just the most immoral, but even the most religious. Because without
Christ, there's nothing but damnation and death. And he brings it to
a conclusion in Romans 3.10, and look how he starts it out.
how he reveals this. Romans 3 and verse 10, as it
is written, there is none righteous, no, not one. Now he's speaking
of all people by nature. As we are born into this world
naturally, we don't have a righteousness that God requires. And he says,
verse 11, there is none that understandeth, there's none that
seeketh after God, that is the true God. You see, unregenerate
people, lost people, seek after a God, a God of their imagination,
a God who is likened to themselves. But we will not by nature seek
the true and living God. He has to bring us to seek Him.
And in verse 12 he says, they are all gone out of the way,
they are together become unprofitable, there's none that doeth good,
no not one. Now that's good according to
God's standard. You see, two of the most common
false ideas that pervade false religion is this, they make salvation
conditioned on sinful people. And that's why the gospel is
set apart from false religion, because the gospel states that
salvation was and is conditioned on Christ, who fulfilled all
those conditions in order to secure the salvation of all whom
the Father gave Him before the foundation of the world. That's
God's elect. So that's false religion, false
Christianity too. Make salvation conditioned on
you and something you do, rather than totally on Christ. Grace
is salvation conditioned on Christ. And grace shows how He fulfilled
those conditions by His obedience unto death on the cross. That's
why he said it's finished. Put away our sins. He brought
forth righteousness. The next thing that pervades
false religion, and again, even false Christianity, is they always
measure holiness or righteousness on a sliding scale. But you see,
the gospel, the word of God, and even the law of God, tells
us that righteousness, the righteousness that God requires, the goodness
that God requires, is not some sliding scale that we reach by
degrees or that we measure ourselves, comparing ourselves with ourselves
by degrees. Righteousness is the perfection
of the law that can only be found in Christ. So when we talk about
our obedience, does our obedience equal righteousness? And the
answer is no. Not even the obedience of a believer
attains the perfection of the law that can only be found in
Christ. Romans 10 and verse four says, Christ is the end of the
law for righteousness to everyone that believeth. And so that's
why we need the righteousness of God. And that's the measure. Now, righteousness, technically
speaking, is not a moral term, it's a legal term. It means to
be just in God's sight. But now, righteousness is the
measure by which all morality is to be measured. That's the
standard. And we fall short, for all have
sinned, and come short of the glory of God. Well, that brings
us to the eternal question, the question of all questions. God
is a just God, a holy God. He must remain so. The Bible
says that God must punish sin where sin is found, where sin
is imputed, charged, accounted. He must punish that sinner. And
all sin deserves death. The wages of sin is death. Yes,
the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord,
but the wages of sin is death. God must be just. He cannot pervert
justice. Now the Bible says God is merciful,
God is gracious, God is love, but not at the expense of his
justice. So the question comes up, how
then can God be both a just God, a righteous judge, as well as
a merciful Savior, Father? How can that happen? And the
answer is found in the gospel, the righteousness of God that
is brought about by that glorious person, the Lord Jesus Christ,
in the work that he accomplished on Calvary for his people. And that's the issue of justification. So let me give you the points
that are found in this book on essentials of justification.
And again, I urge you to order that. You can go on our website
and read it if you don't want the hard copy. But get the book,
but listen to what, here's what he says about justification.
Here's the essential. In verse 32, he says, he that
spared not his own son, Romans 8, 32, but delivered him up for
us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things? Now look at verse 33. And I'll
come back to verse 32 later next time. But he says, who shall
lay anything to the charge of God's elect? Now here's the first
essential of the doctrine of justification. It's in this statement
in verse 33. It is God that justifies. The first essential element,
the truth of justification, is that God alone is the one who
justifies. man cannot justify himself, he'll
try. Remember when Christ was speaking
to some Pharisees and he brought forth the parable of the Pharisee
and the publican, it says that he spoke that parable to those
who judged themselves to be righteous in themselves. Now we look around
at people And we see people who are moral, who are kind, who
are sincere and dedicated, and we may judge them to be righteous,
but we're not the judge. God is the judge. God is the
one who justifies. And think of it this way. God
is the supreme judge who knows the hearts of every person, and
he always judges according to truth. So the issue in justification
here is it's God that judges. So how in the world can a just
and holy and righteous judge, God, how can He look at a sinner
like me and declare me to be right with Him? Because I deserve
nothing but death and hell. I've earned nothing before God
except death and hell. I'm a sinner. Now I'm a sinner
saved by grace, but how could that happen? And God still be
just? Job asked the question, even
one of his friends asked that question. How can a man, a sinful
man, be just with God? How can he be clean that is born
of woman? How could God honestly, truly, Factually, look at me
and declare me righteous. Well, you know, justification
involves basically two elements. It involves, number one, being
cleared of all my guilt, all my sin, being forgiven, but it
has to happen on a just ground. You see, God doesn't arbitrarily
forgive his people. There must be justice satisfied.
And so we're forgiven on what ground? The blood of Christ.
And secondly, it's being actually declared righteous in the sight
of God. And my friend, I've heard people
say, well, justification is not God declaring me righteous when
I'm really not. Listen, if God looks at me and
declares me righteous, that's what I am. Now, I'm not righteous
in myself. because I'm a sinner. And even
as a sinner saved by grace, we have that warfare within the
flesh that keeps us from attaining the perfection of the law that
can only be found in Christ. Remember Paul wrote about that
in Romans 7, when he was talking about the warfare of the flesh
and the spirit. And he brought it down to in
Romans 7 24. I think it is he says Oh wretched
man that I am who shall deliver me from this body of death And
then he says in verse 25. I thank God through Jesus Christ
my Lord and So that that's what we are in Romans 8 1 he says
there is therefore now no condemnation to them that walk after the spirit
and not after the flesh what is it to walk after the spirit
is to walk by faith in Christ and What is it to walk after
the flesh? It's to walk in unbelief. No
matter how you appear outwardly. So the issue here is that it
is God that justifies. We have to stand before God.
And the standard is righteousness. In Acts 17, 31, the Bible talks
about how God commands all men everywhere to repent because
he has appointed a day in the which he will judge the world
in righteousness by that man whom he hath ordained in that
he hath given assurance unto all men and that he hath raised
him from the dead. That's Christ. So if I'm coming
before God, pleading my works, then my works have to equal the
perfection of righteousness that the law requires, and it does
not. The only way I can have that
kind of perfection and righteousness is in Christ. That's the only
way. And that's the first essential
element in justification. Here's the second essential element. And it has to do with this. Look at verse 33 again. Who shall lay anything to the
charge of God's elect, it is God that justifies. God's elect
are the objects of justification. That's essential truth number
two. God's elect are the objects of justification. Not all without
exception, but God's elect. Now, I know people today, they
don't wanna talk about election or if they talk about it, they
say, well, that's just talking about the Jews under the Old
Testament. Well, now listen, there was a temporal national
election that God brought into the Jewish community under the
Old Covenant. based upon a promise he made
to Abraham. But that was not for eternal salvation. That was
God using them as instruments to bring Christ into the world
according to the flesh. You see, he was made of the seed
of David. He was born of the tribe of Judah.
And God sovereignly chose that nation. And that nation did not
deserve or earn it. They were a sinful people, just
like all of us. And the final analysis of that
comes down to when they rejected Christ. Now that's what we'd
all do by nature. But the election is the election
of grace. If you look over in Romans chapter
nine, the apostle Paul speaks of that. He's talking about Jacob
and Esau here, the twins. And he says in verse 13 of Romans
9, as it is written, Jacob have I loved, but Esau have I hated.
Verse 14 says, what shall we say then? Is there unrighteousness
with God? God forbid. For he saith to Moses,
I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion
on whom I will have compassion. So then it's not of him that
willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God that showeth mercy. Now all this was done that the
purpose of God in election might stand. God chooses his people. And I know people don't like
to hear that, but it's true. Look over in Romans chapter 11. What he's talking about here
is Elijah, during the time of his prophecy, feeling like everybody
had left him and turned against him. But God revealed to him
in verse five of chapter 11, Romans 11, he says, even so then
at this present time, there is a remnant according to the election
of grace, a remnant of believers in the prophet's time and in
our time. And he says, and if by grace,
then it's no more of works, otherwise grace is no more grace. But if
it be of works, then it's no more grace, otherwise work is
no more work. What then, verse seven, Israel
hath not obtained that which he seeketh for. Now, what did
Israel seek for? They sought, and Romans nine
tells us that Israel sought for righteousness by their works. And in verse seven here of Romans
11, he says, Israel hath not obtained that which he seeketh
for. If you're seeking for righteousness,
for salvation by your works, you won't obtain it. because
salvation is not by works. But look at verse seven again,
Romans 11. Israel hath not obtained that
which he seeketh for, but the election hath obtained it, and
the rest were blinded. God's elect, they will attain
righteousness, but not by their works. They'll attain righteousness
in and by the Lord Jesus Christ. That's the election of grace.
Now, somebody says, well, if God, well, in the book of Revelation,
they are those whose names were written in the Lamb's book of
life before the world began. In John chapter six, Christ called
them, all that the Father hath given me shall come to me. And
him that cometh to me, I will in no wise cast out. This is
the will of him that sent me, that of all which he hath given
me, I should lose nothing, but raise it up again at the last
day. In John chapter 10, they're called his sheep. He gave his
life for his sheep. My sheep, hear my voice, he said.
They're called. How do you know who the elect
are? Well, look at 1 Thessalonians
chapter one. Paul speaking to believers in
the church at Thessalonica. And in verse four, listen to
what he says. He says, 1 Thessalonians one, knowing brethren, beloved,
your election of God. I know God chose you. How do
you know? Verse five, for our gospel came
not unto you in word only, but also in power and in the Holy
Ghost and in much assurance as you know what manner of men we
were among you. You see, they believe the gospel.
And that's the identification of the elect. They're the called,
called by the Spirit under the preaching of the gospel to faith
in Christ. over in 2 Thessalonians chapter
2 where the Apostle Paul talking about the end time and the great
falling away. He deals with this again on the
election and I'll speak more on this next time but that's
the first two essentials of justification. God is the one that justifies
and God's elect are the objects of justification. It's all by
grace It's in and by the person and work of the Lord Jesus Christ,
and all of those whom God has justified, forgiven, and made
right will be called into the kingdom by the Spirit of God
through the preaching of the gospel. I hope you'll join us
next week for another message from God's Word. We are glad you could join us
for another edition of Reign of Grace. This program is brought
to you by Reign of Grace Media Ministries, an outreach ministry
of Eager Avenue Grace Church in Albany, Georgia. To receive
a copy of today's program or to learn more about Reign of
Grace Media Ministries or Eager Avenue Grace Church, write us
at 1-1-0-2-3. Eager Drive, Albany, Georgia
31707. Contact us by phone at 229-432-6969
or email us through our website at www.theletterofgrace.com. Thank you again for listening
today and may the Lord be with you.