The righteousness of faith. There's
a lot of confusion that exists amongst Christendom, professing
Christians, about what faith is really all about and what
role it has in the salvation of a sinner. The Bible tells
us plainly that we must believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and
he that believes not shall be damned. That's what the Bible
says. But because of the cloudiness and the confusion and the out
and out denial sometimes of the true gospel, people really don't
have any idea of what role faith plays. The Bible tells us that
none of us by nature, and I've gotten into the habit, you know,
when I'm writing something, you know, and I talk about by nature.
You know, in Ephesians chapter two it says, we were by nature
children of wrath even as others. And what that's talking about
is believers, that by nature there's no difference between
a believer and an unbeliever in themselves. It's God who makes
the difference. But when I say by nature, I'm
talking about how we are naturally born into this world. We're born
fallen. ruined by the fall, spiritually
dead in trespasses and sins. We don't have what most people
think we have. Most people think we have a spark
of goodness. And I'm talking about goodness
as it's measured with God now, not as we compare one to another. Because that's where false religion
really goes wrong, you know, comparing ourselves with ourselves.
Paul told the Corinthians that we're not wise to compare ourselves
with ourselves. When we're talking about salvation,
and we start comparing ourselves with ourselves, we'll always
go wrong. And that's why Christ is the standard. Compare yourself
with Christ. That's what you have to do. And
we don't measure up. And that's why salvation is by
grace. Somebody says, well, you've got
to do what God requires. Well, God requires perfection.
I don't have that and you don't have it. Where am I going to
find it? We find it in Christ. And even the faith, which is
the gift of God, when it comes through us, it's contaminated
by the flesh. We don't yet have perfect faith.
We're like the disciples. Lord, I believe, help thou mine
unbelief. We wrestle and we struggle. So
it's set down here, and Paul has been talking about this as
he was inspired by the Spirit all the way up through this part
of Romans. From Romans one all the way up
here, and verse four, look at Romans 10 and verse four. Verse
four sets it all in order for us. It says, now listen, verse
four, for Christ is the end of the law for righteousness. Now that word end, as you know,
it's the same word that is translated finish, finished, or perfected
sometimes. Christ said on the cross, John
19, 30, it is finished. It's the same word as end here. It's a different tense, but it's
the same word. Christ is the finishing of the
law for righteousness. Now that tells us that salvation
is not by what we do or even what we're unable to do. In other
words, righteousness is not accomplished by our believing. It's not our
faith that is the end of the law for righteousness. Now the
Bible says by faith, back in Romans 3, it says by faith we
establish the law. Well, what does that mean? Well
look at verse four again. For Christ is the end of the
law for righteousness to everyone that believeth. Now how do I
know that he accomplished righteousness and that's what he's saying here.
Now Christ finished it all. We don't finish it, we don't
add to it, we don't even appropriate it. He finished it, he accomplished
it. For by one offering he hath perfected
forever. Them that are sanctified, Hebrews
10, 14. Okay, now that tells us that salvation is an accomplished
work by the doing and the dying of the Lord Jesus Christ. Now
how do I know that he did that for me? It's to everyone that
believeth. And even that believing is the
gift of God. For by grace are you saved through
faith, and that not of yourself, it's the gift of God. Not of
works, lest any man should boast. So my believing is not my righteousness
before God. I believe that Christ is my righteousness
before God. You see the difference? You say,
well, that's just splitting hairs. Oh, no. The difference there
is does God get the glory and salvation or does man get the
glory or even part of it? Because God won't share any of
it. He tells us. Now, having that in mind, look
at what he says here about the righteousness of faith. Look
at verse five, he says, for Moses describes the righteousness which
is of the law. Moses told him what the law said. He told Israel under the old
covenant, here's what the law says, that the man which doeth
those things shall live by them. Now what is that saying? Well,
it's the same thing as what we read in Galatians chapter three
and verse 10, for example. And if you want to look there,
just to give you an idea. And remember, in Galatians, what
Paul's doing here, he's talking to professing believers who were
listening to Jewish false professors who were trying to bring them
back under the law to attain or maintain righteousness or
part of it. And here's what the law says,
and here's what Moses told him, Galatians 3.10, for as many as
are of the works of the law are under the curse. Why is that? In other words, if you're trying
to be saved by your works, let's say you're trying to be the best
you can be, and be saved by being the best you can be. If you're
trying to attain righteousness, and that's what we have to have,
what does God require for salvation? He requires righteousness. Perfect
satisfaction to God's law and justice. That's what he requires. Now if you're trying to attain
that by your works of the law, you're under a curse. Why? For it is written. Cursed is
everyone that continueth not in all things, there's your key,
all things which are written in the book of the law to do
them. Now that's the righteousness that Moses described, which is
the righteousness of the law. Here's what the law says, do
and live, disobey and die. That's it. The law requires perfection. And if there's any breach of
the law, it pronounces a curse. That's why those to whom God
imputes sin, charges with sin, are doomed forever. That's why
there must be, if we're going to be saved, God has to find
a way, which he has, to not impute sin to me and still be just in
doing it. That's why. So here's what Moses
says. Over in John chapter five, Christ
told the Pharisees this. In John chapter five, when he
told them there in verse 39, he said in John 5, 39, he says,
search the scriptures and the construct there of the language,
here's what he's telling them. You do search the scriptures.
These Pharisees and these scribes, they read their Bibles. They
read the prophets. They read the books of Moses.
And he says, you do search the scriptures, for in them you think
you have eternal life. They believe that in those scriptures,
as the word of God, there's eternal life. And then he says, and they
are they which testify of me. People can read their Bibles
and memorize them from Genesis to Revelation, but if you don't
see the glory of God in Christ, you've missed it. Do you understand
that? You can quote Psalm 23 till you're
blue in the face, and if you don't see the glory of Christ
there in the salvation of sinners as the end of the law for righteousness,
you've missed it. And he goes on, he tells them,
he says, verse 40 of John 5, you will
not come to me that you might have life. Now that's what the
Bible says about us by nature. If left to ourselves, to our
own wills, or people call it free will today, if left to ourselves,
we will not choose Christ. We will not come to Christ. It
takes a sovereign work and power of God to bring a sinner to be
willing to come to Christ. And it's called the new birth.
You must be born again. And he says, you will not come
to me that you might have life. Verse 41, he said, I receive
not honor from men. In other words, in his preaching,
in his work, in his walk, he wasn't trying to get honor from
men. He says, verse 42, but I know you that you have not the love
of God in you. Verse 43, I'm come in my father's
name, you receive me not. If another shall come in his
own name, him you will receive. How can you believe which receive
honor one of another and seek not the honor that cometh from
God only? Now look at John 5 35, here's
what he tells him. Do not think that I will accuse
you to the Father. There is one that accuseth you,
even Moses, in whom you trust. Now they weren't trusting in
the person Moses, they were trusting in the law of Moses. They were
trusting in their works. And then he says in verse 46,
had you believed Moses, you would have believed me, for he wrote
of me. For if you believe not his writings, how shall you believe
my words? The law was given to do what?
to show them their sin and depravity, and the impossibility of a sinner
being made righteous, being saved, based on their works of the law.
That's what the law said, Galatians 3.10. Cursed is everyone that
continues not in all things. If you're trying to be saved
by the law, by your works, then you've got it all to do. Well,
you're already behind, aren't you? Because we all sin, we're
born fallen, we're born in sin. We come forth from the womb speaking
lies, David said. And so what does it tell us?
It says that according to, based upon our best efforts to keep
the law, we all deserve and earn nothing but damnation. And so that's what the law says.
And we don't have the desire within us. That's spiritual death
and depravity. We don't have the desire. We
all, like sheep, have gone astray, gone our own way. But he says,
this is why Christ in the Sermon on the Mount, he told him, he
said, you look at the best people that you think are walking the
earth today, which the Jews back then would have said the Pharisees.
And he said in Matthew 520, except your righteousness exceed the
righteousness of the scribes and the Pharisees, you shall
in no wise enter into the kingdom of heaven. Well, how righteous
do I have to be? And then he began relating the
law to them. He says, well, here's the fact
of it. It's not just sin to go out and
murder somebody. It's sin to get angry enough
to murder somebody. You ever been angry enough? You
ever wished anybody dead? Well that's, in God's sight,
that's sin. That disqualifies me and you
from attaining righteousness by our works. He said this, he
said it's a sin to commit adultery, but it's a sin to even think
it. Now that disqualifies all of
us from attaining righteousness by the law. And so Moses described
that. Well back here in Romans 10,
six, now listen here, he says, but the righteousness which is
of faith speaketh on this wise. Now here's the righteousness
of faith. Now he'd already told us what it is. Christ is the
end of the law for righteousness. That's the righteousness of faith.
That's a righteousness that God's people, by the power of God,
receive by God-given faith. It's not the faith that's our
righteousness, it's Christ. He accomplished it. And here's
what he says, the righteousness which is of faith speaketh on
this wise, or it speaks this way. Say not in thine heart who
shall ascend into heaven. That is to bring Christ down
from above. Verse seven, or who shall descend
into the deep. That is to bring. Christ again
from the dead. Now there's a lot of different
commentators who have a lot of different views of what those
two verses say, but let me just make it real simple. Here's what
he's saying. The righteousness which is of
faith does not tell you that it's based upon what we do or
don't do. Now that's what he's saying.
It's not based upon the sinner trying to reach the heights,
work his way up, And it's not based upon the sinner trying
to bring himself down. Either way, trying to bring Christ
up from the dead. It's not anything as to what
we do or what we don't do. It's all what Christ did. That's the righteousness of faith.
That's what we believe. We believe that Christ accomplished
everything that is necessary to bring a sinner to God, to
make a sinner right with God, to justify us. What is it to
be justified? It's to be forgiven of all of
our sins. Well, what is the ground, the
basis upon which God forgives us? Well, somebody said, I heard
a preacher in Atlanta say, it's our repentance. No. You know
what the basis of God forgiving my sins is? The blood of Jesus
Christ, not my tears. Not my, and if you ever see that,
if God ever brings you to see that, then you will repent. You'll
repent of ever thinking that your tears recommended you to
God. It's all what Christ did. What
is it to be justified? It's to be declared righteous
in God's sight. How can I, who am a sinner, be declared righteous
in God's sight? It's all what Christ did. It's
his obedience unto death. It's his merit. It's his righteousness
imputed, charged, accounted to me. And that's what he says there,
for Christ is the end of the law. It's not who shall ascend
into the heaven, reach the highest heights by my own efforts or
my own will. It's not who will descend to
the lowest of the low. You can't bring Christ down from
heaven. You can't bring him up from the
dead. That's not what we do. We don't
make his work effectual by our believing. He, by his effectual
work, brings us to believe. You see the difference? And that's
what the righteousness of faith. What is the righteousness of
faith? It's God-given faith to lay hold
of Christ, who accomplished, finished, perfected the law for
my righteousness. He is my righteousness. And he's
the only one I have. He's the only one that any sinner
has who's right with God. But look at verse eight of Romans
10. He says, but what sayeth it?
What does the righteousness of faith say? The word is nigh thee. That means it's near, even in
thy mouth and in thy heart. Talking to believers here now
who God has given a new heart. That is the word of faith. What's
the word of faith? It's the gospel, wherein the
righteousness of God is revealed, which is Christ, crucified and
risen from the dead, which we preach. False religion teaches,
to some degree, at some stage, that righteousness is not what
we have in Christ, but it's something we must attain by our works,
our efforts, our sincerity, our giving, our whatever, depending
on what denomination you're in. Some say you attain it by baptism. They say that's where the blood
of Christ is applied. Oh no, that's not so. Baptism is a New Testament ordinance
of confession that Christ is the end of the law for righteousness,
for me. So false religion basically teaches
righteousness as something that's far away that we must attain.
But the gospel, in other words, it's do and do and do and do
and keep on doing. But the gospel, the word of faith,
what he calls here the word that's not, it speaks of a righteousness
that is near, that is accomplished. It's done, done, done. Over in
Isaiah, I love this passage over in Isaiah chapter 46, because
the false prophets in Isaiah's day, they were telling the people
that a right relationship with God, righteousness, salvation,
forgiveness, was something they had to work for. They had to
reach for, they had to attain. by performing works of the law
in sincerity. But in Isaiah 46 and verse 12,
here's what God's message is to his people. Hearken unto me,
you stout-hearted that are far from righteousness. You see,
it doesn't matter how much you try to work for it, Based on your works and your
efforts, my works and my efforts, we're always far from it. It's
always something afar. Now, if we ever get to thinking
that we attain it, that's self-righteousness. That's what it is. So he says,
you stout-hearted, that's proud. He says in verse 13, I bring
near my righteousness, it shall not be far off. And my salvation
shall not tarry. It's not something you have to
wait on in order to attain by your efforts. And who is that
righteous? I will place salvation in Zion
for Israel, my glory. That's Christ. And it's right here. I'm preaching
it right now. The word which we preach. Go
back to Romans 10. The word of faith which we preach.
And then he says in verse nine, that if thou shalt confess with
thy mouth the Lord Jesus. That's preaching the gospel.
That's witnessing the gospel. That's telling sinners where
righteousness is to be found. Don't look for it in yourself.
Don't look for it by your works. Look to Christ, the author and
finisher of our faith. the author and the completer
of our faith. And he says, confess with thy
mouth and shalt believe in thine heart. Now that tells you something
here, that this confession is the product of the new birth. Not the other way around. The
new heart is something God gives. What is the heart? It's the mind,
it's the affections, it's the will, it's the inner person.
It's who I am in my very heart, which you can't see outwardly.
So therefore, I confess it with my mouth. You know, one time
when the Lord was working with, or talking to the Pharisees,
not working with them, but talking with them, and they would bring
up their ideas and their false doctrine and their works religion,
and he says, your words, your doctrine condemns you. That's
why doctrine is so important. What is the word doctrine? It's
teaching. What has Christ taught us? What has the Lord taught
us? And if what I teach you is not what God teaches his people,
it's false doctrine and it's deadly. You see, false gospels
are deadly. They're not just different ways
of looking at things. And he says, believe in thine
heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be
saved. Now, what does it mean God raised him from the dead?
Well, yeah, that's talking about the historical fact of the resurrection
of Christ. That is a historical fact. And
those who deny his resurrection, deny him and they deny the gospel.
But why was he raised from the dead? Well, back in Romans chapter
four, Paul puts it in really good language, and of course
this is the language of the Spirit, inspiring Paul. And he's talking
about how, in verse 23, starting at verse 23, but he'd been talking
about Abraham and how Abraham, a sinner, saved by grace, was
justified before God, made right with God, and it was based upon
the righteousness of Christ who was to come. That righteousness
that Christ would establish by his death on the cross, his obedience
unto death. And he says in verse 23, now
this was not written for Abraham's sake alone that it was imputed
to him, that righteousness was imputed to him, the righteousness
of Christ. but for us also to whom it shall
be imputed if or since we believe on him that raised up Jesus our
Lord from the dead, who was delivered for our offenses, that's our
sins imputed to him, charged to him, counted to him, that's
why he died, that's what I'm gonna talk about in the message
in Isaiah 53 today, and raised again for our justification or
because of our justification, his resurrection, is the major
sign or stamp that his death was the complete payment of the
dead of our sins. That righteousness was established
by his dying for the sins of his people and therefore he was
raised from the dead. Now if his death, if he died,
if it was just as a martyr he wouldn't have been raised from
the dead, if it was just as an example. But he died as a surety,
as a substitute, as a redeemer. And he fully satisfied the justice
of God. And so when we say we believe
that God hath raised him from the dead, we're talking about
again, Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone
that believe. He established righteousness.
He made things right. The mercy of God, the love of
God, the grace of God is shown towards his people on a just
ground. And that's his righteousness
imputed. So look at verse 10 of Romans 10. For with the heart,
man believeth unto righteousness. That's important. With the heart,
the new heart. God said, I'll give him a new
heart. Christ said, you must be born again. You gotta be given
spiritual ears to hear, spiritual eyes to see, a new heart. And
what do we believe? We believe unto righteousness.
And that means what? We believe Christ. We rest in
Christ, who is the end of the law for righteousness. And with
the mouth, confession is made unto salvation. We confess with
our mouth, our doctrine, our preaching, our witnessing, our
words. And he says in verse 11, for the scripture saith, whosoever
believeth on him, now there's the key. Believing on Christ. Christ crucified, Christ erased
from the dead. Who is Jesus Christ? God, manifest
in the flesh. His person. You can't, listen,
you cannot believe in Christ or believe Christ without believing
who he is, according to the word. He's God manifest in the flesh. God with us, God-man, the perfect
man, every big God. And then you can't believe on
him without believing that he's the end of the law for righteousness.
If you're looking elsewhere for righteousness, you're not believing
on him. But whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed.
Now we'll talk more about that in the next lesson, What is it
to be ashamed? What's to be humiliated, isn't
it? And I always go to passages like Matthew 7, 21, and 23. You
know, here's these false professors who sincerely believed that they
were glorifying God in everything they did. They said, we preach
in your name. We cast out demons in your name.
We've done many wonderful works in your name. We're not trying
to get glory for ourselves, they're saying. The only problem is they
weren't pleading Christ. They weren't pleading his blood
and his righteousness alone for their salvation, for their justification,
for a right relationship with God. And they were ashamed. He said, depart from me, you
that work iniquity, I never knew you. Well, how in the world can
I stand before God, me a sinner, how can I stand before God and
not be ashamed? All you have to do is plead his
son, the merits of Christ, the merits of the God-man, the merits
of his righteousness. You don't have anything to be
ashamed in him.