Now we're looking today in Romans
chapter 3, notice verse 23 and 24. For all have sinned and come
short of the glory of God. The chief end of man is to glorify
God. We've all come short. The chief
end of man is to honor God, to believe God. We've all come short. We've all sinned against God. Isn't that your confession? We've
all sinned against God. We've all sinned and we've all
come short. But here's the good news of the
gospel. He justifies the ungodly. He justifies the ungodly. Being
justified freely by His grace through, through, don't ever
forget that part. Through. The only way he can
be a just God and Savior, just and justifier, is through, through
the means he's ordained. Redemption. Deliverance from
all sin through the redeeming blood of Jesus Christ. God bought
us with His own blood. Now I'm entitling the message
from this 24th verse of Romans 3, justified freely, justified
freely. What a glorious thought for any
guilty, vile, wretched sinner to meditate upon justified. justified freely, fully, eternally,
not by my doing, but strictly and only by His sovereign mercy,
sovereign love, and sovereign grace. Justified. Justified. Eternally justified. Justified
not before men, but justified before God Almighty. Justified
in His sight. Justified before the righteous
judge of all the earth. Justified by God Himself. He declares His people not guilty. That's what justification means.
Not guilty. Not guilty. That is, we're cleared
of all guilt cleared of all charges, and declared righteous in God's
sight, not guilty, and made righteous. Turn over to Romans chapter 8,
and this is freely by His grace. He that spared not his own son,
Romans 8, 23. He that spared not his own son,
God so loved that He gave Himself for our sin. He spared not His
own Son, but He delivered Him up for us all, that is, all the
elect of God. How shall we not with Him also
freely, freely? You see that? It's said in Hosea
that Hosea loved old Gomer while she was in her filth and guilt
on the auction block. Says, I love her freely. God
loves his people freely and fully, eternally. How shall he not with
them also freely give us all things? Who shall lay anything
to the charge of God's elect? It is God that justifies the
ungodly. Who is he that condemneth? It
is Christ that died. Now, there is no condemnation
to those who are in the Lord Jesus Christ. Who is he that
condemneth? Well, none can condemn. It is
Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even
at the right hand of God, who also makes intercession for us. You see what we have in Christ?
justified freely by His grace through the redeeming blood of
Jesus Christ. God made Him to be sin for us,
you remember? Who knew no sin, that we might
be made the righteousness of God in Him. Now, I want to bring
to you today what the old time preachers called meat and taters preaching. Meat
and taters preaching. My favorite meal that my wife
prepares for me is meat and taters and green beans. Meat and taters. She could fix
that every evening and I don't think I would get weary of eating
it. Meat and taters, meat and taters.
Well, this is meat and taters preaching. It's something I can
get a hold of. Something I can taste. Something
I can experience. Something I can enjoy. Meat and
taters preaching. Justification of sinners by God's
grace. Now through the whole book of
Romans, we read about the theme and message of this book and
of the gospel. The theme and subject of the
gospel of Jesus Christ is how God justifies the ungodly through
Christ alone. Christ alone. That's why Paul
said turn back one page. Romans chapter 1. Romans chapter
one, that's why he said, I'm ready. I'm ready to preach the
gospel. Verse 15, Romans one. For as
much as in me is, I'm ready to preach the gospel to you that
are at Rome also. For I'm not ashamed of the gospel,
the gospel of Christ. For it is the power of God and
the salvation to everyone that believeth. Whether he be a Jew
or a Gentile, for therein is the righteousness of God." Now
if you ever can understand, if God will ever give you understanding
of the righteousness of God. The righteousness of God revealed
in Christ and by Christ. The righteousness of God. The
Lord Jesus Christ is the end of the law for righteousness
to everyone that believeth. Romans 10 verse 4. Therein is
the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith as it is
written, the just shall live by faith. Now who is interested
in being justified before God? Who's interested in being justified
before God? Guilty folks, lost folks, condemned
folks. Do you find yourself in that
group before God guilty as charged? Did you notice 19? Romans 3 verse
19. Now we know that what thing soever
the law says It says to them that are under that law, and
that's everyone by nature, all humanity is subject unto God,
that every mouth may be stopped. Don't justify yourself. Stop
your mouth. That Job said, I'll put my hand
over my mouth. Not going to speak anymore. Guilty. Not going to justify
myself anymore. and all the world subject to
judgment, guilty, guilty, guilty as charged. Now, you know what? Salvation is for sinners. Salvation
is for the ungodly. Salvation is for the guilty.
The Lord Jesus Christ, turn over here to Romans 5, look at verse
6. Romans 5, verse 6. For when we were yet without
strength and due time, Christ died. When we were yet without
strength, without hope, without God, without Christ, without
righteousness, without life. When we were without everything. In due time, according to the
time, God's time, God's purpose, the Lord Jesus Christ died for
the ungodly. Look at verse eight. God commended
his love toward us in that while we were yet sinner, while we
were yet sinner, Christ died for sinners. He died for sinners. The holy law of God has a rightful
charge against all of us. But we've all sinned against
God. We've all broken the law of God. To offend in one point,
remember James in our study? To offend one point, James 2.10,
to offend one point, one jot, one tittle of God's law is to
be guilty of all the law. The law of God said, like that,
the law of God said, cursed is everyone that continues not in
all things which are written in the book of the law to do
them. The law declares us guilty. The law describes us as it is
written. Look at verse 10. That's part
of verse 9 of Romans 3. We're all under sin as it is
written. God said there's none righteous,
no not one. Now this is not my opinion. This is what God says. There's
none righteous, no not one. Matter of fact, the best righteousness
that we can muster God said it's filthy, filthiness in his sight,
filthy rags. Man at his best state is altogether
a zero, a vanity, less than nothing. There's none righteous, no not
one. There is none that understand. The carnal mind receives not
the things of God. The carnal mind, it says in Romans
8, 7, the carnal mind is enmity against God. In the flesh, no
man, in the flesh, no man can please God. Does it really say
that? Let's see. That's Romans 8, isn't
it? Well, it is. Romans 8, verse
7 says, "...the carnal mind is enmity against God. It is not
subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be. So then, they
that are in the flesh cannot please God." Cannot please God. You see, there is none that understands
The carnal mind receives not the things of the Spirit of God.
There is none by nature that seeks after God. By nature, man
can be religious, but by nature, left to himself, he'll never
seek the true living God. You see, the shepherd must come
and seek out the lost sheep. The lost sheep cannot find his
way home. There is none that seeketh after
God. There is none that understandeth.
Have you ever met the four nuns? Right here they are. There is
none that understandeth. There is none that seeketh after
God. They're all gone out of the way.
There is none that doeth good. No, not one. There is none righteous. There's
the fourth one. Four nones. None. None righteous. No, not one. Their throat, their tongue, their
lips, their mouth, all polluted. Their feet, swift to shed blood. Destruction, misery, that's our
nature. The way of peace, there's no
peace, saith the Lord to the wicked. They're like a troubled
sea. There's no fear of God before their eyes. Now that's God's
description of you. God's description of me. He describes us what we are in
Adam. As a result of Adam's rebellion against God, his sin and his
fallen nature has been imputed to us and imparted to us. Do you see that? How do we get
in such bad shape? In Adam, all die. In Adam, all sin. Turn to Romans
5. Romans 5 verse 12. Wherefore,
as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin.
Who is that one man? That one man there was that first
man that God created. His name was Adam. Adam sinned
against God. Adam rebelled against God. Adam stood as a representative
man. What he did, we did. Why won't by one man sin entered
into the world and death by sin? So death passed upon all men
for that all have sin you were a sinner from the get-go Before
you were born when your mother when when you were conceived
in your mother's womb You were conceived in sin shape and iniquity
and when you come forth from the womb you came forth from
the womb speaking lies You see that fallen rotten nature, that
Adam nature we've all inherited. It's been imputed unto us, and
that nature, that guilt has been imputed, and that nature's been
imparted. There is none righteous, no,
not one, for by one man's disobedience many were made sinners. Romans 5, 19. And Adam all died. You know what we call that? Total depravity and original
sin. You say, everybody believes that.
No, they don't. This is what the Bible teaches,
but everybody doesn't believe that. So, what? Considering we're in such bad
shape, I mean, we just don't need a shove in the right direction.
We just don't need a little encouragement. We need a resurrection from the
dead. were by nature dead in sin, shaping
and iniquity. You hath equipped to work dead,
dead, dead. If you ever understand ruin,
you'll understand something of redemption. If you understand
what happened in the garden, talking about what Adam did,
if you understand what happened in the garden, you'll have some
understanding of what happened on the cross. where sin abounded,
grace did much more abound in Christ. Now here's the good news
of the Gospel. Verse 24. You see, He brings
us down and then lifts us up. Being justified freely by His
grace through the redemption that is in the Lord Jesus Christ. Now, three things I want to look
at in verse 24. First of all, sinners are justified
freely. Freely. Freely. Freely. Hold your place there. Find 1
Corinthians chapter 2. Justified freely. Verse 12. 1 Corinthians 2 verse 12. Now
we have received not the Spirit of the world, but the Spirit
which is of God. that we might know the things
that are freely given of God. The things, the gifts that God
has for us are free gifts. Free gifts, full gifts. Justified
freely, that is, without any cause found in us. Freely, without any contribution,
without any merit, without any works of righteousness from us.
Freely, freely, freely. Remember we read in Isaiah chapter
55, Ho, everyone that is thirsty, come ye buying wine and milk
without money and without price. What does that mean? Free. This
is what I call free economics. Everything considered, everything
revealed in the gospel and given through the gospel is free. Free. Free. He gives freely. Oh, everyone that is thirsty,
come. Come buy wine and milk without
money and without price. You know how this book of God
ends? Turn to Revelation 21. He ends with this precious promise.
Revelation 21. Verse 6, He said unto me, It
is done. It is done. I make all things
new. It is done. The Lord said upon
the cross, It is finished. Salvation's done. He's the Alpha. He's the Omega of all salvation.
He's the beginning. He's the end. I will give unto
him that is a thirst. Are you thirsty? Of the fountain
of the water of life. What's that word? Freely. Freely. Well, I can fit in there
because I'm a bankrupt sinner. Freely. Turn to Revelation 22. Freely. Verse 16, I, Jesus, sent
my angel to testify unto you these things in the churches.
I'm the root and the offspring of David, the bright and morning
star. The Spirit and the Bride say,
Come! O everyone that's thirsty, come! The Lord said, Come unto
Me, all you laboring and heavy laden, I'll give you rest. Come!
And let him that is athirst, come! Whosoever will. I'm a whosoever. I'm a whosoever
will, made willing in the day of His power. Let him take, don't
say let him earn, let him take of the water of life freely,
freely. My friend down in Lexington,
Todd Nybert, had this to say, salvation is not for everyone.
Everyone's not interested. Salvation's not for everyone,
but it's for anybody in need. Oh, everyone is thirsty. Not
for everyone, but for anybody in need. You and anybody? You and everyone? I'm in need
of His mercy, aren't you? He justifies sinners freely,
freely, freely. The second point on Romans 3
24, justified freely by His grace, by His grace now. We're talking
about God's grace. Talking about the One who is
the Almighty King, the Almighty God, the Everlasting King. When He speaks, it's done. When
He commands, it stands fast. By His grace, we're justified
freely by His grace. God's grace. Sovereign grace
is the only grace. Sovereign grace is the only grace. It's the unmerited free and sovereign
grace of God that God saves sinners. Not by works. Not by works of
righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy. He
saves sinners by His grace. Turn to Romans 9. Children, verse 11, Jacob and
Esau, twin boys, begotten of the same father, neither having
done any good or evil, that the purpose of God, according to
election, might stand, not of works, but of him that calleth.
It was said unto her, The elder shall serve the younger, before
they were born, before they came forth from the womb, before they
had done any good or any evil that the purpose of God according
to election might stand. It was said to her, Rebekah the
elder shall serve the younger as it is written, Jacob have
I loved, but Esau I hated." Well, I thought God loved everybody.
Uh-oh, got a problem. Got a problem right there, don't
you? You see, the love of God is in Christ. Jacob have I loved,
Esau have I hated, what shall we say then? Is there unrighteousness
with God? There's this statement that Paul
uses all the time, God forbid. For he saith to Moses, I will
have mercy on whom I will have mercy. 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 it's God that shows mercy. He saves sinners by his mercy. It is of the Lord's mercies that
we're not consumed. Turn to Romans 11. Justified
freely by his grace. Romans 11. Even so, then at this
present time, verse 5, there's a remnant according to the election
of grace. The election of grace. The election
is God's sovereign choice. And it's the election not of
works. It's not an election of merit. It's the election of grace. And if by grace, then it's no
more of works. Otherwise, grace would be no
more grace. But if it be of works, then it's
no more grace. That's the word, work. There's
no more work. You see, it's God who saved us
and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but
according to his own purpose and grace. Purpose and grace. God marries his purpose and his
grace together, giving us in Christ Jesus before the foundation
of the world. That's 2 Timothy 1.9. I quote that almost every time
I preach the gospel, don't I? God's purpose and God's grace.
God always saves sinners by purpose. Purpose and grace given us in
Christ. His purpose is an eternal purpose.
His grace is an eternal grace. Justified freely, you got that?
Number one. Number two, justified freely
by His grace. We believe through the grace
of the Lord Jesus Christ we shall be saved as others. You remember
2 Corinthians 8 and 9? 2 Corinthians 8 and 9 talks about
the grace of God. For as much as you know about
the grace of God, though He was rich, yet for your sake He became
poor, that you through His poverty might be rich. That's what kind
of grace we're talking about. The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ. Justified by His grace. Now watch
this, thirdly. Thirdly is this. And don't leave
this part out. Look at Romans 3, 24 again. Justified
freely by His grace. Doesn't stop there, does it?
Through, through, by, in, because of the redemption that is in
Christ Jesus. That word redemption is deliverance. It's deliverance by payment.
It's deliverance by ransom. It's deliverance through His
blood. We're justified through the redeeming blood of Jesus
Christ, in whom we have redemption through His blood. Justified by His grace, freely
by His grace, through the means that God has ordained. You see,
God just can't overlook sin. Sin must be paid for. The law
of God must be honored. Sin must be punished. The guilty
must die. We are redeemed from all our
sin only one way, through the blood atonement of Jesus Christ. You see, it's the blood of Jesus
Christ, God's Son, that cleanses us from all our sin. That's what
took place at Calvary, justified freely through Now look at verse
25, Romans 3, 25. The Lord Jesus Christ was justified
through the ordained sacrifice, the appointed sacrifice, the
Lamb of God, whom God set forth. Notice the marginal reference
on the two words set forth, foreordained. for ordained. Before Adam sinned,
before Adam fell, the Lord Jesus Christ stood as a surety of the
eternal covenant of grace. Before Adam sinned, the Lord
stood as a lamb slain from the foundation of the world, whom
God sent forth in the fullness of time, God sent forth His Son,
made of a woman, made under the law, to do what? to redeem them
that were under the law. Did he get the job done? Did
he actually come? Yes, he did. Did he actually
redeem? Yes, he did. He redeemed all
his people from all their sin and they all shall be saved by
his death. We have life because of his death.
We have justification because of his blood. We have pardon
and propitiation because of his blood. This word propitiation
means mercy seek. You remember in the tabernacle,
the priest came in through the holy place, and then through
that veil into the Holy of Holies, and in that Holy of Holies was
the Ark of the Covenant. That broken law was in that Ark
of the Covenant. On top of that Covenant was the
beaten gold mercy seat, and the priest came in, but not without
blood, once a year, and he sprinkled that blood on the mercy seat,
And that's all a picture of the Lord Jesus Christ, His bloody
sacrifice. He redeemed us from the curse
of the law being made a curse for us. The Lord Jesus Christ
as our Great High Priest did not enter into the earthly tabernacle,
did He? He entered into heaven itself,
now to appear in the presence of God for us. He is our atonement. He is our propitiation. He is
our mercy seat before God. When He by Himself purged our
sin, He sat down on the right hand of the throne of God. And
we sat down in Him. He's our forerunner. And we entered
in through Him. You see, He is our propitiation. He is our blood atonement. He
is our justifying sacrifice before God. And this declares His righteousness
for the remission of sins that are passed through the forbearance
of God. God had mercy on all those Old Testament saints, not
looking to the blood of animals, but looking to what that pictured,
the sacrifice of the Lord Jesus Christ. We're not redeemed with
the blood of bulls and goats, but with His own precious blood. You see that? "...to declare,
I say at this time, His righteousness..." Look at verse 26. "...His righteousness,
that He might be just and the justifier." He is, as I had on
the radio this morning, Isaiah 45, 22, He is a just God and
Savior. A just God and Savior. You can listen to our radio program
every Sunday morning at 8.30 on 96.5 WXCC, Cold Country. Matter of fact, they stream that
on the internet and you can listen to it worldwide. I had a phone
call last week from a preacher down in Letcher County, and this
radio station that we're on is a 100,000 watt station. It covers
all the way, you can listen to it, Ashland, Kentucky, all the
way down past Wise, Virginia, clear down to Stone, Virginia,
all the way to Moorhead, all the way over here to Logan. Old
fella, 80 years old, down here in Letcher County. He's been
a minister or a preacher for 50 some years. He's 80 years
old. And by God's providence, he's
tuning in, and he heard me preach the gospel.
And he said, what I heard was refreshing to my soul. He said,
I believe what you're preaching. His name is William Ray Thompson. William Ray. I've got an uncle,
my dad's brother, William Ray. Well, I've made a new friend.
And he believes salvation by the grace of God. He said that's
the only grace there is. It's sovereign grace. I like
that. Christ is our atonement. He's our propitiation. He appeared
to put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself. He is our righteousness
before God. His resurrection. is the full
proof of his priestly work being accepted of God. You remember
what it said? Look at Romans 4.25. Romans 4.25. "...who was delivered for our
offenses and raised again because he justified us." because He
justified us before God by His resurrection. His resurrection
is a declaration of what He said was true and what He did was
satisfying and accepted of the Father. And we are accepted in
the Beloved. The only way God can be just
and justify the ungodly, be a just God and Savior is for the holy
law of God to be honored and every precept of that law every
precept of that law and every penalty of that law be fulfilled. Now the question of all questions
is this, how can God be just and clear the sinner of all guilt
and at the same time not violate his holy character, at the same
time honor the law of God? That's the question of questions.
It's the questions that nobody's asking today. It's only through
the personal work of Christ. You see the Lord Jesus Christ
in his life, in his humanity, he honored every precept of that
law for us. He didn't do that for himself.
He did it as a public representative man for his people. Here is our
High Priest who had no sin, knew no sin, and did no sin. Here
is our High Priest who became obedient unto death, even the
death of the cross. Here is our High Priest who is
holy, harmless, undefiled, and separate from sin. He honored
the Law of God for us. That's why we can say, do we
make void the Law of God through faith? God forbid! We establish
it. in Christ, in His obedience to
every precept of that law, and what does the penalty of that
law say? The penalty of that law says the guilty must die. That's why the Lord Jesus Christ
died. He stood with our sin charged
to Him before God guilty. Guilty. Guilty. The just one suffers for the
unjust by one sacrifice. The just one suffers for the
unjust that he might bring us unto God, and therefore in Christ
crucified, not only the precept of the law are honored, but the
penalty of that law is honored. He redeemed us from the curse
of the law, being made a curse for us. In his death he honored
the law and exalted the law of God. By His death we are healed. By His death we are given life.
By His death we have a justifying righteousness. Now I read a part
of Romans 5.19 a moment ago. Look over there at Romans 5.19. For as by one man's disobedience. You got it? Romans 5.19. Now
get a hold of this and look at it, study it. For by one man's
disobedience many were made sinners. Okay, what's that talking about?
Talking about Adam, right? His rebellion, charged to us. So by the obedience of one shall
many be made righteous. Now, whose obedience here is
he talking about? The obedience of that other representative
man In Adam is a representative man, and Adam all died. The Lord
Jesus Christ is also a representative man, a federal head. And all
those in Him, by His obedience, by His death, they shall be made
righteous before God. Moreover, the law entered that
the offense might abound, but where sin abounded, grace does
much more abound, that as sin hath reigned unto death, even
so might grace reign." There's sovereign grace. Grace reign
through righteousness. You see, righteousness has to
be honored. God does not want to sweep his law out of the way
without it being honored. He's too holy. The law has to
be honored. The Lord Jesus Christ magnified
the law of God, honored the law of God, Isaiah 42, 21. That through
the grace reigns through righteousness unto eternal life by Jesus Christ
our Lord. That's why we have turned to
Romans chapter 4. That's why we can say with David,
blessed is this man, Romans 4 verse 6. David also described it, the
blessedness of the man unto whom the Lord imputeth righteousness. He imputes righteousness with
our works, saying, Blessed are they whose iniquities are forgiven,
whose sins are covered. Blessed is the man to whom the
Lord will not charge sin." Now remember what we read a moment
ago? Who can lay anything to the charge of God the elect?
Even God Himself can't charge His people with sin. They can't. Christ is already
dying. He already paid the debt. He's
already been punished. For God to punish me in my sin,
after punishing my sin in Christ, would make Him unjust. Wouldn't
it? He is a just God and Savior. You see, being justified freely
by His grace. Turn back and look at that verse
again. Romans 3.24, being, being, present
tense right now, being, eternally being justified freely by God's
grace through the redeeming blood of the Lord Jesus Christ. Justified
in Christ. Now, turn to Acts chapter 13. Acts chapter 13, look at verse
38. Acts 13, 38. Acts 13, 38. Be it known unto
you therefore, men and brethren, that through this man is preached
unto you the forgiveness of sin. Now, who is this man? He's identified
in verse 37, whom God raised from the dead. and saw no corruption. You see, having put away our
sin, his body could not corrupt. He saw no corruption. God raised
him from the dead. Be it known unto you therefore,
men and brethren, that through this man is preached unto you
the forgiveness of sins. By him all that believe are justified
from all things which you could not be justified by the law of
Moses. justified. Therefore we conclude,
we believe, therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith
without the deeds of the law. Therefore being justified by
faith we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. No wonder that faith is called
precious, precious. Faith receives. Faith is the
hand that reaches. Faith is the eye that looks.
Faith is the feet that run to the Lord Jesus Christ. Faith
is a gift of God. Faith is called precious. We
have obtained like precious faith through the righteousness of
God our Savior. justified freely by His grace
through the redemption that is in the Lord Jesus Christ. You
see, the wages of sin, turn to Romans 6.23, I'll let you go.
The wages of sin is death. Death. The gift of God is eternal life
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Aren't you glad salvation is
a gift? That salvation is free? Free. Free. Freely. Freely.