This morning for our Bible study,
I would invite you to turn to Romans chapter 3. I want to talk
to you this morning about being justified in Christ or justification. Now, let's begin reading this
morning in Romans chapter 3 at verse 19. Now, we know that what
things soever the law saith, saith to them who are under the
law, that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may
become guilty before God." That's the state of all men everywhere
in Adam, born in sin, condemned in Adam, dead in Adam, and guilty
before God. Verse 20, Romans 3, "...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, that is, apart from
the law or by the law being fulfilled, is manifested by the witness,
being witnessed by the law and the prophets, even the righteousness
of God, which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon
all them that believe." Now notice that carefully. Believe. There
is no difference. For all have sinned that come
short of the glory of God being justified freely. Justified freely. Now think about that a minute.
Justified freely by His grace. Not justified by the law. Not
justified by our deeds. Justified freely by His grace
through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus whom God has
set forth to be a propitiation, to be a satisfying sacrifice
through faith in his blood to declare his righteousness for
the remission of sins that are passed through the forbearance
of God, Romans 3, 26, to declare, I say at this time, his righteousness,
that God might be just and the justifier of him which believeth
in the Lord Jesus Christ. Now what about justification?
What does the Word of God teach about being justified or sinners
justified? The Lord our God must deal with
men upon the ground of strict justice because He is just and
holy. Justice and holiness are essential
to the character of God just as much as love and mercy. God
can no more put aside His justice in dealing with men than He can
put aside His love from his character, because God is just. The only
way he can save guilty sinners, and the only way he can bring
the sinner into an eternal union justified before God with himself,
is if God Almighty can make that sinner both guiltless and sinless
in the eyes of his own law and justice. God is too holy to look
upon sin with favor. This act of God's matchless grace
by which He declares that a person is guiltless and sinless is what
Paul calls here being justified, just as if you never have sinned. Now, when God declares that a
person is guiltless, sinless, justified, perfectly righteous
before Him, That person really is, in the eyes of God, perfectly
justified, accepted in the Beloved. Our righteousness before God
is not a merciful supposition. It is a blessed reality in Christ
Jesus. Now here's four facts I want
you to remember about the sinner being justified. The sinner being
justified, being justified freely by His grace through the redemption
that is in the Lord Jesus Christ. This justification is an act
of God in mercy and grace declaring the sinner guiltless in Christ. Now here's the first point. Every
believer, that is the elect of God, from all eternity in the
mind and purpose and decree of God was justified in the purpose
of God from all eternity." Now, listen to me. Listen to the Word
of God. Paul, speaking of God's eternal decree and predestination,
declares that all of God's elect were justified in His eternal
purpose and grace. Now, here's the Scripture, Romans
8, verse 30, "...whom He did predestinate, them He also called,
and whom He called, them He also justified." and whom he justified,
them he also glorified." In the mind and purpose of God, notice
those are all past tense, called, justified, glorified. In the
mind and purpose and decree of God, it's already done. From
eternity, God looked upon His Son as our substitute, and looking
upon His Son, the elect of God in Christ are always and have
been justified and righteous before God in Christ Jesus. The fact of our eternal justification
in Christ is the reason why our race wasn't destroyed when Adam
sinned, when Adam fell, because the surety, the Lord Jesus, the
surety, the great shepherd of the sheep, stood as our guarantor,
as our representative man. John Gill, the old preacher that
lived back in the 1700s, put it this way, as God's will to
elect is the election of His people, so God's will to justify
them is the justification of them. The Apostle Paul wrote
this in 2 Timothy 1.9, it's God who saved us or justified us
and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works. but
according to His own purpose and grace which was given in
Christ Jesus before the world began. The Apostle Paul wrote
this in Ephesians 1. You see, the Scriptures teach
eternal justification in Christ. Blessed be the God and Father
of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual
blessing in heavenly places in Christ, according as He chose
us in Him before the foundation of the world that we should be
holy without blame before Him in love, being justified by His
grace eternally in Christ Jesus. So believers, we can say, in
God's purpose, in God's decree, are eternally justified. Secondly,
all of God's elect were justified at Calvary when Christ died. You see, what God purposed in
eternity, He must bring to pass in time. And that's what we read
in the fullness of time. God sent forth His Son, made
of a woman, made under the law, to redeem them that were under
that law, were redeemed from the curse of the law by the blood
atonement of Christ. The Lord Jesus Christ lived in
perfect obedience to God's law as our representative, as a surety. establishing for that elect,
for his people, perfect righteousness. We read in Philippians 2, verse
7 and 8, he made himself of no reputation, took upon him the
form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men, and being
found in passion as a man, he humbled himself, became obedient
unto death, even the death of the cross. We see his righteous
obedience unto death. We are justified by the blood
atonement of Christ. The Lord Jesus Christ suffered
and died as a substitute at Calvary, suffering and satisfying suffering
the wrath of God and satisfying the penalty of God's law and
justice against us. We read in Romans 5, 8 and 9,
God commendeth His love toward us in that while we were yet
sinners, Christ died for us, much more than being now justified
by His blood. Remember we read in Romans 3,
being justified freely by His grace through the redemption
that is in Christ Jesus. We shall be saved from wrath
through Him and justified through that satisfying sacrifice the
Lord Jesus Christ gave. By His righteous obedience unto
death, He justified His people. In the person of our substitute,
Jesus Christ, we've satisfied the law's requirements and its
penalty. And now God, in perfect consistency
with His justice, with His holiness, declares that all the elect of
God, all for whom Christ died, are forgiven of their sin and
justified in Christ. God might be the just one and
the justifier, a just God and a Savior. So have you got those
first two points? God's elect were justified eternally. Secondly, justified at Calvary
in time. Thirdly, every believer received
this justification, received this salvation, how? Now this
is a vital question, and this has been debated in religious
circles for a long time, but there's no debate with those
who believe the gospel, the record of God. Every believer receives
salvation, justification by faith in Christ, by believing Christ. Now here's the scripture. For
by grace are you saved, by grace were justified through faith."
Through faith, not apart from faith, not by works. Salvation
is received not by doing, by believing. And that, not of yourselves. Faith is not of ourselves. It's
a gift of God, not of works, lest any man should boast. Christ
justified us by his great sin-atoning sacrifice, and all who believe
on the Lord Jesus Christ as God, as Savior, as Righteousness,
receive Christ in all that's in Him. He's our redemption.
He's our justification. He's our righteousness. He's
our sanctification. We read in Romans chapter 4,
He was delivered for our offenses. died as our substitute and was
raised again for our justification, therefore being justified by
faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ."
Faith is not the cause of our justification. Faith does not
cause God to justify us. The obedience of Christ is the
cause, the ground of our justification. But by faith, resting upon Christ
alone as Savior, as God, as righteousness, this is how we receive Christ
who accomplished our justification. You see, Christ is the justifier,
and we receive the Lord Jesus by God-given, God-wrought faith. Justification is received by
faith, not by works, not by doing. The Lord says this so clearly.
throughout the Gospel of John, and in other places, verily,
verily, I say unto you, this is John 5, 24, He that heareth
my word, and believeth on him that sent me, has everlasting
life, and shall not come into condemnation, but is passed from
death unto life. Again, we read in 1 John, chapter
5, this is the record that God hath given to us eternal life,
and this life is in His Son. He that hath the Son, the Lord
Jesus Christ, he that hath the Son hath life, he that hath not
the Son of God hath not life. These things have I written unto
you that believe on the name of the Son of God, that you may
know that you have eternal life, that you may believe on the name
of the Son of God. You see how salvation, this justification,
is received by God-given, God-wrought faith. Now let me close by giving
you the fourth thought on justification. Now listen carefully, and don't
misunderstand what I'm about to say. Every true believer His
faith is justified by obedience unto God. And that's what James
is talking about in James chapter 2. And a lot of people get confused
here. James says, Even so faith, if it hath not worked, or obedience
is dead, being alone. For as a body without the Spirit
is dead, even so faith without works is dead. Paul in the book
of Romans is showing us the accomplishment, how justification is accomplished
by the blood atonement of Christ, by the righteousness, the blessed
obedience of the Lord Jesus Christ. James here is showing how the
believer demonstrates in this life that he is resting in Christ. Paul is showing us the accomplishment
of justification. James is showing us the evidence
of being justified. If a man is a true believer in
Christ, his faith is justified by obedience. Now, listen carefully
to what I said. His faith is justified by obedience. How are you going to show that
you are a believer to others? By obedience, by faith, by living
a life looking to Christ as all of our salvation. Any faith that
does not produce obedience unto God is not true. It's not true
saving God-given faith. This salvation and this justification
that's received by faith is accomplished by Christ. And when it's made
in application to the heart of the sinner, the sinner is obedience
by is obedience of the God by the grace of God. Therefore,
justification is the eternal act of God accomplished at Calvary,
received by faith, and demonstrated by obedience. We read at least
four times in the Word of God to just live by faith.