THE LAW AND THE GOSPEL
(Romans Bible Study Series Tape Seven)
Recommended reading Romans 3:27 - 31.
Paul introduces, in these verses, the unconditional good
news of salvation in Jesus Christ. We must keep in mind several important
facts in regard to this very point. First, the gospel is the righteousness
of God; a righteousness that is entirely God's doing. He planned it, and
fulfilled it through His Son. Secondly, righteousness is made effective in
the lives of every human being through faith alone. Thirdly, the
righteousness of God justifies us and qualifies us for the glory in the
family of God. Fourth, God is just and righteous. He is legally just in
justifying sinners because of the redemption that is in Jesus Christ. The
sacrifice of Christ, legally allows the God of justice to qualify mankind
for the Kingdom of God. Hebrews 9:22, God can legally forgive us
because of the sacrifice of Christ. Our hope is in Jesus Christ, I
Corinthians 1:30-31.
I. We should be grateful that all mankind has access to salvation.
· Many say they
are qualifying for God's Kingdom by their works. It does not work that
way.
· God has only
one way to save, that is by faith in what God has promised and what God
has fulfilled.
II. Paul was continually accused of undermining the Law.
· There are two
problems with which we struggle, when we begin to understand the truth
of justification by faith.
1.) It effects our pride. We begin to understand
that we make no contribution; and that there is nothing good in us. We
can admit that we make mistakes; but, it is very difficult for us to
admit there is nothing good in us. Our thoughts are selfish and often
our actions are selfish. We must come to a clear and honest
realization about ourselves.
2.) It seems that when you believe in justification
by faith, you are undermining the Law.
· Paul was
accused both of a lack of belief and an undermining of the Law. We are
justified by faith without the deeds of the Law. We cannot keep the Law
perfectly. We were born in Adam, which clearly shows that we were simply
born into sin. Paul was continually harassed and attacked for his
teachings, as we see in Acts 21:27. Paul was never against the
Law. Paul simply believed and taught that the Law would not justify you;
that is not condemning the Law. We are justified by faith.
III. Is the Law void because of the understanding that we are
justified by faith?
· Paul clearly
answers this in Romans 3:31. God Forbid!
· Christian
living must be in harmony with God; this clearly shows that our lives
should be in harmony with the Law.
· Paul is not
dealing with the subjective living experience of a Christian; he is
dealing with several important points.
1.) Paul is dealing with the truth of the
righteousness of God, which justifies us apart from the work of the
Law. We must get this point into our minds to understand
sanctification and Christian living.
2.) Historically, it is impossible for us to establish
the Law. It is not impossible for us, by the grace of God, to keep
the Law. The word establish means that the Law is totally and fully
satisfied with us. The Law demands perfect righteousness and justice
from each one of us. It is impossible for us to do this. In Christ,
the law has been established. Christ met these demands for all
mankind. Christ led a perfect life, which met the positive demand of
the Law. Through His death, Christ met the justice of the Law. Through
Christ the Law has been established.
3.) The word the preceding faith is the key
grammatical word in Romans 3:31. (See Galatians 3:23 )
· When we stand
before the judgment seat how will we answer the question, "have we
obeyed the Law?" If we have failed in one point of the Law, we will
have to answer that we have not obeyed the Law. The Law will say we have
to die because one broken part of the law is a death sentence. Thank
God, we will not have to answer the Law that way. We can answer yes, I
have obeyed you perfectly. The Law will say, when did you obey me
perfectly? Our answer will be, when I am in Christ, I have perfect
obedience. The Law will say, you are a sinner you must die! I will say,
I have already died. We can then confidently quote Galatians 2:20, I
was crucified with Christ.
IV. God does not by-pass His Law to justify us.
· God maintains
His integrity to the Law, when He justifies us through His Son Jesus
Christ. In the history of the Son of God, every demand of the Law has
been met for each one of us. That is the good news of the gospel!
· We cannot
experience genuine sanctification, if we have not understood
justification. God does not look at the act; He looks at the heart. The
moment we do the right act for the wrong reason, God looks at that act
as filth.
· God can produce
a people who can serve Him without fear or a desire for reward. He can
only do this, when we are established in justification by faith, which
gives us peace. If we have no peace, we cannot be liberated from
the fear of death.
· We can only be
delivered from the fear of death by the death of Christ, as is explained
in Hebrews 2:14-15. The only hope for mankind is that the Law has
been established by the doctrine of justification by faith. The hope is
in Jesus Christ who lives in Christians. God's people have a peace that
their country and their money cannot give. It is a peace in Jesus
Christ.
God is on your side; Jesus is on your side; His law is
on your side. The only one against you is the devil, who has no way to
knock you down if you are established in justification by faith. When we
stand before God, we will not be there for God to determine if we deserve
eternal life by our performance. The purpose of the judgment is to
vindicate our justification by faith by our advocate Jesus Christ. We will
rejoice and have peace. From now on we will not worry about making it into
the Kingdom of God. That matter has been settled. From now onward for me
to live is Jesus Christ! To die is only sleeping until the resurrection,
when we shall see our Lord and Savior. We will thank God for such a
salvation as this. |
The Law and the Gospel 