Christ Took Our Punishment
Notes
Transcript
Handout
Intro
Any doctor, auto mechanic or amateur trouble-shooter knows that diagnosing the problem is only part of the task; discovering the correct remedy for the problem is equally important. In the opening part of his letter to the Romans, Paul has defined the problem of sin in detail.
And he has identified several ineffective solutions that humans, particularly his own people, the Jews, attempt in order to gain a right standing with God.
His conclusion is that while everyone—Jew or Gentile—has a natural inclination to violate the laws of Moses and conscience, these same individuals do not have the capacity to make themselves righteous by the law.
The law succeeds in making us conscious of sin, but the law in itself is unable to save.
The New International Version Chapter 1
16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes: first to the Jew, then to the Gentile.
this is the heart of Paul’s testimony
Read
Romans 3:21-31
v.21
But now
There are two possible meanings:
(1) temporal—all of time is divided into two periods, and in the “now” period the righteousness of God has been made known;
(2) logical—the contrast is between the righteousness gained by observing the law (which is impossible, v. 20 Romans 3:20 “20 Therefore no one will be declared righteous in God’s sight by the works of the law; rather, through the law we become conscious of our sin.” ) and the righteousness provided by God.
apart from the law
Apart from keeping the law, because it now comes in the person of the Messiah.
the righteousness
the emphasis here is on the gift of personal relationship to God imparted to those who trust Christ Romans 5:17 “17 For if, by the trespass of the one man, death reigned through that one man, how much more will those who receive God’s abundant provision of grace and of the gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man, Jesus Christ!”
made known
this means that a plan or program has been revealed by which God can righteously save unrighteous sinners, and that it is not by requiring men to keep the law.
because God is Holy, He cannot condone sin or overlook it or wink at it.
He must punish it; and the punishment for sin is death.
God’s righteousness demands the sinner’s death, but His love desires the sinner’s eternal life with Him.
the Gospel reveals how God can save sinners without compromising His righteousness.
the Law of the Prophets
A shorthand way to refer to all of Scripture.
17 “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them.
How has the righteousness of God been made known?
Do you think it is important to testify?
v.22
through faith in Jesus Christ
Paul is saying that God’s righteousness has been revealed in Jesus’ faithful and obedient sacrificial death.
human faith is necessary (to all who believe)
Jesus is the only valid person or object in which man must place his faith.
What is faith?
faith means utter reliance on the living Lord Jesus Christ as one’s only Savior from sin and one’s only hope for Heaven.
it is based on the revelation of the person and work of Christ as found in the Bible.
Faith is not a leap in the dark. It demands the surest of evidence, and finds it in the infallible word of God.
A man can not boast because he has believed in the Lord.
Faith is not an attempt to earn salvation, but is the simple acceptance of the salvation which God offers as a free gift.
no difference between Jew or Gentile
Romans 10:12 “12 For there is no difference between Jew and Gentile—the same Lord is Lord of all and richly blesses all who call on him,”
both are on the same level of the playing field as far as salvation is concerned
v.23
for all have sinned
the human need and the divine provision are alike applied universally
So who does this include?
when Adam sinned, he acted as a representative for all his descendents; but men are not only sinners by nature, they are also sinners by practice.
sin is any thought, word, or deed that falls short of God’s standard of holiness.
it is missing the target or coming up short of the target.
sin is lawlessness the rebellion of the creatures will against the will of God.
sin is not only doing what is wrong but the failure to do what one knows to be right.
sin is portrayed in scripture as falling short of God’s glory, going astray like a wandering sheep, transgressing or overstepping the law of divine authority.
sin brings hideous results, affecting not only our relationship with God, but our relationship with others.
if not checked, sin will destroy the natural process of every person.
the glory of God
what God intended humans to be; God’s glory
the glory mankind had before the fall and believers will again have through Jesus.
man can exceed his own standards but never, left to himself, can he attain to God’s standards of righteousness.
Christians should not sin; but if they do, they should remember their Advocate (Jesus) and repent their sins to restore fellowship with God.
What is God’s standard?
v.24
justified
Justification: just as if I had never sinned
Paul uses the Greek verb for “justified” 27 times, mostly in Romans and Galatians
The term describes what happens when people believe in Christ as their Savior: From the negative viewpoint, God declares them to be not guilty; from the positive viewpoint, he declares them to be righteous.
He cancels the guilt of their sin and credits righteousness to them
But even though all are sinners, God will declare those who put their trust in Jesus not guilty but righteous.
This declaration is valid because Christ died to pay the penalty for our sin and lived a life of perfect righteousness that can in turn be imputed to believers.
This happens because believers have been incorporated into Christ and his saving work (they are “in Christ”).
believer’s judicial stance before God, because of Jesus’ work on the cross
not because He has to, but He has freely chosen to give us His favor.
How do you feel knowing that you can be justified in God’s sight?
freely by His grace
The central thought in justification is that, although people clearly and totally deserve to be declared guilty , God declares them righteous because of Christ’s atoning work and their trust in him.
Romans 6:14 “14 For sin shall no longer be your master, because you are not under the law, but under grace.”
Grace: undeserved and unmerited favor from God
This is stated in several ways here:
(1) “freely” (as a gift, for nothing),
(2) “by his grace,”
(3) “through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus” and
(4) “by faith”
redemption
A word taken from the slave market—the purchase of a slave’s freedom or obtaining release by payment of a ransom.
Paul uses this word to refer to release from guilt, with its liability for judgment, and to deliverance from slavery to sin, because Christ in his death paid the ransom to set us free
to redeem someone usually means to rescue them from some bad situation (e.g., Israel from Egyptian bondage [Ex 6:6; 15:13], the psalmist from the threat of death [Ps 26:11] or from enemies [Ps 31:5]).
Often this comes at a cost to the one who redeems. In the Greco-Roman world slaves could be redeemed by the payment of a price, either by someone else or by the slaves themselves.Jesus redeems believers (Ro 3:24; Titus 2:14) at the cost of his blood (Eph 1:7; 1 Pe 1:19; Rev 5:9), i.e., his death (Mt 20:28; Gal 3:13; Heb 9:5).
The result is the “forgiveness of sins” (Col 1:14) and justification (Ro 3:24).
Some of the troubles the Lord redeems his people from include bondage or slavery (Ex 6:6), all their sins (Ps 130:8), the power of the enemy (Ps 106:10; 107:2), the curse of the law (Gal 3:13), all wickedness (Titus 2:14) and their empty way of life (1 Pe 1:18).
No wonder the Lord is called our Redeemer (Job 19:25; Ps 19: 14; Isa 49:26; Jer 50:34)!
Eph. 1:7 “7 In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace”
How does those four verses make you feel? Why do they make you feel that way?