WWUTT 127 Overthrow the Law (Romans 3:27-31)

We have been saved by grace through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. That is how a person gets saved.

So if that's how a person is saved, then this law that was given in the Old Testament, do we just throw all of that out?

By no means, when we understand the text. This is when we understand the text, studying

God's word to reach all the riches of full assurance in Christ. Here's your teacher, Pastor Gabe. Thank you,

Becky. Hey, a special shout out to Forrester whose tweet I missed Forrester.

I'm doing much better. Thank you. He had asked me on Twitter how I was doing, and that was hours ago, and I just totally missed it and forgot to reply.

So appreciate the question. As you can tell, I can, there's still a little bit of congestion there.

I'm not 100 % there yet, but I'm on the upswing. I'm not running fever anymore, not running or not hacking and coughing and sneezing as much as I was.

My voice kind of fails on me toward the end of the day, and that's when I record these is at the end of the day.

I think I've got enough to get through our lesson, though. Romans chapter three, verses 27 through 31 is where we are today.

If you want to open up your Bibles and join with me there, by the way, if you want to get in touch with me on Twitter, it's what videos the little at sign

WWU TT videos. That's how to find me on Twitter. I'm going to go all the way back to verse 21 because I'd like to look at the things we're going to study in the next paragraph in context.

So Romans chapter three, verse 21. But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, although the law and the prophets bear witness to it.

The righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe, for there is no distinction for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God and are justified by his grace as a gift through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom

God put forward as a propitiation by his blood to be received by faith.

This was to show God's righteousness because in his divine forbearance, he had passed over former sins.

It was to show his righteousness at the present time so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.

Then what becomes of our boasting? It is excluded by what kind of law, by a law of works?

No, but by the law of faith. For we hold that one is justified by faith apart from works of the law.

Or is God the God of Jews only? Is he not the God of Gentiles also?

Yes, of Gentiles also, since God is one who will justify the circumcised by faith and the uncircumcised through faith.

Do we then overthrow the law by this faith? By no means. On the contrary, we uphold the law.

Now it sounds like some complicated things are being discussed here, but it's actually really cool. Let's go back to verse 26.

This was to show the justification that was demonstrated for us on the cross was to show his righteousness,

God's righteousness at the present time so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.

The cross of Christ is where we see demonstrated God's justice and his love.

As I've heard D .A. Carson say, do you want to see God's love? Look at the cross.

Do you want to see his wrath? Look at the cross. We see God's wrath poured out upon Christ, the wrath that we deserved.

Christ took upon himself instead, and he paid that for us. That's what propitiation means.

When we read that in verse 25, God put forward Christ as a propitiation.

He satisfied the wrath of God with his death there on the cross. God demonstrates his love for us in that while we were still sinners,

Christ died for us. So in this way, God is both just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.

Verse 27, then what becomes of our boasting? It is excluded. There's no place for us to boast.

We didn't do anything. God did all of the work. Christ finished the work on the cross. He said it is finished.

It is done. And we have received this justification by faith. It was given to us by God, not by anything that we did.

So the Jew cannot boast in being some select people of God, and neither can the

Gentile boast because they received this gift when the Jews did not receive it. Nobody can boast.

God is the one who has justified. So there's no place for us to boast.

Ephesians 2, 8, and 9, it is by grace you have been saved through faith. This is not your own doing.

It is the gift of God, not of works, so that no one may boast. So our boasting is excluded.

By what kind of law? By a law of works? No, but by the law of faith.

Again, it is not by anything we did, but the faith that we have been given by God. He is the author and perfecter of our faith.

As we read in Hebrews 12, God gave us this faith, and he is growing us in this faith.

So it is not a law of works, keeping the law as given to us in the whole Old Testament, but it is a law of faith, something that is given to us by God.

For we hold that one is justified by faith apart from works of the law.

Or is God the God of Jews only? Is he not the God of Gentiles also?

Yes, of Gentiles also, since God is one. What Paul is demonstrating here is that God is not just the

God of Jews, the whole Old Testament which was given to the Jews. If he was a God of the

Jews only, then salvation would have been by keeping that law only. But God is one

God of both Jews and Gentiles, so therefore he will justify the circumcised by faith and the uncircumcised through faith.

Don't let by faith or through faith confuse you. It's just simply saying that both

Jews and Gentiles receive salvation by faith in Jesus Christ and his finished work on the cross and no other way.

It is because we believe and this faith that we have was given to us by God as well.

It's not something that you manifest. You don't concentrate. You go, bam, hey, I believe, all right.

We don't grit our teeth and clench our eyes and just by focusing our minds on it hard enough then suddenly we manifest an ability to believe in God and what

Christ accomplished on the cross. That's not how faith comes about. Faith is given to us by God.

It is God who justifies. It is God who has justified us by faith and he justifies

Jews and Gentiles both by faith. Do we then overthrow the law by this faith?

So if our salvation comes by believing, do we just throw out the

Old Testament? We don't even have to know any of that or follow any of those laws. Who needs the Ten Commandments because we've been justified by faith?

Paul says, by no means. We don't throw the law out, mygenoita. It is the strongest phrase of opposition in Greek that he can make, by no means.

On the contrary, we uphold the law. In other words, we had no ability to even do what the law required and do it in a righteous way.

A person can follow what the law says, but they can't do it in a way that is acceptable and pleasing in the eyes of the

Lord. A person in and of themselves cannot develop their own righteousness. But Christ is the one now who has justified us and made us able to worship

God in a righteous way. So then when we read in Hebrews 12, 1, in view of God's mercy, present yourselves as holy and pleasing sacrifices unto the

Lord. This is your act of worship. When we read that, it makes a whole lot more sense now when we understand that our righteousness came not by our works, but by Christ on the cross.

And so now we can follow the commands of God in a way that is pleasing in the eyes of God, where before we could not.

Even our best deeds were as filthy rags before a holy God, as it says in Isaiah 64, 6.

And we read also in Romans chapter 14 that whatever is not done in faith is sin.

So if we're not justified by faith, then we can't even accomplish this righteousness. It comes only through Christ, the law of faith given to us by God for all who believe.

As we read in John 6, 29, this is the work of God that you believe in him whom he has sent.

God, thank you for sending your son, Jesus, to die on the cross for our sins so that through this gift of grace, we might be justified in your sight.

We're able to stand before you and be declared righteous and holy, not because of anything that we did, but because of what

Christ has done. Lord, as we still inhabit these fleshly bodies, we're going to slip.

We're going to fall. We're going to be tempted by the trappings of this world. Please keep our minds, our feet, our hearts steadfast on this path of righteousness toward you.

And when we stumble and when we are tempted and when we give in and we sin, help us to be faithful to ask forgiveness for our sins, knowing that you will be faithful and just to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

We know you are just and the justifier because Christ has paid our penalty on the cross.

Praise you, God. And now let us take this message, knowing that it is only by Christ that we can attain salvation and eternal life.

Let us take this message to a lost and unbelieving world that they might believe and be saved.

We pray this in Jesus' name, amen. You've been listening to When We Understand the Text with Pastor Gabe Hughes.

We hope you are a part of a church family committed to gospel teaching, and we thank you for including us in your

Bible learning. If you would consider a gift to this ministry, please visit www .utt

.com. Give online or send a check in the mail. Join us again tomorrow as we grow together in God's Word when we understand the text.