Just and the Justifier Romans 3:9-28

Romans 3: Human Guilt Before a Holy God

Romans chapter 3, we are about to read the Word of God which will be by far the most important thing that I'm going to say today. Every time the Word of God is spoken, every time it is preached, it does not return empty.

It accomplishes exactly what God wants it to, which will either be a message of salvation or a just reason for condemnation. It will do one of the two. It will hold men accountable or bring them to their knees in repentance.

So I ask that you hear the Word of the Lord. Romans 3 verse 9 through 28. What then? Are the Jews any better off? No, not at all. For we've already charged that all, both Jews and Greeks, are under sin.

As it is written, there is none righteous, no, not one. No one understands, no one seeks God. All have turned aside, together they have become worthless. No one does good, not even one. Their throat is an open grave.

They use their tongues to deceive. The venom of vipers is under their lips. Their mouth is full of curses and bitterness. Their feet are swift to shed blood. In their paths are ruin and misery. The way of peace they have not known.

There is no fear of God before their eyes. Verse 19. Now we know whatever the law says. It speaks to those under the law so that every mouth may be stopped and the whole world be held accountable to God.

For by works of the law no human being will be justified in His sight since through the law comes the knowledge of sin. But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law. Although the law and the prophets bear witness of it, the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe.

For there is no distinction. For all have sinned and fallen 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's passed over former sins. It was to show His righteousness at the present time that He might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.

Then what becomes of our boasting? It's excluded. By what kind of law? By law of works? No, by a law of faith. For we hold that one is justified by faith apart from works of law. Let's take this in Romans 3.

General Revelation, Special Revelation, and Universal Accountability

And the first section is verses 9 -20. And this section teaches us this, that all humanity is without excuse before a holy and righteous God. Last week, Brother Jeff taught very clearly what it means that God is holy.

It means He is other. It is those attributes that make Him separate from all other beings. He is set apart from all other beings. He is holy. And all mankind, all of humanity, is without excuse before that throne.

Because God has revealed Himself. If you read verse 9, it says, Jew or Greek, that's every classification, Jew or Greek are without excuse because God has revealed Himself. He has either revealed Himself through what we call as theologians general revelation or through specific revelation.

To put that in simple terms, specific revelation is the Bible. General revelation is that which God has revealed through nature. Right? The law of God, parts of the law of God, are written on the heart of every human being on planet Earth.

Thousands of years before Moses wrote the Ten Commandments, Cain killed Abel. And God didn't look at Cain and say, well, you got away with one. You're lucky I haven't written down, you shall not kill.

No. Because we, as image bearers of God, are held accountable to that which God has revealed. His divine attributes and that all of human creation is created in His image. God holds men accountable to that which He has revealed.

He didn't hold Cain accountable for not knowing about the virgin birth, or there were 66 books in the canon. He held him accountable to that which He had revealed. And the Bible teaches that all mankind, whether through general revelation of nature or through specific revelation of the world, is without excuse.

Without apologia. They have no apologetic. They have no defense before that throne room. There is no mitigating factor. They are without excuse. That's what verse 9 teaches us. Verse 10 through 18 tells us why they are without excuse.

The Universal Sinfulness of Humanity

Verse 10, there is no one righteous. No, not one. No one understands, verse 11, no one seeks for God. It's not just that people try their best and come up short. That is not the biblical message. No one's even trying.

Look at verse 11 again. No one is seeking God. Zero human beings. So the question is, how does anyone ever find Him? And we'll get there in a moment. All of mankind is without excuse and not attempting a reconciliation to that problem.

They have known God and are suppressing that knowledge through their own rebellion. Romans 1 says they know God, but they do not honor Him as God. I ask you a question today. I don't care if you know God.

Look right here. I don't care if you know God. I'm asking, do you know God? Do you honor Him as God? Verse 12. All have turned aside, together they have become worthless. Worthless. The book of Proverbs puts it this way.

It's not that everyone's chosen Satan over God or a little devil on this shoulder and an angel on this shoulder. That's not the biblical message. The book of Proverbs teaches us that we are worthless and unrighteous because we turn to our own way.

All the evil you need in the world to be unrighteous before God is in your heart. Everyone in this room, myself included. We have all turned to our own way. There is no one who does good, not even one.

If I wanted to, I don't even have to preach this passage. I can just read it because the message is so clear. There can be no denying. We are all without an excuse before God Almighty. Verse 13 and 14.

Their throat is an open grave. Remember, the ver is all humankind. We read that in verse 9. Everyone got that? Their throat is an open grave. They use their tongues to deceive. The venom of vipers is under their lips.

Their mouth is full of curses and bitterness. The imagery of verse 13. Their throat is an open grave. Is that when we open our mouths, it reveals the deadness and decay of our heart that's on the inside.

It's an open casket. There's no covering the deadness and decay. It is an open grave and the stench of our decay is seen, is smelled, is heard when we open our mouth. A word to all of us in this room.

Have you not recognized that every time there is a list of sin in the Bible, the primary motive is that which comes out of our mouth. Jesus says, out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks. So then we can't even say things like, well, it just slipped out.

Because according to Jesus, it was from the overflow of our hearts. And a little practical wisdom for you. Well, how do I stop that? What are you filling your heart with? What are you filling up, treasuring, storing in that heart?

What is being treasured up? Because that will be the overflow of what comes out of your mouth and what you do with your hands. The open grave of our mouth reveals the decay of our heart. The open casket is evident to all even though sometimes humanity pretends like they don't see what they see with each other and with others.

But the venom of vipers is under our lips. Our mouth is full of curses and bitterness. Verse 15, their feet are swift to shed blood. Slavery is a great evil, yes? I'd be willing to bet that almost every person in this room when I said the word slavery thought of one type of slavery in one nation, didn't you?

Didn't you? There were 600 ,000 slaves brought to the United States in the North Atlantic slave trade. 4 .5 million were brought to Brazil, by the way. That doesn't remove the guilt. 600 ,000 were brought to the United States.

That is evil. Adolf Hitler and his regime killed 6 million Jewish people. That is evil. Since 1973, 63 million children have been aborted in this nation alone. Our feet are so swift to shed blood, verse 15, that we don't even feel the impact of it.

That we don't even think twice about it. 63 million. Our feet are so swift to shed blood. The illustrious governor of California, Mr. Gavin Newsom, this is recording I hope, yes? Good. Is running for re-election this November.

And he paid, I'm sure some of you saw, for a billboard campaign across the nation, particularly in states that have outlawed abortions. And at the top it says, Need an abortion? Come to California. Now, that's evil enough.

At the bottom of each one of these billboards are the words of Jesus. Mark 12, 31, Love your neighbor as yourself. As if that is what Jesus meant. Our feet are so swift to shed blood, that we'll even use biblical words to do it.

Like justice, tolerance, love, patience. Verse 16 -17, What is the destiny of this group of people which remember as all mankind, including me and you? What's our destiny? Verse 16 -17, In their paths are ruin and misery, the way of peace they have not known.

The scariest part is verse 18, that many, most, are oblivious to this impending doom. Why? Because there is no fear of God before their eyes. There's no fear of God before their eyes. Verse 19 is the summary of this,.

Now we know that whatever the law says, it speaks to those under law. Why? So that every mouth may be shut, and the whole world be held accountable to God. Do you excuse away your sin? Or maybe you do it for somebody else.

Your child, your brother, your mother, your father, your friend, your co-worker. The whole point of the law is that every mouth may be shut before a holy and righteous God. If you're making excuses for your sin to someone else, that mouth is still flapping.

Verse 19 says, This is all said, so that every mouth may be shut before a holy God. There is no excuse. There is no excuse you can bring for yourself or anybody else. There is no paraphrase. There is no parenthesis of, well, they had a hard life.

Every mouth may be shut before a holy and righteous God. And the scariest thing is when you excuse away your sin or the sin of somebody else, you are putting that person at risk of being in the category of verse 18 where they're oblivious to it because there's no fear of God before their eyes.

What is scarier? Someone who's in rebellion and knows they're in rebellion? Or someone who's in rebellion and are being told by everyone around them that they're just fine? That is a recipe for damnation.

Verse 20 summarizes it,. For by works of the law, no human being, no flesh will be justified in his sight, since through the law comes the knowledge of sin. The general revelation is enough to teach us that we have rebelled against God.

And then we have the Word of God where Paul says in Corinthians, I didn't even know what the word covet meant until I read, you shall not covet. Amen? The law reveals to us an even greater need for salvation that we cannot achieve on our own or for someone else.

In summary, all humanity in their natural state being separated from God is doomed for life without peace and damnation. Can you get a clearer message from verse 10 through 18? Can anyone read anything different than what I just read?

The Righteousness of God Through Faith in Jesus Christ

Verse 21 -25. But now, but now, the righteousness of God has been manifested, made known, apart from the law, though the law and the prophets bear witness to it. Let me help you with that. The law and the prophets, in other words, the Old Testament.

The Old Testament was prophesying about what I'm about to say. The righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction, not just a righteousness to even out your evil.

The very righteousness of God, His holy righteousness is imparted, is imputed, is credited to your account. But then we still have our righteous sin. Oh, but that is credited to Jesus' tab. Do you not see the great exchange?

This is the beauty of the doctrine of imputation. Jesus gets the guilt of our sin. We get His perfectly righteous life. This is why He lived a full human life and obeyed the law perfectly. The credit for His obedience goes to those who believe, and the guilt of our condemnation goes to Him.

That's the great exchange. But you can't have part 2 without the prequel. It doesn't exist. You've destroyed the whole argument. If you don't first realize your need for a Savior is desperate and destitute.

That everyone in this room, including myself, either is or was that open casket of decay. But now, this righteousness of God that the Old Testament prophesied about is here in the person of Jesus Christ.

That's Him. That's the guy. Verse 22, the righteousness of God. And how do we obtain it? How do we obtain it? We say the right things. We pray the right prayer. We attend the right church. We go through new member's class with Pastor John.

No. What's it say? Through faith in Jesus Christ. Not some made up deed in your brain. Through the real Jesus Christ to all who believe. For there is no distinction. There is no distinction for those in category 1 from verse 10 -18.

All humanity. Color doesn't matter. Money doesn't matter. All humanity is in category 1. And so, to anyone who believes, there is no distinction for those who believe. None. Anyone who believes, not in a made up fantasy, not in a religious tradition, but in the Word of God through Jesus Christ, by faith, obtains the righteousness of God.

There is no distinction. For all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God and are justified freely by His grace. Justified. Rendered innocent. Innocent. Hebrews 7 says, innocent for all time. Justified.

Declared righteous. Not a righteousness of anyone in this room, but the righteousness of the God-man, Jesus, is imputed to our account, to anyone who believes and submits to the Lordship of Jesus. If we confess with our mouth, the Lord Jesus, and believe in our hearts that God raised Him from the dead, we are saved from that wrath.

Remember, ladies and gentlemen, you are not saved from hell. You are not saved from sin. You are saved from God. Do you not see? Verse 18, there's no fear of God. Not fear of hell or fear of sin. There's no fear of God before their eyes.

Do you not see that we are saved? Wait for it. We are saved from God. We are saved by God. And we are saved for God. It is all grace. The answer in verse 11 of if no one is seeking Him, how does anyone ever find Him?

The answer is we don't. He finds us. No one has ever found God because no one on their own is even looking for Him. We have been found. We can sing it, can't we? I once was lost, but now I am found. Do you not see it in the Scriptures that you were not seeking Him apart from His work?

You have been found by God. Noah found favor with God. There was a man named Abram who was living as a pagan, and God said, I'll take him. That is the message of salvation. In verse 24 we read we're justified, we're rendered innocent.

How? Through the redemption of Jesus Christ. Do we know what redemption means? It means to be bought back. It means to take a credit and buy something back. Guys, do you not see the whole message of this book right here?

It's God's glory in demonstrating how He reconciles a people back to Himself. Let me say that again. The whole message of this book is God getting the glory for reconciling a people back to Himself. That's the whole purpose of this book from Genesis to Revelation.

We were bought. And what was the price? Hebrews 9 .27 says, without the shedding of blood, there is no forgiveness. When Adam and Eve were in the garden and they were naked and ashamed of their sin, God killed one of His creation and made clothing out of skins of an animal.

The problem is that we have committed sin against the eternal, holy God. So, an eternal, holy God must die for our sin. Jesus has bought us with His own blood. That is the price for our sin. He was, verse 25, put forward as a propitiation by His blood, an absorber of the wrath of God.

God's wrath, instead of being poured out on me, is poured out on His own Son. A message, please, to those of you in this room who have not bowed the knee of your heart to God. He didn't even spare His own Son to destroy sin.

Ladies and gentlemen, there is a wrath coming. Every one of us will give an account before that throne. And every one of our mouths will be shut. There will be no answer you can give in the first person.

Well, God, I... Everything that will follow after that will come short. The only thing we will be able to say is because You saved me. Because I have been bought by the blood of Your Son, Jesus. And this is received again in verse 25.

How is it received? By faith. By faith. That's how it's received. That's how it's received. It's funny, I hear people tell me why I need to clean up X, Y, and Z before I submit. Guys, the result of a changed life is proof of a changed heart.

If you try to change the heart before the submission, nothing will change. Nothing. And you will still show up at the throne empty-handed. It is only by faith in Jesus Christ. All of humanity is without excuse before that throne.

All who believe are justified freely by His grace. And all of the Gospel shows how God is both just and the Justifier. Read again verse 25 -28. Who 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 passed over former sins. It was to show His righteousness at the present time so that He might be just and the Justifier of those who have faith in Jesus.

We get this wrong a lot. We ask questions like, how could such a loving God? And we have that so backwards. That is the opposite approach Paul is taking. That is a human, arrogant approach. The point Paul is making is, no, not how could such a loving God, how could a just God wake up this morning with sinners breathing His air?

What is that? God, I thought you said you were just. Why is Josiah Shipley breathing your borrowed air and using it to defy your name? That's the question. God, and in some ignorance of a spiritual fall, we may ask, God, You told Adam and Eve, on the day you eat from this tree you will die.

He lived 930 years after that day. Where's the justice God? The question is not, how could such a loving God allow X, Y, and Z? The question is, why is everyone in this room alive? Myself included. We are creatures from dirt, made by God, created in His image, and we defy the orders of a holy and righteous God, and use His words to commit blasphemies, and call it love, and sit quietly as it happens.

Not recognizing that everyone we don't tell the truth to is back in category of verse 18, including people you know. That instead of telling them the truth, which is the sign of love, you would rather them be, quote, happy.

Did you not read what we just read? Then, is He just? Here's how. Because not only is He just, but He's also the justifier. Not only is He righteous, but He is the one that declares righteous. Not only is He holy, but He is the one who has made us holy.

Do you not see? The reason He is just is because a penalty has been paid. You see, in His divine forbearance, in His mercy, He passed over those former sins knowing that the day of justice of His wrath was coming on the cross of Calvary.

He is just because He punished the Son of God and destroyed the sin. He's the justifier of all who, what's it say, believe. He is the justifier of those who have faith in Jesus Christ. But ladies and gentlemen, that means He is not the justifier of those who do not have faith in Jesus.

The call to salvation is without distinction. Without distinction. But only those who have faith in Jesus, the biblical Jesus, not some made up fantasy Jesus you have, the biblical Jesus, are justified, declared righteous, innocent.

For by one offering, He has perfected forever those who are being sanctified. Hebrews 10 .14. The power of our justification, the reason why we can approach the throne with boldness is because we have been justified by the blood of the eternal God.

Do you not see? The blood of the eternal God is what paid for our justification. And all who have faith were bought with the blood of the eternal God. That's why our justification is so sure and secure.

Because an eternal price was paid for it. That's how He can be just and the justifier. Because He's the one that picked up the tab. I put a quote at the bottom of your paper, but I just want to present it in maybe a different way.

The throne of judgment, before that holy God, of which all human beings by their natural estate will approach from verse 10 -18, that throne should be an object of terror and dread. But according to the book of Hebrews, for us children, we can approach it with boldness.

With boldness we waltz in to that throne before our Heavenly Father, free of any condemnation. There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. That throne should be an object of fear and dread, and instead is full of grace and mercy.

And it's full of grace and mercy, not just today, but they're new every morning. And that grace and mercy is still just as full, though I dipped into it today, it is still just as full tomorrow. It is a well of everlasting, overflowing water.

Come all who would eat. Come all who would drink from the well that never runs dry. That is but a taste of the grace and mercy of our God. He is just. He is the justifier, because He picked up the tab for our sin.

And as I asked Melanie to come back up here, I remind you of this. The beauty of being justified can only be delivered in the backdrop of verses 10 through 19. That before God, every mouth is shut. There is no excuse.

There's no excuse for you, for your child, for your cousin, for your auntie, for anybody. And just like there's no distinction there, there is no distinction for anyone who has faith in Jesus Christ. Anyone on planet earth who bows in need of Jesus will find Him to be nothing more than a perfect Savior.

A Savior of sins former, of sins present, and sins to come. A perfect Savior, because salvation is eternal. I ask you to wake up to that reality, so that we can live out the freedom we have in Jesus that is not had to those not in Jesus.

Not to boast in that freedom, or to use that freedom to live how we want, but knowing the terror of the Lord we seek to persuade men that there is a judgment coming. But without distinction, there is the righteousness of God to anyone who has faith.

Today, today, if you don't know that submission to Jesus, if you don't know that righteousness of God, don't play any more games, today is the day of salvation. If you have been sugarcoating the condemnation that is due to those you know, I ask you to let someone help you figure out how to deliver that message of truth, so that they are no longer storing up wrath for the day of judgment.

When you love, you tell the truth. Yes? Maybe it's time for some of us to start telling the truth to those we work with, to our family members, that judgment is coming, but without distinction, that justification is available to all who believe.

Amen? Would you please stand with me and right now, get to work in your heart or the heart of somebody else to recognize the righteousness of our holy God and how that has been put forward on all who believe.

Amen?