This False Doctrine Is KILLING Reformed Christian Churches!

Covenant Representation and the Righteousness of Christ

There is a doctrine that just keeps seeping back in. Paul was dealing with it in Galatians. We dealt with it there and again in the Reformation with the Roman Catholic Church. And it seems to be coming back up again where one is, yes, declared righteous because of the righteousness of Christ, but now really God's disposition towards you is going to fluctuate and change, and you may not even make it to the end based upon your righteousness, based upon your performance.

Your understanding of the gospel will be limited if you don't have a category for covenant representation. Because it's undeniable biblically that Adam represented us all in the garden. Every single human being is condemned under sin.

And this is why the only way that you could ever have a righteousness is if God gives it to you that you receive by faith. You will never attain it. You will never achieve it on your own effort. A lot of times if you listen to Christians talk, they will talk as though like, okay, well, we have the law, we have our marching orders, and if we get to work and we obey sincerely enough or we obey well enough, then things will get better in terms of how God views us.

Actually, the exact opposite is true. When the law came in, it made things worse, not better. It made the trespass of Adam and our own sin, it made it that much worse. But then you get these words of, but where sin increased through the giving of the law, where sin increased, grace abounded all the more.

So that as sin reigned in death, grace might also reign through righteousness. And that is the righteousness of Christ for us, leading to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. So this is the great juxtaposition that Paul sets up, Adam and Jesus, and I would even argue the reality of the law and the reality of the gospel.

Jesus Fulfills All Righteousness in His Baptism

Then Jesus came from Galilee to John to be baptized by him. John would have prevented him saying, I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me? But Jesus answered him, here's the key, let it be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.

And so what is Jesus setting up for us? His life is here to complete a work given him to him by the Father. And what is Paul saying in Romans? That work to which he completed is this act of righteousness, the fulfillment of it, given to us so that we can benefit, benefit what?

Let's keep reading. Then he consented, I love this by the way. John's like, no, you gotta baptize me. And so he's in this argument and Jesus goes, we're fulfilling righteousness. And John stops because he understands what's happening at this moment.

This isn't a baptism for sin. This is a baptism of reflecting his entrance into the royal priesthood, his fulfillment of righteousness, the culmination of his life, right, for 30 years. So then it says this, and when Jesus would baptize, immediately he went up from the water, and behold, the heavens were opened to him.

And he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming to rest on him. And behold, a voice from heaven said, this is my beloved son with whom I am well pleased. This is after he fulfills righteousness, right?

This is after. And Justin, I wanna connect this back to John 17 last week when we read this, and it says Jesus's prayer. Remember this? And he says, Father, remind them, help them to see that you love me the same way that you love them.

And it's safe to say that to love would also mean to say that when the Father looks at you, Justin, and the Father looks at me, it is safe to say that he is well-pleased, why? Because Jesus fulfilled all righteousness.

He loves us as he loves his son. He's well-pleased with us as he's well-pleased with Jesus. The end of Jude, you know, we know that doxology really well, Jude 24 and 25. The Lord looks forward to the day when we're presented pure and blameless before his throne.

There will be great joy there. Or Luke 15, you know, the parables we know so well. What's the point of all of those parables, the lost sheep, the lost coin, the prodigal son? It's that there is rejoicing in heaven when a sinner is united to Christ, effectively.

When a sinner repents, when a sinner is united to Christ, there's rejoicing in heaven. How does the Lord feel about you? He feels joy over you. How does he feel about you? He delights in you. How does he feel about you?

He's well-pleased in you. And he looks forward to the day that you're presented in Christ, pure and blameless before his throne, and he wipes away all your tears, and he says, come and live in the city that I've prepared for you.

That's how he feels.

Why Final Justification and Pietism Must Be Rejected

There is no final tally where it goes, okay, well, you got Jesus's righteousness, but we need to see yours too. That is final justification. That is final junk. That is Roman junk that has just got to be put down, and I don't mean to be rude and harsh here, but I do want to be exacting in that when he says I am well-pleased, it's not for now.

Let's see how you do. Let's see how well you make it out. That's pietism, that's garbage, that's legalism, and it's got to be put to bed. Justin, we want to obey. We need to obey. We're called to obey.

It's for the glory of God. It's for the good of the kingdom, but it is not for our justification on any shape or form. Paul's clear on this in Romans 5. It's by one man's act of righteousness, and it's not ours.