Romans 3:21-4:25

Main Theme

Paul's central message in Romans is that all people are sinners who cannot save themselves, and the only way anyone—Jew or Gentile—is justified before God is through faith in Jesus Christ alone.

Sermon Summary

• Romans 1:16–17 serves as the thesis of the entire letter: the gospel is God's power for salvation to everyone who believes.

• The gospel is truly "good news" because God has graciously provided a way for guilty sinners to be reconciled to Himself.

• Romans 1 demonstrates that Gentiles stand guilty before God because they suppress the truth, reject God's revelation, exchange His glory for idols, and are given over to sinful desires.

• Romans 2 shows that Jews are equally guilty because possessing God's law does not make someone righteous. God judges impartially according to truth.

• Romans 3 concludes that every person is under sin. No one is righteous, no one seeks God, and every mouth is stopped before His judgment.

• The law exposes sin but cannot justify sinners.

• Romans 3:21 introduces the glorious turning point: God's righteousness has now been revealed apart from the law in Jesus Christ.

• Jesus is the perfect righteousness God provides to all who believe.

• Christ's death was a propitiation, satisfying God's justice while demonstrating His mercy toward sinners.

• Justification is a free gift of grace, purchased by Christ's blood and received only through faith.

• Because salvation is entirely God's work, all human boasting is excluded.

• Romans 4 proves this doctrine by Abraham's life. Abraham was declared righteous by faith before circumcision and centuries before the Mosaic Law.

• Salvation has always been by grace through faith—not by works.

• Believers are called to abandon every attempt at self-righteousness and rest completely in Christ's finished work.

• The sermon concludes with a call to trust Christ alone and to rejoice in the peace and assurance found in His completed redemption.

Title

The Gospel: God's Gift of Righteousness Through Faith

Primary Passage

Romans 3:21–31

Supporting Passages

• Romans 1:16–17

• Romans 1:18–32

• Romans 2:1–29

• Romans 3:9–20

• Romans 4:1–25

• Genesis 15:6

• Psalm 32:1–2

• Galatians 2:16

• Ephesians 2:8–9

• Philippians 3:7–9

• 2 Corinthians 5:21

Key Themes

1. The Universality of Sin

Every human being stands guilty before God.

• No one is naturally righteous.

• Religious heritage cannot save.

• Morality cannot erase guilt.

• God's judgment is perfectly just.

2. The Purpose of the Law

The law was never intended to save.

Instead, it:

• reveals God's holiness

• exposes our sin

• silences every excuse

• drives sinners to Christ

3. Justification

Justification is God's legal declaration that a sinner is righteous because of Christ.

It is:

• free

• gracious

• complete

• based solely upon Christ's righteousness

4. Christ's Atonement

Jesus became the propitiation for our sins.

His sacrifice:

• satisfied God's justice

• demonstrated God's righteousness

• secured redemption

• removed condemnation from believers

5. Faith Alone

Faith is not another work.

Faith simply receives the gift God freely gives.

Believers contribute nothing to their justification except the sin from which they are saved.

6. Abraham as the Example

Abraham illustrates that salvation has always been by faith.

His righteousness was credited to him:

• before circumcision

• before the Mosaic Law

• simply because he believed God's promise

Historical Context

Paul wrote Romans to a church experiencing tension between Jewish and Gentile believers.

After Emperor Claudius expelled the Jews from Rome, Gentile believers became the majority. When Jewish Christians returned, questions arose concerning:

• circumcision

• obedience to the Law

• covenant identity

• who truly belonged to God's people

Paul answers that neither ethnicity nor law-keeping justifies anyone. Both Jew and Gentile come to God by exactly the same means: faith in Jesus Christ.

Westminster Standards

Westminster Confession of Faith

Chapter 11 – Of Justification

Key teachings:

• God freely justifies sinners.

• Justification is by faith alone.

• Christ's righteousness is imputed to believers.

• Faith is the instrument—not the cause—of justification.

Westminster Larger Catechism

Questions 70–73

These teach:

• what justification is

• how Christ's righteousness is imputed

• why faith alone receives justification

• the relationship between faith and good works

Westminster Shorter Catechism

Q33

Justification is an act of God's free grace, wherein He pardoneth all our sins, and accepteth us as righteous in His sight, only for the righteousness of Christ imputed to us, and received by faith alone.

Relevant also:

• Q30

• Q31

• Q35

Will you please turn your Bibles with me to Romans. Romans chapter 3. I'm going to read verses 21 through the end of the chapter. Romans chapter 3 beginning at verse In a real way, this is the heart of the gospel explained. Romans chapter 3 beginning at verse 21.

Hear now God's perfect word. But now the righteousness of God apart from the law is revealed, being witnessed by the law and the prophets, even the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ. to all and on all who believe. For there is no difference, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God set forth as a propitiation by His blood through faith to demonstrate His righteousness. Because in his forbearance God had passed over the sins that were previously committed to demonstrate at the present time his righteousness that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.

Where is boasting then? It is excluded. By what law? Of works? No, but by the law of faith. Therefore, we conclude that a man is justified by faith apart from the deeds of the law. Or is he the God of the Jews only? Is he not also the God of the Gentiles? Yes, of the Gentiles also, since there is one God who will justify the circumcised by faith and the uncircumcised through faith. Do we then make void the law through faith? Certainly not. On the contrary, we establish the law.

The grass withers and the flower fades, but the word of our God endures forever. Let's pray. Father, you have given us your word, and we've just read a small portion of it, but it is sweeter than honey, more precious than gold. By it, your servants are warned. And there's great reward. Father, we pray that your spirit would please work in our hearts now as we hear the preaching of your word, that we might receive the truths that come from your word, and that they might change our hearts and our lives. But Father, I am a sinful man up here preaching. So I pray for your people. that they might go to the Word themselves and see whether these things are so. And they might latch on to those things that are true. Father, please, help us to understand Your Word. In Jesus' name, Amen.

Have you ever heard the phrase before that somebody is missing the forest because they're looking at the trees? One of the things that I think we've been doing in the book of Romans, as we've been going through this book, is that we've not just been looking at trees, we've been looking at the knots on the bark on the trees. As we've been going, sometimes words and sentences and paragraphs, but one of the things that we're going to do regularly as we go through Romans is zoom out and look at the forest. So how does this actually work out? And so we've gone through Romans 1, 2, 3, and 4. And so what I'd like to do today is try to look at the forest of what Paul has given us so far. What was the Holy Spirit saying in this letter up to this point, to the end of chapter 4?

And it's very clear from the thesis statement in Romans chapter 1 verses 16 and 17 that the gospel, the good news shows us that faith in Jesus is the only way for anyone to be saved. Faith in Jesus is the only way for anyone to be saved. Just look there with me, Romans chapter 1 verses 16 and 17. For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith, as it is written, the just shall live by faith.

Paul has been commissioned an apostle by the Lord Jesus Christ, has been given a message, and he was to go and to faithfully preach that message. That message is the gospel. Gospel is just an old English fancy word for good news. Evangelion. Ev, good. Angelus is where we get our word for angel. Message. He's like an angel of God sent with a message to tell people the good news. Well, what's the good news? That God has made a way for sinners to be reconciled with him. God is gracious. and has a gift of unearned favor.

This is a message that even as we got into chapter one, I was really worried that we might look at so much sin in chapter one, two, and three, that you might not realize that I think Paul, when he wrote this, was smiling ear to ear. Because we have to hear about the good news, or the bad news, and that's gonna be point two and three of this sermon. But that's not the main point. The main point is that God saves sinners.

And so I hope today when you walk out of the doors here, you will be rejoicing if you are in Christ. That if you are in Jesus, you will have your heart so filled with joy and with hope that you know that God has given this gift to you. That salvation is yours and you can walk in peace. Because this gospel, this good news, is a gift.

Jesus Christ came to save sinners. And if you find yourself in that camp, sinner, trusting in Jesus alone, this is good news for you. So Paul, this is his thesis statement, right? The gospel is good news. He's not ashamed of it. It's the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek. And then he uses this Jew and Greek issue going on.

Remember the background is Paul is only a few years, maybe a decade off of when Claudius the emperor had expelled all the Jewish people from the city of Rome. By the way, it's called Romans because it's to the city, to the church in the city of Rome. Rome, the capital of the Roman Empire. So the emperor has kicked out all the Jewish people, what was originally a Jewish church, Gentiles were kind of on the periphery, now it's Jewish and Gentile, and then all the Jews are gone, and it exists for a period of years. Claudius dies, and what happens? Jewish people come back. Well, how Jewish do you have to be to be saved? How much of the law do you have to follow? Do you still need to be circumcised? Can Jewish people only be saved or do Greek people get to be saved too? Who's this message for?

And Paul here in Romans 1.16 is clear, for the Jew first and also for the Greek. And then he's going to start with the Greeks. This is our second point.

Greeks or Gentiles cannot be justified by their works. Anybody who's not Jewish, by the way, when he says In verse 18, for the wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who suppress the truth in unrighteousness. Verse 19, because what may be known of God is manifest in them. That them there is talking about Gentile people.

Greek people, non-Jewish. In a Jewish mind, you have a Jewish person or you have a non-Jewish person. That non-Jewish person was either called an ethnoi or a Greek person. Gentile or Greek. So you're either Jewish or Greek. So he's focusing on this Greek portion. And notice what it says.

Again in verse 18, the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men. who suppress the truth in unrighteousness. God is just and he will punish sin. In many ways what Paul is going to show here by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit is that God is revealing even in the present tense how he has given people over to their sin. They know better. The light of nature teaches them that God is strong and holy and great and awesome and yet they don't want to serve him. Instead they would rather worship and serve the created rather than the creator.

And He lists their sins. He lists their sins. Starting at verse 21. Because though they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God, nor were they thankful. but became futile in their thoughts, and their foolish hearts were darkened." Notice the two categories of sin there. They did not glorify Him nor give thanks to Him. The God who gave them the air in their lungs and the breakfast on their plates. I'm not going to glorify that one. I'm going to act like He doesn't exist. And it goes on. What does it look like for their hearts to be darkened while professing to be wise? They became fools.

And here's, instead of bringing glory to the incorruptible God, verse 23, they changed that glory into an image made like corruptible man. And birds and four-footed animals and creeping things and sometimes, just like you know, they kind of mix those together. You see, God is speaking here about their idolatry. Instead of worshiping the God who created the heavens, you serve birds. You make little images of birds, and you think that if you sacrifice to these images of birds, somehow the skies are going to give you what you want.

The ravens won't come and eat your seed. Or if you're a sailor, and you're on the seas, what do you need to do? Well, you need to go, and you need to go to the Temple of Poseidon. And you need to bow down to that idol. Or maybe you're one of the Philistines, and you're God, because you're a sea-faring people, you go to the merman-type God, half-man, half-fish Dagon, and you go and you worship that created thing of somebody's imagination.

Not giving thanks to the God who created the sea. That's what he's talking about here. They've changed the incorruptible God into a corruptible image. So God gives them over to their uncleanness. So they're not glorifying Him. They're not giving thanks to Him. And what's the fruit of that? Verse 24 and following.

God gives them over to their uncleanness. To the lust of their minds. They start to dishonor their bodies. He gives them over, allowing them to chase down their own passions. They commit shameful things, receiving in themselves the penalty of their error which was due, verse 27. And even as they did not retain God in the knowledge, God gave them over to a debased mind to do those things which are not fitting.

As Gentiles would not glorify God nor give thanks to Him, their hearts become filled more and more. filled with all unrighteousness, sexual immorality, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness, full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, evil-mindedness, whisperers, backbiters, haters of God, violent, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents, undiscerning, untrustworthy, unloving, unforgiving, unmerciful. How can anyone like that be saved? This listing of sins is meant to show that there's not a Greek person in the world, no Gentile in the world who could ever be saved by their works. All of them are sinners. They cannot be justified by their works because God sees their hearts.

But a good Jewish person might say, but that ain't me. I have the law. So Paul goes to the second side, and this is our third point. God says that Jewish people cannot be justified by their works. Romans chapter 2, Therefore you are inexcusable, O man, whoever you are who judge. Alright, looking down your nose at other people, thinking, well that's them, that ain't me. He says, hold on, I know what you've been stepping in. For in whatever you judge another, you condemn yourselves. For you who judge practice the same things.

See, God is a just judge. And God doesn't God does not show partiality. God isn't just going to grade on a curve. He's not going to just imagine that somehow you're going to sweep your sins under the rug. It's all going to be okay. He judges according to works. And do you think, O man, you who judge those practicing such things and doing the same, that you will escape the judgment of God? No. No, but in verse five, but in accordance with your hardness and your impenitent heart, you are treasuring up for yourself wrath and the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God, who will render to each one according to his deeds. The old language of this was who will judge with equity. God knows what you've been putting into the storehouse of your life. So it doesn't matter if you're Jewish or if you're Greek, God judges fairly.

And that's terrifying. Absolutely terrifying. All people are sinners. That's what he gets at in chapter 3. All people are sinners. What advantage is there then if you're a Jew? What profit is there if you've been circumcised? Right, well there's a lot of profit chiefly because to them were committed the oracles of God. Romans 3, 3.

For what if some did not believe? Will their unbelief make the faithfulness of God without effect? He says no, no. God is righteous even though they didn't believe. They were given all the opportunities to know the Lord and wouldn't serve Him. Wouldn't turn towards Him. They bore the mark of His covenant in their own flesh and yet they wouldn't believe in Him. And that's not a fault with God, that's a fault of sinful people.

Indeed, let God be true and every man is a liar. Continuing on in verse 4, that you, that being God, that you may be justified in your works and may overcome when you are judged. And we just keep going. Verse 7, for if the truth of God has increased through my lie to his glory, why am I still being judged as a sinner?

People might have excuses. You made me this way. Why are you judging me for being a sinner? Why is that my fault? Because we chose. We choose to sin. It is our fault. May we never say that somehow just because we're sinners, somehow that's God's fault.

That sounds an awful lot like what Adam did in the garden. Hey, you know that lady, that woman, she gave me the apple. You know the woman, you, you gave me? If we're going to play that with God, we're showing we're just like Adam, still in our sins. So are Jewish people any better than Gentile people?

Verse 9, not at all. For we have previously charged both Jews and Greeks that they are all under sin. And then one of the most humbling and truthful tying together of Old Testament passages, like a string of pearls, chapter 3, verses 10 and following. For it is written, there is none righteous, no, not one, There is none who understands, there is no one who seeks after God. They have all turned aside, they have together become unprofitable. There is none who does good, no, not one.

Their throat is an open tomb, and their tongues, with their tongues they have practiced deceit. The poison of asps is under their lips, whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness. Their feet are swift to shed blood. Destruction and misery are in their ways, and the way of peace they have not known. There is no fear of God before their eyes.

Now you may get uncomfortable and say, that sounds like a lot of absolute language. It is. No one does righteous. Just in case you wanted to find an asterisk or a footnote or a loophole, not even one. Stops our mouths, verse 19. and all the world may become guilty before God. Now I have to ask you, why did Paul, why was it necessary that the Holy Spirit gave Paul these words to write? Why didn't he just give us the lollipop gospel? Jesus loves you. You get to spend forever in heaven.

Just get rid of the whole sin stuff. Get rid of the uncomfortable. Get rid of calling out specific sins. Get rid of all that. Why did God have to do all this stuff in chapters 1, 2, and 3? Why does he have to make us feel so bad? If you don't think that you have any sin, you have no need to be saved. If you think that somehow you are good enough to enter into the presence of the thrice holy God, you have no need for the blood of Jesus. You have no need of rescue or redemption. The Holy Spirit loves us enough to tell us the truth.

Because the ways in which we sin against our spouses, get impatient with our children, love ourselves more than our neighbors, chase after our covetous hearts more than we chase after God's glory. The anger, the bitterness, the anxiety, the hatred, the lust, we hide in secret parts of our hearts.

The Lord sees those. And He does something about it. And that's the beautiful thing Our fifth point, the only way to be justified is by faith in Jesus. I'll begin at verse 20. First John is very clear about that. If you think that you have no sin, what are you doing? You're lying to yourself. You're deceiving yourself. And even worse than that, you make God a liar.

We can't be justified in God's sight because God knows we're sinful. The law will not produce righteousness, instead it brings death. But now, verse 21, but now the righteousness of God, apart from the law, is revealed, being witnessed by the law and the prophets. So what is this righteousness of God that's revealed? His name is Jesus. Jesus is the righteousness of God which is revealed. Even the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ to all and on all who believe.

Notice, for there is no difference. What's he talking about there? There is no difference. If you're a Jewish person and you believe, the righteousness of God is demonstrated in Jesus. If you're a Gentile person and you believe, there is no difference. Righteousness of God is demonstrated in Jesus to all those who believe. For all have sinned. For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.

And then notice, that's not the end of the sentence. If you've memorized verse 23, I beg you to memorize verse 24. being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God set forth as a propitiation by his blood through faith to demonstrate his righteousness. God gave Jesus to you, for you. When you were a sinner, unrighteous, lawbreaker, condemned, according to the law. And yet, and yet God, God freely justifies us by His grace. That word justifies legally declares us righteous. No longer guilty.

Oh, and the price that you had to pay for the wages of sin is death, that price you would have to pay for your sin, Somebody else pays it for you. Your bondage to sin and death, your slavery to the curse, Jesus pays by the price of his own blood. God redeemed you with something better than gold or silver or anything perishable or that will tarnish but by the very blood of his own son. This is God's grace and it's his gift. But notice the conclusion of that.

Where's boasting? Right? When you meet with your friends, and you're sitting downstairs, and you're eating food, and about, I don't know, whenever I get done with this thing, you guys go downstairs, and you're having some great lunch, are you going to sit there and say, man, I studied the Ten Commandments this week, and you know what?

I done did it. I'm perfect now. I didn't sin at all. And God's going to accept me because of that. That's boasting in your own flesh. We don't get to boast. That's a beautiful thing, right? The reason why we come here and we worship is because we say worthy is the Lamb. He's the one who is slain. He gets all the glory. God is so gracious. God is so good. He gives us favor we don't deserve, gave us a salvation we could never earn, and imputes to us a righteousness that we don't have ourselves. There's no boasting except for in Jesus. We don't get to boast in the law, verse 27. We don't get to boast in our works. No, what do we get to boast in? No, but by the law of faith.

We boast our faith is in Jesus. Therefore we conclude that, this is a conclusion, this is what Paul is saying, this is what the Holy Spirit inspired. What's the conclusion of it? That a man is justified by faith apart from the deeds of the law. Now go on our church YouTube channel and see all the people who have been lamb blasting the sermon saying, that's not the end of the story. And I say, that's the conclusion of Paul's story. That's a doctrinal conclusion.

Now how that faith works out in your life, that's a different story. But if you think that you're right standing before God is because you're good enough, you're still trying to boast in your own works. So when will you give it up? When will you finally let the peace of Christ which surpasses all understanding guard your heart and just say, I don't have to be fearful about eternity?

Because Jesus said it is finished. He drank the cup of wrath. My Savior hung on the cross for me. He was righteous and that's my only hope. That's what Paul is saying. And it's both for the Jews and the Gentiles. Notice he brings it up again in verse 29. Or is he the God of the Jews only? Is he not also the God of the Gentiles? Yes, of the Gentiles also. Why?

Because there's one God who will justify the circumcised by faith and the uncircumcised through faith. See what we get in chapter 1 verse 16. For I am not ashamed of the good news, for it is the power of God to salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. Now notice Romans chapter 3 verse 29. Who's saved? Jews only. Uh-uh, buddy. Same way, both groups, they're both saved. Jew or Gentile, circumcised or uncircumcised, you're saved, you're justified by faith in Jesus alone.

But maybe Paul's making all this up and it's a brand new theology. Maybe some people would say, but what about some other people in the Old Testament? Surely they were circumcised and they had good works and that's how they had right standing with God. And Paul anticipates that, good author, good teacher, Paul. And he goes to the first patriarch to Abraham in chapter four.

That's where we spent the last month and a half. Go look at the example of Abraham's faith. That's our final point. Our justification by faith is confirmed by Abraham's life. What then shall we say that Abraham our father was found according to the flesh? For if Abraham was justified by works, he, that being Abraham, Abraham would get to boast about something, but not before God. And then he's gonna go on and retell the story of Abraham's life and put some chronology in order for us. What does the scripture say, verse 3? Abraham believed God and it was accounted to him for righteousness. Abraham believed. Abraham had faith. God made a promise. Abraham believed the impossible promise.

We've talked about that. Old man Abraham receives this promise and the dude is old. I don't mean that to any offense of old people in here, but every single old person I've asked who's at this age, 70, 80, 90, approaching 100 years old, and I've asked them, are you ready to have a baby next year? Every one of them laughs.

And yet Abraham believes. And God accredits it to him for righteousness. This is a gift. It's of grace. It's not a debt. God doesn't owe it to Abraham. God gives it to him. And he just points out, in verse 5, the logic of that. If it's a work, if Abraham worked for this, it's a debt. It's a paycheck. He did the work, God must do it.

But that's not grace. No, God gave it as a free gift. Unearned favor. A righteousness outside of himself. God imputes righteousness apart from works, is what he says in verse six. He backs it up with David's witness or testimony. That's what we read earlier.

Blessed are those whose lawless deeds are forgiven and whose sins are covered. Blessed is the man to whom the Lord shall not impute sin. Abraham's life. David's testimony, the church singing David's words for centuries. He says, it's been in your theology books the whole time, guys.

But surely this was after he had received the sign of the covenant and started keeping the law, right? No. No, Abraham believed God's promises and it was a credit to him before he ever got the sign of circumcision. He just got the words of promise and believed. before Abraham ever got the law. Oh, that's right, Abraham didn't have the law of Mount Sinai.

That wouldn't come for hundreds of years later. And then we look, and I think this is really fun of Paul, he gives us Abraham, not because Abraham is the most righteous guy, as we read through the early parts of Genesis. You might want to go talk to Sarai if you think Abraham was the perfect model of righteousness.

The guy did some kooky stuff. Trying to accomplish the promises by works and it doesn't work with Hagar. It fails, falls flat on its face. The nature of God's covenant is seen to both Abraham and to those who walk according to his footsteps of faith. All the way from the Old Testament. This has been God's pattern. All through the Old Testament. God saves people by faith. Romans 4, 16, therefore it is of faith that it might be according to grace, so the promise might be sure to all the seed, not only to those who are of the law, but also to those who are of the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all. So I've been asking you. I don't know, we started Romans months ago. I've asked you this question. At this point, it's gotta be hundreds of times.

Do you believe? Do you believe that you are a sinner in need of a savior? Do you believe? Do you believe that Jesus Christ willingly laid down his life as a sacrifice, taking the punishment of God for you? Do you believe so much that you could give up your self-justification, give up the smoke and mirrors of your own righteousness, and truly confess to God your helplessness as a sinner? And will you cling to Jesus alone as a free offer of the gospel? Will you believe?

Is Jesus your hope? Are you walking in the footsteps of Abraham? Are you one of his seed? Are you one of his children by faith? Brothers and sisters, do not be ashamed of the good news of God. It is the power of God unto salvation to everyone who believes. Whether you're sitting in here and you're Jewish or you're Gentile, do you have faith in Jesus? Is he your hope? Is he your joy? Is he your salvation? I hope he is. I hope you walk out of those doors today and you rejoice. And that your heart is washed over with peace.

Because that is how good, gracious, and loving God is to sinners like us. Let's pray. Father, we thank you Lord, we thank you that we're the ones who created this mess, but you rescue us. Lord, we are the ones who willfully sin, and the things we say, the ways we speak, and the actions we have. Lord, we don't even do the good things that we want to do, or that you tell us to do.

God, please wash us in the blood of Jesus. Lord, we thank you. We thank you that you have given us our Lord Jesus, who was put to death for our sins and raised for our justification. That it is Jesus, our reigning, our very alive King, who redeems us from all destruction.

Father, we pray. Lord, we pray for those in the church today, in this building today, who have ears to hear but are afraid, Lord, because they believe, yet they have disbelief. Lord, I pray that you would please strengthen them. Turn their eyes to you and let them know that if they confess their sins, you are faithful. And you are just to forgive us of our sins and cleanse us of all of our unrighteousness. We pray for those who have been walking firm in the footsteps of faith, humbly before you for decade after decade. Father, we pray that they might die with the last gasp of air of this life being one of hope. knowing that the resurrection and glory is on the other side, that they will see you face to face and their sins, being far removed from them, will be buried beneath the deepest parts of the ocean, because you have made them clean. We pray for your children, that they might know you and love you. that they might have a testimony that they never knew a day that they didn't love Jesus because they knew that he loved them.

May we be a community filled with grace and joy and peace because you have given us our Lord Jesus, the King of righteousness, the Prince of peace. Father, please care for your church. Thank you for the free gift of salvation. We pray this in Jesus's name. Amen.

• Why does Paul spend so much time demonstrating humanity's guilt before presenting the gospel?

• Why can no one be justified by works?

• What does it mean that Jesus is our righteousness?

• How does understanding propitiation deepen our appreciation of Christ's sacrifice?

• Why does justification eliminate boasting?

• What encouragement does Abraham's example give believers today?

• How should the doctrine of justification shape our assurance of salvation?

• What dangers arise when Christians rely on their own performance instead of Christ?

• How should gratitude for free grace affect daily obedience?

• In what ways does understanding justification produce humility, peace, and worship?

• Justification – God's legal declaration that sinners are righteous through Christ.

• Grace – God's undeserved favor toward sinners.

• Faith – Trusting in Christ alone for salvation.

• Redemption – Christ purchasing sinners from the bondage of sin by His blood.

• Propitiation – Christ satisfying God's righteous wrath against sin.

• Imputation – God crediting Christ's righteousness to believers.

• Righteousness – Perfect conformity to God's holy standard.

• Law – God's moral standard that reveals sin but cannot save.

• Gospel – The good news that God saves sinners through Jesus Christ.

• Sanctification – The lifelong work of God making believers increasingly holy after justification.