The Gospel Is About the Righteousness of God, Not About Man's Sin

For in (the gospel) the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, "The just shall live by faith." (Rom 1:17)

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. (Rom 3:21-22)

In the above two passages, Paul tells us that something is revealed in the gospel: The righteousness of God.

God's righteousness is what the gospel is about.  The gospel isn't about the attempts of people to earn or maintain righteousness through the things they do.  It's about the gift of God's very righteousness.  This gift is given freely to all who believe.

As you look in your Bible, you'll see that in between the two passages above, there are sixty-four verses that essentially tell us about the unrighteousness of man.  These verses are not what the gospel is about!  These sixty-four verses, from Romans 1:18 all the way to Romans 3:20, were written to show us the reason the gospel was needed.  That is, they were written to show us the reason the righteousness of God needed to be given to us as a gift, by grace through faith.  Paul writes about how the wrath of God was "revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men..."  He lists all kinds of ways in which the ungodliness and unrighteousness of men has been demonstrated.

As all of this continues into Chapter 2, Paul makes the case to his fellow Jews that it's not only the Gentiles (non-Jews) who have missed the mark, but they themselves are also transgressors of the very law of God that they make their boast in!  In other words, Paul points out that we're all in the same boat in regards to "the ungodliness and unrighteousness of men," so there's no room for anyone to judge or condemn anyone else!  All (both groups: Jews and Gentiles) have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God.  "For we have previously charged that Jews and Gentiles alike are all under sin." (Romans 3:9).  "There is no one righteous, not even one." (Romans 3:10).

The only thing the law of God had done was to reveal sin.  "BUT NOW," Paul writes in Romans 3:21, "the righteousness of God apart from the law is revealed... even the righteousness of God, through faith in Jesus Christ, to all and on all who believe."  The law revealed sin, but could do nothing about it.  The gospel revealed God's righteousness, which we receive as a gift.

Can you see what Paul was doing, by first telling us in Romans 1:17 that the gospel revealed God's righteousness, and then spending quite a bit of time (64 verses) telling us about man's unrighteousness?  Sadly, many in the church have used a portion of those 64 verses to pronounce guilt, judgment and condemnation upon not only unbelievers, but also upon their fellow believers!  But that was never the reason those verses were written.  The reason Paul built this lengthy case for the unrighteousness of man was to show why righteousness could never be earned or attained by our performance.  Only God's perfect righteousness would ever do, and the only way anyone can attain it is to receive it freely as a gift!

Jesus became a curse for us and Jesus became sin for us

Abraham believed God and God accounted that to him as righteousness. That is the blessing of Abraham. Christ became a curse for us so that we might receive the blessing of Abraham. Also, Christ became sin for us that we might become the righteousness of God in Him! It's through nothing we've done... It's all what He has done! Your sins are not counted against you. You are not cursed. By faith, you are counted as righteous.

2 Cor 5:21
21 For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.

Gal 3:5-14
5 Therefore He who supplies the Spirit to you and works miracles among you, does He do it by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith? — 6 just as Abraham "believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness." 7 Therefore know that only those who are of faith are sons of Abraham. 8 And the Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, preached the gospel to Abraham beforehand, saying, "In you all the nations shall be blessed." 9 So then those who are of faith are blessed with believing Abraham.

10 For as many as are of the works of the law are under the curse; for it is written, "Cursed is everyone who does not continue in all things which are written in the book of the law, to do them." 11 But that no one is justified by the law in the sight of God is evident, for "the just shall live by faith." 12 Yet the law is not of faith, but "the man who does them shall live by them."

13 Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us (for it is written, "Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree"), 14 that the blessing of Abraham might come upon the Gentiles in Christ Jesus, that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.

You are the righteousness of God

God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. 2 Cor 5:21

Paul says in Romans 1:17 that in the gospel a certain righteousness is revealed. It's not man's righteousness. It's God's righteousness. The gospel reveals God's righteousness that is given to man as a gift. Paul spends the rest of Chapter 1, and then Chapter 2 and over half of Chapter 3, making the case for man's unrighteousness. He does this to show how ALL have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. Finally near the end of Chapter 3 he gets to what he was really leading up to: "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."

The law and the prophets were witnesses to this righteousness, but it's made clear in the gospel that man's attempts at righteousness, no matter how "good" or how "bad," ended up falling way short. And so: the gift of righteousness.

A little bit later Paul writes, "For as by one man's disobedience many were made sinners, so also by one Man's obedience many will be made righteous" (Rom 5:19). You were not declared a sinner because you committed sinful acts. You were made a sinner "by one man's disobedience." Even when you did "good," you were still a sinner.

In the same way, you are not righteous because of any righteous act or acts you have ever done. You are now declared righteous because you've been raised up together with Jesus, through faith. In the same way that you previously inherited sin, you've now inherited righteousness. Even when you do "bad," you are still righteous.

It's been given to you as a gift, and you can't earn gifts! To earn a gift is not only oxymoronic, it's moronic! Many Christians walk in fear of "losing" this righteousness through sinning. But remember, it's a gift.

Also remember:

...When the kindness and the love of God our Savior toward man appeared, not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us, through the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit, whom He poured out on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Savior, that having been justified by His grace we should become heirs according to the hope of eternal life. Titus 3:4-7

"According to His mercy" He saved us, washed us, regenerated us and renewed us. It's ALL about His kindness, His mercy, His abundant gift of righteousness! If we're mired down with a sin consciousness, worried about every little (or big) sin, worried that we'll somehow cross God (when His cross has taken care of it ALL!), then we're missing the point. A sin consciousness won't cause you to walk according to the gift of righteousness! (Hello?!!).

TRUST what God has done for us, and we won't have to worry about whether or not we're messing up His work. Good news: His work supersedes ours! God has made you RIGHTEOUS!

GIG 196 - Delivered From The Law

This week we talk about our relationship with the Law. The Law is good, holy and perfect. Is it "good" to remain in a relationship with the good, holy and perfect Law? This "marriage partner" points out all our faults and demands perfection... but yet is powerless to provide it! The end result is nothing but guilt and condemnation. And so somehow we needed to be delivered from this bad relationship. Using Paul's illustration from Romans 7 and his words from Galatians 2, Mike and Joel discuss what needed to happen in order for us to be "delivered from the law."

gigcast.graceroots.org

Titus 3:4567

Titus 3:4,5,6,7
But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life.
NIV

No Longer Identified By Sin

[No Longer Identified By Sin]

In the second of twenty articles that I wrote for Heartland Vineyard Church between 2005 and 2007, I decided to "introduce" myself to the rather large congregation. However, while I did mention some details about me and the activities in my life at the time, the main purpose was not to talk about "me," but to point to the Christian's identity as "saint" and not "sinner." (Note: I fully understand the difference in opinion among my friends here of the interpretation of the Apostle Paul's words about "sin that dwells in me." That's all right, and it's not the focus of this article).

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Hi, I’m Joel Brueseke. It has been no less than a wonderful, joyful experience for the past 5 years for my wife and I to worship with and connect with the various parts of Christ’s body who call the Vineyard their home, as we do. Along with our two children, Jared and Noelle, we thank God daily in our prayers for extending our family by a couple of thousand people! I work part time at Covenant Medical Center as a Courier and I work part time at the New 89.1-The Spirit (aka KWOF-850AM in Waterloo). You might know me as Joel Sommers on the radio, and if you do know me in that capacity, my sincerest apologies!

As I share a little bit more about myself, I’ll use someone else’s words to describe my thoughts:

“I tried keeping rules and working my head off to please God, and it didn't work. So I quit being a "law man" so that I could be God's man. Christ's life showed me how, and enabled me to do it. I identified myself completely with him. Indeed, I have been crucified with Christ. My ego is no longer central. It is no longer important that I appear righteous before you or have your good opinion, and I am no longer driven to impress God. Christ lives in me. The life you see me living is not "mine," but it is lived by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.” (Paul, in Galatians 2:19-21, The Message)

My friend Mike Kapler (also with KWOF and this church) has often brought up that we humans tend to identify ourselves by what we “do.” You find out what other people “do” and you tell them what you “do.” “I’m a salesman.” “I’m a hairdresser.” “I do construction work.” “I work in radio.” “I race cars.” “I’m a pastor.” “I work in a factory.” In introducing myself above, I first told you what I “do.” But because what I do is generally the fruit of who I am, or even the fruit of who I perceive I am, I first want to grow in and be grounded in who I am.

The Bible says that my identity – who I am – is not “me” anymore! When I was born, I was identified with Adam and unfortunately it was a life which didn’t quite cut the mustard when it came to being right with God. So, as an act of His great love for us, God made a way for all of us who were born in Adam to be “born again” into Christ. But in order become this “New Creation,” as Paul phrases it in II Cor. 5:17 and Gal. 6:15, it was necessary for the old “me” to die. So, that identity was crucified with Christ. It is dead and buried, expired, six feet under, bereft of life, pushing up daisies. It’s rung down the curtain and joined the choir invisible. It’s stone dead. (Thanks to a Monty Python skit for those synonyms for DEAD!) My new identity (who I really, actually am) is identified by the very life of Christ in me.

Plainly put, before coming to Christ we were identified as “sinners.” Now, after coming to Christ by faith, we have a new identity as saints! As Bill Gillham writes in his book, “What God Wishes Christians Knew About Christianity,” and as our pastor has often said, we are not “sinners saved by grace.” It is grace alone which has saved us, but now in addition to having been forgiven of our sins, we have been made holy, blameless and righteous - saints! That is actually, factually what God has made us to be! He doesn’t just “see” us as holy and righteous. We are holy and righteous.

We do contain the capacity to sin, and the reason is that sin dwells “in” us (see Rom. 7:17,20). The good news is that we are not identified by what is in us but rather by who we actually are! When you have a virus “in” you, you don’t say “I am a virus” or “I am a runny nose and swollen tonsils.” What is in you might temporarily have power over your bodily functions, but it does not define who you are. In Christ, sin doesn’t define us. We are defined as a saints. Nothing we “do” can change that identity, just as nothing we did created that identity in the first place. It was all the work of God and it will always continue to be the work of God. The prodigal son didn’t lose his identity as a son, even when he went off and squandered his inheritance.

The book mentioned above says, “Believe you are a ‘sinner saved by grace’ and you’ll act like one; believe you are a holy, purified saint who admittedly sins at times, but who hates that life-style, and you’ll be highly motivated to act like such a saint.” Our new life in Christ is lived by trusting and resting in what God has already done, and in His very life which is in union with ours!

Convicted of Righteousness

Latest Growing in Grace program is available for download. In Christ, we have a brand new identity. The Bible says that in Him we've been perfected, and we are holy, righteous and complete in Him. This week Mike and Joel talk about how the unbelieving world had to be convicted of sin (see John 16:8-11, Romans 3:19-20) in order to come to Christ, but now that we're in Christ we're convicted of righteousness - because that's who we are! When we sin, we are simply not being who we (already truly) are, and the more we're convinced, and convicted, of our true identity as the righteousness of God, the more we'll live as who we really are. All of this is based upon the finished work of Jesus and the ongoing work of the Holy Spirit in our lives. It's all Him, not us!

gigcast.graceroots.org

My review of Recover Your Good Heart

I was introduced to the writings of Jim Robbins a few months ago through a blog post from Aida, who, since then, has posted a few blogs about his book Recover Your Good Heart. I believe she heard about the book through Amy. Long story short, I ended up having an email conversation with Jim and I received a copy of the book from him. I've thoroughly enjoyed reading the book, and gaining some insight into "the heart" - the new heart of flesh that God put in us after having taken away our old heart of stone (Ezekiel 36:26).

Below is my review of the book that appears on Jim's website, robbinswritings.com.

In the midst of a church culture that tends to put a huge emphasis on outward behavior change and religious activity, Jim Robbins’ book Recover Your Good Heart is a refreshing and much needed look into the true life that we have in Christ that is lived freely and abundantly from within - through the new heart that God gave us when we were raised to life with Christ.

How many Christians are still living with the mentality of something that was true at one time – that our hearts were deceitful and desperately wicked – when the scriptures tell us that in Christ God has taken away the old, unredeemed, sinful heart and placed in us a brand new heart that is holy, righteous and good!

It’s in our new God-given heart that we find real life and our true identity. Robbins examines the scriptures to show us what this new heart is and how we live from our good heart rather than trying harder to become something better. I highly recommend this book for anyone who tends to live in guilt and shame, or for anyone who simply wants to grow in understanding their true identity in Christ so they can freely live the life they were always meant to live.

Big Difference 7 - Guilty of ALL vs. Innocent and justified

Rom 3:19 Now we know that whatever the law says, it says to those who are under the law, that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God.

James 2:10 For whoever shall keep the whole law, and yet stumble in one point, he is guilty of all.

Yep, that's what happened under the law. However...

Col 2:13-14 When you were dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He made you alive together with Him, having forgiven you all trespasses, having wiped out the handwriting of requirements that was against us, which was contrary to us. And He took it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross.

Rom 3:21-24 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...

Rom 5:1 Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ...

JUSTIFIED: Greek word Dikaioo -
-to render righteous or such he ought to be
-to show, exhibit, evince, one to be righteous, such as he is and wishes himself to be considered
-to declare, pronounce, one to be just, righteous, or such as he ought to be
-to render as just or innocent

What guilt? The law made everyone guilty. But by faith in Christ we are now JUSTIFIED - declared to be righteous, rendered righteous and innocent!


*For an explanation of this Big Difference series, see the original post.*