Romans 3:25-26

Romans 3:25-26

25 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. 26 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.

Please consider supporting the costs of this ministry. Thank you

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:14

Hello, this is Dr. Bill Branks, author of Love the Word. Our text for today is Romans 3 verse 25 and 26. Christ, 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. I recently watched a court case where a convicted killer received three life sentences in prison without the possibility of parole. His lawyer argued for a reduced sentence by telling the judge all about the killer's remorse, good deeds, and that he was a changed man. The judge obliged the convict and the lawyer by reducing his sentence to only two life sentences. When a crime occurs, the guilty must face the full consequences, or there is no justice. Without justice, an archie follows. In an imperfect world with many gray areas about what constitutes fair punishment, it's hard to please everyone. The victim wants harsher penalties, while the offender often desires less or no punishment at all. There are no gray areas when a perfect judge demands perfect obedience. God is perfect, as is his system of justice. Our ability to earn righteousness by remaining sinless is impossible. It's a pass-fail situation. One sin would exclude us from his presence. Even if our goodness mattered, it would be as useful as having three life sentences reduced to two. It would be foolish to believe and worship a God who isn't perfectly holy, just, and righteous. Therefore, I choose the one true sovereign God, and with that choice comes accepting his standards and abandoning my own. Our only hope of meeting God's standards of righteousness is through his Son, whom God presented as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. We accept Christ as our Savior, meaning we trust him to do what he says he will do, forgiving our sins, erasing our guilt, and being a propitiation for our sins through his sacrifice on the cross. We have incurred a great debt by sinning against God, multiple life sentences would not even come close to paying it because when we sin against an eternal God, we sin against him eternally. His wrath is justified, and it must be fully satisfied. Propitiation means that Jesus was the sacrifice who fully endured God's wrath, turning his anger toward us into favor. Eternal punishment for our sin debt is more than a thousand life sentences, but Christ satisfied it completely with his blood. The grace and mercy were shown in his forbearance and withholding of wrath over past sins until his wrath could be poured onto Christ, further demonstrating his mercy. Eternal punishment may seem cruel, but it is just, and we must focus on his merciful solution. He never reduced the sentence. He poured it entirely on his son for all who have faith in Jesus. God demonstrates that he is both just and the justifier. He alone can uphold his high standard of righteousness by fulfilling the requirements himself for those of us who simply trust in Christ.