ROMANS 3:20-21 MY INSIGHT
We have others who believe that God can forgive them outside of Jesus. There is nor can there possible be any forgiveness outside of Jesus, and that is what this passage so clearly teaches. Justification is the act of God declaring the guilty to be innocent. Now if God said we are to be holy as He is holy, how can He forgive fallen man without Himself becoming unholy? This will be explained further down.
Someone said to me recently that they believe in Jesus but He was just a great prophet, this person was a Moslem. I asked him how he intended to get to Heaven without Jesus as his Savior. He said, God will forgive me because He is a loving God. I will also address this below.
Make no doubt about it, God is a forgiving God, but it is impossible for Him to forgive me purely because He loves me.
We go back to the demand God place upon every man. He said, BE PERFECT FOR I AM PERFECT.
Now for years I heard ministers teach on that verse and said something like this; the word perfect mean to be spiritually mature, they teach you got to grow from been a babe in Christ to become a strong warrior for Christ. What do I say to that? NO, NO, NO.. When God said something, He mean what He said. Are we to deduct from that explanation that all God is in character is just a Spiritually mature being? If we believe that explanation that the ministers give then we must believe that is who God is.
The perfection of God is not based upon maturity, because maturity mean a process of growth. God is intrinsically perfect, God is what make perfect, perfect. Perfection does not define God, God defines perfection. Perfect bear its character from God. In other word, God is what perfect is..
When God said we must be perfect, He mean we must be as He is in character. Now we have a demand placed upon us that we cannot fulfill, and a sacrifice we must make that we are unable to make, (it is called the perfect sacrifice, that must be without spot or wrinkle).
For God to have perfect relationship with us(which is what He always desire, since the fall of man), we must have those demand met. We cannot live in the Holy presence of God when we get to Heaven, because we are spiritually mature, we must be perfect.
So if we cannot meet this demand, how can I ever get to Heaven in the immediate presence of such a perfect and Holy God.
Am so glad you asked. That is what this passage is teaching us. Don't miss it, don't forget it, get it in your spirit, and then fall down on your knees and thank God for it. There is one word I want you to zero in on, PROPITIATION.. Whatever you do don't forget that word.
Now I will in the following verses explain the two part error that was told me by this Moslem fellow, and the teaching of maturity by those ministers. Before I go on let me say, I believe a Christian must be mature, but this demand that God made supersedes our lame ambition of maturity.
In fact I will here and now before going into the verses say why maturity is not what God had in mind.
1. God is not mature, He is perfect, and He said we must be as perfect as He is. Notice God did not say we must be exactly like He is. Neither did He say we must be as powerful or as wise as and is. What then is this perfection that God desire is to be?
First we must know that there are attributes that can only be ascribed to God, attributes such as, all powerful, all wise, everywhere present at all time, immutable, infallible, etc. attributes such as those cannot be attained by anyone, they only can be ascribed to God. When God therefore said we ought to be perfect, He is expecting us to reach Godhood. Perfection of which God desire us to be, is to fall down upon His Grace, and enter into His Character. When we enter through the Holy Spirit into a new birth, God enables us to do what we could not possible do before, because we are now His Sons and Daughters.
To be what God want us to be is to totally rely on Him to bring us to that place, it a matter of letting go of us, and holding on to Him.
Basically this perfection speaks of freedom from sin, yes to be totally free from sin. Why would God made such a demand? Because God cannot stand in the presence of sin, how could we enter into His presence if we are not perfect? Think about if the rapture happen today, not one person would be caught up because on sinless perfection. So how do we get to Heaven when the trumpet sound? By perfection, BUT NOT OUR OWN. What we were unable to do, the demander (God) did for us, making the supply for the demand was done not by us but by God, making it all GRACE. When God look upon us today, He sees us not in our filthy rags, He has IN CHRIST JESUS, removed the filthy rags from us and clothed us in perfect righteousness. When God look on us He see us perfect in His Son.
Another way to look at what God mean, is to look back at man at the time God made him. Man was perfect, meaning sinless, that is when man was in the immediate presence of God. God desire is to restore us back to that place of perfection from sin. Let's call it back to basic, before all the trimmings of sin looked so appealing.
The only way we could possible get back to that place is with a sacrifice worthy to let us back into His presence; remember you must get past the angel that stand guarding the Garden of Eden. Jesus went in been the offering and offerer of sin, and guest what the angel bowed down and worshipped Him as he saw Him approaching. Today we have access once more through the blood, our passport to Paradise, from whence we once have fallen. Where there were once tears of regret, we now have the wonder of God's Grace.
Jesus gave us a glimpse of this when He said,
John 15:5 (KJV)
I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.
This is not a man appointed task, but a God relying gift.
Romans 3:23 (KJV)
For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;
The same God who said we ought to be perfect, knows that it is impossible for us to be so, why then did this all wise God asked is to do something He know we cannot do?
This is the reason why. The same God who made the demand, provided the remedy for the demand. THE REMEDY IS JESUS CHRIST.
Jesus the perfect Son of God, came to this world to die, the reason been to make us perfect candidates for Heaven. When you and I accept Jesus as Savior and Lord, God imputed the righteousness of Jesus the Perfect Son to us, now God does not see us as anything less that perfect in His Son. Therefore if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of His. I took great pain to explain this because this will make this passage, hopefully a little clearer as I explain it further.
Can God purely on the basis of His love forgive a person of their sin. If God could forgive our sins based upon His love alone, then why would He have sent His Son to die a horrible death to save us?
It is impossible for God to forgive anyone purely on His love, if He did, how could he be a just God. If a crime is committed must not a infinitely just God see that justice is done. Think about it this way, I kill someone and get caught, and was taken before a judge, and the judge asked me, did you kill so and so, and I answer yes I did. I continue, judge I am guilty of this crime, am very sorry that I kill so and so, but judge I know that you are a very merciful and loving judge, so I am asking you to forgive me. Suppose the judge looked at me and say, I think you are very sorry, you are forgiven, go home you are free. Suppose that person that was killed was you son or daughter, and you were in that courtroom when that judge said that to that person, what would be your response? The first word out of your mouth would be, there is no justice, maybe you would join some like minded individual and demonstrate against the judges verdict, and you would be perfectly right. This judge would have used his love to override his justice.
If God forgive a person purely because of His love, then He would become just like this judge. Because God's attributes are infinite, He cannot use one attribute to override another. This mean that it not possible for Him to forgive anyone that is guilty without that person, or someone else paying the penalty for what was done. Jesus Christ came and died that the penalty that we deserve would be passed from us, He did this on the basis of what is known as a substitutionary sacrifice. When He died, His death was not for anything wrong He did, He died because of what we did. The price Jesus paid for us was His life. When we accept Him as our Savior and Lord, God imputes the righteousness of Jesus to us, this is the only way God can forgive a guilty person of their sin.
Romans 3:25-26 (KJV)
Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God; [26] To declare, I say , at this time his righteousness: that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus.
PROPITIATION
ἱλαστήριον hilastḗrion
Noun Neuter hil-as-tay'-ree-on
from a derivative of (2433)
neuter of a derivative of ; an expiatory (place or thing), i.e. (concretely) an atoning
victim, or (specially) the lid of the Ark (in the Temple):--mercyseat, propitiation. relating to an appeasing or expiating, having placating or expiating force, expiatory; a means of appeasing or expiating, a propitiation
used of the cover of the ark of the covenant in the Holy of Holies, which was sprinkled with the blood of the expiatory victim on the annual day of atonement (this rite signifying that the life of the people, the loss of which they had merited by their sins, was offered to God in the blood as the life of the victim, and that God by this ceremony was appeased and their sins expiated); hence the lid of expiation, the propitiatory
an expiatory sacrifice
a expiatory victim
"An atoning victim" Jesus Christ was that and much more. This atoning victim was the perfect Son of God. He is our mercy seat, the means by which we obtain mercy. He is the expiatory sacrifice, the only one the Father will ever accept.
He is the covering of the ark of the covenant. Remember one key item that was inside of the ark? It was the Law, the two tablets of stone upon which the finger of God wrote the Ten Commandments. Picture this, the Law is inside the ark, but over it lay the mercy seat, the covering for the ark. Jesus Christ is represented by this mercy seat. One angel on one side, and another angel on the other side. We see this at the resurrection of Jesus. The body was gone, but one angel was at the place where His feet was, and the other angel, where His head would have been, tis is the perfect picture of the Old Testament ark of the covenant.
Since the Law is inside the ark, and the mercy seat covers the law,the only way for God to see our works, is through the propitiation, the expiatory sacrifice, who is Jesus Christ. This shows that what take first place in the plan of Salvation is not law but grace, since grace covers law. Trying to appease God by our works for the means of justification is a person removing the mercy seat and saying to God, I have something better.
In this passage God said of Jesus Christ.
Romans 3:25 (KJV)
Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God;
in His divine forbearance God had overlooked our sin, but all this was done in pointing to the perfect sacrifice which is Jesus The Christ.
PROPITIATION : mean a wrath removing sacrifice. The wrath that was our, was removed from us and placed upon Jesus Christ.
Isaiah 53:4-6 (KJV)
Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted.
[5] But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.
6] All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.
Because of Jesus Christ and Him alone, God can justly forgive our sin and remain Just. No one else claimed to die for the sins of the world, and no one else have the approval of God in Heaven for a perfect work done.
Matthew 3:17 (KJV)
And low a voice from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.
the life and sacrifice of the Son was fully accepted by The Father.
God now said, He is Just and Justifier of anyone who believe in Jesus Christ, the substitutionary sacrifice. So God remain just in forgiving us, because someone else paid the price for the crime we committed.
So saying that God will forgive me because He is loving, but rejecting the only sacrifice He accepts, is living a lie. Islam said that God have no son, what does God say about that?
1 John 2:21-23 (KJV)
I have not written unto you because ye know not the truth, but because ye know it, and that no lie is of the truth.
[22] Who is a liar but he that denieth that Jesus is the Christ? He is antichrist, that denieth the Father and the Son. 23] Whosoever denieth the Son, the same hath not the Father: (but) he that acknowledgeth the Son hath the Father also .
In other word you cannot say you are serving God, but deny His Son, that is one reason we know Islam is not of God, because here the Bible tells us it is of the Devil, spirit of anti-christ.
This passage of Scripture started out by declaring truth that eradicate error. Verse 20.
Romans 3:20 (KJV)
Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin. The following is the greek meaning of the word,"deed."
ἔργον érgon
Noun Neuter er'-gon
from a primary (but obsolete) ergo (to work)
from a primary (but obsolete) ergo (to work); toil (as an effort or occupation); by implication, an act:--deed, doing, labour, work.
business, employment, that which any one is occupied
that which one undertakes to do, enterprise, undertaking
any product whatever, any thing accomplished by hand, art, industry, or mind an act, deed, thing done: the idea of working is emphasised in opp. to that which is less than work
Therefore by our works, performance, action, dedication, toil, or effort, shall no flesh be justified in God sight. Wait a minute, did not God say we must be perfect, So why that would not be good enough? Because the perfection of which God sees and seeks, does not belong to us, it belong to Jesus Christ.
What is justification?
δικαιόω dikaióō
Verb dik-ah-yo'-o
from (1342)
from ; to render (i.e. show or regard as) just or innocent:--free, justify(-ier), be righteous.
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.
Justification is God as in a courtroom looking at a guilty man and saying to him you are guiltless, go home you are free. The only way this is possible is what this passage is teaching. This is the real meaning of Romans 3:20-31. This passage tell us why this God in this courtroom would look at a guilty man and say to him you are free, I find no fault in you, and how this God who is infinitely Holy, infinitely just, could still remain Holy and Just after such a declaration.
In this whole passage God tells us what is inescapable. No amount of work can give us a right standing with Him.
Ephesians 2:8-9 (KJV)
For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:
9] Not of works, lest any man should boast.
The Bible tells us that the righteousness of God transcends the law, because it is better than the law.
Hebrews 8:6-8 (KJV)
But now hath he obtained a more excellent ministry, by how much also he is the mediator of a better covenant, which was established upon better promises. 7] For if that first covenant had been faultless, then should no place have been sought for the second.
[8] For finding fault with them, he saith, Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah:
Since the Old Covenant could not produce the Salvation of God, and since that was not the intention of God, He executed the perfect plan that He had instituted before the world began.
When Adam and Eve sinned God gave them a temporary covering for their sin, this covering lasted until the perfect sacrifice came, that perfect sacrifice was Jesus The Christ, the Son of God. That which was temporary was never meant to be the final sacrifice, it only serve to show the forbearance of God for sins that are past. God later allowed animal sacrifice to continue as a mean of temporary substitution for the sins of man. The just demand of God was never satisfied by the multitude of animal sacrifices, they were just a temporary covering. The law that was instituted by God was never meant to save anyone, it was given to show us the righteousness of God, highlights our sin, but not to give us Eternal Life. The law actually show us how much we need God's supply of Grace for our redemption, it was not intended to justify us.
Jesus Christ God's Son died to remove the wrath of God from us, if we deny His sacrifice we must pay the price for the sins we committed, we either accept Jesus sacrifice and live, or reject it and suffer eternal damnation. Don't forget this one thing, someone must pay the price, is either you accept the sacrifice Jesus already paid, or you will have to pay it yourself.
In Revelation 20 this is what we see happen to those who tried to please God apart from the justification that is in Jesus Christ.
Revelation 20:11-15 (KJV)
And I saw a great white throne, and him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them.
[12] And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works. [13] And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works.
14] And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. [15] And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.
Notice what the Scripture say and did not say. First you have the Book of Life, this book records names only, not works. The book singular contain only names because we are not saved by our works. By the deed of the flesh shall no flesh be justified in God's sight. Jesus said we ought to rejoice, but not that demons flee from us, but because our names are written in the Book of Life. This book shows the Grace of God to those who have accepted Jesus. So those whose worked were cast into the lake of fire, not so much because of their works, but because they did not accept the sacrifice that take away sin, apart from works. But those who trust in Jesus, their names were in the Book of Life.
Christian do good works, and we are admonished to do so, but our good works are always ascribed to Jesus not to us, we see the elders who after receiving their crown in Heaven, turned around and cast them down before the Lamb, why? Because they knew that the works they did was all because, or rather through Him, without Him we can do nothing. He therefore alone is worthy to receive glory, honor and praise, not man. That is why no work is recorded by our names, the work we did was not ours, it belongs to Jesus. The works that saved us was not ours, they were the Lord, Without Him we can do nothing, and the Scripture tells us, that whatever we do in words or deed, do all to the glory of God.
Next you have books plural that were opened, but in these books were written the works of men, who did not accept the sacrifice of God. How do I know that they did not accept His sacrifice? Because only sinners appear at the white throne judgement, Christians don't. This picture you are looking at in Revelation chapter 20:11-15 is a picture of those at the White Throne Judgement.
Psalm 1:5-6 (KJV)
Therefore the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous.
6] For the Lord knoweth the way of the righteous: but the way of the ungodly shall perish.
What was written in the books were their works, the Bible did not say they were all bad works, am sure they were good things along with bad things recorded. The reason they were rejected is because, by the deed of the law shall no flesh be justified in the sight of God.
These names belong to those who have removed the mercy seat from it's place, and try to offer to God that which cannot atone for their sin. The end result is seen in the last verse, whosoever name was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.
God is right now waiting for the hungry heart to cry out, Lord save me, when you do, you'll find a willing God waiting with open arms to receive you as His own.
Yes God will forgive us, but only through His Son Jesus.
Acts 4:12 (KJV)
Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.
Romans 10:13 (KJV)
For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.
My prayer is for those who are outside still wondering what is going on inside to make a move forward, and come on in.
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