Romans 3: The Gospel of Grace for the World

Application: The student will identify the need of the gospel as evidence by the description of a sinner.

AFTER OUR STUDY STOPS ON THE GOSPEL OF GRACE FOR THE GENTILES AND THE GOSPEL OF GRACE FOR THE JEWS, WE NOW COME TO THE EXPANSION OF BOTH AS WE STUDY THE GOSPEL OF GRACE FOR THE ENTIRE WORLD.

ONE OF THE MOST POWERFUL LESSONS ALREADY GIVEN US BY PAUL IN ROMANS IS THAT ALL PEOPLE ARE EQUAL IN THE SIGHT OF GOD IN TERMS OF SALVATION.

BECAUSE OF THAT FACT WE SAW IN CHAPTER TWO THAT THE JEWS WERE NOT CLOSER TO SALVATION THAN THE GENTILES BECAUSE BOTH ARE SINNERS IN THE VIEW OF GOD.

JEWS LOOKED DOWN ON THE GENTILES, THINKING THEM POLLUTED AND UNCLEAN, EVEN CONSIDERING THEM BELOW BOTH SAMARITANS AND DOGS.

THOSE WHO LOOK DOWN ON OTHERS DENY THEIR OWN PERSONAL NEED FOR GOD’S GRACE.

IN CHAPTER THREE, PAUL SHOWS US THAT ALTHOUGH SOME ARE PRIVILEGED, NONE ARE ASSURED OF SALVATION WITHOUT CHRIST AS THEIR ACCEPTED SAVIOR.

NO JEW WAS EVER ABLE TO KEEP THE LAW, EXCEPTING JESUS, AND THEREFORE THEIR NEED FOR GRACE WAS AS CRUCIAL AS THE GENTILES.

BOTH GROUPS ARE BORN IN SIN FROM THE FALL OF THE FIRST ADAM, AND PAUL TEACHES THAT THE ONLY SOLUTION FOR THAT SIN IS REPENTANCE TO CHRIST AND THE NEW BIRTH WHICH COMES ONLY THROUGH GRACE FOUND BY FAITH.

IT CANNOT BE EARNED FOR IT IS THE GIFT OF GOD.

DAVID TAUGHT US THIS LESSON IN PSALM 51:5 WHEN HE SAID THAT HE WAS BORN IN INIQUITY AND IN SIN DID HIS MOTHER CONCEIVE HIM.

JESUS TAUGHT THE SAME LESSON IN LUKE 18:11 WHEN THE PHARISEE SPOKE TO GOD PRAYING THANKS THAT HE WAS BETTER THAN THE PUBLICAN.

THE PUBLICAN SIMPLY PRAYED : “LORD HAVE MERCY ON ME A SINNER”, AND JESUS SAID IT WAS THE PUBLICAN THAT WENT HOME JUSTIFIED, NOT THE PHARISEE.

PAUL IS UNPACKING THIS VERY NEW AND DIFFERENT CONCEPT IN ROMANS ASSURING THAT ALL ARE IN NEED OF MERCY AND GRACE AND THAT NONE ENTER THE KINGDOM WITHOUT IT.

BECAUSE OF THE FOREVER SIN OF MAN THE WORLD STANDS CONDEMNED AND NONE ARE RIGHTEOUS WITHIN THEMSELVES FOR THE WORLD PRACTICES SIN AND WILL ANSWER TO GOD FOR IT.

PAUL BEGINS CHAPTER 3 WITH A QUESTION WHICH IS WHAT ADVANTAGE HATH THE JEW?

WHAT PROFIT IS THERE OF CIRCUMCISION?

IN VERSE 2 PAUL ANSWERS HIS OWN QUESTION.

THE ANSWER IS “YES” THE JEWS HAD ADVANTAGES WHICH WERE GOD GIVEN BECAUSE THEY WERE CHOSEN TO RECEIVE THE ORACLES OF GOD.

THESE ORACLES BEGAN WITH THE COVENANT WITH ABRAHAM IN GENESIS 12 AND HE WAS THE FIRST CHOSEN BY GOD TO FATHER THE CHOSEN NATION.

WHAT THE JEWS HAD FORGOTTEN WAS THAT ALONG WITH THE ORACLES GIVEN THEM, COVENANTS AND PROPHETS, CAME ALSO RESPONSIBILITIES.

WE MUST NOT FAIL TO RECALL THAT IN THE ENTIRE OLD TESTAMENT THERE IS NO SCRIPTURE THAT PREDICTS A CHURCH.

WHAT IT DID WAS TO FORESHADOW A KINGDOM IN WHICH THE JEW SHALL BE THE HEAD.

JESUS CLEARLY SPOKE ON THIS MATTER TO THE SAMARITAN WOMAN WHEN HE TOLD HER SALVATION WAS OF THE JEWS. (JOHN 4:22).

IN VERSE 3 PAUL ASSURES THAT JUST BECAUSE SOME DID NOT BELIEVE DOES NOT MEAN THE FAITH OF GOD, EXPRESSED IN HIS GOSPEL, WAS OF NO EFFECT.

THAT UNBELIEF MADE MAN WHO DID NOT BELIEVE TO BE A LIAR AND THERE WOULD BE JUDGEMENT OF THAT LIE AND THE JUDGMENT WOULD BE HARSH.

PAUL THEN ASKS IF GOD IS UNRIGHTEOUS FOR THAT CONSEQUENCE? THE ANSWER IS NO BECAUSE THAT IS HOW GOD SHALL JUDGE THE WORLD.

GOD IS NOT UNJUST IN JUDGMENT BECAUSE MAN HAD THE OPPORTUNITY OF FAITH AND REJECTED IT WHEN HE DID NOT ACCEPT THE MESSIAH SENT.

IN VERSE 8 PAUL MAKES SURE ALL UNDERSTAND THAT THOSE WHO DO EVIL SO THAT GOOD MAY COME FROM IT ARE JUSTLY UNDER DAMNATION.

HERE IN VERSE 9 PAUL MAKES SURE THAT THE ROMAN CHURCH UNDERSTOOD THAT ALL MEANT ALL, AS HE SAYS BOTH JEWS AND GENTILES ARE ALL UNDER SIN.

VERSE 10 IS ONE OF OUR GREATEST REVIVAL QUOTATIONS:

“As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one.”

IN VERSES 11 & 12 HE DRIVES THE POINT EVEN FURTHER BY TEACHING THAT NONE UNDERSTANDS AND SEEK AFTER GOD, NOR NONE DOES ANY GOOD, NO, NOT ONE.

PAUL CANNOT LET THIS TEACHING REST AND GOES TO MUCH GREATER LENGTHS TO MAKE HIS POINT IN 13-19:

“Their throat is an open sepulchre

Their tongues are deceitful

Serpent poison is under their lips

Their mouth is full of cursing

Those same mouths are filled with bitterness

Their feet are swift to shed blood

Their ways are destruction and misery

They know not the way of peace

There is no fear of God before their eyes  

All the world is guilty before God

TO BE EXTRA SURE NO JEW MAY THINK THAT THESE AWFUL CONDEMNATIONS REFER ONLY TO GENTILES, PAUL ALLOWS NO EXCEPTION TO BE SEEN FOR JEWS.

VERSE 20 IS THE CROWNING JEWEL OF THESE DAMNING ACCUSATIONS:

“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.”

RATHER THAN PROVIDE SALVATION FOR MAN, THE LAW REVEALS MAN TO BE A SINNER.

HAVING DAMNED BOTH GENTILE AND JEW IN TERMS OF BOTH BEING IDENTICAL SINNERS BEFORE GOD, PAUL NOW FINALLY COMES TO HIS FINEST POINT IN VERSE 21:

“But now the righteousness of God without the law is manifested. Being witnessed by the law and the prophets.”

LATER IN 2ND COR 5:21 PAUL WILL ELABORATE THIS POINT AND SAY THAT GOD MADE JESUS WHO KNEW NO SIN TO BE MADE SIN FOR US THAT WE MIGHT BE MADE RIGHTEOUS.

THIS RIGHTEOUSNESS IS APART FROM THE LAW.

IMPERFECT MAN CANNOT KEEP THE LAW AS NONE ARE RIGHTEOUS THEREFORE NONE ARE JUSTIFIED BY IT.

ISAIAH 56 HAS PROVIDED THIS SAME TRUTH BY TEACHING THAT GOD LAID ON JESUS THE INIQUITY OF US ALL.

WE NOTICE THE PROPHET DID NOT SAY THE INIQUITY OF THE GENTILES OR THE INIQUITY OF THE JEWS.

HE SAID THE INIQUITY OF US ALL.

VERSES 22 & 23 EXPLAIN THAT THIS RIGHTEOUSNESS GIVEN TO US IS BY THE FAITH OF JESUS AND COMES UPON ALL WHO BELIEVE.

ALL WHO BELIEVE PROVES WE ARE ALL EQUAL IN FAITH  AND PAUL SAYS THERE IS NO DIFFERENCE FOR ALL HAVE SINNED AND COME SHORT OF THE GLORY OF GOD.

ALL REDEMPTION IS ONLY IN CHRIST JESUS.

GOD HAS SET HIM FORTH TO BE THE PAYMENT FOR THE REMISSION OF OUR SINS THROUGH HIS BLOOD AND VERSE 25-26 TEACHES THAT THEREFORE OUR BELIEF IN HIM IS OUR JUSTIFIER. (ACTS 10:43)

VERSE 28 & 29 BEGIN PAUL’S SUMMARY BY SAYING THAT A MAN IS JUSTIFIED BY FAITH WITHOUT THE DEEDS OF THE LAW AND THAT GOD IS NOT THE GOD OF THE JEWS ONLY BUT ALSO OF THE GENTILES.

THERE IS ONE GOD WHO JUSTIFIES BOTH THROUGH FAITH AND BY THAT FACT THE LAW IS FULLY ESTABLISHED.

WE SEE BY THIS TEACHING THAT THE GOSPEL OF GRACE IS FOR THE WHOLE WORLD.

PAUL KNEW THAT MANY OF THE JEWS THOUGHT OF THEMSELVES AS RIGHT WITH GOD  BY THEIR WORKS IN THE LAW OF MOSES AND BY THEIR BEING BLOOD CHILDREN OF ABRAHAM.

THEY PRIDEFULLY CONSIDERED THEMSELVES TO BE CLOSER TO GOD THAT ANY GENTILES WHO THEY THOUGHT OF AS HEATHEN AND GODLESS.

PAUL SHOWS IN CHAPTER 3 THAT EVEN THOUGH THE JEWS DID INDEED HAD SOME PRIVILEGES, THEY EQUALLY FELL SHORT OF THE GLORY OF GOD, EXACTLY AS DID THE GENTILES.

NO MAN WAS RIGHTEOUS WITHIN HIMSELF, NEITHER JEW NOR GENTILE.

NONE DID GOOD, NO NOT ONE.

ALL ARE UNDER SIN AND THEREFORE UNDER CONDEMNATION.

BY THE DEEDS OF THE LAW NO FLESH WAS JUSTIFIED.

BEING JUST BEFORE GOD, THEREFORE, IS NOT BY THE WORKS OF THE LAW, BUT BY GRACE THROUGH FAITH IN CHRIST.

AS JESUS TAUGHT IN JOHN 3:18:

“Those who believe have eternal life and those that do not are condemned already.”

WE KNOW THAT NICODEMUS CAME TO BELIEVE THROUGH THAT CONVERSATION WITH THE LORD FOR WHEN THE BODY OF JESUS NEEDED TO BE SOUGHT AND PREPARED AND BURIED, HE, WITH JOSEPH OF ARIMATHEA, WERE THE TWO WHO DID SO.

SO HOW MAY WE SUMMARIZE ALL THAT PAUL IS TEACHING US ABOUT THIS COMPLETE CHANGE IN HOW MANKIND RELATES TO GOD?

WE SUMMARIZE BY SHOWING HOW GOD HAS UNFOLDED HIS OWN PLAN FOR THE CROWN OF HIS CREATION, WHICH IS MAN, CREATED ON THE 6TH DAY AFTER ALL OTHER CREATION AND THE ONLY PART OF HIS CREATION HE TERMED “VERY GOOD”.

WE FIND GOD’S PLAN BEST DESCRIBED IN THE 2ND CHAPTER OF THE LETTER TO THE CHURCH AT EPHESUS:

EPHESUS CHAPTER 2:

14: “For he is our peace, who hath made both one, and hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us;

15: “Having abolished in his flesh the enmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances; for to make in himself of twain one new man, so making peace.”

17: “And came and preached peace to you which were afar off, and to them that were nigh.”

18: “For through him we both have access by one Spirit unto the Father.”

SO BY THE LAMB SLAIN BEFORE THE FOUNDATION OF THE WORLD, GOD KNEW AND PLANNED HOW HE WOULD RECONCILE MANKIND TO HIMSELF AND HE HAS REVEALED HIS FOREVER PLAN THROUGH HIS WORD TO ALL WHO WILL READ, LISTEN, AND OBEY.

THIS PLAN WAS ALWAYS AND STILL IS:

THE GOSPEL OF GRACE FOR THE WHOLE WORLD.

NEXT WE WILL SEE HOW HE REVEALED THE ACTUAL WORKING OF HIS PLAN AND HOW WE GAIN PEACE WITH GOD THROUGH OUR JUSTIFICATION BY FAITH ALONE.