Saved By God, From God, To God, For God (Romans 3:23-26 )
On Memorial Day we remember and honor the sacrifice of those that gave their lives for our great country. It is very true that freedom is not free. So, I am incredibly thankful for the sacrifices that people have made over the years for the freedoms that we enjoy. America is a wonderful country to live in, because of those freedoms.
I am even more thankful for the sacrifice Christ made for me and for my salvation. We as Westerners have had a bit of a problem with self-centeredness. We tend to view life with ourselves at the center of the Universe. And our thinking gets so out of order that we even believe that God works for us. But that is not what we find in Scripture. God’s working int eh world is about Him and His glory. Our salvation is no different. It is first and foremost about God and His glory.
What we will see today in Romans 3:23-26 is that we are saved by God, from God, to God, for God.
In order to understand this text we have to understand Romans 3:23.
“for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” (Romans 3:23 ESV)
This statement does not mean that we have all sinned, so we are a little off. It is a summary statement of Romans 3:9-20. There Paul takes Old Testament passage after Old Testament passage to prove that we are more than a little off kilter. We are rebel sinners who have corrupt in every part of our being.
“What then? Are we Jews any better off? No, not at all. For we have already charged that all, both Jews and Greeks, are under sin, as it is written: “None is righteous, no, not one; no one understands; no one seeks for God. All have turned aside; together they have become worthless; no one does good, not even one.” “Their throat is an open grave; they use their tongues to deceive.” “The venom of asps is under their lips.” “Their mouth is full of curses and bitterness.” “Their feet are swift to shed blood; in their paths are ruin and misery, and the way of peace they have not known.” “There is no fear of God before their eyes.” Now we know that whatever the law says it speaks to those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be stopped, and the whole world may be held accountable to God. For by works of the law no human being will be justified in his sight, since through the law comes knowledge of sin.” (Romans 3:9-20 ESV)
No one is righteous. No one seeks for God. The things we speak are evil. We walk in evil ways. For “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” (Romans 3:23 ESV)
We say with our mouths that we sin, but we have no idea what a horror that really is. We don’t tremble when we utter those words. Spurgeon once said, in a sermon on Psalm 19,
“The fact is, that man is a reeking mass of corruption. His whole soul is by nature so debased and so depraved, that no description which can be given of him even by inspired tongues can fully tell how base and vile a thing he is.”
This is what we mean when we say that we are sinners. And it is we who are a “reeking mass of corruption” that stand before a holy and righteous God. This fact alone should undo us. That is the situation we find ourselves in. This is us before God comes to us and rescues us.
But praise God that we are saved by God, from God, to God, for God.
We Are Saved By God (Romans 3:24)
We are a reeking mass of corruption that cannot save ourselves. But we are justified or declared to be righteous. Usually when someone is declared righteous it means that a judge saw no fault in them. This usually means that the person has merited this declaration, but that is not the case here. This is “by His grace as a gift, through the redemption that is found in Christ Jesus”.
So, rather than being something that is earned, Paul emphatically declares that this is a gift. The word used here for grace simply means lovingkindness or favor. Out of God’s own lovingkindness, He gave the glorious gift of salvation through the work of “Christ Jesus”.
Our salvation is not about working or achieving. It is about God’s grace. This is in complete opposition to what we usually think and how we usually behave. In fact, all world religions are about climbing the ladder of human achievement in some way. Even here in the United States where a majority of people believe themselves to be Christians, they will claim that they have to be good enough to earn salvation. Mormons state that their salvation is achieved by works, not faith. In the Book of Mormon, Heleman 12:24 states,
“And may God grant, in His fullness, that men might be brought unto repentance and good works, that they might be restored unto grace for grace, according to their works.”
Jehovah’s Witnesses believe that they can earn God’s favor by being one of the best believers. Buddhists believe that living well in life will result in a better life in re-incarnation until a state of Nirvana is reached. Islam teaches that being a Muslim and doing works causes a person to find favor with god and receive eternal life. It is only Christianity that teaches that God saves by His grace, that salvation is a gift. And it is a gift that is purchased through the work and sacrifice of another.
The good news is not run faster and paddle harder. It is trust in Christ who has run already and paddled for you. We are miserable and wretched sinners who have earned for ourselves God’s justice. But God the Son took on human flesh and dwelt among us. He lived a perfect life on our behalf. He lived the life that we should have lived. And then He died in the place of sinners taking the punishment that they should have taken. So, the Christian’s sins are paid for on the cross through the sacrifice of Christ. And the Christian is now declared righteous because he has been credited with the righteousness of Christ.
“Learn Christ and Him crucified. Learn to sing to Him and, despairing of yourself, say, “Lord Jesus, you are my righteousness, just as I am your sin. You have taken upon yourself what is mine and have given me what is Yours. You have taken upon Yourself what You were not and have given me what I was not.”—Martin Luther, Luther’s Works Volume 25, p. 188
Christian, your salvation is all about what Christ has done, not what you have done. Christ took your sin and has given you His righteousness. That is what has been called “The Great Exchange” And how glorious is that! What a gracious gift, that I could never have earned on my own.
In verse 25 we see how this gift is to be received. It is to be received “by faith”. So, we receive this gift, not be any work that we do. It is not through circumcision, it is not through baptism, it is not through the reciting of a prayer, it is not through the living of a good life, it is not through helping widows and orphans, it is by turning from trusting in ourselves and our own work and trusting in Christ.
Faith has an object. Faith is not some abstract idea that no one can comprehend. When you have faith in something then you trust it. I am currently typing this message while sitting in a chair that I trust will hold me. If I were to go fly on a plane then I would have certain convictions about planes, fuel, propellers, pilots, but those convictions don’t get me to my destination. I have to entrust myself to the plane and its workings in order to arrive at my destination. Likewise, I must entrust myself completely to the Savior.
If you are reading this and have not trusted Christ, know that this gift is offered to you today. You are reading about this glorious salvation now and know that it is a gift. Abandon trusting yourself and trust the Savior. Stop trying to climb that ladder of achievement yourself, trust in the One who climbed it on behalf of all who would believe and died as the punishment for their sins. By faith, take this gift that is offered to you now.
Christian, I want to ask a few questions that will get to the heart of the issue. I want us to do a little bit of self-correction. Your salvation is a free gift that is accepted by faith. You do not earn your right standing with God, nor do you earn God’s favor. I am certain that you can say that out loud, but how do you live this out day-to-day?
How do you respond when you sin? When you sin and feel the weight of that guilt do you run to Christ for cleansing or do you try to do it yourself? Do you try to be good for a while before you open your Bible, pray, or go to church?
Christian, know that it is Christ who cleanses you from sin and Christ who makes you acceptable to God. He has already done so and you need not hide from the Lord. You need to repent of your sin and ask for temporal forgiveness, but God’s final judgment on you has already been rendered if you are a believer. Go boldly before God’s throne, not because you are worth anything but because God has saved you. You do not earn this on your own. God has earned it for you.
Now, note well what the text says in Verse 25. It was God who put His Son forward. God is the One that did this. God is the One who accomplished salvation for us. God the Father and God the Son are united in this great work of achieving what we could not achieve, and that is a right relationship with Him.
Now, what are we saved from?
We Are Saved From God (Romans 3:25)
Christians today like to talk about being saved but do not like talking about what they are saved from. That is completely different from any other conversation I’ve heard. Whether it’s the icy waters or the heat of the flames, generally people like to talk about the danger they were brought out of as they discuss their salvation. And I believe a big part of the reason is that Hell has become a taboo topic along with the justice of God.
Here is the fact that Scripture points out time and time again. We are saved by God from God.
“whom God put forward as a propitiation by His blood, to be received by faith.” (Romans 3:25a ESV)
The meaning of that word “propitiation” is a wrath bearing sacrifice. Remember, we have fallen short of the glory of God and as such we deserve for God’s wrath and punishment to be poured out upon ourselves. God’s wrath and anger abides on those who are in rebellion against Him. And God put His Son forward as a wrath bearing sacrifice. This means that all of the anger and justice of God that had been stored up for us was poured out upon His Son when he was on the cross. God the Father put His Son forward as the sacrifice that would take the punishment that you and I deserve. Through the death of Christ we are saved from the wrath and anger of God.
If you are here today and have not trusted in Christ then God’s wrath still hangs over your head. You are walking about your life thinking that all is okay when the anvil of God’s wrath could squash you at any moment. Jonathan Edwards, in his memorable sermon “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God” put it this way,
“Your wickedness makes you, as it were, heavy as lead, and to rend downwards with great weight and pressure towards hell, and if God should let you go, you would immediately sink, and swiftly descend and plunge into the bottomless gulf; and your healthy constitution, and your own care and prudence, and best contrivance, and all your righteousness, would have no more influence to uphold you, and keep you out of hell, than a spider’s web would have to stop a falling rock. Were it not for the sovereign pleasure of God, the earth would not bear you one moment, for you are a burden to it; the creation groans with you; the creature is made subject to the bondage of your corruption, not willingly; the sun does not willingly shine upon you, to give you light to serve sin and Satan; the earth does not willingly yield her increase, to satisfy your lusts; nor is it willingly to stage for your wickedness to be acted upon; the air does not willingly serve you for breath to maintain the flame of life in your vitals, while you spend your life in the service of God’s enemies. God’s creatures are good, and were made for men to serve God with; and do not willingly subserve any other purpose, so directly contrary to their nature and end. And the world would spew you out, were it not for the sovereign hand of Him who hath subject it in hope. There are the black clouds of God’s wrath now hanging directly over your heads, full of the dreadful storm, and big with thunder; and were it not for the restraining hand of God they would immediately burst forth upon you. The sovereign pleasure of God, for the present, stays His rough wind, otherwise it would come with fury; and your destruction would come like a whirlwind, and would be like the chaff of the summer threshing-floor.”—Jonathan Edwards, “Sinners in the Hands of An Angry God”
Trust in Christ. Only in Him can we find salvation. God put forward His Son to save sinners from Himself. Trust in Him!
We like to think of God as love and so we have a hard time wrapping our heads around the idea of God’s wrath and anger being personal. But Scripture repeatedly tells us about God’s anger and wrath toward sinners. Every act of sin is cosmic treason against God and He does not stand idly by and allow it to go unpunished. The redemption that Christians receive is a release from the punishment we owe to God. And because of this release, we can have fellowship with God. But remember, every sin that has ever been committed will be paid for, either by the work of His Son as a propitiatory offering on the cross or by the sinner as he spends and eternity in Hell. God will deliver perfect justice.
We Are Saved To God (Romans 3:24)
Christians have been justified and redeemed. Remember, justification is the declaration of righteousness that sinners receive from God because of the finished work of Christ. We were fully deserving only of God’s anger, but Christ made a way for us to be brought into a right relationship with God. Christians have been redeemed through the work of Christ. That is, their punishment has been paid. The cost of their freedom has been given and they have been released from the debt that they owe. And now, they can be in fellowship with God.
“For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that He might bring us to God,” (1 Peter 3:18 ESV)
Everyone has a relationship with God. God’s wrath and justice are hanging over the head of the lost person. And the Christian is in fellowship with God by virtue of the finished work of Christ. If you are here today and are not in fellowship with Jesus, then your relationship with God is not neutral. It is one of animosity.
No longer do Christians live their lives wondering whether or not we have done enough to please God. We have not. But Christ did and so He is pleased with us and has declared us to be completely and totally right with Him. I don’t have to do anything to earn my Heavenly Father’s love. Christ has done that for me. Because of the great love that God has shown me, I can rest secure knowing that it has been perfectly achieved on my behalf and that God is pleased with me and always will be.
Now that we have seen the completeness of the salvation that God gives us in Christ, let’s see the purpose of it.
We Are Saved For God’s Glory (Romans 3:25-26)
Your salvation is not primarily about you. It is primarily about God. He saved us for His glory. This should not surprise us. It is how God has worked throughout history. It’s what we repeatedly find in Scripture as the reason that God saved Israel. And, it is the reason that God was going to do things differently in the New Testament in Ezekiel 36.
The first thing we notice here is that God glorifies Himself through the death of Christ. Notice that God had passed over former sins. That is, sins committed before the death of Christ.
I am often asked, “how were sins forgiven before Christ?” And my answer is, by the finished work of Christ. God passed over sins that were previously committed. Let’s just take one example. David committed a whole slew of heinous sins in the ordeal with Bathsheba. We could make an argument for him having broken all 10 of the Commandments if you include the coverup. Now, how is that after Nathan confronted David and David confess his sin that Nathan could just look at David and say, “Your sins are forgiven”? How could a righteous and just God just sweep the sins of David under the rug? How could David not have to die for such a heinous and grotesque violation of God’s Law.
The answer is that God did not sweep David’s sins under the rug. He passed over previous sins in His divine forbearance as He looked forward to the death of Christ. How can a person who has sinned against God their whole life come to faith in Christ, be declared righteous, and God not be unholy, unrighteous, and unjust? It is through the death of Christ. The greatest problem in all of Scripture is how can a holy God save wicked sinners and it is answered in the death of Christ.
And the purpose of this great salvation was “to show His righteousness” (Romans 3:26). By putting forward His Son as the propitiation for our sins, God showed His righteousness and was able to be both just and the justifier of the wicked. The death of Christ occurred for the glory of God. God could save us in a righteous way because the penalty was paid by His Son. Jesus Christ took upon Himself my sin and my shame so that God could save me in a righteous manner.
Conclusion
Christian, God saved you for His glory. What can I say about this other than that it is all about God and His glory. My redemption, though it is precious to me, is all about someone else. This great grace and mercy that has been shown to us should lead us to trust in Christ all the more as we live our lives gratefully because we have been saved by God, from God, to God, and for God.
R. Dwain Minor