Justification by Faith

SPEAKER B Jesus promised his disciples in Acts One eight, you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you and you shall be witnesses to me in Jerusalem and in all here and Samaria and to the end of the earth. Welcome to. You shall receive power. And here are your hosts, Ettienne McClintock and Colin Hone. SPEAKER C Greetings and a warm welcome to the program. Thank you for joining Colin and myself here today. We're continuing our current series of programs featuring the book 50 Days Prayers and Devotionals to prepare for the latter reign and Christ's return. Today's program is a very interesting one and it is called Justification by Faith. This is a message that has sort of been with the church after it had been lost over during the Dark Ages, been with the church for probably about 500 years now, and it's a message that is very important and also one that under the unction and the power of the Holy Spirit. We'll more clearly understand as we prepare for Jesus Christ's soon return. So just before we start the program, we just invite you to bow with us in prayer and we just ask God to bless us as we study together today. Gracious Father in Heaven, again, it is a privilege for us to come into your presence to submit ourselves as students of the word of God and Father, also to be taught by the Spirit of God, the Holy Spirit, and as such, we just ask for a fresh baptism of the Holy Spirit. May you guide and lead us into a deeper understanding and appreciation of salvation through faith and the justification we can all experience and we all have in Jesus Christ our Lord and this is our prayer in his name. SPEAKER D Amen. SPEAKER C Well, Colin, this is a good program and I'm looking forward to the program. Just the topic in itself is quite exciting for me. I've always liked the message of righteousness by faith, and I understand from the books, as we did the introduction last week, that justification by faith is a component of righteousness by faith because there's also the sanctification component as well. But today primarily, we're going to look at justification. SPEAKER E Yeah, righteous by faith is there's justification by faith and sanctification by faith. But notice the common element, it's by faith. SPEAKER C Right. SPEAKER E It's by faith. SPEAKER C And of course there's glorification that comes after that as well, which will also be by faith. SPEAKER E That's right. And sometimes we have different words. Some people use justification by faith would use the imputed righteousness of Christ. SPEAKER D Okay. SPEAKER E Or sanctification would be the imparted, imparted righteousness of faith. So these are words that are used to describe this wonderful gift from God. And that's what it is. It's just the most amazing, awesome gift. SPEAKER C That's right. And it's a free gift. SPEAKER E And it's a free gift. SPEAKER C Yeah, we can't earn it. There's no merit in us trying to earn it. It is a free gift from God. SPEAKER E That's right. So we're going to focus first on it's like a coin. There's two aspects of it. There's justification and sanctification. And so I believe that as Christians and we're living in the last days of Earth's history and you can see what's happening in the world. The floods that just happened in Know, they're talking a thousand year flood, catastrophic flood of biblical proportions. SPEAKER D That's right. SPEAKER C And then I just noticed as well there's been floods in Bangladesh, there's been floods in Nepal, there's been floods in the northern part of India northeast, and then also the western part of Africa. There's also been floods there. SPEAKER D Yeah. SPEAKER E So you're seeing these natural disasters increase in intensity and frequency, just as Jesus said that would happen in Matthew chapter 24 and Luke chapter 21 and Mark chapter 13. He basically said, you will see these things happening as we're getting closer to the second coming of Jesus. SPEAKER C Like birth pains, like contractions, they're getting stronger and also more frequent. SPEAKER D Yeah. SPEAKER E And we're seeing just major ones happening. They've never seen anything like this in America. It's just incredible. I mean, I saw the pictures of just flooding right through. I think it's the third or fourth largest city in the so we need to understand as Christians what justification by faith is and what sanctification by faith is. And we not only have to understand, but we need to experience what they are. And they go hand in hand when one accepts Jesus Christ as their Savior and Lord. They're like two sides of the same coin. SPEAKER D Okay. SPEAKER E And so God's desire is for the believer to experience both in their lives. But the problem throughout the ages has been a lot of confusion in the Bible, what the Bible teaches on these important subjects and understanding how to experience them to the fullest extent in one's life. And we look back at history in the Dark Ages. When you look at the dark, there was what's called the Protestant Reformation of the 15th and 16th centuries. And people started reading their Bibles because for like 1000 years, the common people couldn't even read the Bible. And so they were just taught by the priests, this is what you need to do to be saved. And you had to do a lot of rituals. You had to do some sort of works called the Seven Sacraments, usually for salvation. SPEAKER D Yes. SPEAKER E And so as these scholars who were, a lot of them were monks and were priests, they had access to the Bible and they started reading the Bible and they started saying, hang on, this doesn't marry up in the Bible. And people like Jerome and Hus and Martin Luther and Calvin became personally enlightened through God's word on this vital subject. SPEAKER D Yeah. SPEAKER C All the superstition and stuff that had to be washed away. And the word of God was the one that actually helped know ignorance is not bliss. Quite often they use that term ignorance is not bliss. And the other statement that is also very true is that what you don't know will hurt you. And it was a knowledge of salvation through Jesus Christ. It came through the word, as you were saying. As they were reading the Word, they discovered that these things, these superstitions that they were hanging on to, was not according to the Gospel of Christ. It was not the religion of the God of heaven. SPEAKER E Yeah. And as these men throughout and there was even in the 13th century, different people started reading the Bible and starting seeing the truths in God's word about salvation and man's condition and our need of a Lord and Savior and grace. And so, through the study of God's Word, they realized the established church of their day was teaching error concerning these vital biblical truths. And many people who spoke up about these things, we're hearing thousands, if not millions, were persecuted and put to death, burnt at the stake for standing up on the word of God. SPEAKER D Yeah. SPEAKER C The numbers are staggering. There are, like 100 million or more people lost their lives for their faith and just for sometimes just having a Bible or believing the Bible. SPEAKER D Yeah. SPEAKER C How can a Christian religious organization oppose people who just want to stand up for the faith of Christ? SPEAKER E Well, if it doesn't fit in with their agenda, then usually when you have religions and the state governments, when they combine together, it always leads to persecution. You only have to look at history of mankind. When the Church and government combine, usually the Church will use the government to enforce her decrees, and that leads to persecution. It's always been the way. SPEAKER C And in the west, we've had a pretty good run for about the last 200 years or so, and we can thank the Reformation for that. Protestantism and Republicanism is just so important. Freedom from a king and even freedom from a pope at the time. That's what the people, the pilgrims who fled into the New World were pleased about. And it's obviously 2017. It's 500 years since the Reformation, and we're looking forward to that being commemorated. I personally, and I think other Protestants will be celebrating it, but it is being commemorated on the 31 October at the Vatican when Protestants and Catholics will come together to commemorate and I use the word commemorate. I use the word celebrate. And someone said, no, it's not a celebration, it's a commemoration. Well, there's a big difference. SPEAKER E It's 500 years since Martin Luther nailed his thesis in Germany. He nailed it on the door, and it was a protest. That's where the word we have, Protestant is, a protest against Rome yes. And its doctrines and teachings that weren't aligned with the Bible. So that's where it started, and the 500 year anniversary, and many churches are coming together and saying that the protest is over. SPEAKER D Well, yeah. SPEAKER C Is it really over? Because what they're saying is that what he nailed against the Wittenberg Castle church door there was actually just a protest against the doctrine of righteousness by faith which wasn't taught by the Catholic Church because there are people claiming that the Catholic was legalist at the time. And then of course, the Protestants had cheap grace, but now they've come together and signed a joint declaration the Lutherans in 1999, with the Catholic Church signed a joint declaration on the doctrine of justification by faith where just, in essence, to summarize it, they all agreed that we are saved by grace through faith unto good works. Now, of course, the interpretation of that is varied because from a Catholic perspective you cannot be saved apart from the church. So you still got to go through the church institution where we say you only have to go through Christ, who's the only mediator between God and man. So that is a significant comment. But the fact remains is that justification by faith or only a small aspect of the 95 thesis? Because the whole issue was regarding indulgences and them being able to raise money selling indulgences. And people then came to Martin Luther and said, look, I got an indulgence, I want pardon for my sin, and he wouldn't accept it. SPEAKER E Yes, that's true. Yeah, that's true. So justification by faith was a precious teaching to these great Bible scholars. Just it has continued to be for all who have come to understand accept it since that time. And so what does justification by faith mean? Well, to be justified is to be declared free from the guilt and penalty of law breaking. SPEAKER C Right? The issue that I have is quite often that people don't really understand the full extent of the justification that we, because of Christ and him paying the price for our sins, we can stand before God justified and to simply to break that down, just as if we have never sinned, christ takes our sin away. And this is one of the elements, the power of the Gospel. If the sin has been taken away, how can those who know it and believe it and exercise their faith in Christ live under sin anymore? And this was a message that we under the righteousness of faith message need to understand more fully and also present to the world because it prepares them to receive the seal of God. Those who do not understand and who reject it actually set themselves up to receive the mark of the beast. SPEAKER E For instance, let me give you an example. If you're accused of breaking some law, what happens? You're taken to court, aren't you? SPEAKER C Yeah, that's right. SPEAKER E You're tried and then you're judged. SPEAKER D Correct. SPEAKER E And if you're found guilty, you'll receive a just penalty for your law breaking. That's how it works, yes. Now, if during the trial you are found innocent of the charges, you will then be declared justified. SPEAKER D Okay? SPEAKER C Which means innocent. Yeah. SPEAKER E You'll be free from the guilt and penalty of the law breaking you're accused of committing. So that's what it means to be justified. SPEAKER D Yes. SPEAKER E You're acquitted. You're free from the guilt and penalty of the law breaking, you're accused of committing. SPEAKER C And do you listen, I don't know about you, but in times in my life I've struggled with guilt and I've also struggled with shame that comes from it. But through Christ, we can be set free from the guilt and the shame. SPEAKER D Yeah. SPEAKER E Because let's be honest, we have broken God's law. So we are really guilty. SPEAKER D Yeah, we are. SPEAKER E We are guilty of law breaking or breaking God's law because just like on earth, there are laws. God has his law that he runs the universe on the law of love and the Ten Commandments. So the first step though, or the reality of this situation is we got to realize our condition, or what man's condition is. SPEAKER C So guilt does play a part. We see ourselves condemned or guilty before God and his law of love. SPEAKER E Yeah. So the first step in understanding, experiencing justification from our disobedience to God's law is to know what the Bible teaches about man's natural born condition before God. SPEAKER D Yes. SPEAKER E So according to the Bible, we are sinners. That's true through and through. Not one of us is righteous, for we have all sinned. Now, we can read that in Romans, chapter three, verses ten. SPEAKER D Okay. SPEAKER C And it says there, as it is written, there is none righteous. No, not one. There is none who understands, there is none who seeks after God. So I've read verse eleven there as well. SPEAKER D Yeah. SPEAKER E So there's none, is there? SPEAKER D There's none. SPEAKER E There's no one that's righteous. That's the first step we have to realize. No one is righteous. SPEAKER D That's right. Okay. SPEAKER E And then because of this condition, we are all, what, condemned to death as unrighteous lawbreakers. Romans, chapter six, verse 23. But there's a penalty for breaking God's law. And the penalty is death. SPEAKER D Death. Yeah. SPEAKER E Eternal death. Separation is death. Eternal separation from God. SPEAKER D Yeah. SPEAKER C Well, if you separate yourself from the giver of life, you ultimately will experience death. And sin separates us from God. SPEAKER D Yeah. SPEAKER E And this terrible condition, this sinful nature was passed on from Adam and every generation after that we inherited this what's called a sinful nature. SPEAKER D Yeah, that's right. SPEAKER E Yeah. And that can be found in Romans, chapter five, verse twelve. SPEAKER C It says, therefore, just as through one man sin entered the world and death through sin, thus death spread to all men because all sinned so every man. SPEAKER E Died ever since then, haven't they? SPEAKER C Oh, that's dead. SPEAKER D Right. Yeah. SPEAKER E I mean, I haven't seen anyone that's come personally. Have you seen anyone that actually, I've. SPEAKER C Only read of two, and that is Enoch, who walked with God, and there was translated by faith, the Bible says, and of course Elijah as well. SPEAKER E That's right. I mean, there's a few that have died and come back. Jesus obviously rose from the dead. SPEAKER C We know Moses also was raised from the dead. SPEAKER E Jesus rose Lazarus from the dead as well. SPEAKER C But Lazarus was raised to die again. It wasn't the eternal life he was given, unlike Moses. SPEAKER E And his sin brought this sinful condition upon mankind. We have a sinful nature, and that has led to what is breaking God's law. And all have sinned. And the just penalty is death. Therefore, every human being stands before God as a condemned sinner, deserving death. That is our hopeless, helpless condition. So unless God does something for us, we're eternally lost, separated from God. This is the reason Jesus Christ became one of us. And we go to probably the most famous Bible verse in the Bible, john, chapter three, verse 16 to 18. SPEAKER D Okay? SPEAKER C It says, for God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through him might be saved. He that believes on Him is not condemned, but he that believes not is condemned already. SPEAKER E Wasn't that good news? Beautiful step, you need to realize that God loves the world and God loves you. SPEAKER C It also shows the importance of faith there to receive this good news of salvation through Christ, that God is a God of love. He loved the world that he gave. He didn't loan Jesus, he gave Him to the world forever, for eternity. It's a gift that we can hang on to throughout the ceaseless ages. And then it says that God didn't send Jesus to condemn the world, he sent Him to save the world. I mean, if God came to condemn the world, we would not be here. He came to save him. And it says that those who believe are not condemned. But if you do not believe, in other words, if you don't exercise faith. SPEAKER E You are already condemned because everyone's condemned because we've all broken the law. SPEAKER C Now, there's a text in the Bible that says that he doesn't believe God makes him a liar. In other words, you don't believe what God is actually telling you. That's a serious accusation against the sovereign of the universe. SPEAKER E So the fact is, we've all broken God's law, and we all deserve the penalty for that which is eternal death. SPEAKER C That's true. SPEAKER E But God says, no, I love you so much that I'm not going to let you go, that I'm going to send my son Jesus to pay that penalty. That's the good news, isn't it? He pays the penalty for every single person, and everyone can be free from the guilt and the penalty for that law breaking of our law breaking. Everyone can be free because Jesus paid that penalty for us. And we just have to accept and believe that by faith and accept so you might understand this and say well, okay, I now realize I'm a sinner, so I will now begin obeying God's law and I will accept or this justification and he declares me free from the guilt and death penalty of my sin. So now I'll now begin obeying God's law and becoming righteous in his sight. This is what naturally happens. People say, well, okay, well I got to try and keep God's law. SPEAKER D Yes. Okay. SPEAKER E So the truth is though when we come to realize we are sinful lawbreakers, we are powerless to then begin keeping the law of God in order to achieve righteousness and justification, freedom from guilt and penalty of the sin in our life. Now, concerning this, Paul wrote in Romans chapter three, verse 20, this is therefore. SPEAKER C By the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight, for by the law is the knowledge of sin. So I mean it is really an impossibility for someone with a fallen human nature, a nature that's egocentric and self centered, to actually keep a law that is other centered, just the principles can't match up. In Romans chapter seven, Paul says he reads that there's a law within himself, the one who desires to do good, but to find to do those good things, it is an impossibility for him. SPEAKER E That's right. So basically by the deeds of the law there'll be no flesh will be justified in his sight, for by the law it is the knowledge of sin. So we wouldn't can know what sin is except without the law, but by. SPEAKER D The law that's right. Yeah. SPEAKER E I mean just like today we have laws, we wouldn't know what it is to break the law unless the law says this. SPEAKER C Is that's right. SPEAKER E What it means, if the law didn't. SPEAKER C Say you got to do 110 down the motorway and I was doing 150 and there was no law prohibiting me, then I wouldn't be a law breaker. It might be unsafe. SPEAKER E That's right. SPEAKER C But there's definitely a law. So where there's a law you can't transgress, but where there's no law, there's no transgression. SPEAKER E That's right. SPEAKER C So the law is really important and not done away with in that sense, otherwise there'd be no more sin. SPEAKER E That's right. So because of our sinful nature, no matter how hard we try to obey God's law, we still fall short of the perfect righteous obedience. So know we are sinners and we're slaves to sins as well because of our sinful nature. And it says that in Romans chapter seven, verse 14 and 18. SPEAKER C Yes, verse 14 says, for we know that the law is spiritual, but I am carnal sold under sin. And then verse 17, but now it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me. SPEAKER E Yeah. So we're filled with unrighteousness and I just love what Romans chapter three, verse ten and twelve says. And this really makes it clear let's just read that again. Romans, chapter three, verse ten and twelve. SPEAKER C Says, as it is written, there is none righteous. No. Not one. SPEAKER E Not one. SPEAKER C It says, yeah, there is none. That understandeth. So how many understand? None. There's none that seeks after God. So no one by nature seeks after God. God actually draws us, and if we respond sometimes we think it's all our initiative, but it's actually the initiative of God. They are all gone out of the way. They have altogether become unprofitable. There is none that does good. No, not one. SPEAKER D Wow. SPEAKER E So we need to accept that that's the reality of the situation. Because of our sinful nature, none of us are righteous, none of us understand, and none seeks after God. The fact that you even do understand or seek after God is actually God putting that in your heart. SPEAKER D That's right. SPEAKER E Because John, chapter 16, it's the Holy Spirit that convicts us of sin and leads us to Jesus, who is the answer to the problem of our sin. SPEAKER D That's right. SPEAKER C Every aspect of our salvation has been authored by God and Jesus Christ. SPEAKER D Yeah. SPEAKER E Even repentance. SPEAKER C Repentance, that's right. He has become the author of eternal salvation. It says in Hebrews, chapter five, praise God, thank God for Jesus Christ, our link back to heaven and our link back and reconciliation back to God. SPEAKER E That's right. So the fatal error of the Jews of Christ day right. Or their spiritual trap or error of the Jews of Christ day, this is what happened. They thought that they could be righteous in God's sight by keeping the law. SPEAKER A Right. SPEAKER E Romans, chapter nine, verse 31 and 32. SPEAKER D Yes. SPEAKER C It says, but Israel, pursuing the law of righteousness, has not attained to the law of righteousness. Why? Because they did not seek it by faith, but as it were, by the works of the law. For they stumbled at that stumbling stone. SPEAKER E Yeah. They were trying through their own efforts to keep God's law to be declared righteous. And they didn't realize that the only way you could have it is through faith in the coming or the redeemer in Christ's righteousness alone. They were trying the impossible, basically, and they didn't know it. So when Christ came preaching righteous by faith, the religious leaders believed he was teaching heresy. They rejected the only one through whom they could be righteous. And the apostle Paul wrote of their condition and clearly stated that Christ is the end or the fulfillment of the law for righteousness for all who believe in him. And there's this wonderful verse where it says that in Romans, chapter Ten, verse. SPEAKER C One to four says, brethren, my heart desire and prayer to God for Israel is that they may Be saved. For I bear them witness that they have a zeal for God, but not according to knowledge. For they, being ignorant Of God's righteousness and seeking to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted to the righteousness of God. For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes now, some people have been thrown by that text and say, well, look there, the law's been taken out of the way. Christ is the end of the law, it's been done away at the cross, it's been nailed to the cross. There's no longer a law which means there's no longer sin. But the word end, there is the Greek word talos. And the Greek word talos actually does mean end, but it also means end in the sense of the aim, the goal, the final outcome. So Christ is the aim of the law for righteousness to everyone that believes. So when you have that Greek understanding in the back of your mind, you can understand that Christ came to fulfill the law, he didn't come to destroy the law, as he says in his own words there in Matthew chapter five, from about verse 17 onwards. SPEAKER E That's right. And after Paul unpacks this to the Jews, trying to explain them, hey, listen guys, you are all unrighteous. You cannot become righteous by keeping the law, because you can't keep the law to become righteous. SPEAKER D Yes. SPEAKER E He says the only way you can be righteous is in faith, in the righteousness of Christ. SPEAKER D Amen. SPEAKER E And is Paul saying that we then do away with the Lord law? Not at all. I mean, if you keep reading at the end of Romans chapter three, he makes it clear in Romans chapter three, he says, do we then just get rid of the law because of this? Romans three, chapter 31, he says, do we then make void the law through faith? God forbid we establish the law. So he's not saying we get rid of the law, he's just saying you're not going to be justified by keeping the law. That's purely what he's saying. SPEAKER D Yeah. SPEAKER C By the works of the law, no flesh will be justified, but the righteousness of Christ is manifested as revealed in those who have received Him by faith. SPEAKER E That's right. And so we're going to talk about in a minute, after the break, we're going to talk about how, on the other hand, the non Jews or the Gentiles who accepted Christ attained righteousness before God and how they actually did that. And we're going to unpack and see how to receive this righteousness from God, which is a gift. SPEAKER C It is a gift, yeah. It's not of works, this any man should boast. So Colin, if someone gives you a gift, if you leave it on the table, do you have it? SPEAKER E No. SPEAKER C You've been given the gift, but if you refuse it, you don't have it. So the way we can refuse the gift of salvation, the righteousness of Christ, is actually just to leave it on the table as well, to not accept it or not to believe it. SPEAKER E That's true. I remember someone telling me once that it's know someone is giving you a billion dollar check and they hand it over to you and it's got your name on it and it's in my hand. When is it yours? SPEAKER C As soon as I take it. From your hand? SPEAKER D Yeah. SPEAKER E And you take it and what do you have to do with it though? SPEAKER C Got to go and cash it or put it in the bank. Deposit it. SPEAKER E Deposit in the bank. You have to receive it and actually do something with it. SPEAKER C Well, a deposit, another word for deposit can actually be to be imputed. Imputation to pay out an imputation. SPEAKER E I like that. SPEAKER C So we have this righteousness of God which covers every aspect of our salvation more abundantly than we can even think of. And some of us never ever write a check or never withdraw a deposit from that. But we have been fully covered by God and we thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord for the gift of salvation. Colin, let's take that break now. And then when we come back, we'll unpack justification by faith a little bit more out of the Scriptures. Stay tuned. SPEAKER F The Lord had just given a parable about being alert and ready for his coming. When Peter asked, Lord, are you telling this parable to us or to everyone? The Lord answered, who then is the faithful and wise manager whom the Master puts in charge of his servants to give them their food allowance at the proper time? It will be good for that servant whom the master finds doing so. When he returns, I tell you the truth, he will put him in charge of all his possessions. Luke 1242 to 44. Jesus was calling them to be faithful and wise in their ministry, because as he says elsewhere, the Son of man is going to come in his Father's glory with his angels and then he will reward each person according to what he has done. SPEAKER C You are listening to you shall receive power. Welcome back. Just before the break we were talking about how the salvation that we receive through Jesus Christ is a free gift. And it has to be because we in ourselves cannot earn or merit salvation. It is because God so loved the world, and of course that word world includes you and me. And because of that, God has been able to save us. Now, there is a right way and a wrong way to be saved, because the wrong way just doesn't work. And that is trying to earn your salvation through meritorious works, trying to keep the law of God, and that is an impossibility for fallen mankind. That's why self needs to be taken out of the way so that the righteousness of Christ can be imputed and also imparted. And then the evidence of Christ's righteousness will be manifest in our lives. Now, this all happens by faith because we were told just before the break, as we looked there in Romans chapter nine, that the Gentiles who did. Not pursue righteousness actually attained to righteousness, and they attained to the righteousness which comes through faith. And then it said that Israel pursued the law of righteousness. So the law is holy and just and good. It is righteous, but they did not attain to the law of righteousness. And then the question is asked why. It says, because they did not seek it by faith, but as it were, by the works of the law. Now all our righteousness is filthy rags, so we need the righteousness of Christ in our lives. SPEAKER E That's right. And so the Jews tried to pursue it through keeping the law. They thought they would be righteous. So what happened though is on the other hand, you had the non Jews, the Gentiles, who accepted Christ attain righteous before God. And how did they do that? They became righteous before God by faith in Christ and his righteousness. And I want to say that again, because if you get this, you get the whole picture, right? The Bible teaches there is no way to become righteous and be saved except through belief in Christ. SPEAKER D Yes. Okay. SPEAKER E And his righteousness. So the way to become righteous before God by faith is by faith in Christ and his righteousness. And that's found in Romans, chapter nine, verse 30. SPEAKER D Yes. SPEAKER E Romans, chapter nine, verse 30. So Romans, chapter nine, verse 30. And we can read that. And it says here, what shall we say then? That the Gentiles which followed not after righteousness, have attained to righteousness even the righteousness which is of faith. But then he contrasts that with Israel which followed after the law of righteousness, has not attained the law of righteousness. Why? Because they didn't sort it or seek it by faith. They did it by works of the law. And so this is the key, is to believe in the righteous of Christ. SPEAKER D Okay? SPEAKER E So that's the secret that is such. SPEAKER C An important aspect of salvation. Because if you try to seek it by the works of the law, there's two things that are going to happen. You're going to either be a very miserable Christian, being very sincere and very aware that you cannot attain to that standard of yourself. SPEAKER D Yes. SPEAKER C Or the second one is you're going to become a Pharisee and you're going to become self righteous. You're going to be blinded, you're going to think you're holy and you're just and you're better than everybody else and you're going to be a difficult person to live with. So those are the two errors that come from something that is not received by faith. We've got to start with faith and we've got to finish in faith. It's faith all the way through in the righteousness of Christ and in his merits. SPEAKER E That's right. And so the Bible teaches that there is no way to become righteous and be saved except through belief in Jesus Christ. In Acts, chapter four, verse twelve, it says, neither is there any salvation in any other, for there is none other name under heaven given among men where we must be saved. So that is the way to be saved. You have to, yes. SPEAKER C So no other name. And of course the name of Jesus means that Yahweh or Jehovah is salvation. So Jesus'name actually represents his character. And what the character represents is normally the life work. And Jesus Christ came to save all humanity through his life of perfect obedience, by his death on the cross. And not only that, then by his resurrection, because that's equally important. And one Corinthians 15 makes it very clear. And then of course his ascension into heaven to now minister before the throne of God on the right hand as our heavenly high priest. And it's through our faith in Him and by spending time in prayer and in study of the Word, that we have this communication with God through Christ as he ministers in the heavenly sanctuary at the moment. SPEAKER E That's true. That's true. And so the two errors that have come in through the Church and through the teachings of the Church, the Dark Ages, and even today is these two things. One, we can be saved by our works. Yes, that's one, that's a big era. And the other and a common one, and it's a very common one, the other one is a lot more subtle. But it is becoming more prevalent today with people teaching us that we can be saved in our sins. Okay, when Jesus says in Matthew, he became to save us, what, from our sins? That's right. SPEAKER D That's dead right. SPEAKER C And the devil doesn't care which side of the equation you fall off the road as long as you get it wrong, he's very happy. SPEAKER E Now, Jesus has made provision not only to pay the penalty, but also to cleanse us. Because first John, chapter one, verse nine says, if we confess our sins, he is faithful. SPEAKER D Right. SPEAKER E To forgive our sins. Justification. SPEAKER D Yeah. SPEAKER C Faithful and just. SPEAKER E Yes, faithful and just to forgive our sins. That's justification. SPEAKER C That says, and what to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. SPEAKER E There's sanctification. SPEAKER D Amen. SPEAKER E So there's justification and sanctification and it's right throughout the Bible, you see this justification and you see the sanctification. SPEAKER D Yeah. SPEAKER E So imputed and imparted righteousness. SPEAKER D Amen. SPEAKER E So we have to come to the point that there is no righteous in this earth except the righteousness of Christ. Once you believe that and understand that and you see that and you experience that. Now I don't know about you, but when I first came to that belief and realized that there is nothing I can do, that this is a free gift and that Christ has done everything, there's a peace in that. I don't have to worry about all the works that I have to do. I just have accept the free gift that Jesus has paid that penalty for me on that cross and he's giving me his righteousness. It's like an exchange. He's taken my sins upon Him, and he says, and I'm going to give you my righteousness. SPEAKER D All right? SPEAKER E I'm going to give you my righteousness. And what a wonderful gift that is. SPEAKER C A beautiful gift. I remember the first time well, actually not the first time, probably the third time, but the first time I really got into a deep relationship with the God. I had been living a life that was sinful, a life that was wrong. I was convicted that I was doing the wrong thing. And then finally, through a sequence of events, the Lord brought me in touch with his word and the power of the Gospel. And I actually felt convicted and condemned with the Lord. But I just thought, I cannot save myself. I've done all the wrong things. There's nothing I can do to blot out my sin. It was bugging me, this sin. And then finally, I just threw myself on the mercy of Christ, gave myself to Him. And I was amazed at the forgiveness I experienced, the removal of my guilt and the freedom that I once again experienced in Christ. It just blew my mind. I actually did not know that such a great relationship with the Creator of this universe was on offer. It's not until you taste and see that the Lord is good, you realize how good he is. SPEAKER E It's a gift, isn't it? SPEAKER D It is a gift. SPEAKER E It's Jesus gift. And in Philippians, chapter three, verse nine, it says, and be found in him not having my own righteousness. So Paul's saying, Listen, I need to be found in Him not having my own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith. There it is again, you receive it by faith. Now, this both applies to both imputed, which is justification, and imparted righteousness, which is his sanctifying righteousness. SPEAKER D Okay? SPEAKER E In the Christian life, the Bible clearly teaches that we receive Christ's imputed righteousness, which is justification, and his imparted righteousness. By our faith in Him, we experience both justification and sanctification. And sanctification just means set aside for holy purposes, okay? By faith in Christ. And let's look at that in Colossians, chapter two, verse six. SPEAKER C It says, as you therefore have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him. SPEAKER E So again, you see, there's justification and sanctification. How did you receive Christ? SPEAKER C You received him by faith. SPEAKER E Because who was there 2000 years ago? SPEAKER C That's right, we went there. SPEAKER E We believe and accept that gift by faith. Okay, there's justification and we walk, which is we're still around, aren't we? That's right, we're walking by what just said. It in there. SPEAKER D By faith. SPEAKER E By faith, sanctification. SPEAKER C That Colossians two, verse six is a great text, one of my favorite ones, and I always liken it to what it says in one John two, verse six as well. So this is now the epistle of john. And it says, he who says he abides in Him ought Himself also to walk just as he walked. So we are to walk like Jesus as we abide in Him. And if we say we abide in Him, the evidence for that abiding is actually that we walk as Jesus walked because we walk by faith, not by sight. SPEAKER E That's right. As we abide in Him, he promises he will abide in us. In actual fact, the works that we do are Christ's works in us. SPEAKER D Amen. SPEAKER E Which he's created beforehand to do. So it's actually any good works that we even do are actually Christ's works. SPEAKER C Well that is the essence of the Gospel of salvation and also the essence of grace and faith. Ephesians chapter two, verse eight says for by grace you have been saved through faith. SPEAKER E So there's justification. SPEAKER C Yeah. That is not of yourself, it is the gift of God. SPEAKER E That's right. SPEAKER C Then it says not of works, lest anyone should boast, but quite often people will stop there. But the Gospel includes both justification and sanctification because verse ten says for we are his workmanship. So who's the one that is created? Or whose workmanship are we? We are God's workmanship. Then it says, Created in Christ Jesus. So here's the creative power of God coming through the Gospel created in Christ Jesus for good works which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them. SPEAKER E So there you have again justification and sanctification. SPEAKER C But as God's work, as his creation, his creative power, the good works we've been created for in Christ Jesus, therefore it has actually been prepared beforehand that we should actually walk in them. So as we have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so we are to walk in Him as well. SPEAKER E Paul really understood the gospel. SPEAKER C Really? SPEAKER E He says it's not I to live anymore. SPEAKER D Yes. SPEAKER E Didn't he? SPEAKER D That's right. SPEAKER E He says I'm dead. The Paul who in Romans seven. SPEAKER C His Saul's gone. SPEAKER E He's gone. And it's not I that live anymore, but Christ that lives in me. And so he understood that the Gospel of Christ in Him, the hope of. SPEAKER C Glory and the power of the Gospel is actually the creative power of God that raises us from the dead. So we are dead in Christ, yet alive. And if self is dead, self is impotent. It can't get in the way anymore, it can't claim any righteousness. It's gone. SPEAKER E That's why Paul said I have to die daily. Absolutely had to die daily to what? To self? SPEAKER D To self. SPEAKER E I have to die daily to self. And if I die daily to self, I need to be filled daily with Christ in Him, the hope of glory through the daily infilling or anointing or baptism of the Holy Spirit. SPEAKER C Yeah, it's a continuous surrender to the Lord and therefore continuous death through the day. SPEAKER E Now we're going to look at Jesus'gift. I want to really get into Jesus gift. This is a wonderful gift and this is why Jesus Christ chose to be born a man. He chose to be born a man, and he lived a victorious human life over sin and allowed himself to be put to death so only Christ, the God man, could save man. And we see that in John chapter one, verses one to four. SPEAKER C In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through Him. And without Him nothing was made that was made. In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. SPEAKER E I think that's pretty clear, wasn't it? SPEAKER D Yeah. SPEAKER E Jesus was with God, with the Father. He was. God was God. SPEAKER D Yes. SPEAKER E And it says he became flesh like us. SPEAKER C Verse 14. And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld his glory, the glory of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace. SPEAKER E Just an amazing thing, that God the. SPEAKER C Son, what condescension from being God to becoming one of his creation. SPEAKER E I know it became flesh. SPEAKER C The Creator became the Creature. A creature. SPEAKER D Incredible. SPEAKER E So when Jesus walked this earth as a man, he lived a perfect sinless, righteous life. And we can read that in One Peter, chapter two. That's one. Peter chapter Two And verse 22, 1st Peter, chapter two, verse 22, who committed. SPEAKER C No sin, nor was deceit found in his mouth. SPEAKER E There it is. Jesus didn't commit one sin. And it also says that he was tempted in all points, just as we are, and gained the victory over every temptation. In Hebrews, chapter four, verse 15. SPEAKER C For we do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses. Praise God that we have a high priest that can sympathize. He knows our weaknesses, he says, but was in awe, tempted as we are, yet without sin. SPEAKER E So he was tempted in every way that you are. SPEAKER D Yeah. SPEAKER E So whatever you've been tempted in, he was tempted in in all things as we are, all points just as we are. But he gained the victory over every. SPEAKER C Temptation, and he gained the victory in our fallen humanity. He gained it in our flesh. He authored Victory and Salvation in the same humanity that we have to fight the warfare in. SPEAKER E That's right. So there's no argument, is there? SPEAKER C There's no argument. SPEAKER E So the apostle Paul contrasts Adam and Christ in the fifth chapter of Romans. He points out that through Adam sin, all his descendants, that's you and me, became sinners by nature. SPEAKER D Yes. SPEAKER E Therefore, Adam and all his descendants stand. SPEAKER C Guilty before God because all of sin yes. SPEAKER E And condemned to death. It says that in Romans, chapter five, verse twelve. On the other hand, Christ came and lived a perfectly righteous life. And because of this, the one who chooses to believe in Christ has his righteousness given to him freely. That's the good news. SPEAKER D Oh, it's beautiful. SPEAKER E Romans chapter five, verse 17 and 19. SPEAKER C It says, for if by one man's offense, death reigned through the one much more, those who receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness will reign in life through the one Jesus Christ. Therefore, as through one man's offense, judgment came to all men, resulting in condemnation. Even so, through one man's righteous act, the free gift came to all men, resulting in justification of life. For as by one man's disobedience, many were made sinners. So also by one man's obedience, many will be made righteous wow. SPEAKER E By his righteousness. So this transaction happens by faith. SPEAKER D Yes. SPEAKER E You believe and you accept this. And that is why the Christian becomes righteous in God's sight, by faith in Jesus Christ. He has Christ's righteousness put on him, or another word is imputed to Him, or is covered by Christ's righteous, by faith, by believing it is. So you believe this. You believe what God said he would do and what he did, and you believe this by faith and you accept it. And there's nothing the Christian can do to earn this righteousness. There's nothing. SPEAKER D You can't merit it. No. SPEAKER E It's been earned for you. SPEAKER C That's right. SPEAKER E Christ but did it for you. SPEAKER C It is an impossibility. We cannot do anything that will merit salvation. And those who try will ultimately discover that there's no success in it. All we can do is just throw ourselves at the feet of Jesus at the cross. SPEAKER E Come to Him as you are. SPEAKER C Absolutely. Because we can't even change our own sinful desires. God Jesus says, unless the Father who sent Me draws Him, no man can come unto Me. So it's very important for us to understand God's initiative in our salvation. Therefore, there's no merit in what we can do. SPEAKER E That's right. So this is how a man or a woman can become righteous. Basically, we respond to the Holy Spirit's conviction that Jesus is our Savior and that they are a sinner. That we are sinners. SPEAKER D Yes. SPEAKER E They accept Christ as a savior. We confess our sins and we ask God to forgive them. Then we are to believe that we are forgiven. Remember first John, chapter one, verse nine. SPEAKER C Verse nine. SPEAKER E It's actually probably one of my favorite Bible verses. SPEAKER C Such a simple statement, but just so clear and so profound. SPEAKER E I'm starting with some year sevens, and this is the Bible verse that I'm getting to memorize, because I said if you memorize this Bible verse, that if we confess our sins, if as a condition, if you confess your sins, he Jesus is faithful and just and just to forgive your sins. And not only will he do that, but he also cleanse you from all unrighteousness. SPEAKER D Amen. SPEAKER E So I always tell know, just hold on to that throughout your life and go to that every day. SPEAKER C The victory through Jesus is not only from the penalty of sin, it's also from the power of sin. SPEAKER D And we can pray. SPEAKER E You've got to believe that you're forgiven because God said you are. They believe they are now covered with Christ's righteousness. So this is great news. So when God looks at us, he sees the perfect obedience of Jesus Christ, his perfect righteousness, the righteousness of Jesus Christ. And we accept the fact that Christ died for our sins. In Isaiah chapter 53, verse five and six, there's a beautiful verse there, yes. SPEAKER C Says, but he was wounded for our transgressions. Who? SPEAKER E He was wounded for our transgressions. SPEAKER D That's right. SPEAKER C Jesus was wounded for our transgressions. He was bruised for our iniquities. The chastisement of our peace was upon him, and by his stripes we are healed. All we like sheep, have gone astray. We have turned everyone to his own way, and the Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all. SPEAKER E Now, I don't know if you know when that was written, but that was written approximately 700 years before Jesus was born. SPEAKER D Wow. SPEAKER E Prophesying what Jesus, the Messiah or the Anointed one would do 700 years before it happened. This is what Isaiah was prophesying that would happen, that Jesus would die for our sins, he will be wounded for our transgressions, and by his stripes we are healed. And so by faith, we accept this free gift of forgiveness, righteous, eternal life that Jesus offers to everyone, every single person. Doesn't matter what you've done wrong, he can forgive you and cleanse you. SPEAKER C Isn't that incredible? Doesn't matter what you have done, god can forgive you and cleanse you. I mean, there's a text there. It's in Ephesians chapter one, verse six. It says that God the Father made us acceptable in the beloved. SPEAKER D Wow. SPEAKER C Now, we by ourselves are not acceptable, but we've been perfected in Christ and he made us acceptable in the beloved. The gospel is such great news, and the word gospel actually means good news. There is no bad news in the Gospel. And also the conditions of salvation have been met in Christ. So when we receive Christ, we actually meet the conditions. Now there's two know, there's obviously the accountability and then also acceptance in Christ. Now, what we're talking about is that we have been accepted in the Beloved, made acceptable in the beloved. And then also the accountability aspect is also met through faith by Christ having his righteousness revealed in our lives. SPEAKER D All right? SPEAKER E So by faith we accept the free gift of forgiveness. I want you to get that free gift of forgiveness. SPEAKER D Amen. SPEAKER E Righteousness. We get Christ's righteousness imputed to us, and we get eternal life that Jesus offers us. And in Romans 623, it says, for the wages of sin is death. And we all deserve that. SPEAKER D Yes, we do. SPEAKER E But the gift of God is eternal life. Through Jesus Christ our Lord, we get what we don't deserve because of what Christ did for us. SPEAKER D Yes. SPEAKER E So by faith we stand justified before God, free from guilt and the penalty of sin. That is the good news of justification by faith. SPEAKER D Amen. SPEAKER C And there's a text there found in One John, chapter five, from verse eleven to 13. It says, and this is the testimony that God has given us eternal life. And this life is in his son. He who has the Son has life. He who does not have the Son does not have life. These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God that you may know that you have eternal life and that you may continue to believe in the name of the Son of God. Beautiful. SPEAKER E It's great news. And so, by faith in Christ, this marvelous exchange takes place in the Christian. Jesus takes our sins and death penalty upon Himself and he gives us his perfect righteousness and eternal life in exchange. And there's this beautiful quote that Ellen White wrote about this in the book The Desire of Ages, page 25. This is a wonderful commentary on the life of Jesus Christ. It's called Desire of Ages. And I recommend that everybody read that book. It is a beautiful book on the life of Christ. SPEAKER C Beautiful book. You're right. SPEAKER D So. SPEAKER C Page 25. Desire of Ages. It says, Christ was treated as we deserve, that we might be treated as he deserves. It seems like such an unfair transaction, but we thank God for it because of his incredible love that he's willing to treat us like the Son deserves. He was condemned for our sins in which he had no share, that we might be justified by his righteousness, in which we had no share. So he didn't have share in our sins, we didn't share in his righteousness. But somehow that transaction has offered us that free gift. He suffered the death which was ours, that we might receive the life which was his. With his stripes we are healed. SPEAKER E That's a wonderful quote. SPEAKER C Isn't it beautiful? SPEAKER E Christ was treated as we deserved. We deserve death and eternal separation because we've broken the law that we might treat it as he deserves because he was eternal and had eternal life. He's condemned for our sins in which we had no share, that we might be justified by his righteousness, in which we have no share. It's a wonderful good news of the Gospel, isn't it? SPEAKER C It's beautiful. SPEAKER D Look. SPEAKER C That reminds me of that text in two Corinthians, chapter five, verse 21. It says that he that is God the Father made him who is Jesus Christ. He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him. That is such a beautiful, encouraging statement. And the transaction, it's almost like it's a legal and almost a commercial transaction. The way God goes about our salvation. We may not always understand it, but we can accept it. By faith, I mean, salvation is really as simple as ABC. We can sometimes complicate it, but from beginning to end, it is us believing the word of God which brings the good news of salvation to us, the Gospel, which is the power of God unto salvation to all who believes. And by receiving it, we receive the merits of Jesus Christ. SPEAKER E Now, if you believe this and you accept this, we would like you after, we're going to take a short break in a minute, but we would like to take you through the prayer of accepting Jesus as your Lord and Savior and confessing your sins and receiving this free gift of Christ's righteousness and eternal life. And so we're just going to take a short break and then we're going to come back and then we're going to take you through a short prayer where you can accept Jesus as your Lord and Savior and you can confess your sins and you can receive his righteousness and eternal life. SPEAKER D Amen. SPEAKER C We'll be right back after this break. Thank you for joining us on You Shall Receive Power. If you would like more information about today's program or if you have any questions, please contact 3ABN Australia Radio by Phoning 024-973-3456. Or you can send an email to [email protected]. You can also contact us on our 3ABN Australia radio Facebook page. We look forward to hearing from you SPEAKER C Welcome back to you shall receive power. I hope you got those contact details down and if you would like someone to pray with you, you're welcome to contact us on that or even just send a prayer request to us via email. Now, just before the break, Colin, we are talking about that important prayer and just as we are about to go through that prayer, maybe you can just close the program for us by faith in Christ. SPEAKER E A marvellous exchange takes place in the Christian. Jesus takes our sins and death penalty upon Himself and he gives us his perfect righteousness and eternal life. And I just want to leave you with this quote by Ellen White in The Desire of Ages, page 25. Just listen to this. And then Ed Hin will then lead you through a prayer to accept Jesus as your Lord and Savior and you too can have his righteousness and eternal life. Christ was treated as we deserve, that we might be treated as he deserves. He was condemned for our sins in which he had no share, that we might be justified by his righteousness in which we had no share. He suffered the death which was ours, that we might receive the life which was his. With his stripes we are healed. SPEAKER D Beautiful. SPEAKER C Dear listener, I'm not sure what you're going through at the moment, but Jesus is the answer to all the challenges and the issues we face in life. There's a vacuum in each person's heart, and that vacuum cannot be filled by the pursuit of worldly wealth or worldly friends or whatever it may be that you try to fill that vacuum with addictions. It's only Jesus that can fill that void for you. And to receive Jesus is as simple as just following this prayer. And I'll just take you through this prayer. You can say something simply like, Jesus, I believe you are the Son of God, that you died on the cross to rescue me from sin and death and to restore me back to God the Father. I choose now to return from my sins my self centeredness and every part of my life that does not please you. I choose you. I give myself to you. I receive your forgiveness and ask you to take your rightful place in my life as my Savior and my Lord. Come reign in my heart. Fill me with your love and your life and help me to become a person who is truly loving, a person just like you. Restore me, Jesus. Live in me. Love through me. Thank you, God. In Jesus name I pray. SPEAKER D Amen. SPEAKER C Dear listener, it's my prayer and Colin's prayer that you've prayed that prayer today. And you will continue to pray that prayer that Christ will be revealed in your life, your hope of glory. We look forward to catching up with you next time as we develop this theme of righteousness by faith further. Until then, God bless. SPEAKER C You'Ve been listening to a production of three ABN Australia radio.