You can turn in your Bibles to Philippians 3. God willing, we'll return to our exposition of 1 Timothy next Sunday evening. Philippians 3 is a familiar passage if you've been at this church for any amount of time. And the doctrine we're considering tonight, hopefully, is a familiar one, justification by faith alone, primarily found in verse 9 here in Philippians chapter 3.
We will have cause to reflect upon the whole section. And if you miss anything that I say tonight, or you have no clue what I say, just memorize that hymn we just sang. Hymn number 440 is a wonderful presentation of the truth of justification by faith alone. Beginning in verse 1 of chapter 3 in Philippians.
Finally, my brethren, rejoice in the Lord. For me to write the same things to you is not tedious, but for you it is safe. Beware of dogs, beware of evil workers, beware of the mutilation. For we are the circumcision, who worship God in the spirit, rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh.
Though I also might have confidence in the flesh. If anyone else thinks he may have confidence in the flesh, I more so. Circumcised the eighth day of the stock of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of the Hebrews. concerning the law, a Pharisee, concerning zeal, persecuting the church, concerning the righteousness which is in the law, blameless. But what things were gained to me, these I have counted loss for Christ.
Yet indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ and be found in him not having my own righteousness, which is from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith, that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death, if by any means I may attain to the resurrection from the dead. Amen. Well, let us pray. Father, thank you for this wonderful passage of Holy Scripture.
Thank you for the doctrine of justification by faith alone. I pray that we'd all have a proper understanding that we would find the comfort that is involved in such a teaching that we would be prepared to meet our maker, not because of good that we have done, not because of a righteousness of our own which is from the law, but having a righteousness which is from you through faith in our Lord Jesus Christ. How we thank you, God, for your grace. How we thank you for your mercy.
How we thank you for the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. And it's in His name that we pray. Amen.
Introduction
This morning I mentioned that on the deathbed, perhaps next to Psalm 23, that's one that I think we'd all agree is a blessed psalm to consider prior to entrance into Emmanuel's land, Romans chapter 8 verse 1. The Apostle says, there is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus. who do not walk according to the Spirit, a flesh rather, but according to the Spirit. The only way that we have this status, the only way that we have this position, this idea, this reality of no condemnation is because of what God has done in the Christian gospel, because of this doctrine of justification by faith alone. The reality that God pardons all of our sins and accepts us as righteous in His sight only for the righteousness of Christ imputed to us and received by faith alone.
That is the essence of what the Apostle highlights here in verse 9. Everybody, just about everybody, agrees that justification includes the pardon of sin. Everybody agrees that in justification we are forgiven of all our sins. But not everybody agrees that there is this imputation of righteousness, this reception of a righteousness that avails with God.
Well, that is precisely what Paul is highlighting here. in verse 9. There is a righteousness which is of the law according to his own works and then there is this righteousness which is through faith in Christ. And the Apostle takes pains in Romans and in Galatians and in various other places in his epistles to highlight this glorious truth that we are justified freely by God's grace through faith alone in Jesus Christ alone to the glory of God Most High alone. So as I said, I want to focus primarily on this idea of justification by faith alone, but I want to do so in a responsible manner, giving heed to the context as we find it.
Sermon Overview and Structure
The first section in verses 7 and 8, Paul highlights his possession of Christ. The fact that he has gained Christ. He has given up everything else, and now he possesses Christ. Secondly, he highlights his position in Christ.
That's in verse 9. And then in verses 10 and 11, he states his privileges in Christ. So we've got possession, position, and privileges of believers in Philippians chapter 3. verses 7 to 11.
Paul's Possession of Christ
But notice, first of all, with reference to his possession, verses 7 and 8 come as sort of a statement concerning the revolution that took place in Paul's life. Notice, going back to verse 1 for a moment, he says, Finally, my brethren, rejoice in the Lord. For me to write the same things to you is not tedious, but for you it is safe. Paul continued to repeat himself for the comfort, the security, and the stability of the churches to whom he wrote.
He then issues this caution in verse 2. He says, Beware of dogs, beware of evil workers, beware of the mutilation. Basically what he is saying is beware of Judaizers. Paul is not concerned about you walking to your mailbox and being bitten by a canine.
When he says beware of dogs, he is talking about a specific group of people. Jews traditionally referred to Gentiles as dogs. Well, here the Apostle Paul is using that moniker, he is using that label, he is using that word to identify Judaizers. Those who would come to the churches and say that it was a good thing to believe the Gospel, it was a good thing to believe on Messiah, but you must also be circumcised, you must also obey the law of Moses in order to be saved.
So beware of dogs, he says. Beware of evil workers. Notice how Paul treats heresy. He doesn't say this is an alternate opinion.
He doesn't say that this is a divergent thought. He calls these men evil workers. There's a lot of scandals going on in the political realm right now. It seems like people are absolutely terrified to ever say that someone is lying.
We don't dare say that person is lying. I suspect that if the Apostle Paul was involved, he would say that person is lying. He calls these men evil workers. To go to the churches and to sow seeds of heresy is not good.
It's not godly. It's not righteous. Rather, it is evil working. He then refers to them as the mutilation.
See, they thought, or they were saying, that all you needed to do was to be circumcised. Paul says the circumcision that they peddle is really just a mutilation. And then he makes this glorious statement. He says, we are the circumcision.
He's writing to a Gentile church. Believers in Jesus Christ are the true circumcision. They are the true Jew. And then he highlights the reality that if there ever was a man who could have availed favor with God, in His flesh it would have been Him.
That's the purpose of chapter 3, verses 4 to 6. He says, verse 3, For we are the circumcision, who worship God in the Spirit, rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh. Though I also might have confidence in the flesh, In other words, if there was ever a man who could have confidence in the flesh, it was the Apostle Paul, or it was Saul of Tarsus. And if you ask the question, how is it, Saul of Tarsus, that you yourself could have had confidence in the flesh, Well, that's what he goes on to describe.
He says, "...circumcised the eighth day, of the stock of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of the Hebrews, concerning the law of Pharisee, concerning zeal, persecuting the church, concerning the righteousness which is in the law, blameless. This is his religious pedigree. This is his religious resume. This is the bullets, the statements that validate the reality that if ever there was a man who could have confidence in the flesh, it was this man Saul of Tarsus.
But notice what he goes on to say with reference to Christ. He speaks in the language of commerce. It's as if when he's highlighting his possession of Christ, He uses a debit and an asset column. He says in verse 7, but what things were gained to me, all the things he just mentioned, what things were gained to me, circumcised the eighth day, of the stock of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, concerning the law of Pharisee, concerning zeal, persecuting the church, all those things I used to bank on, all those things I used to rest upon, All those things I used to think God was going to allow me into heaven for.
He says, what things were gained to me, these I have counted loss for Christ. You see, those things do not gain favor with God the Lord. Because even though he was circumcised the eighth day, as being of the stock of Israel, being a Pharisee, being a persecutor of the church, the best things that Saul of Tarsus ever did were filthy with sin. So you see, they weren't perfect and pure works that God the Lord would say, wow, that's great, I'm gonna let you into my high and holy heaven.
Paul says, those things that were gained to me, I count lost now. I don't rest upon these things. I don't look at this old resume. I don't think for a moment that I'm going to stand before God in the eleventh hour and say, Lord, you have to let me into heaven because I was circumcised on the eighth day.
No. When he met the Lord Jesus Christ, it radically changed his life. What things were gained to me, these I have counted loss for Christ. Notice in verse 8, he moves to the present.
He says, yet indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord. present comforts, present benefits, present blessings, present temporal achievement, all that stuff does not matter. Nothing that I have, nothing that I've accomplished, nothing that I could ever see me doing matters when it comes to compare with the Lord Jesus Christ. He says, Indeed, I also count all things lost for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, notice, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things. You look at the Apostle Paul, he suffered the loss of all things.
If you wonder about that, look at 2 Corinthians chapter 11 sometime. Paul was beaten. Paul was shipwrecked. Paul was in trouble.
Paul was in distress. Paul had issues. Paul had trials. Paul had challenges.
Yet none of that mattered when it came to the reality that Christ was his. He says, I have suffered the loss of all things and I count them as rubbish that I may gain Christ. Now just for a moment we ought to stop and ponder. Can we say this?
Do we look at our lives that way? The things that were gained to me, I have counted lost for Christ. My upbringing, my Christian education, my impeccable obedience to my parents. If we are trusting in those things, if we are resting upon our accomplishments, if we are looking to what we've done, we are in bad shape.
We are in a sorry position. But are we as well able to say with Paul, yet indeed I also count all things lost for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things. and count them as rubbish. Now, God in his goodness has given us many good things, hasn't he? You live in Chilliwack or you live in Abbotsford or you live in the lower mainland, more than likely you have good things.
You've been blessed temporally. God gives you food. God gives you water. God gives you blessing upon blessing.
The idea isn't go get rid of all that stuff and be a monk, shave your head, put on an orange outfit and bang a tambourine at Vancouver Airport. That's not the point, but rather the point is, if you are deprived, if these things are taken away, if everything is stripped from you, as it was in the case of godly Job, are you able to say, naked I came into this world, naked I will return, blessed be the name of God. In all this, Job did not complain. You see, everything was stripped away from him and he continued to worship.
Everything was stripped away from the Apostle Paul, but he continued in allegiance to Jesus Christ. When he says that I may gain Christ, what he is saying is that Christ far surpasses every other thing. And this is like trying to explain color to a blind man, to the unconverted. You ever done that?
You ever met a blind man and said, here's what blue looks like. Here's what red looks like. It's kind of tough, isn't it? He has no point of reference.
There's nothing for him to grab on to. You tell an unbeliever, and I suspect there might be some or one or two or a few in here tonight, Christ far exceeds everything. It sounds like a statement in Japanese. What do you mean?
What does that mean? What are you talking about? You see, it's the converted. It's the born again.
It's the by the grace believer on the Lord Jesus Christ that can track with Paul in Philippians 3, 7 and 8. It is those who have the spirit who can say, yes, if God took everything away, if I lost my job, if I ended up as a troll living underneath a bridge, but I still had Jesus, I've got everything. You see, if you're not a believer in Christ, that sounds bizarre. That sounds wretched and twisted and weird.
That's you tonight, may I encourage you to listen and follow along and see why it is that the Apostle Paul says what he says here. I read one time that philosophy, or I read a philosopher who said, I don't remember the name of the philosopher, but he defined philosophy this way. He says, it is that theory or that doctrine or that teaching that prepares one for death. I totally disagree.
It's theology that prepares one for death. It is specifically soteriology that prepares one for death. And subcategory, it is this doctrine of justification by faith alone that prepares one for death. And that's where we move now to his position in Christ.
Paul's Position in Christ
Why can Paul, or how does Paul, can he say that what were gained to me, or what things were gained to me, I have counted lost. Yet indeed I also count all things lost for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord. That I may gain Christ, now notice in verse 9, and be found in him. not having my own righteousness, which is from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God, by faith."
Justification Defined Confessionally
Now I want to look at the doctrine of justification by faith, with our confession helping us, with the particular text, and then I want to look at one departure from this doctrine. See, oftentimes I think we can see the value in the import of something when we consider the departure from it. Right? Imagine if you were up in an airplane, and you had a parachute strapped to your back, and you jumped out of that plane.
You would praise God that there's that parachute, wouldn't you? Now, let's just suppose for a moment that you took that parachute off and then jumped out of that plane. Somewhere in your descent, you would probably see the value of the parachute. The departure from the use of the parachute underscores how important the parachute is.
Considering the Roman Catholic perversion of justification, I think, underscores how important the truth is. So just let's go in this direction. First, the doctrine of justification by faith. Let's just get a couple of good confessional definitions.
London Baptist Confession 11.1, along with Westminster Confession 11.1. Those whom God affectionately calls, He also freely justifies, not by infusing righteousness into them. What does that mean? Justification finds its benefit, finds its power, finds its basis in the work of Christ for us.
Not the Spirit's work in us. That's sanctification. And that's what the Confession is highlighting. Not by infusing or transforming or making them righteous, but by pardoning their sins and by accounting and accepting their persons as righteous.
Not for anything wrought in them or done by them, but for Christ's sake alone. Just think this way. is Christ for us. Sanctification is the Spirit at work in us. Our acceptance with God is based on Christ's work for us, not the Spirit's work in us.
You keep that in your head, you keep those two categories separate as you ought, and you will be a happy, happy Protestant. What happens when you don't keep them together and you mingle them? You will be an unhappy Roman Catholic in that 11th hour. More on that in just a moment.
One of the best extra-biblical definitions of the doctrine of justification is Westminster's Shorter Catechism, number 33. Justification is an act of God's free grace wherein He pardons all our sins and accepts us as righteous in His sight, only for the righteousness of Christ imputed to us and received by faith alone. Protestant theology, confessional theology teaches what the Bible teaches. Justification consists in the pardon of sin, the forgiveness of sin, and in the imputation of righteousness.
You see, we need our sins forgiven. We need our sins obliterated. We need our sins washed away. And Christ's death answers to that.
It is through His blood that we have redemption. But you see, we also need a righteousness. We also need to be clothed. We also need to be accepted by God as righteous persons.
That's where Christ's life comes to play. He always obeyed the law. He always did the will of His Father. And His righteousness, by God's grace, is imputed or given to us, and we receive it by faith alone.
Everybody with me? Yes. We're all tracking. This is most important.
You need to get this. It is a legal or it is a forensic declaration. That's why Romans 8.1 says, there is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. If you are looking at yourself, if you are looking at your life, if you are looking at your attendance upon the means, if you are looking at the way that you respond to persons at red lights, if you are looking at the way that you conduct yourself in the business world, can you with a clear conscience say, there's no condemnation for me?
Probably not. But if you see yourself by the grace of God in Christ, you can say, there is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ.
Righteousness from the Law vs. from God
Now notice specifically with our verse, verse 9, and be found in him not having my own righteousness, which is from the law. You see, the beauty of justification, the beauty of acceptance with God by God's means is not some blemished, tarnished, wretched attempt to provide a righteousness. Paul, as the man who could say, I could have confidence in the flesh, now rejoices in the reality that he is found in Christ, not having my own righteousness, which is from the law. Do you realize, my dear friend, speaking to those who are outside of Christ, if you think that you can obey the law of God, you have to do so in a manner that is personal, that is entire, that is exact, and is perpetual.
Now, I suspect you can't go two seconds under that framework. Well, I know you can. You cannot fulfill the law the way that God demands. It is to be personal, entire, exact, and perpetual.
That's what you need to provide if you seek justification by your law keeping. It's terrifying, isn't it? Isn't it? Where's the comfort on the 11th hour?
Where's the comfort on the deathbed with that working definition? Has any man ever done such a thing? No, Paul says, "...and be found in him, not having my own righteousness, which is from the law, but," he says, "...that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith." Notice the from God and from the law are mutually exclusive. There's one of two approaches to gain God's favor.
To have your own righteousness, which is from the law, or to have that righteousness through faith in Christ. The righteousness which is from God by faith. Robert Raymond says this, with a gloriously monotonous regularity. gloriously monotonous regularity. You know what monotony means?
It means unexciting. Paul's not exciting when it comes to expounding orthodoxy. Paul's not looking for you to be amazed and dazzled. Paul wants you to understand it's either works of the law or it's the righteousness of Christ.
With gloriously monotonous regularity, Paul pits faith off over against all law-keeping as its diametrical opposite as to reference. Whereas the latter, law-keeping, relies on the human effort of the law-keeper looking to himself to render satisfaction before God, the former repudiates and looks entirely away from all human effort to the cross work of Jesus Christ, who alone by a sacrificial death rendered satisfaction before God for men." In other words, when we look to that righteousness which is of the law, that means self. That means us. That means our performance.
It means our obedience. And that will always bring grief because we cannot keep the laws I've detailed. We cannot do it exactly. We cannot do it entirely.
We cannot do it perfectly because we are totally depraved and totally unable and we are dead in trespasses and sins. How could we ever keep the law the way that the Lord God Almighty says? But this idea of the righteousness which is imputed by faith, the righteousness of Christ, we look outside ourselves. We look to another.
We look to Jesus. The righteousness that comes from God is God's way of putting man right with himself. And that is what is highlighted here. But that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith.
And that's the instrument. Faith is the instrument, not the cause of this righteousness. Faith itself is a gift of God, Ephesians 2, 8 and 9. Faith is that means whereby we are brought into contact with the living Lord Jesus Christ.
Faith is not a word. Faith is not our merit that then receives the blessing of God. Our confession deals with this, not by imputing faith itself, the act of believing, or any other evangelical obedience to them as their righteousness, but by imputing Christ's active obedience in his death for their whole and sole righteousness, they receiving and resting on him and his righteousness by faith Which faith they have not of themselves, it is the gift of God. So, I feel like everybody's confused right now, so let's just try to make this real easy.
One of two ways to gain acceptance with God. Covenant of works, covenant of grace. If you opt for the covenant of works, you better be perfect. This is what Paul's delighting in. having my own righteousness which is from the law.
Covenant of grace is look unto Jesus, the author and finisher of faith. Paul glories in the reality that he is found in Christ. He doesn't have his own righteousness which is from the law, but rather he has a righteousness which is through faith in Christ. The righteousness which is from God by faith that will enable him to stand before the Lord God on that day and hear those blessed words, well done, good and faithful servant.
John Murray makes this comment concerning the difference between justification by works and justification by faith. He says justification by works always finds its ground in that which the person is and does. It is always oriented to that consideration of virtue attaching to the person justified. I was thinking about this this morning when Pastor Kim was teaching on sanctification.
Have you ever met the person that says, wow, I haven't been, let's just use Bible reading as sort of a virtuous act. I think we'd all agree it's a good thing to read your Bible. I'm not going to argue. I think we all agree that.
You'll meet people that say, you know, I haven't been reading my Bible as I ought. That must mean I'm not a Christian. Well, it could mean that. I don't want to convince you otherwise.
But what is the alternative to that statement? Does that mean if you are reading your Bible, then you are a Christian? I hope you don't say yes. You're a Christian because Jesus lived, Jesus died, and Jesus rose again.
You're not a Christian because you read your Bible. You're a Christian because Christ went to the cross for you. So you see, on the one hand, I mustn't be a Christian because I'm not reading my Bible. On the other hand, I must be a Christian because I am reading my Bible.
Both of those things are devoid of gospel, cross, Jesus, justification by faith alone. Now, in that, read your Bible. That's the simple take-home message there. But you see, we do that.
Somebody will say that, I'm not reading my Bible, I mustn't be a Christian. No, you're not reading your Bible, repent and read your Bible. Good? Just read your Bible.
You're not a Christian if you're not looking to Christ. You're not a Christian if you've not believed the gospel. You're not a Christian if you haven't come to Him in whom alone is forgiveness of sin and the imputation of righteousness. You see, we are oriented to this works approach.
Murray says, justification by works always finds its ground in that which the person is and does. It is always oriented to that consideration of virtue attaching to the person justified. He says, the specific quality of faith is trust and commitment to another. It is essentially, I love this word that Murray uses, extrospective.
We all know what the word introspective means. That means to look at oneself. Introspection means to look at oneself. Extraspective means to look outside of oneself.
He says it is essentially extraspective and in that respect is the diametric opposite of works. Faith is self-renouncing, works are self-congratulatory. Faith looks to what God does, works have respect to what we are. It is this antithesis of principle that enables the apostle to base the complete exclusion of works upon the principle of faith.
It's a brief explanation of this idea of justification by faith alone. What it is? Pardon of sin, imputation of righteousness. This righteousness of Christ that he gained by virtue of his life and obedience to the law of God.
And the instrumentality is faith and faith alone.
Roman Catholic Departure from Justification
Now let's take the parachute off for just a moment and leap out of the plane. What's the departure? Roman Catholicism defines it this way. Canon 9 of the Council of Trent says, if anyone says that the sinner is justified by faith alone, meaning that nothing else is required to cooperate in order to obtain the grace of justification, and that it is not in any way necessary that he be prepared and disposed by the action of his own will, let him be anathema.
Now, that statement is filled with problems. The first being his own will. That's what the Bible says about our own will. It does not depend upon him who wills or upon him who runs, but on God who shows mercy.
Canon 9 says the man must look at his own will, or his own will must be disposed in order to cooperate with reference to this grace of justification. But if anyone says that the sinner is justified by faith alone, meaning that nothing else is required to cooperate in order to obtain the grace of justification, what does that mean? That means on your deathbed there's no Romans 8-1, unless you have cooperated successfully. And no one has.
Canon 11 says, if anyone says that men are justified either by the sole imputation of the justice of Christ or by the sole remission of sins to the exclusion of the grace and the charity which is poured forth in their hearts by the Holy Ghost and remains in them, or also that the grace by which we are justified is only the goodwill of God, let him be anathema. So you see, the framers, or the men, the guys, the people that put these canons together, not only rejected the doctrine of justification by faith alone, but pronounced anathema on those who believed it. It's kind of like the political leader who says, not only did we not do that, everything's your fault! Wait a minute, that doesn't seem accurate.
Now, what are they saying here in Canon 11? It says that there is no distinction in justification and sanctification. It says that it's all one big ball of wax. And that yes, you need pardon.
Yes, you need the righteousness of Christ. And yes, it is your works, it is your deeds, it is your law keeping that does complete this package that then garners justification. Again, I submit there is no comfort there. There's no Romans 8.1 in that equation.
There's only a Romans 8.1 when we understand the gospel as Paul sets it forth very clearly in Romans, Galatians, and scattered throughout his epistles. This idea that we see in 3.9, and be found in him, not having my own righteousness, which is from the law." You see, when we are justified freely by God's grace, we then will, in fact, be sanctified. In other words, when a man is justified by grace, through faith, in Jesus, he will pursue holiness. He will put to death the deeds of the body.
He will do the things the Bible enjoins. But when he stands before God on that final day, his basis of acceptance is not upon that work or that life of sanctification. It's based on Christ. It's based on justification.
It's based on what Jesus has done for him. Is everybody with me? Get this, please, most important. You want to die happy, die knowing what Philippians 3.9 is all about.
If I have confused you tonight, that was not my hope, not my intention. Come and see me. We can talk. We can go over this line upon line, line upon line, precept upon precept, precept upon precept, like we saw there in Isaiah chapter 28.
Rome's Confusion of Justification and Sanctification
See, Rome has a fundamental problem in that they do not understand what justification by faith alone is. For Rome, justification includes sanctification. For Rome, justification not only is the work of Jesus Christ for us, it is the Spirit's work in us. And that then becomes part of the basis for our acceptance with God Almighty.
And I must say that if you're looking to what you've done, how you've done it, when you've done it, where you've done it, or why you've done it for acceptance with God, there's not going to be a lot of hope. There's not going to be a lot of comfort. There's not going to be any singing in 599 on your deathbed. There's going to be a whole lot of terror. because you are facing the just judge of all the earth.
And you know in your heart of hearts, you know deep down when you're all alone or when you're in that eleventh hour, that nothing but perfect righteousness will avail with this God. And that's the beautiful answer of the Christian gospel, that it's in Jesus Christ that we receive this righteousness that avails with God most high.
Paul's Privileges in Christ
Paul ends by highlighting his privileges in Christ, verses 10 to 11, that I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being conformed to his death, if by any means I may attain to the resurrection from the dead, the knowledge of Christ, the power of his resurrection, and partnership with him in his sufferings. That, for the apostle, was great privilege. We won't spend time opening that up.
Importance of Justification by Faith
I just want to close with a few thoughts on the importance of justification by faith. The righteousness we have is an imputed righteousness. This is not a subjective change in the person. This is not moral transformation in the person.
It is the work, the finished work of our Lord Jesus Christ, where we receive forgiveness and we receive his righteousness. Calvin said that justification by faith is the main hinge on which religion turns. Raymond says, the doctrine of justification is the heart and core of the gospel, the good news that God by grace alone justifies sinners through faith alone in Christ alone apart from the works of the law. Now there will always be those who say that if you believe in justification by faith alone, then that doesn't matter, well then it doesn't matter how you live.
Well if people ever say that to you, you're in good company. If you preach, you speak, you teach, and you talk about and exalt in justification by faith alone, and someone says, if what you're saying is true, then it really doesn't matter how a sinner lives. You're in the company of the Apostle Paul. What shall we say then?
Romans 6, 1. Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? May it never be. You see, the true understanding of justification by faith alone brings everything into proper perspective.
It is because God has justified us freely by His grace that we then happily and thankfully live the life of sanctification, seeking to put sin to death, seeking to engage in things that are righteous as God defines them. It is not a killer of a righteous living, but rather it is the foundation and the basis upon which we can actually live the way God calls us to. James White says, Paul sought the alien righteousness that comes only from God, only by faith and only from Christ. He rejected the idea of a righteousness of my own derived from the law.
That is, one inherent with him that comes from obeying God's highest revelation of his moral standards. Paul knew that no man could live up to such a standard to begin with. So he looked outside of himself to a righteousness imputed whose origin and source is God. This is why imputation is such a beautiful word to the sinner who feels so keenly his lack of righteousness and the perfection of the righteousness of Christ.
Such a gift cannot be purchased, earned, or merited. It must be imputed by grace.
Application: The Deathbed Test
Now, if you're wondering where this sermon came from, It came from watching a Roman Catholic in the 11th hour. It's terrifying. It's grieving. It's horrific.
Now, God Most High in His mercy and in His grace can save in spite of Rome, and I bless Him for that, and I praise Him for that. But you don't want to get to that bed where we are all heading. Now that much I can assure you, that much I can say without any hesitancy whatsoever. You're going to die.
There's only one way to be prepared. It's the gospel. It's the cross. It's this alien righteousness of Christ imputed to us.
It's the pardon for sin. It is cleansing in His blood. It is redemption. It is salvation.
It is justification. It is expiation. Pastor Kim used that word this morning. Do you know what expiation means?
The removal of guilt. What can be better? God removes our guilt. Reconciliation.
God and sinners are friends. All of these things are given to us freely by His grace. All of this comes in the Gospel. All of this comes as a result of Christ doing and dying and rising again.
It is all bound up in the person and the work of our Lord Jesus Christ. This doctrine is a protective against legalism. If we understand justification by faith alone, it will kill those attempts by us to try and garner favor with God based on our doing. Assurance is given in a proper understanding of justification by faith alone.
Assurance, or Raymond says, with reference to assurance, it means that saving faith is directed to the doing and dying of the Christ alone, and not to the good works or inner experience of the believer. Let me ask you, real practically, when you look at your good works, or you look at your inner experience, are you encouraged? If you said, yes, matter of fact, I am, you can speak with Pastor Porter after the service. Really, your good works and your inner experience are always so finely tuned and sharply tuned and always in such sway that you have perfect assurance with God?
I think most people that are honest with God, honest with themselves, honest with their open Bible, would say, whenever I look at my good works or whenever I look at my inner experience, I'm sorely discouraged. Raymond says it means that the Christian's righteousness before God is in heaven at the right hand of God in Jesus Christ and not on earth within the believer. It means that the ground of our justification is the vicarious, that means substitutionary work of Christ for us, not the gracious work of the Spirit in us. It means that the faith righteousness of justification is not personal but vicarious, not infused but imputed, not experiential but judicial, not psychological but legal, not our own but a righteousness alien to us and outside of us, not earned but graciously given through faith in Christ that is itself a gift of grace.
To quote a recent politician, whom I believe is corrupt, who asked this question, what difference does it make? With reference to this doctrine of justification, this isn't a little hair splitting with Rome. It means the difference between assurance grounded, based upon, and founded in Jesus Christ, and assurance that is on shaky ground at best. It makes a world of difference.
When you hear Pastor Kim and I Go after Rome. It's not because they wear funky hats. It's not because they shake incense around their sanctuary, though those things are bizarre. It's because they don't understand how sinners are made righteous with God.
That's everything. Isn't that Job's fundamental question? How can a man be just before God? Isn't this what the Protestant Reformation was about?
It's not just funky hats and incense. It's not that we just have an axe to grind with Rome. It's not that we just have this bigotry or prejudice against Rome. It's that we want to see people who have been lied to understand the freeness, the fullness, the graciousness, the kindness, the mercy of God Most High lavished in and through the Lord Jesus Christ.
It's all about the gospel. So when Protestants begin to make attempts to reproach with, Rome, that's wrong, that is bad, that isn't good, you'll never find that, God willing, as long as Pastor Porter and I are here, you will not find that happen. And it's not just because of some little oddity here or there, it is because the gospel of free and sovereign grace is at stake.
Conclusion: Romans 8:1 and Philippians 3:9
Brethren, All of that to say, the only path to Romans 8.1 is Romans 3, 4, 5, 6, and 7, which I think is encapsulated here in Philippians 3 verse 9. We are pardoned, we have a righteousness imputed to us and received by faith alone. It is on that basis that Paul can say, there is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus.
Closing Prayer
Well, let us pray. Father, we thank you for your word, and we thank you for the clarity of the Christian gospel. We thank you for this doctrine of justification by faith alone. We know, Lord God in heaven, that you have blessed us so richly, and we pray that you would help us to respond in worship and to respond with thankful hearts. and to respond, Lord God, in a growth in grace, in a pursuit of Christ, in an understanding of his person and work.
And Lord, we do pray for those steeped in Roman Catholicism. We pray that they would come to hear and come to learn and come to know the glorious truth of justification by faith alone. We ask these things for your glory's sake and we pray in Jesus' name. Amen.