26-0412sc Transcript

(0:04) Let’s go to our Heavenly Father in prayer. Most gracious Heavenly Father, we thank you so much for (0:10) your love, for the grace and mercy that you’ve bestowed upon us, and now that we’re able to (0:18) have a fellowship with you and be able to come to you as our Father and bring to you the concerns (0:28) that we have. We know that you have a ready year for us.

We’re very grateful for your mercy (0:35) and your kindness and looking over our sins and being able to help us and to (0:43) direct us in your divine intervention and providence and preservation in our lives. (0:48) At this time we come to you, we’re asking (0:53) in understanding and insight in the study of Romans, we ask that you help us to appreciate (1:00) what Paul has to say to the Romans and what he’s trying to point out to them. (1:06) We ask that we will be able to make application in our lives and our relationship with one another (1:13) as Christians in this congregation and in the brotherhood.

We pray for those who are not able (1:20) to be with us this morning and we pray that whatever’s hindering them will be alleviated. (1:27) So we ask once again we’re very grateful for your grace and mercy and we pray these things (1:33) in Jesus Christ’s name. Amen.

So we’re looking at Romans and the third chapter and Paul’s still (1:45) talking about their common faith. If you read the first two chapters you realize that Paul is (1:57) pointing out to them what they all have in common and that they all need, that they all have a (2:05) relationship with God and that they’re being reconciled to them to God through Jesus and so (2:13) they’re all he’s pointing that out to the church in particular and he’s directing his attention to (2:23) the Christians who have a Jewish background and those with a Jewish background definitely have (2:32) an edge over those who are not with that background and we know that the church in Rome (2:41) has both the Christians who have Jewish background and the Christians who do not (2:48) who are Gentiles and of course the Gentiles could be anything it’s a conglomeration (2:56) of different faiths and different approaches to God in their past so they all have one thing in (3:03) common and that God is reaching out to them and providing them with the righteousness that they (3:10) need. So anyway Paul is talking I believe initially to the Jewish Christian, the Christian who has a (3:24) Jewish background because of their pride and because of the fact that they do know God and (3:31) they have had experience with God through the Mosaic law and they have a way of judging (3:43) and he’s pointing out to them that hey just because you have this background and you have (3:52) the Mosaic background and the law, keep it to yourself.

You can be critical of them, you don’t (4:01) like the way they come in dressed, they don’t know they’re supposed to have a suit on and a dress (4:08) instead of pants and so on and so you’re going to be critical of them, their language, you’re going (4:16) to be critical of them, the way they drink, their alcoholism and so on, you’re going to be critical (4:22) of those things. Don’t judge them, they’re Christians who are coming in and they have to learn how to (4:28) live the way God wants them to live and they have to know these things. You already know it and you’re (4:33) being critical and you’re judging them.

So it’s judging, judge yourself. And so he’s pointing (4:42) that out to them, you are quick to judge them but are you breaking the law? Yes, you broke the law. (4:50) What does James say? You break one facet of the law, you’ve broken all of it.

So just because (5:00) their lives are more rugged, I don’t know a better word to say, just because their lives (5:11) are more rugged than yours and yours is more refined, you know what you’re doing and they don’t (5:18) or you have a perspective and they don’t how to worship God and to be glorifying God. So (5:29) he’s already bringing them down so now he wants to know and build them up. So we’re looking at (5:37) chapter three and this is the part where he’s backing off and he’s saying you do have an edge (5:43) up on those people because God has been nurturing you.

He selected you. Remember when they came out (5:58) of Egypt? He came to them on Mount Sinai and he says to them, he gives them a proposition, (6:06) I want to be your God if you will be my people. And of course their answer was, ah yes! So then God (6:17) takes that group of people and he nurtures them.

He’s not doing it to anybody else, he hasn’t (6:26) selected any other group of people, just those who are the descendants of Jacob. (6:35) And they’re just the descendants of Jacob. And how do they know that they’re descendants of Jacob? (6:42) Because they have the mark.

They’re circumcised. So that’s the mark of being a descendant of (6:51) Jacob is being circumcised. And so he starts out by saying here, reading from the New International (6:59) Version, what advantage then is there in being a Jew? Or what value is there in circumcision? (7:12) Much in every way.

First of all, the Jews have been entrusted with the very words of God. (7:22) And remember I took you to Psalms 147 and the very last verse in Psalms 147 says that (7:32) God took you and dealt with you in a way that he’s never took anybody else. (7:40) If you don’t remember that, let’s take a look at Psalms 147.

I remember that because I love that (7:57) concept. Verse 19, 147. He has revealed his word to Jacob, his laws and decrees to Israel.

(8:13) He has done this for no other nation. They do not know his laws. Praise the Lord.

(8:24) And so that is a concept that we have to realize that even today Israel exists (8:33) in a manner that and had a relationship with God that nobody else ever had. (8:41) And so that’s where he’s coming from. Any questions about that? Let’s go back to Romans then, (8:51) the third chapter.

So what advantage is there in being a Jew? Or what value is there in circumcision? (9:02) Much in every way. First of all, the Jews have been entrusted with the very words of God. (9:12) And then he asks a question, and that is that we obviously have a Jewish nation (9:22) that is comprised of some individuals who have not or do not know some things.

(9:32) I liken that to the United States. I’ve used this illustration before, (9:37) and we have national holidays. A couple of national holidays that we recognize is (9:48) 4th of July and Memorial Day.

And so those two holidays are very (9:59) important to those of us who are Americans. (10:04) But we have citizens within the United States who do not appreciate 4th of July or Memorial Day (10:14) like others do. You go, and what’s the reason? Why is that? (10:27) Yeah, they’re in a school system that the teachers don’t want to teach them about 4th of July (10:32) or Memorial Day.

They’re in a system that they were born into the United States, (10:38) and they had to be taught. Does that sound familiar? Israel was told that they had to teach (10:48) their citizens, their kids, about what the Passover is all about, (10:57) and the various holidays that they observe. Remember what Jeremiah 31 says? Take a look.

(11:08) Let’s go to Hebrews, and I believe it’s either the 10th or the 8th chapter. (11:20) Let’s take a look at the 8th chapter first. Let’s go to the 8th chapter, (11:33) starting with verse 7, where he’s quoting Jeremiah, and he’s giving a commentary (11:42) about the passage that is found in Jeremiah.

He’s talking about the fact that Jeremiah is (11:50) going to prophesy that there’s going to be an end to the Mosaic law or the covenant that they had. (11:58) For if there had been nothing wrong with that first covenant, no place would have been sought (12:05) for another. But God found fault with the people and said, (12:10) The days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the people of Israel (12:15) and with the people of Judah.

It will not be like the covenant I made with their ancestors when I (12:20) took them by the hand to lead them out of Egypt, because they did not remain faithful to my covenant (12:26) and I turned away from them. This is the covenant I will establish with the people of Israel after (12:32) that time, declares the Lord. I will put my laws in their minds and write them on their hearts.

(12:38) I will be their God and they will be my people. Notice this verse, number 11. No longer will they (12:46) teach their neighbor or say to one another, know the Lord.

In other words, there are people who are (12:54) born into Judaism who do not know their history, and they’re supposed to be taught their history. (13:04) And because they don’t know their history and they don’t have the appreciation for their history, (13:11) like some do, they’re not going to observe it. That’s the way it is here in the United States.

(13:18) We’ve got people who were born into the United States that were not taught about the Fourth of (13:24) July or Memorial Day or Labor Day or any other day that we may have, and they don’t appreciate it. (13:32) And when those days come around, they don’t really have any real desire to (13:41) do anything special about that. But yet, you know, Fourth of July is a beautiful day to go out (13:47) at nighttime and watch the fireworks.

Yeah, let’s go have fireworks or let’s have a picnic. (13:56) And that’s basically the only thing that they’re looking forward to. They have absolutely no (14:02) desire to go to the parades and take in a parade.

What’s the parades for? The parades (14:10) is an opportunity for the military people to march in front of them and to flag the flag and (14:18) to be able to say, you know, I am proud to be an American and so on. Well, Israel is the same way. (14:26) And that’s what Paul’s trying to point out to them in his letter here.

Let’s go back. Any (14:35) questions or comments? So this is the one thing that he was talking about. (14:44) Says, what if some were unfaithful? Will their unfaithfulness nullify God’s faithfulness? (14:51) Not at all.

Let God be true. Every human being a liar, as it is written, so that you may be (14:59) proved right when you speak and prevail when you judge. So God is going to be (15:08) loyal and faithful to his promise.

What is his promise? And this is what they need to be keeping (15:16) in their minds. This is what we need to be keeping in our minds when we’re studying the (15:21) scripture. What was the promise? We’re talking about the promise that God gave to Abraham, (15:27) their forefather, and they’re looking forward to it being fulfilled.

And so we see that God (15:35) gave Abraham a threefold promise. What were they? Remember, I will bless you, (15:45) make of you a great nation, and I’ll show you the land promise, and then I’ll give you a seed (15:53) promise. I’ll make of you a great nation, give you this land, and a seed promise.

And so the seed (16:03) promise is the basic thing that they’re looking forward to now because the land promise had been (16:08) fulfilled. And we know that the land promise was fulfilled because in the Kings, the Old Testament (16:17) Kings, points out that under Solomon, they ruled from the Sea of Egypt all the way up to the (16:30) Euphrates River and from the west to the east. And so the Kings will point that out.

That land (16:40) promise was fulfilled. So the nation promise was fulfilled through David, but they’re also trying (16:48) to find out now, in the New Testament days, they’re still thinking in terms of where’s (16:58) this seed promise? Is he going to be fulfilling the nation promise again, where we will be (17:05) recognized as a nation? But the nation promise has already been fulfilled. The unfulfilled promise so (17:13) far, up until Jesus' time, was the promise that God said, through your seed, the world will be (17:22) blessed.

So they’re trying to figure out, how is the world going to be blessed through us? Does that (17:33) mean we’re going to be a nation like we used to be, and how that we did bless the world through (17:42) our existence? Is that the way it’s going to be? What does God just have in mind when he says, (17:51) through our seed, the world would be blessed? And so he’s pointing that out. And in the first (18:00) two chapters, we see that Paul is telling them that the world was blessed through Jesus, (18:07) and that God fulfilled his promise to us, and that we will have to live by faith. (18:14) And so the righteous will live by faith.

And I can’t wait until I get to that, (18:23) where he’s talking about Abram. But what he’s saying is, God is true to his promise. (18:32) He has not let you down.

He has not forgotten his promise. And everything he’s done so far, (18:40) up until now, is towards the fulfillment of his promise that he made to Abraham, (18:46) that through his seed, the world will be blessed. That’s what they’re concerned about.

(18:53) And so, if some were unfaithful, will their unfaithfulness nullify God’s faithfulness? (19:00) In other words, will that give God a reason or an excuse not to fulfill his promise? No. (19:09) He’s going to keep his promise, whether you are loyal to him or not. (19:13) And that’s what Paul is trying to point out to us.

No. Israel’s behavior and so on is not going to (19:24) keep God from fulfilling his promise. He’s going to fulfill his promise, whether Israel is faithful (19:30) to him or not.

And so, that promise is that through Abraham’s seed, the world will be blessed. (19:38) And so, Paul is pointing out in the first chapter how God fulfilled that promise (19:48) and that he kept his promise. So, any questions about that? (20:00) Verse 5. If our unrighteousness brings out God’s righteousness more clearly, (20:09) what should we say? That God is unjust in bringing his wrath on us? And then, in quotes, Paul is (20:19) saying, I’m using a human argument.

In other words, that God is unjust in bringing out his (20:27) wrath on us? That’s a human reaction. Certainly not. If that were so, how could God judge the (20:35) world? Someone might argue, if my falsehood enhances God’s truthfulness and so increases (20:45) his glory, why am I still condemned as a sinner? Why not say, and this is Paul’s conclusion, (20:55) because he just got through quoting what the world would say, some might argue, why not say, (21:05) as some slanderously claim that we say, quote, let us do evil that good may resolve.

(21:12) Their condemnation is just. So, there’s nothing that man is going to do that will cause God to (21:23) say, I washed my hands, I’m not going to keep my promise. Why does God want to keep his promise? (21:32) Because he wants to fulfill his purpose of us being created in the first place.

Why were we (21:40) created in the first place? Paul tells us about that in the Ephesian letter, doesn’t he? He points (21:46) out that God wants us to be with him eternally in heaven, and that’s the point he was trying to (21:53) make out, and that we will glorify him through Jesus. So, if you want to refresh your mind on (22:01) that, let’s go to Ephesians and just refresh our memory. First chapter, the end reading from the (22:13) New International Version.

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed (22:22) us in heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. Verse four, for he chose us in him (22:34) before the creation of the world. Who’s him? It’s Jesus.

For he chose us in Jesus before the (22:42) creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love, God predestined us (22:52) for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ in accordance with his pleasure and will. Whose (23:01) pleasure? God’s pleasure and will.

To the praise of his glorious grace. Whose glorious grace? (23:09) God’s glorious grace, which he, God, has freely given us in the one he loves, who’s Jesus. (23:19) In Jesus, we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins in accordance with the (23:27) riches of God’s grace that God lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding.

(23:36) God made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed (23:45) in Christ to be put into effect when the time reached their fulfillment, to bring unity to all (23:54) things in heaven and on earth under Christ. So that’s the reason why God is going to be (24:01) so faithful, consistent about his being faithful. There’s nothing that man is going to do (24:11) that has caused God to wash his hands of us because he wants to bring us back.

He wants (24:20) to reconcile us to him. He wants us to have that relationship with him and that fellowship, (24:28) that brotherhood, being able to come to him like a father. (24:34) So that’s the reason why he’s not going to allow anything to (24:42) come between us and him.

He’s going to remain faithful to his promise and his purpose. (24:50) Any questions about this? I got 15 minutes yet! (25:01) So, once again, but if our unrighteousness brings out God’s righteousness more clearly, (25:10) what shall we say? That God is unjust, bringing wrath on us? (25:15) And since I’m using human argument, certainly not! If that were so, how could God judge the world? (25:23) Someone might argue, quote, (25:26) if my falsehood enhances God’s truthfulness and so increases his glory, (25:32) why am I still condemned as a sinner? Unquote. Then Paul, rationalizing, why not say, (25:43) and some slanderously claim that we say, let us do evil that good may result? Unquote.

(25:53) And Paul says, in conclusion, their condemnation is just. So they’re just trying to (26:04) rationalize the way God. So then, any questions? Comments? (26:13) Verse 9. What shall we conclude, then? Do we have any advantage? (26:21) He’s talking to the Christian who has a Jewish background.

What shall we conclude, then? Do we (26:29) have any advantage? Not at all. For we already have, already made the charge that Jews and Gentiles (26:38) alike are all under the power of sin, as it is written. And then he’s going to be quoting (26:48) scripture and other individuals who are righteous and calling out to God.

(27:00) You’ll recognize some of these because they’re in Psalms. David is, or even in the Old Testament, (27:08) Elijah, or Elisha. Elijah is saying, look, I’m the only one who’s still alive, or faithful to you.

(27:19) And God says to him, I have 5,000 people who never bowed in need to bow all. (27:27) So he’s condemning the world. The writers are condemning the world for their wickedness and (27:37) their sinfulness, and they’re saying, there’s no one who’s righteous.

We can say that today, (27:41) can’t we? There’s no one righteous. We’re the only ones left who are righteous. Look at the few of us (27:48) that come and worship here.

We’re the only one. Out of all the people that live in Cleveland, (27:54) we’re the only ones who are righteous. And so God is saying, look, you know, that’s not true.

(28:02) But he’s quoting here various other individuals who are claiming the unrighteousness of their (28:10) fellow citizens. So what shall we conclude then? Do we have any advantage? Not at all, (28:17) for we have already made the charge that Jews and Gentiles alike are all under the power of sin. (28:25) And so he’s looking at the Jewish Christian, and he’s telling them, quit judging your fellow (28:33) Christians who do not have the background that you have.

They’ve come out of the world. They’re (28:39) wanting to be loyal to God. They want to be right with God.

So do you. You are no better than they (28:47) are. He wants you to realize that you need Jesus just as much as they do.

You have sin, (28:58) and you’re a stigma to God, and you’re a stench in his smell. What he wants you to realize is (29:05) that just because you’re more righteous, perhaps, or religious than they are, doesn’t make it. (29:21) Doesn’t make it.

We all are under the power of sin. As it is written, and he’s quoting (29:34) other authors now, he’s quoting other religious people, and he’s giving those quotes, (29:43) and he’s not making allusions to those because basically they’re not scripture. (29:49) But some of them are, and he’s quoting some writers.

So the first one here is a quote. (29:59) There is no one righteous, not even one. There is no one who understands.

There is no one who seeks (30:05) God. All have turned away. They have together become worthless.

There is no one who does good, (30:13) not even one. That’s a quote. He’s going to quote someone else.

(30:24) Their throats are open graves. Their tongues practice deceit. That’s another quote.

(30:34) The poison of vipers is on their lips. And another quote. Their mouths are full of cursing and (30:41) bitterness.

And another quote. Their feet are swift to shed blood. Ruin and misery mark their (30:51) ways, and the way of peace they do not know.

And the last quote. There is no fear of God before (31:00) their eyes. And that is a proverb found in Proverbs, and it’s also found in Psalms.

But (31:13) because they’re talking about the agnostic. They’re talking about the atheist. They’re (31:18) talking about the person who doesn’t want to retain the knowledge of God.

And it says, (31:23) the fear of God is the beginning of wisdom, and so on. And so he’s pointing out how the (31:33) people who are out in the world and don’t want to know, they have no fear of God before their eyes. (31:40) That’s the reason why they are doing the things that they do in the world and in their lives, (31:46) and how they behave themselves.

There’s no fear of God before their eyes. And I can say that for sure (31:53) from some of the people that I’ve run across. There’s no fear of God.

They could care less (32:01) what God thinks. It’s not a part of them. So then Paul points out, and he’s still talking to (32:12) the Christian who has a Jewish background.

But now apart from the, now we know that whatever (32:21) the law says, it says to those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be silenced, (32:30) and the whole world held accountable to God. There is, therefore, no one will be declared (32:38) righteous in God’s sight by the works of the law, rather through the law we become conscious (32:49) of sin. And that’s really what the law was all about.

Why was the law established? (33:01) To make it so we would know what sin is. And he also says, Paul also says that where sin increased, (33:12) grace also increased. So the grace of God continues to be there.

(33:20) And my prayer constantly is to be with the members of my family, those who are Christians, (33:29) helping them remain faithful to death. Those who aren’t Christians, please work in their lives in (33:35) such a way that they will see that that’s the step they need to become. They need to become (33:43) Christians.

And so then, through the law, we become conscious of our sins. Any question there? (33:56) Let’s go on. Verse 21.

This, I think you need to circle this whole paragraph. You need to (34:06) be able to come back to it, make reference to it, whenever you’re talking to individuals, (34:12) and you want to convert them, or help them become Christians, and understand what Christianity is (34:17) all about, and why we’re coming to God through Jesus, and why God’s grace reaches out to us. (34:26) What is grace? Unmerited favor.

I like that. I used to fight that. (34:36) I used to think there’s a better way of saying what grace is about, but I like that phrase now.

(34:42) Unmerited favor. In other words, God’s reaching out to us and saying, I want to reconcile you to (34:49) me. I want to do this.

So his grace is making it possible for us to be reconciled to him. (34:59) So the righteousness through faith. This is important.

So Paul’s pointing out now. (35:10) But now, apart from the law, the righteousness of God has been made known. The law was designed to (35:22) help a person to be righteous, but the inability for man to keep it, he didn’t understand.

And (35:37) it wasn’t the weakness of the law. The law was perfect. The law could do it.

It did it for Jesus. (35:49) It declared Jesus to be righteous. But for the man other than Jesus, the law condemned them.

(36:00) And so, but the law, if you kept the law 100%, like Jesus did, you would have righteousness. (36:08) But the law was looking for you to be perfect, but you fell short. And therefore, it condemned (36:19) you.

The law could only do one of two things. Declare you righteous or condemn you. If you just (36:31) faltered one little bit, and he’s going to quote Moses later on, how that Moses says, (36:38) you need to keep this.

And if you keep this and live by it, you’ll be righteous. (36:45) And so he’s quoting that, because that means you’ve got to be perfect. You’ve got to live it (36:51) 100%.

But now, apart from the law, the righteousness of God has been made known, (36:57) to which the law and the prophets testify. So grace and faith does not rely on the law. (37:08) Has nothing to do with the law.

The righteousness that God wants to provide for us, (37:14) and us to be able to appeal to, is through faith. And faith is the important thing. This (37:24) righteousness, verse 22, is given through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe.

(37:33) There is no difference between Jew and Gentile. For all have sinned and fall short of the glory (37:39) of God, Romans 3, 23. We quote that all the time.

So, verse 24, all are justified freely (37:53) by His grace through the redemption that came by Jesus Christ. God presented Christ (38:03) as a sacrifice of an atonement, through the shedding of His blood, to be received by faith. (38:13) He did this to demonstrate His righteousness, because in His forbearance He had left the sins (38:21) committed before, and unpunished.

Now, what we’re looking at here, and why Paul uses that phrase, (38:29) is that man’s indicting God. He’s telling God, you’re not true, you’re not being right, (38:39) you’re not…​you’re showing preferential treatment. You’re prejudiced.

And so, (38:48) God has to demonstrate His righteousness. Why are they accusing God of being prejudiced? (38:56) Because He’s forgiving people like David. He’s considered them to be righteous.

(39:09) Well, what about us? Paul wants to point out to us that God is being indicted because of (39:20) how He dealt with sin in the past, and how He wants to deal with sin now. (39:27) So, where’s your faithfulness? Well, God is showing us. He’s showing us His faithfulness, (39:34) because in His mind, we’ve got to realize who God is.

He’s God. He’s not Superman. He doesn’t (39:43) have any fallibilities.

He’s not weakened by kryptonite. He’s perfect. Whatever He says (39:54) will come to pass.

And so, we just saw in Ephesians what He intended to do. He intended to (40:06) redeem man through Jesus Christ. So, in His mind, He already saw that which was not as if it was.

(40:17) And so, He’s forgiving David and other men like, as we read through the Old Testament, (40:26) He’s forgiving them their sins based on the fact that He already sees Jesus on the cross. (40:35) He’s already accomplished it. It hasn’t come to pass yet, but it’s going to come.

(40:41) And we’ll know. So, verse 23, "…​for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, (40:51) and all are justified freely by His grace through the redemption that came by Jesus Christ. God (41:00) presented Christ as a sacrifice of atonement through the shedding of His blood to be received (41:08) by faith." So, He’s pointing out to us that God is meeting that condemnation.

You sin, you die. (41:19) He’s honoring that. And that’s what He’s going to say down here in the very last verse, (41:25) verse 31, "…​do we then nullify the law by this faith? Not at all.

Rather, we uphold the law." (41:32) God is going to uphold the law and say, you sin, you die. A death must occur. (41:41) And He sent Jesus to be that propitiation for us.

He sent Jesus to die for the sins of mankind (41:52) and to pay that debt that they could not pay. I like that song. (41:57) He paid a debt that He did not owe.

I owed a debt I could not pay. I needed someone. (42:07) So anyway, He’s telling us that that’s what Jesus accomplished.

He came and (42:19) satisfied the law for you and me. He satisfied the law for David and for all of those in the (42:30) Old Testament that He overlooked their sins only because He saw that Jesus was going to die on the (42:39) cross for him. He saw that which was not as this was.

And Paul is going to reiterate that in the (42:48) fourth chapter. So he’s pointing this out. Verse 25, "…​God presented Christ as a sacrifice of (42:57) atonement through the shedding of His blood to be received by faith." So we have to believe (43:06) that this is what is accomplished and that we can have the forgiveness of our sins (43:11) through Jesus' death and be able to appeal to that for us.

And he’s going to point that out (43:17) in the sixth chapter, as you know. He did this to demonstrate His righteousness. (43:26) He’s being challenged.

He’s being indicted. God, you’ve forgiven them, but you haven’t forgiven me. (43:36) Where’s your righteousness? You’re not being right.

But He is being right. He’s offering that atonement (43:46) to whosoever will. Whosoever will.

So as He’s looking at that. "…​So God presented Christ as a (43:55) sacrifice as an atonement through the shedding of His blood to be received by faith. He did this to (44:01) demonstrate His righteousness, because in His forbearance He had left the sins committed (44:08) beforehand unpunished." He did it to demonstrate His righteousness at the present time so as to be (44:17) just and the one who justifies those who have faith in Jesus.

In other words, when He saves us (44:31) and forgives us of our sins, He’s being righteous because He’s honoring the law. (44:39) And the law says, if you sin, you die. He’s reconciling us to Him through Jesus, (44:46) and He’s being righteous in doing so because Jesus, He’s paying the debt that we owe.

He’s (44:56) covering and atoning us and redeeming us from that death through Jesus. You don’t have to (45:03) experience that. So He’s doing that, and He’s being faithful to all who become Christians (45:11) after Jesus' death, even today.

So He’s forgiving us of our debts. So this is…​any questions? (45:22) I have just a comment. He says plainly, makes it plain that God is no respecter of persons.

(45:39) And for those who might still say that He forgave someone like David, (45:49) for God said and told them, I will be merciful unto whom I will be merciful. (45:57) That’s right. He is a respecter of persons.

We’ll see that in Judgment Day. He wants us (46:08) to come to Him through Jesus, and He’s going to honor those who come to Him through Jesus, (46:16) and He’s going to reject those who don’t. (46:20) He’s not a respecter of persons when it comes to offering them that position.

(46:27) Do you want to be redeemed on Judgment Day? Come to Him through Jesus. He’s not going to be a (46:33) respecter of persons. He’s not going to separate you.

He’s not going to say, you can’t be saved, (46:39) and you can. He’s going to say, whosoever wants to come to Me can. I’m not a respecter of persons.

(46:47) I’m not going to reject Dahmer. I’m not going to reject Kirk. Why would I accept Kirk and not (46:58) Dahmer? He says, I don’t care.

I will take both of you. All you’ve got to do is come to Me through (47:06) Jesus, and repent, and be baptized for the remission of your sins, and put Jesus on in (47:13) baptism. I’m not a respecter of persons, but He will be a respecter of persons on Judgment Day, (47:21) because He’s going to say, Jesus, who’s your followers? And Jesus is going to say, (47:29) hey, they’re followers.

They are one of us. And God is going to say, enter in, (47:37) thou good and faithful servant. Respecter of persons turns to judgment.

He will not (47:44) make a judgment that you’re going to be saved because you’re a seed, (47:50) that you’re not because you’re a mite. But He will be a respecter of obedient faithful. (48:01) You were faithful to Satan.

You were unfaithful. You’re my son. You’re my friend.

You’re my best (48:13) whatever buddy. You will not be saved because you were not faithful to respecter of persons. (48:22) It’s not based on whether or not he likes the person, whether or not they are faithful and (48:32) obeying Him.

That’s what He respects. That’s right. So right now, who can be saved? Anyone (48:45) who will come to Him under His terms.

It doesn’t matter who you are. You come to me under my terms. (48:52) When it comes to Judgment Day, those who came to me under my terms will be saved.

Those who don’t (48:59) come to me under my terms will be rejected. So He did this to demonstrate His righteousness at the (49:05) present time so as to be just and the one who justifies those who have faith in Jesus. 27.

(49:16) Oh, we’re past our time. Way past our time. Okay.

I’m sorry. We’ll have to pick up with (49:24) the balance here. I love the balance also.

Verse 27.