The Gospel of the Grace of God was lost for almost 1,500 years. Although its life-changing message was recovered during the Reformation, it has since disappeared from most churches and denominations.
The apostle Paul once wrote, “I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes.” (Romans 1:16)
The word “gospel” refers to the good news that "Christ died for our sins [and] rose from the dead the third day." (1 Corinthians 15:3-4) The gospel has “power” because it is what God uses to give "salvation" and forgiveness to anyone and everyone who simply believes its message. (Romans 1:17, 1 Corinthians 1:18 & 1:21-23)
The term “salvation” means to rescue or deliver. God uses the gospel to rescue and deliver us from our sins, as well as from the judgment and condemnation we rightfully deserve. (Matthew 1:21, Titus 3:3-7)
The word “believe” is a synonym of the word “faith”. Both words mean to rely on or trust in someone other than yourself. When we rely on what Jesus has already accomplished for us on the cross (and not on our own effort, good works, or baptism, etc.), God gives us salvation "freely by His grace"! This wonderful gift includes forgiveness of our sins and eternal life with Him in heaven forever. (See Romans 3:24, 5:6-10, Acts 16:30-31)
“For in the gospel a righteousness from God is revealed, a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written [in the Scriptures]: ‘The righteous will live by faith.’” (Romans 1:17)
The “righteousness” that God gives to those who simply believe in Jesus for their salvation, comes only “from God”. This means that it is not something that we have in ourselves, nor is it something that we can ever hope to produce or achieve. In fact, it is none other than the perfect righteousness of Jesus Himself that God imputes to us (credits to us) the moment we first put our faith in Christ alone. (Romans 4:1-8)
“Therefore, no one will be declared righteous in His sight by observing the Law; rather through the Law, we become conscious of [our] sin.” (Romans 3:20)
The righteousness that God provides does not come to us through the 10 Commandments and the Law of Moses. Nor does it come to us by any other system of religious rites, rules or rituals. The Bible makes it clear that God’s commandments can never make us righteous, they only demonstrate how unrighteous we are in ourselves. God’s commands cannot make us sinless (or even help us sin less), they only reveal how sinful we really are - showing us our desperate need for a Savior. (Romans 3:9-12, Galatians 3:10-14)
“But now a righteousness from God, apart from law, has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe.” (Romans 3:21-22)
Although the Law and the Prophets testified and prophesied about God’s righteousness, neither the Law nor the Prophets could produce righteousness in us. The pure and perfect righteousness, that God in His justice requires of us, He lovingly and graciously provides for us through Christ’s sacrifice on the cross. This righteousness comes only from God and only “through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe.” (See Galatians 2:16)
“For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified [declared ‘perfectly righteous’ by God] freely by His grace through the redemption [the price paid] that came by Christ Jesus." (Romans 3:23-24)
These two verses include both bad news and good news. The bad news is that in ourselves, we all fall drastically short of God’s perfect holiness and divine glory. This means that we are completely unable to do anything to change our sinful and helpless condition. However, the good news is so good that it completely takes away the bad news! The good news is that God justifies us “freely by His grace through the redemption [the price paid on the cross] that came by Christ Jesus!” (Romans 4:5, 4:23-25 & 5:1, 1 Peter 1:18)
By His death on the cross, Jesus paid the penalty for all our wrong doing, offering Himself as a sacrifice “for the sins of the whole world” (1 John 2:2). This means that our sin debt has been completely paid off as far as God is concerned. Christ’s blood, shed on our behalf redeems us (sets us free) from all of the judgment and condemnation that we rightfully deserve. Anyone who believes in Him receives a full pardon from their guilt, as well as complete forgiveness of all their sins. Not only are all of our past sins forgiven, but Jesus also died for all of the sins that we will commit in the future. (See John 5:24, Acts 10:43 & 13:38-39)
This is why the Gospel of Jesus Christ is such ‘good news’! When we believe in Him as our only hope and savior, God justifies us without cost or effort on our part, based entirely on what Jesus has already accomplished on our behalf on the cross. He does this completely apart from our good works or devotion. It is a free gift that we don’t deserve and that we cannot earn or help to earn in any way. Our part (your part) is only to receive with simple childlike faith the gift that God offers. The last words that Jesus said on the cross were “It is finished [It is paid in full]!” He has done everything required for us to receive forgiveness of our sins, the righteousness of Christ Himself (imputed to us freely by God), and eternal life with Him in heaven forever. (John 3:15-18, Ephesians 2:8-9)
“God presented Him as a sacrifice of atonement, through faith in his blood...” (Romans 3:25a)
The blood of Christ is the only payment accepted and endorsed by God the Father. Through Jesus “we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of God’s grace that He lavished on us with all wisdom...” (Ephesians 1:6)
The word “atonement” relates back to the Old Testament sacrificial system when an innocent lamb (or other animal) was brought to the priest to be offered on behalf of a person who had sinned. In this way, the lamb became the payment (the atonement) for the guilty person. However, this kind of sacrifice did not actually remove sin, it only served as a “constant reminder of sin” (Hebrews 10:3-4). It was also a picture of Christ’s future “once and for all sacrifice” for us (Hebrews 7:27). When John first introduced Jesus, he referred to Him as “the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world” (John 1:29). Although Jesus was completely innocent and without sin, He took our place and bore our guilt and punishment. (2 Corinthians 5:21, 1 Peter 2:24 & 3:18)
“[Christ was sacrificed] to demonstrate [God’s] justice...so as to be just and the one who justifies those who have faith in Jesus.” (Romans 3:25b-26)
When God the Father judged Jesus (who offered Himself lovingly in our place), The Father acted in perfect justice against all the injustice and evil both in us and in the entire world. In other words, God didn’t minimize or overlook our sin, nor did He dismiss it or deal with it leniently or unjustly. Even though His dear Son was the one suffering the full force of His righteous wrath and condemnation for our sins, nevertheless, justice was carried out without mercy or restraint. Of course, by acting in full and unbiased justice toward His Son, He provided the way to act in perfect love, forgiveness, and grace toward us! See Romans 5:12-19, 1 John 4:9-10.
As a result of the justice carried out on the cross, God now “justifies those who have faith in Jesus.” As mentioned previously, believing in what Christ has already done for us is the only means of receiving God’s gift of salvation and justification. (Acts 16:31)
“Where, then, is boasting? It is excluded. On what principle? On that of observing the law? No, but on that of faith.” (Romans 3:27)
Because no one can be justified by the Law (or by personal obedience, doing good deeds, or performing religious acts and rituals, etc.), God alone receives the glory. If we had any part in our salvation we could rightfully take some of the credit, “but not before God!” Salvation by grace means that God, not man, is glorified and gets all the credit! (See Romans 4:1-5, Galatians 6:14)
“For we maintain that a man is justified by faith apart from observing the law.” (Romans 3:28)
In verse 28 (above), the apostle Paul, the author of the book of Romans, repeats and re-emphasizes what he said previously in verse 20. A person is justified (pronounced ‘perfectly and eternally righteous’ by God) through faith in Jesus Christ alone “apart from” trying to obey God’s laws and commandments which were intended to show us our own sinfulness and our desperate need for salvation. (Romans 4:13-16, Romans 4:23-25)
Forgiveness was procured for us by Christ’s death. When we believe in (trust in) Him alone, God miraculously credits to us Christ’s own righteousness - His divine righteousness! On this basis we stand without fault before God and we are fully accepted in the Son He loves! (Romans 5:1-2, Ephesians 1:6)
The apostle Paul once wrote, “I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes.” (Romans 1:16)
The word “gospel” refers to the good news that "Christ died for our sins [and] rose from the dead the third day." (1 Corinthians 15:3-4) The gospel has “power” because it is what God uses to give "salvation" and forgiveness to anyone and everyone who simply believes its message. (Romans 1:17, 1 Corinthians 1:18 & 1:21-23)
The term “salvation” means to rescue or deliver. God uses the gospel to rescue and deliver us from our sins, as well as from the judgment and condemnation we rightfully deserve. (Matthew 1:21, Titus 3:3-7)
The word “believe” is a synonym of the word “faith”. Both words mean to rely on or trust in someone other than yourself. When we rely on what Jesus has already accomplished for us on the cross (and not on our own effort, good works, or baptism, etc.), God gives us salvation "freely by His grace"! This wonderful gift includes forgiveness of our sins and eternal life with Him in heaven forever. (See Romans 3:24, 5:6-10, Acts 16:30-31)
“For in the gospel a righteousness from God is revealed, a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written [in the Scriptures]: ‘The righteous will live by faith.’” (Romans 1:17)
The “righteousness” that God gives to those who simply believe in Jesus for their salvation, comes only “from God”. This means that it is not something that we have in ourselves, nor is it something that we can ever hope to produce or achieve. In fact, it is none other than the perfect righteousness of Jesus Himself that God imputes to us (credits to us) the moment we first put our faith in Christ alone. (Romans 4:1-8)
“Therefore, no one will be declared righteous in His sight by observing the Law; rather through the Law, we become conscious of [our] sin.” (Romans 3:20)
The righteousness that God provides does not come to us through the 10 Commandments and the Law of Moses. Nor does it come to us by any other system of religious rites, rules or rituals. The Bible makes it clear that God’s commandments can never make us righteous, they only demonstrate how unrighteous we are in ourselves. God’s commands cannot make us sinless (or even help us sin less), they only reveal how sinful we really are - showing us our desperate need for a Savior. (Romans 3:9-12, Galatians 3:10-14)
“But now a righteousness from God, apart from law, has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe.” (Romans 3:21-22)
Although the Law and the Prophets testified and prophesied about God’s righteousness, neither the Law nor the Prophets could produce righteousness in us. The pure and perfect righteousness, that God in His justice requires of us, He lovingly and graciously provides for us through Christ’s sacrifice on the cross. This righteousness comes only from God and only “through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe.” (See Galatians 2:16)
“For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified [declared ‘perfectly righteous’ by God] freely by His grace through the redemption [the price paid] that came by Christ Jesus." (Romans 3:23-24)
These two verses include both bad news and good news. The bad news is that in ourselves, we all fall drastically short of God’s perfect holiness and divine glory. This means that we are completely unable to do anything to change our sinful and helpless condition. However, the good news is so good that it completely takes away the bad news! The good news is that God justifies us “freely by His grace through the redemption [the price paid on the cross] that came by Christ Jesus!” (Romans 4:5, 4:23-25 & 5:1, 1 Peter 1:18)
By His death on the cross, Jesus paid the penalty for all our wrong doing, offering Himself as a sacrifice “for the sins of the whole world” (1 John 2:2). This means that our sin debt has been completely paid off as far as God is concerned. Christ’s blood, shed on our behalf redeems us (sets us free) from all of the judgment and condemnation that we rightfully deserve. Anyone who believes in Him receives a full pardon from their guilt, as well as complete forgiveness of all their sins. Not only are all of our past sins forgiven, but Jesus also died for all of the sins that we will commit in the future. (See John 5:24, Acts 10:43 & 13:38-39)
This is why the Gospel of Jesus Christ is such ‘good news’! When we believe in Him as our only hope and savior, God justifies us without cost or effort on our part, based entirely on what Jesus has already accomplished on our behalf on the cross. He does this completely apart from our good works or devotion. It is a free gift that we don’t deserve and that we cannot earn or help to earn in any way. Our part (your part) is only to receive with simple childlike faith the gift that God offers. The last words that Jesus said on the cross were “It is finished [It is paid in full]!” He has done everything required for us to receive forgiveness of our sins, the righteousness of Christ Himself (imputed to us freely by God), and eternal life with Him in heaven forever. (John 3:15-18, Ephesians 2:8-9)
“God presented Him as a sacrifice of atonement, through faith in his blood...” (Romans 3:25a)
The blood of Christ is the only payment accepted and endorsed by God the Father. Through Jesus “we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of God’s grace that He lavished on us with all wisdom...” (Ephesians 1:6)
The word “atonement” relates back to the Old Testament sacrificial system when an innocent lamb (or other animal) was brought to the priest to be offered on behalf of a person who had sinned. In this way, the lamb became the payment (the atonement) for the guilty person. However, this kind of sacrifice did not actually remove sin, it only served as a “constant reminder of sin” (Hebrews 10:3-4). It was also a picture of Christ’s future “once and for all sacrifice” for us (Hebrews 7:27). When John first introduced Jesus, he referred to Him as “the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world” (John 1:29). Although Jesus was completely innocent and without sin, He took our place and bore our guilt and punishment. (2 Corinthians 5:21, 1 Peter 2:24 & 3:18)
“[Christ was sacrificed] to demonstrate [God’s] justice...so as to be just and the one who justifies those who have faith in Jesus.” (Romans 3:25b-26)
When God the Father judged Jesus (who offered Himself lovingly in our place), The Father acted in perfect justice against all the injustice and evil both in us and in the entire world. In other words, God didn’t minimize or overlook our sin, nor did He dismiss it or deal with it leniently or unjustly. Even though His dear Son was the one suffering the full force of His righteous wrath and condemnation for our sins, nevertheless, justice was carried out without mercy or restraint. Of course, by acting in full and unbiased justice toward His Son, He provided the way to act in perfect love, forgiveness, and grace toward us! See Romans 5:12-19, 1 John 4:9-10.
As a result of the justice carried out on the cross, God now “justifies those who have faith in Jesus.” As mentioned previously, believing in what Christ has already done for us is the only means of receiving God’s gift of salvation and justification. (Acts 16:31)
“Where, then, is boasting? It is excluded. On what principle? On that of observing the law? No, but on that of faith.” (Romans 3:27)
Because no one can be justified by the Law (or by personal obedience, doing good deeds, or performing religious acts and rituals, etc.), God alone receives the glory. If we had any part in our salvation we could rightfully take some of the credit, “but not before God!” Salvation by grace means that God, not man, is glorified and gets all the credit! (See Romans 4:1-5, Galatians 6:14)
“For we maintain that a man is justified by faith apart from observing the law.” (Romans 3:28)
In verse 28 (above), the apostle Paul, the author of the book of Romans, repeats and re-emphasizes what he said previously in verse 20. A person is justified (pronounced ‘perfectly and eternally righteous’ by God) through faith in Jesus Christ alone “apart from” trying to obey God’s laws and commandments which were intended to show us our own sinfulness and our desperate need for salvation. (Romans 4:13-16, Romans 4:23-25)
Forgiveness was procured for us by Christ’s death. When we believe in (trust in) Him alone, God miraculously credits to us Christ’s own righteousness - His divine righteousness! On this basis we stand without fault before God and we are fully accepted in the Son He loves! (Romans 5:1-2, Ephesians 1:6)
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