There is none righteous, no not one; there is none who understand; there is non who seeks after god, they have all turned aside; they have together become unprofitable; there is non who does good, no, not one. Their throat is an open tomb; with their tongues they have practiced deceit; the poison of asps is under their lips; whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness. Their feet are swift to shed blood; destruction and misery are in their ways; and the way of peace they have not known. there is no fear of God before their eyes.
The law is for those under the law, and no man will be justified because the law brings the knowledge of sin.
But now God's righteousness through Jesus is revealed, as told previously by the Law and the Prophets, to all those who believe.
For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God set forth as a propitiation by His blood, through faith, to demonstrate His righteousness...
No one can boast now because man is justified by faith, not works of the law. God is also the God of the Gentiles because there is one God who will justify the circumcised by faith and the uncircumcised through faith.
COMMENTARY
Paul asked what good circumcision was. It was an advantage to have God's word, and it meant Jews had a responsibility, as an outward sign to demonstrate to the world who God is. Paul noted that Israel's faithlessness did not revoke His future promises to them. Because the Jews failed, it does not mean God failed.
God judges sin and all mankind is under sin. Man is a sinner by his actions, man is a sinner by nature, man is a sinner by imputation; and man is under sin.
Being righteous means to be right. To be right with God means to receive His plan for salvation.
No one is the person he wants to be and no one seeks for God. Some time ago, God tolerated man's ignorance, but those times are gone. All men must repent now because God is no longer tolerating man's lack of knowledge.
Man has left the right way. Even primitive civilizations had an understanding of living rightly. Somewhere, man took a detour.
Man is unprofitable (rotten)!
No one does good. Not one! If we saw ourselves the way God does, we would be disgusted, too.
Man's mouth abounds with cursing, deceit, and fraud, and is full of mischief and vanity. He is attracted to evil. Everything in his wake is destruction and misery. He does not understand how to make peace. And he has no fear of God.
Bottom line: man cannot attain righteousness through the Mosaic Law. The Law is only good to reveal man as the sinner that he is.
THE GOOD NEWS
God demands and then provides the righteousness for us, through Christ -- apart from the Law.
That righteousness which the Father required, the Son became, and the Holy Spirit convinces of, and faith secures. - Dr. Brooks
The object of our faith is Christ. His blood and merit save us. By His grace we are saved.
It is FAITH IN HIS BLOOD (His life --). The life of the flesh is in the blood.
ALL WE HAVE TO DO IS COME (TO CHRIST). IF YOU COME, HE SAVES YOU WHOLEHEARTEDLY, ABUNDANTLY. HE ACCEPTS US (not the other way around).
Finally, God gave the Jews the Law. Obviously, they could not keep the Law, which was why there had to be a sacrifice (of a lamb), which was provided in faith. The sacrifice always pointed to the coming Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who would be the propitiation for sin. And today, this is how we are saved, through faith in His sacrifice.
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| Paul Writing His Epistles - 1618-20 |