Israel: The Capstone of Justification; Part 1
We are now on the last leg of Paul’s vast study regarding justification. Paul wrote the book of Romans for the purpose of teaching the full-orbed gospel. It is a significant study for understanding the ends and outs of living a godly life and how it works. It is the what, why, and how of spiritual living. It does not concern poetic writings for meditation, it is not a narrative, it concerns knowledge and wisdom. It concerns doctrine. It concerns systematic theology. It arms the Christian with knowledge.
Paul started with the study of anthropology and its relationship to the gospel, now he ends in Romans10:10-11:36 with the capstone of justification: Israel’s role and relationship to justification. In a moment of sanity, John MacArthur once said that “if you get Israel right, you get the Bible right,” and that is absolutely right. It would be doubtful that he still holds to that position as he is now solidly in the Reformed camp, his usual confusion notwithstanding. The big three of the Reformation, Augustine, Luther, and Calvin despised the Jews.
The Abrahamic Covenant is “The Promise” that justifies both Jew and Gentile. Both Jew and Gentile look for the new heavens and new earth that is the final consummation of The Promise. ALL the nations will be blessed through the father of our faith, Abraham. God made it clear in that covenant that He would bless those who bless Abraham, and curse those who curse him. The Reformers cursed the Jews in no uncertain terms. If for no other reason, the Reformers should be rejected out of hand for that reason alone.
The long anti-Semitic tradition propagated by the Reformation must be necessarily exposed and adjusted by the book of Romans. The apostle Paul sternly warned against the very prejudice that we see against the Jews in the contemporary church. Paul explains the central role that Israel plays in justification while warning that wrong attitudes towards Israel can result in being cut off from justification itself. A bitter root concerning Israel is indicative of a serious spiritual problem.
The Romans, as well as most Gentiles integrated into the church, had an inferiority complex because the early church was a Jewish church. “Salvation is of the Jews” were the very words of Jesus Himself. Initially, He only came to the lost sheep of Israel. In much of the book of Romans Paul strives to reassure the Romans that they have inherited all of the blessings of the kingdom possessed by the Jews. But with that reassurance comes a stern warning: do not turn this into boasting against the Jews. Let’s begin to observe what Paul states in the verses following:
Romans 10:10 – For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved. 11 For the Scripture says, “Everyone who believes in him will not be put to shame.” 12 For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; for the same Lord is Lord of all, bestowing his riches on all who call on him. 13 For “everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”
Apparently, Paul is writing about a principle found throughout the Old Testament and not a particular chapter and verse which didn’t divide the Bible at that time. Several, very similar texts appear in the book of Isaiah. Paul wants to show the Roman Gentiles that their inclusion was planned from the beginning. The authority of Scripture in making this point, as well as all of Paul’s other points are obviously assumed. “All” who call on the Lord will be saved and the riches of the Lord will be bestowed upon them. I think “riches” refers to the will language we have discussed previously.
Let’s not stray too far from the point at hand: Paul wants to give the Roman Gentiles assurance that they are legitimate members of the kingdom by showing them via the authority of Scripture that this was God’s plan from the beginning. Paul then continues with the following:
Romans 10:14 – How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching? 15 And how are they to preach unless they are sent? As it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!” 16 But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Isaiah says, “Lord, who has believed what he has heard from us?” 17 So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.
Paul states a principle before he moves on to make his point. This should inspire us in regard to the authority of God’s word. Nobody can believe on Christ without hearing the gospel, and faith comes by hearing the word of God. If we don’t preach the word, people will not get saved. If God has used you to save someone, it wasn’t through silence, a song, prayer only, or anything else other than the “word of Christ” That’s why the Potter’s House is not a “Christ-centered ministry,” it’s a Bible-centered ministry and that suits Christ just fine. We aren’t spiritual elitists who seek deep knowledge of Christ’s “personhood.” Rather, we are ones who observe all that He commands in His word. The Scriptures give the lost faith when they hear it, comforts God’s children, and equips us for every good work. It gives us all we need for life and godliness.
And Paul is about to share a very important truth in his letter to the Romans. Christ, the chief cornerstone, being rejected by national Israel and thus paving the way for Gentile inclusion is a constant theme throughout the Old Testament. What happened when Christ came the first time and the birth of the church should have been plainly foreseen in the Old Testament Scriptures. This is the point that Paul will now make:
Romans 10:18 – But I ask, have they not heard? Indeed they have, for “Their voice has gone out to all the earth, and their words to the ends of the world.” 19 But I ask, did Israel not understand? First Moses says, “I will make you jealous of those who are not a nation; with a foolish nation I will make you angry.” 20 Then Isaiah is so bold as to say, “I have been found by those who did not seek me; I have shown myself to those who did not ask for me.” 21 But of Israel he says, “All day long I have held out my hands to a disobedient and contrary people.”
Honestly, it’s a little difficult to figure Paul’s usage of Psalm 19:4 to answer his first question. By the way, only in recent history was it discovered that our solar system orbits in space as stated by Psalm 19:6. Looking at the text in context may lend some understanding:
The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims his handiwork. 2 Day to day pours out speech, and night to night reveals knowledge. 3 There is no speech, nor are there words, whose voice is not heard. 4 Their voice goes out through all the earth, and their words to the end of the world. In them he has set a tent for the sun, 5 which comes out like a bridegroom leaving his chamber, and, like a strong man, runs its course with joy. 6 Its rising is from the end of the heavens, and its circuit to the end of them, and there is nothing hidden from its heat.
7 The law of the Lord is perfect, reviving the soul; the testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple; 8 the precepts of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart; the commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes; 9 the fear of the Lord is clean, enduring forever; the rules of the Lord are true, and righteous altogether. 10 More to be desired are they than gold, even much fine gold; sweeter also than honey and drippings of the honeycomb. 11 Moreover, by them is your servant warned; in keeping them there is great reward.
The point may be that in the same way that God’s glory is not hidden in all the earth because of creation, nether is the truth of His word. God makes sure the truth of His law reaches to the ends of the earth in every generation. I do not think that Paul is putting forth the idea that creation preaches the gospel in a way that can save people by general revelation alone. But more specific is Paul’s citation of Moses who taught Israel in no uncertain terms that God would save the Gentiles for the purpose of making Israel angry/jealous. Israel disobeyed God’s commands to not follow the ways of Egypt or Canaan. Yet, though Israel followed their ways they still possessed an attitude of entitlement as God’s chosen people. So God hardened their hearts against Christ, the stumbling block of Zion, and saved “those who did not seek me; I have shown myself to those who did not ask for me.”
Romans 9:32….They stumbled over the stumbling stone, 33 just as it is written, “Behold, I lay in Zion a stone of stumbling and a rock of offense, And he who believes in Him will not be put to shame.”
Romans chapter eleven, verse one, and following, are not in need of any explanation. There is a reason the Gentiles should be confident that they are included because it is a result of Israel stumbling over Christ, and this was foreseen from the beginning, but….
I ask, then, has God rejected his people? By no means! For I myself am an Israelite, a descendant of Abraham, a member of the tribe of Benjamin. 2 God has not rejected his people whom he foreknew. Do you not know what the Scripture says of Elijah, how he appeals to God against Israel? 3 “Lord, they have killed your prophets, they have demolished your altars, and I alone am left, and they seek my life.” 4 But what is God’s reply to him? “I have kept for myself seven thousand men who have not bowed the knee to Baal.” 5 So too at the present time there is a remnant, chosen by grace. 6 But if it is by grace, it is no longer on the basis of works; otherwise grace would no longer be grace.
7 What then? Israel failed to obtain what it was seeking. The elect obtained it, but the rest were hardened, 8 as it is written, “God gave them a spirit of stupor, eyes that would not see and ears that would not hear, down to this very day.” 9 And David says, “Let their table become a snare and a trap, a stumbling block and a retribution for them; 10 let their eyes be darkened so that they cannot see, and bend their backs forever.”
This is interesting: Paul uses himself as proof that God hasn’t rejected Israel. This seems to be a pretty straightforward argument. Then he says God has not rejected His people that he “foreknew” or elected. Like in Romans nine, Paul refers once again to the remnant, and then we are reminded once again of election’s purpose:
“So too at the present time there is a remnant, chosen by grace. But if it is by grace, it is no longer on the basis of works; otherwise grace would no longer be grace.”
Remember, as we study our Bibles we must keep this in mind as one of our building blocks of understanding: election is all about completely removing works from justification. And I believe this frees us to not worry about works in our Christian life. The key to a powerful Christian life is to not worry about obedience in sanctification having bearing on justification. We like to call this, “aggressive sanctification.” While having dinner with a Christian man in Columbus this week, the reality of the 10/90 rule was discussed. What’s that? That is the reality of 10% of the people in a given congregation doing 90% of the work. Not only is that a leadership issue, it’s a theology issue and is directly linked to the Protestant fusion of justification and sanctification.
Consider the line of thought starting in Romans 8:30 and ending with Romans 8:39—nothing can separate us from the love of God because our justification was settled before the foundation of the earth. Sanctification is not in that verse because that would involve us in some way with justification which would be disastrous. Election enables the mortal saint to love God without jeopardizing his/her salvation. Hence, NOTHING can separate us from the love of God. Know this: advocating election with the fusion of justification and sanctification is a theological oxymoron. It would seem evident that sanctification is absent from Romans 8:30 because it is not there.
Now, at this point, I am going to jump ahead a little bit to make a point:
Romans 11:28 – As regards the gospel, they are enemies for your sake. But as regards election, they are beloved for the sake of their forefathers. 29 For the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable. 30 For just as you were at one time disobedient to God but now have received mercy because of their disobedience, 31 so they too have now been disobedient in order that by the mercy shown to you they also may now receive mercy. 32 For God has consigned all to disobedience, that he may have mercy on all.
I think we have another building block of understanding here. Paul makes a distinction between the gospel and election. Though the Jews are enemies of the gospel, they will be saved because of election. The calling of God is irrevocable. I also remind you of Paul’s reference to disobedience. We are not saved by obedience/works. Again, the words obedience and faith are used interchangeably. Obedience is merely the life of faith. Faith is invisible; obedience is merely the visible life of faith. In the passage we just read, it reads the same if you replace disobedience with unbelief and faith with obedience. They are the same because we are not saved by obedience or works, but yet, the words are used interchangeably. Again, this is because our faith is a living faith. Curiously, the Reformers taught that faith is a lifeless conduit to the Spirit realm. But the bigger point is: understanding that our faith is a living faith clears up a lot of confusion in regard to the relationship of faith/obedience in justification versus sanctification. That’s the point.
But in regard to your justification, God’s call is irrevocable. This leads to fearless, aggressive sanctification. Paul also makes the point that the Jews were allowed to be enemies of the gospel for the benefit of the Gentiles who like the Jews were once disobedient:
For God has consigned all to disobedience, that he may have mercy on all.
So, both the Jews and the Gentiles were unbelieving so that he could have mercy on both. The Jews were chosen first, but when they rebelled, God reserved a remnant for Himself according to election and used the rebellion for the benefit of the Gentiles. This benefit is a set time called “the times of the Gentiles.” It has a specific beginning in time and a specific end. Apparently, election pertains primarily to the Jews and the gospel primarily to the Gentiles. The Jews were/are enemies of the gospel for the sake of the Gentiles, but beloved for the sake of election. Obviously, this merely scratches the surface of a vast wealth of knowledge thereof.
Now, next week, we are going to look at this deeper in regard to eschatology. We are going to look at how Bible prophecy is absolutely essential to understanding justification and how God fulfills The Promise. He chooses the Jews, appoints the time of the Gentiles as a response to their rebellion, and then fulfills The Promise to Abraham after the end of the times of the Gentiles. The Gentiles are an inclusion, not a replacement. Replacement Theology, also known as Supersessionism, is specifically what Paul is warning against in Romans 11:
25 Lest you be wise in your own sight, I do not want you to be unaware of this mystery, brothers: a partial hardening has come upon Israel, until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in. 26 And in this way all Israel will be saved, as it is written, “The Deliverer will come from Zion, he will banish ungodliness from Jacob”; 27 “and this will be my covenant with them when I take away their sins.”
Next week, we will look at this from the perspective of prophecy in part two. But in the following week, part 3, we will look at this from the standpoint of covenants. Note carefully: the rebellion of the Jews did not result in the New Covenant replacing the Old Covenant. The Covenants build on each other in order to consummate The Promise to Abraham to bless all nations through him. All the covenants belong to the commonwealth of Israel (Ephesians 2:11-16) and build on each other for the final consummation of The Promise. The rebellion does not replace any of the covenants with a new one; the rebellion is merely used by God to include the Gentiles in the Promise.
Inclusion, not replacement in regard to prophecy and covenants. Understanding the true relationship between election, the Jews, Gentiles, justification, sanctification, prophecy, and covenants has catastrophic ramifications for understanding God’s salvific plan for the ages.
Hence, our hefty endeavor will need much prayer and study moving forward into parts two and three.
Inclusion, not replacement regarding the church.
Progression of covenants, not replacement of the old with the new.
Romans 10:6-9; Righteousness, Faith, Life, and Law
Click on illustrations to enlarge.
I have been wrestling with this passage all week long through pondering and praying. Last week, we looked at Christ being the end of the law for righteousness, or for all practical purposes, justification. Then, we noticed that to further his points, Paul referred to his Old Testament commentaries. We wanted to read those commentaries along with Paul to better understand what he was teaching about righteousness/justification. Those two words mean the same thing for all practical purposes.
But reading the passages from Moses that Paul cites led to utter confusion. What Moses wrote seems to contradict Paul. Moses states that life comes through obedience to God’s law while Paul states that justification comes through faith in Jesus Christ alone. As we have seen, a righteousness apart from the law. Here is what Paul states:
Roman 10:5 – For Moses writes about the righteousness that is based on the law, that the person who does the commandments shall live by them. 6 But the righteousness based on faith says, “Do not say in your heart, ‘Who will ascend into heaven?’” (that is, to bring Christ down) 7 “or ‘Who will descend into the abyss?’” (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead). 8 But what does it say? “The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart” (that is, the word of faith that we proclaim);
These are the two passages written by Moses that Paul is referring to:
Leviticus 18:1 – And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 2 “Speak to the people of Israel and say to them, I am the Lord your God. 3 You shall not do as they do in the land of Egypt, where you lived, and you shall not do as they do in the land of Canaan, to which I am bringing you. You shall not walk in their statutes. 4 You shall follow my rules and keep my statutes and walk in them. I am the Lord your God. 5 You shall therefore keep my statutes and my rules; if a person does them, he shall live by them: I am the Lord.
Deuteronomy 30:11 – “For this commandment that I command you today is not too hard for you, neither is it far off. 12 It is not in heaven, that you should say, ‘Who will ascend to heaven for us and bring it to us, that we may hear it and do it?’ 13 Neither is it beyond the sea, that you should say, ‘Who will go over the sea for us and bring it to us, that we may hear it and do it?’ 14 But the word is very near you. It is in your mouth and in your heart, so that you can do it.
15 “See, I have set before you today life and good, death and evil. 16 If you obey the commandments of the Lord your God that I command you today, by loving the Lord your God, by walking in his ways, and by keeping his commandments and his statutes and his rules, then you shall live and multiply, and the Lord your God will bless you in the land that you are entering to take possession of it. 17 But if your heart turns away, and you will not hear, but are drawn away to worship other gods and serve them, 18 I declare to you today, that you shall surely perish. You shall not live long in the land that you are going over the Jordan to enter and possess. 19 I call heaven and earth to witness against you today, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and curse. Therefore choose life, that you and your offspring may live, 20 loving the Lord your God, obeying his voice and holding fast to him, for he is your life and length of days, that you may dwell in the land that the Lord swore to your fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give them.”
The idea that is in vogue in our day is that Moses continually prodded the Israelites to try to live by the law so that they would be driven to despair and see their need for Christ. This is the popular interpretation of what Paul meant by the law being a schoolmaster that leads us to Christ. In fact, we supposedly still use the law in that way to perpetually live by faith alone in sanctification. The law shows us our sinfulness and continual need for Christ’s saving grace and forgiveness. “Life” is not really found in obedience; Moses was just saying that to show us our inability to obey the law perfectly and thus be justified by it. Be sure of it: this is 90% of what is being taught in the church today. That fact alone should make us suspicious for a great revival is NOT predicted for the latter days; the contrary is predicted in no uncertain terms.
This approach demands a nonsensical approach to a massive portion of Scripture. The concept of happiness, blessings, and life being found in obedience to God’s word dominates the Scriptures from Genesis to Revelation. Let’s look at an example:
Ephesians 6:1 – Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. 2 “Honor your father and mother” (this is the first commandment with a promise), 3 “that it may go well with you and that you may live long in the land.” 4 Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.
It might also be interesting to note King David’s final instructions to his son Solomon:
1Kings 2:2 – “I am about to go the way of all the earth. Be strong, and show yourself a man, 3 and keep the charge of the Lord your God, walking in his ways and keeping his statutes, his commandments, his rules, and his testimonies, as it is written in the Law of Moses, that you may prosper in all that you do and wherever you turn, 4 that the Lord may establish his word that he spoke concerning me, saying, ‘If your sons pay close attention to their way, to walk before me in faithfulness with all their heart and with all their soul, you shall not lack a man on the throne of Israel.’
So, what in the world is going on here? First, please hang on to this principle of Bible study: when you begin the study of any given passage, read it intently and look for what the passage is plainly stating, and pay particular attention to specific words. Do not underestimate the intended meaning of any given word by assuming its singular concept does not have vast implications.
Secondly, as Christians we must function on objective truth that we know definitively. Often, those truths will be building blocks that add to a more complete building of truth. And in my struggle to understand what Paul is trying to teach in this passage, we have a building block. The building block of truth that we can use to build more understanding is that faith and obedience are the exact same thing. No, I am not saying that obedience is a result of faith—I like the two sides of the same coin illustration. One side of the coin didn’t come before the other. You may see one side of the coin before you see the other, but one didn’t come before the other. They are the same. It might even be said that the inside of the coin is never seen as well. It might also be said that the coin has two sides that can’t be seen at the same time and an invisible aspect.
We tend to dichotomize faith and obedience; I doubt the Bible does that. Here is another building block: faith does have a result; it’s not obedience, but it is “life.” Faith and obedience are one, life is the result.
So, where can we back this up with Scripture? Well, first, let’s look at what Paul is pointing to in his Isaiah commentary, and then we will go back at some point to his Moses commentary. Paul reads it as follows:
Romans 10:15 – And how are they to preach unless they are sent? As it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!” 16 But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Isaiah says, “Lord, who has believed what he has heard from us?”
Obey the gospel? Seems like a peculiar way to state it, until Paul rehearses what Isaiah says, “who has believed what he has heard from us?” We see that Paul has simply replaced believe with obey. This is not nearly the only place where Scripture does this:
John 3:35 – The Father loves the Son and has given all things into his hand. 36 Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him.
Obviously, the antithesis of faith is disobedience. In other passages, believing the gospel is replaced with obeying the gospel:
2 Thessalonians 1:8 – in flaming fire, inflicting vengeance on those who do not know God and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus.
1 Peter 4:17 – For it is time for judgment to begin at the household of God; and if it begins with us, what will be the outcome for those who do not obey the gospel of God?
Now, let’s go back to Moses. When Paul quotes Moses as saying, “if a person does them, he shall live by them,” that is simply a statement of fact. Before Christ came, people were born again by believing God. We know from Christ’s conversation with Nicodemus that the new birth was prior to the cross. Any kind of standard is not the point, believing God is the point. And remember, obedience is faith. So, saving faith is a heart inclined towards God. Reaching a standard isn’t the point; an inclination towards God is the point.
Abundant life is found in obedience, but that’s not where justification comes from. Justification comes from faith only, and then faith will always be looking for a way to please God. Reaching a standard has never been part of justification; therefore, perfection has never been required for salvation. A goal of perfection (desire for) will be the inclination of faith, but has never been a standard for justification. In Exodus 19, the Israelites agreed to the covenant before they knew the details—they simply agreed to follow God wherever it led them by faith. Faith makes us able to obey in a way pleasing to God because the word is in our hearts and in our mouths as a visible manifestation of faith. The invisible part of faith is belief in our hearts; the visible part of faith is what we do. What we do brings blessings, but not salvation. That’s why the principle of blessings and cursings is the same in the Old Testament and New Testament. That’s why King David’s exhortation and promise to Solomon is the same as Paul’s exhortation to children in the New Testament (EPH 6:1-3). Now, let’s read Moses in full context and see if we can observe these principles:
Deuteronomy 30:9 – The Lord your God will make you abundantly prosperous in all the work of your hand, in the fruit of your womb and in the fruit of your cattle and in the fruit of your ground. For the Lord will again take delight in prospering you, as he took delight in your fathers, 10 when you obey the voice of the Lord your God, to keep his commandments and his statutes that are written in this Book of the Law, when you turn to the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul.
11 “For this commandment that I command you today is not too hard for you, neither is it far off. 12 It is not in heaven, that you should say, ‘Who will ascend to heaven for us and bring it to us, that we may hear it and do it?’ 13 Neither is it beyond the sea, that you should say, ‘Who will go over the sea for us and bring it to us, that we may hear it and do it?’ 14 But the word is very near you. It is in your mouth and in your heart, so that you can do it.
15 “See, I have set before you today life and good, death and evil. 16 If you obey the commandments of the Lord your God that I command you today, by loving the Lord your God, by walking in his ways, and by keeping his commandments and his statutes and his rules, then you shall live and multiply, and the Lord your God will bless you in the land that you are entering to take possession of it. 17 But if your heart turns away, and you will not hear, but are drawn away to worship other gods and serve them, 18 I declare to you today, that you shall surely perish.
Like I said, these are building blocks and I am not sure how this all fits together, but let me add a third building block: Christ is the end of the law for righteousness. This doesn’t mean that there was previously righteousness in obedience to the law, but it means the following:
Galatians 3:17 – This is what I mean: the law, which came 430 years afterward, does not annul a covenant previously ratified by God, so as to make the promise void. 18 For if the inheritance comes by the law, it no longer comes by promise; but God gave it to Abraham by a promise.
19 Why then the law? It was added because of transgressions, until the offspring should come to whom the promise had been made, and it was put in place through angels by an intermediary. 20 Now an intermediary implies more than one, but God is one.
21 Is the law then contrary to the promises of God? Certainly not! For if a law had been given that could give life, then righteousness would indeed be by the law. 22 But the Scripture imprisoned everything under sin, so that the promise by faith in Jesus Christ might be given to those who believe.
23 Now before faith came, we were held captive under the law, imprisoned until the coming faith would be revealed. 24 So then, the law was our guardian until Christ came, in order that we might be justified by faith. 25 But now that faith has come, we are no longer under a guardian, 26 for in Christ Jesus you are all sons of God, through faith. 27 For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ. 28 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. 29 And if you are Christ’s, then you are Abraham’s offspring, heirs according to promise.
Granted, I am foggy on how all of this works in the first covenant, but the word that was in their heart and in their mouth is now replaced with Christ as the object of faith:
Romans 10:5 – For Moses writes about the righteousness that is based [“based” not in the manuscripts, added by ESV] on [*] the law, that the person who does the commandments shall live by them. 6 But the righteousness based [Ibid] on [*in both cases could be “of” instead of “on”] faith says, “Do not say in your heart, ‘Who will ascend into heaven?’” (that is, to bring Christ down) 7 “or ‘Who will descend into the abyss?’” (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead). 8 But what does it say? “The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart” (that is, the word of faith that we proclaim);
Perhaps the law was the object of their faith because it promised Christ, a will that was inaugurated by blood and executed upon the death of the testator (HEB 9:15-22), but the object of faith justifies, and obedience brings life. Obedience doesn’t justify per se, it is just the body life of faith. We are justified by faith alone, obedience merely shows forth the life of faith:
James 2: 14 – What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him? 15 If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, 16 and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, be warmed and filled,” without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that? 17 So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.
18 But someone will say, “You have faith and I have works.” Show me your faith apart from your works, and I will show you my faith by my works. 19 You believe that God is one; you do well. Even the demons believe—and shudder! 20 Do you want to be shown, you foolish person, that faith apart from works is useless? 21 Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered up his son Isaac on the altar? 22 You see that faith was active along with his works, and faith was completed by his works; 23 and the Scripture was fulfilled that says, “Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness”—and he was called a friend of God. 24 You see that a person is justified by works and not by faith alone. 25 And in the same way was not also Rahab the prostitute justified by works when she received the messengers and sent them out by another way? 26 For as the body apart from the spirit is dead, so also faith apart from works is dead.
Also, we have a choice in sanctification to enhance life through obedience. The blessings are “in” the “doing” (James 1:25). We can apply biblical wisdom to our lives in order to have a life built on a rock (MATT 7:24-27), and experience life more abundantly (2PET 2-11). But remember, This is apart from justification by faith alone that has an invisible reality and a visible reality:
Romans 10:9 – because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved.
This can be best summed up by “The just shall live by faith” (HEB 10:38, HAB 2:4). “Just” is our position and imputed righteousness of God; the faith that we live by justified us, but the obedience of our faith lives in sanctification. These two, faith and obedience, cannot be separate for faith without works is dead.
In the final analysis, because national Israel rejected Christ, they sought righteousness in that which pointed to Christ instead of Christ Himself. By “Christ Himself” I mean faith in Christ’s death and resurrection as stated in the Scriptures, and submission to His Lordship commands that are also found in the Scriptures. In other words, faith in Christ and the obedient life that is also faith. Hence:
John 5:39 – You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that bear witness about me, 40 yet you refuse to come to me that you may have life. 41 I do not receive glory from people. 42 But I know that you do not have the love of God within you. 43 I have come in my Father’s name, and you do not receive me. If another comes in his own name, you will receive him. 44 How can you believe, when you receive glory from one another and do not seek the glory that comes from the only God? 45 Do not think that I will accuse you to the Father. There is one who accuses you: Moses, on whom you have set your hope. 46 For if you believed Moses, you would believe me; for he wrote of me. 47 But if you do not believe his writings, how will you believe my words?”
It would seem, at least in my mind, that this whole concept of obedience and faith being one lends understanding to a host of difficult passages.
ADDENDUM:
Three Constructs
1. Reformed
A. Perfect keeping of the law is the standard for righteousness.
B. We can’t keep the law perfectly.
C. Christ must keep the law for us via faith alone in sanctification to maintain just
standing.
2. Reformed New Covenant Theology
A. The law has been eliminated or abrogated by the New Covenant.
B. Life and godliness guided by single law of love as mediated by our consciences.
3. Biblicism
A. Our righteousness is apart from the law and by faith alone in Christ.
B. The law informs our obedient faith for sanctification.
The Potter’s House 12/30/2012: Law and Grace; Romans Chapter 4
We now come to chapter four in our study of Romans. Thus far, Paul has emphasized that all men, whether Jew or Gentile, are saved by faith alone. This salvation is a revelation of God’s righteousness, and is imputed to us when we believe in Jesus Christ. We have learned that the gospel is the full counsel of God which of course includes the death burial, and resurrection of Christ. We have learned that Paul was very concerned with a spiritual caste system that would render the Gentiles as second-class citizens in the church. Though the church is uniquely Jewish, God shows no partiality in regard to race and gives the various gifts of salvation to all men freely.
What we have in the book of Romans is a radical dichotomy between justification and sanctification; or said another way, salvation and its imputed righteousness set against the Christian life as kingdom citizens living on earth as aliens and ambassadors. However, there is NO dichotomy between law and gospel. Why? Because both are the full counsel of God. In the Bible, “law,” “truth,” “gospel,” “Scriptures,” “holy writ,” “the law and the prophets,” and other terms are used interchangeably to speak of the closed canon of God’s full counsel for life and godliness. Christ as well as Paul made it absolutely clear: man lives by every word that proceeds from God and ALL Scripture is profitable to make the servant of God complete in every good work.
Now listen: though the life application of some Scripture changes with time and circumstances, it still remains that all Scripture informs us in regard to our walk with God in the way we pray, think, and act. We do not stone rebellious children in our day. Nay, when we have a rebellious teen in the church, we do not gather the congregation together and stone him/her to death. With that said, does the fact that God at one time instructed the Jews to do so inform us in regard to many applications for teen rebellion in our day? Absolutely. Oh my, the contemporary applications in our day are almost endless. Not only that, Old Testament ritual and symbolism offers a built-in protective hermeneutic for the Scriptures as a whole. What do I mean by that? Well, you can mess with words, but symbolism is very difficult to mess with. If it’s a lampstand, it’s hard to change that to a Honda Civic. Right?
Paul delves into a paramount truth for Christians in the book of Romans: The relationship of the law to the unsaved verses the saved. And here it is: the lost are UNDER the law, and the saved are UNDER grace, but informed by the law. Let me repeat that: the lost are UNDER the law, and the saved are UNDER grace, but informed by the law. And we can see this right in the same neighborhood of the text that we are in.
Romans 3:21—But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, although the Law and the Prophets bear witness to it—
That verse pretty much says it all. We are justified apart from the law, and as we will see, Paul means totally apart from the law. But we are informed by it. Paul states in Romans 3:28:
For we hold that one is justified by faith apart from works of the law.
Now note what he states after a few verses following in Romans 4:3,
For what does the Scripture say?
Paul strives to make the point in this letter that law is not even on the radar screen in regard to justification. And this is extremely important to know in our day for many teach that law is on the justification radar screen and therefore Christ must keep the law for us in order to maintain our justification. Not so, there is no law to keep in regard to justification—a righteousness APART from the law, the very righteousness of God has been imputed to our account in full. Paul even writes (and this is very radical) that Christians are sinless in regard to justification because there is no law in justification to judge us:
Romans 7:1—Or do you not know, brothers—for I am speaking to those who know the law—that the law is binding on a person only as long as he lives?
Romans 7:6—But now we are released from the law, having died to that which held us captive….(v.8) Apart from the law, sin lies dead.
Now, the law can judge our sin in our Christian life, but that can’t touch the fact that we are “washed.” Therefore, in sanctification, we only need to wash our feet to maintain a healthy family relationship with our Father God and Brother, the Lord Jesus Christ. Turn with me and let’s look at this in John 13:1-11:
Now before the Feast of the Passover, when Jesus knew that his hour had come to depart out of this world to the Father, having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them to the end. 2 During supper, when the devil had already put it into the heart of Judas Iscariot, Simon’s son, to betray him, 3 Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things into his hands, and that he had come from God and was going back to God, 4 rose from supper. He laid aside his outer garments, and taking a towel, tied it around his waist. 5 Then he poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples’ feet and to wipe them with the towel that was wrapped around him. 6 He came to Simon Peter, who said to him, “Lord, do you wash my feet?” 7 Jesus answered him, “What I am doing you do not understand now, but afterward you will understand.” 8 Peter said to him, “You shall never wash my feet.” Jesus answered him, “If I do not wash you, you have no share with me.” 9 Simon Peter said to him, “Lord, not my feet only but also my hands and my head!” 10 Jesus said to him, “The one who has bathed does not need to wash, except for his feet, but is completely clean. And you are clean, but not every one of you.” 11 For he knew who was to betray him; that was why he said, “Not all of you are clean.”
Clearly, “washing” refers to salvation, and differs from needing the lesser washing of the feet. The example is set against the unregenerate betrayer among them. Note that Jesus said that even though we needed to wash our feet, we are still “completely clean.” My, my, what a strong contrast to much of the teachings in our day; i.e., the idea of “deep repentance” that is the same repentance that saved us and keeps us saved—as long as we are in a Reformed church where such forgiveness is available.
Secondly, this passage shows that the gratuitous pardon of sins is given us not only once, but that it is a benefit perpetually residing in the Church, and daily offered to the faithful. For the Apostle here addresses the faithful; as doubtless no man has ever been, nor ever will be, who can otherwise please God, since all are guilty before him; for however strong a desire there may be in us of acting rightly, we always go haltingly to God. Yet what is half done obtains no approval with God. In the meantime, by new sins we continually separate ourselves, as far as we can, from the grace of God. Thus it is, that all the saints have need of the daily forgiveness of sins; for this alone keeps us in the family of God (Calvin’s Commentaries, Vol. 45: Catholic Epistles).
So, Paul in chapter four, in his endeavor to get this into the heads of Christians, approaches it from another angle: the life of Abraham, the father of faith. This is so powerful. Again, you can fiddle with words in translation, but rearranging the order of Abraham’s biography would be a difficult endeavor and the order of his life from the Old Testament account solidifies what Paul is teaching here about justification:
Romans 4:1-8—What then shall we say was gained by Abraham, our forefather according to the flesh? 2 For if Abraham was justified by works, he has something to boast about, but not before God. 3 For what does the Scripture say? “Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness.” 4 Now to the one who works, his wages are not counted as a gift but as his due. 5 And to the one who does not work but believes in him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is counted as righteousness, 6 just as David also speaks of the blessing of the one to whom God counts righteousness apart from works: 7 “Blessed are those whose lawless deeds are forgiven, and whose sins are covered; 8 blessed is the man against whom the Lord will not count his sin.
We had a fellowship last night and a brother pointed out a common problem among Christians; they often don’t know when something should be simply applied and not figured out. And this is one—faith declares us completely righteous and no sin will be counted against us. Justification is a gift. Righteousness is a gift. If the gift is righteousness and God says so, that is the end of the discussion. Unlike a gift, any kind of work in justification equals a wage that is due. Paul then deals with the issue of justification through circumcision (something we do):
9 Is this blessing then only for the circumcised, or also for the uncircumcised? For we say that faith was counted to Abraham as righteousness. 10 How then was it counted to him? Was it before or after he had been circumcised? It was not after, but before he was circumcised. 11 He received the sign of circumcision as a seal of the righteousness that he had by faith while he was still uncircumcised. The purpose was to make him the father of all who believe without being circumcised, so that righteousness would be counted to them as well, 12 and to make him the father of the circumcised who are not merely circumcised but who also walk in the footsteps of the faith that our father Abraham had before he was circumcised.
What Paul is saying is that God deliberately waited to have Abraham circumcised so that he would be the father of the uncircumcised as well as the circumcised. Also, to make the point that no ritual saves us whether circumcision or baptism, and followed by an attitude that we are justified accordingly by the ritual alone, and can hence live anyway we want to. As we have discussed previously in this study, an attitude of obedience is part and parcel with saving faith. Obedience and saving faith are two sides of the same coin. This is NOT so-called “lordship salvation,” but a statement regarding the fact that saving faith is not accompanied by a libertine attitude towards God’s full counsel, but rather a love for the truth. No obedience saves anybody, but saving faith is also endowed with a love for the truth with natural results following. However, as we will see later in this same book, the flesh is weak and faith alone does not carry the day in sanctification like it does in justification; so, many other factors come to bear in sanctification. This is where the sanctification by justification rave of our day is most unfortunate.
This is not the only place in Scripture where Paul uses the chronology of Abraham’s life to argue for righteousness completely separate from the law:
Galatians 3:15—To give a human example, brothers: even with a man-made covenant, no one annuls it or adds to it once it has been ratified. 16 Now the promises were made to Abraham and to his offspring. It does not say, “And to offsprings,” referring to many, but referring to one, “And to your offspring,” who is Christ. 17 This is what I mean: the law, which came 430 years afterward, does not annul a covenant previously ratified by God, so as to make the promise void. 18 For if the inheritance comes by the law, it no longer comes by promise; but God gave it to Abraham by a promise.
This is the foolishness of any idea that the law is still a standard for our justification and the law must be maintained by Christ in our sanctification, or that Christ’s life was for the purpose of imputing his obedience to our sanctification. The promise of justification by faith alone was ratified before the law ever came through Moses—430 years before. Why would Christ have to maintain a perfect keeping of a law that had nothing to do with the promise whatsoever? Hence, look at the perfect fit we have in Romans 4:13-15:
13 For the promise to Abraham and his offspring that he would be heir of the world did not come through the law but through the righteousness of faith. 14 For if it is the adherents of the law who are to be the heirs, faith is null and the promise is void. 15 For the law brings wrath, but where there is no law there is no transgression.
Again, no law, no transgression. Transgression is not absent in justification because Christ maintains the law for us in sanctification—there is no transgression to be counted against our justification because there is no law in justification period. It’s based on promise—not law. Christ came to die in order to fulfill the promise that was given 430 years before the law. And this brings us to a previous point. As some know, because of the focus of the particular ministry I am in, I use the ESV translation of the Bible. The ESV is a contemporary translation by New Calvinists and is their Bible of choice. Now note how Romans 4:16 is translated in the ESV:
That is why it depends on faith, in order that the promise may rest on grace and be guaranteed to all his offspring—….
“Depends” is a very interesting choice of words here. Actually, there is no merit at all for the use of that word in Romans 4:16. The word, or even that idea doesn’t appear in any interlinear, expanded translation, or manuscript such as the Received text, Majority text, or Critical text. But it does have merit in regard to the Reformed view of justification; i.e., maintaining our just standing requires a continuance of faith alone in sanctification. Our justification “depends” on that. “Depends” also hints of an ongoing or continual dependence.
Paul then concludes with a definition of this saving faith:
16 That is why it depends on faith, in order that the promise may rest on grace and be guaranteed to all his offspring—not only to the adherent of the law but also to the one who shares the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all, 17 as it is written, “I have made you the father of many nations”—in the presence of the God in whom he believed, who gives life to the dead and calls into existence the things that do not exist. 18 In hope he believed against hope, that he should become the father of many nations, as he had been told, “So shall your offspring be.” 19 He did not weaken in faith when he considered his own body, which was as good as dead (since he was about a hundred years old), or when he considered the barrenness of Sarah’s womb. 20 No unbelief made him waver concerning the promise of God, but he grew strong in his faith as he gave glory to God, 21 fully convinced that God was able to do what he had promised. 22 That is why his faith was “counted to him as righteousness.” 23 But the words “it was counted to him” were not written for his sake alone, 24 but for ours also. It will be counted to us who believe in him who raised from the dead Jesus our Lord, 25 who was delivered up for our trespasses and raised for our justification.
Herein we have a definition of saving faith: it has a stubborn trust in the promises of God regardless of life circumstances. It hopes in God regardless of the hopeless motif continually posited by the world. And, Abraham grew in faith as he gave glory to God. What’s that mean? We have a clue from Matthew 5:14-16;
14 “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. 15 Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. 16 In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.
We are all saved and justified with an initial faith that varies according to the grace of God (Romans 12:3), but certainly, our faith in sanctification grows as we exercise it through obedience while giving glory to God. Obedience demonstrates trust. Applying God’s truth to our life demonstrates that we believe that He knows best and blessings will result. Peter said that we should be diligent to “add to our faith” (2Peter 1:5-11). Faith is a gift that justifies us once, and for all time with the very righteousness of God. But we participate in the growth of our faith through application of the full counsel of God. This is what the book of James is about (see James 1:25), and only one example among many in holy writ.
Of course, the life of Christ was very awesome for many reasons, but His life was not for the purpose of obeying the law perfectly so that His obedience to the law could be imputed to us in sanctification for the purpose of maintaining our just standing. The law is not the standard for maintaining justification; it is finished. Christ was the only Man ever born into the world under the law who could be the perfect sacrifice required by God. All others born under law are under its curse and provoked to sin by it. But note the last verse here in chapter four:
23 But the words “it was counted to him” were not written for his sake alone, 24 but for ours also. It will be counted to us who believe in him who raised from the dead Jesus our Lord, 25 who was delivered up for our trespasses and raised for our justification.
Paul states that our justification came through Christ’s resurrection, not His life. The Reformed construct of Christ living for our sanctification and dying for our justification is simply nowhere to be found in Scripture, and if it is, as with a myriad of other textual examples, Paul fails to mention such a crucial fact in these last verses.
The Potter’s House 12/16/2012: “False Reformation” Published; Romans Study Resumes Next Sunday
I am sooooo glad “False Reformation” is now published. We will resume our study in Romans this Sunday. We will be breaking into chapter 3, and the major theme of this chapter is the law/gospel issue that is addressed in detail throughout False Reformation.
Much of the book was inspired by what I have learned in Romans which has shown me why Calvinism is fundamentally a blatant false gospel. Election/freewill isn’t even the issue at all—a gospel that teaches us to live out our sanctification in an antinomian way in order to keep our salvation is the issue. If you have to do anything to keep your salvation—it’s works—you have to do something to keep it. That includes “resting and feeding.” Even if your “resting” is supposedly not a work—it most certainly is if it’s a condition to keep your salvation.
I look forward to resuming Romans next week, starting in 3:1.
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