Universality of Sin, God’s Gracious Acquittal of Sinners, and Man’s Right Standing before God

Bible Passage: Romans 1:18–3:26

1. The church(es) in Rome were founded by Christians who migrated from other parts of the Empire to Rome
2. The church(es) in Rome comprised of both Jewish and non-Jewish Christ followers—non-Jewish Christians seemed to more than the Jewish Christians
3. A good number of the believers in Rome knew Paul (cf. Rom 16).
4. During Paul’s third missionary journey, Paul stayed in Corinth for three months (Acts 20:2-3)
5. Paul stayed with a person by name Gaius (cf. 1 Cor 1:14, Rom 16:23)
6. Phoebe who lived in Cenchrea, Corinth, hand-carried the epistle to Rome
7. Jewish Christians gave leadership in the initial days of the formation of the church, but they had to vacate from Rome in AD 48 because of the edict of Emperor Claudius (cf. Acts 18:2)
8. When Jewish Christians left Rome, for the next six-seven years (AD 48–54) the church in Rome was headed by non-Jewish leaders
9. After the death of Emperor Claudius, Jewish Christians began to move back to Rome and started attending their churches
10. By then, the church in Rome got used to non-Jewish Christian leadership and teaching, probably the church had grown significantly larger
11. Jewish Christian leaders probably tried to usurp their old positions by claiming theological preferences that are Jewish in nature, but the non-Jewish leaders ignored them
12. This caused considerable conflicts between these groups (ethnic and theological; we read about them in chs. 14-15)

a. Jewish Christians had judaizing tendency, but non-Jewish Christians followed law-free teachings
b. They quarrelled over disputable matters—false judgment (14:1-)

i. Eat everything vs eat only veg (verse 1ff)
ii. All day the same vs special days (verse 5ff)

c. They treated people with contempt (14:10)
d. They put stumbling blocks or obstacles in the way of a brother or sister (14:13)
e. They did not act in love toward brother or sister (14:15)

I. Verses 1:18–3:20 need to be read in this background

1. Both Jews (who have the Law) and non-Jews (who do not have the Law) stand condemned before God (cf. 2:11-12, 3:9, 23)

a. Rom 2:11-12 there is no partiality with God. All who have sinned apart from the law will also perish apart from the law, and all who have sinned under the law will be judged by the law
b. Rom 3:9-18 we have already charged that Jews and Greeks alike are all under sin …
c. Rom 3:23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God

II. Verse 21 starts with the expression “but now” Νυνὶ δὲ—contrary to the reality something is going to be announced

1. “Apart from the law the righteousness of God (which is attested by the law and the prophets) has been disclosed” (verse 21a)
2. The expression “the law and the prophets” of this verse refers to the Old Testament or the Jewish Scripture
3. The expression “righteousness of God” has three shades of meaning

a. The attribute of God
b. The covenant faithfulness with which God deals with His people
c. The righteousness that is transferred to God’s people (imputed righteousness)

III. All three shades of meaning are reflected in verse 22 “the righteousness of God through the faithfulness of Jesus Christ for all who believe”

1. As “the righteous One,” God should punish righteously every man (both Jew and non-Jew)
2. But God righteously dealt with sinners through the faithfulness of Jesus Christ
3. Righteous God’s righteous deed is revealed in which He remained righteous and dealt righteously
4. Per verse 23, all sinned and deserved God’s righteous punishment/condemnation
5. God condemned the sinners but through a substitution, Jesus Christ
6. God released (acquitted) sinner free, but He judged all of us on Jesus our substitution

IV. They are justified by God freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus (verse 24)

1. Justify It is a forensic word by which we mean that God as a righteous judge acquits sinners on the basis of what He did through His Son, Jesus
2. Grace is what one receives when he deserves the opposite

a. Grace is a gift that we do not deserve
b. Grace is an unmerited favor

3. Redemption to release a person from captivity. Here, it is man’s helplessness to save himself and God’s release of him because of Jesus’ substitution
4. Instead of convicting them, God acquits them (verse 24) officially announcing someone is not guilty of wrongdoing
5. By the faithfulness of Jesus, God grants sinners a righteous status that is required to stand before God (verse 21)
6. When they believe in Jesus, God declares sinners “righteous” but they deserve just the opposite (verse 24)
7. God grants His grace to those who stand condemned before Him (verse 24)

V. God presented him [Jesus] at his death as the hilasterion accessible through faith (verse 25)

1. The Greek word hilasterion has four different meaning

a. Seat of atonement (NIV)
b. Seat of propitiation (KJV)
c. Seat of expiation (RSV)
d. Mercy seat (NET)

2. God accomplished sinners’ acquittal by appointing Jesus to die on their behalf (verse 25)

VI. This was to demonstrate his righteousness, because God in his forbearance had passed over the sins previously committed (verse 25b)

1. God is by nature “righteous”
2. Instead of punishing the sinners, He judged the sinner in Jesus (without compromising His attribute, He dealt righteously with the sinners)
3. Through which God demonstrated His righteousness (the attribute) and dealt righteously

VII. This was also to demonstrate his righteousness in the present time, so that he would be just and the justifier of the one who lives because of Jesus’ faithfulness (verse 26)

1. The thought of verse 25 is repeated in this verse
2. The sinners lived “justified” because of the faithfulness of Jesus
3. God justifies guilty sinners by God’s grace alone, in Christ alone, through the faithfulness of Jesus alone

Takeaway:

Receive one another, then, just as Christ also received you, to God’s glory (Rom15:7)