And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified (Rom. 8:28-30).

I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life (1 John 5:13).

In the last post, (“The Righteousness of God: God’s Provision—Jesus”), we saw that God has made a way to justify sinful man apart from the law. That way is through the death and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ. As we said, one is justified by faith in Jesus, and only those who place their faith in Him are so justified.

In our final post in the series, we will look at the question, “Can one know for certain that he is saved?” This is a common question that many ask, usually at a time when they have been confronted with the fact that they still sin as a believer.

We Can Know

The first thing we want to say is that God intended us to know that we are saved. The apostle John wrote a letter for that specific purpose. He told his readers, “I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life” (emphasis added). The entire letter of 1 John was written so that we could know for certain. The phrase “we know” appears more than 25 times in the letter.

How can we know? John and the other writers of the New Testament give us evidence tests. There are several in 1 John alone, including love of the brethren, walking in the light, and walking in the truth. All of them boil down to one fact—when God saves a person, that person is changed. They become a new creation (2 Cor. 5:17), and that change continues throughout their lifetime, being completed only when they are taken Home to be with the Lord. (For an in-depth look at 1 John, take a look at my free commentary That You May Know, or the blog posts based on that.)

When talking about assurance of salvation and works, there are two important things to remember. Firstly, assurance is based on God’s promises, not on our works. Our works (that is, the change in us) give evidence of the fact that we are saved, but without His grace and power, they would simply be dead works. Secondly, and just as important, one who has been saved will change, will grow in love and holiness, and will understand God’s Word more and more. If one claims to be saved but has no desire to grow, change, fellowship or know God and His Word, then such a claim should be questioned.

Salvation and Sin

But what about our sin? As we mentioned, the question of assurance usually comes up when someone is confronted with the fact that they claim Christ yet still sin. However, the fact that believers can and do still sin is recorded in Scripture—a fact that surprises some. 1 John tells us,

If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us (1 John 1:8-10).

Let’s take a brief look at this passage. The first thing we need to remember is that 1 John was written to believers. It was not written to people in general. With that in mind, what does he say here? Firstly, believers do sin, and to deny that is to live in self-deception. Some think that verse 9 is referring to one who is outside of Christ, but John uses “we” (as he does throughout his letter). He is therefore not referring to those outside of Christ (unless he sees himself that way).

Secondly, if we deny we have sinned then we have called the Lord a liar. Why is this? Because He has said all sin, no one is righteous in themselves. To say, then, that we don’t sin even as believers is to say, “Lord, You were wrong about what You said.” Any time we believe something contrary to what the Lord has said in His Word, we call Him at best misinformed and at worst a liar.

Thirdly, when we do confess our sin, He is faithful and just to forgive us and cleanse us. To confess means “to say the same thing; to agree with.” We agree that the attitude, word, or deed was sin. We repent (change our thinking) and turn from it, turning to the Lord in faith. Confession without repentance is little more than saying, “I’m sorry.”

Does That Mean I’m Not Saved?

Many people seem to struggle with the idea that a believer sins. Does that mean that they are not saved, no longer a believer? Those who advocate for this position do so on various grounds, but it generally boils down to a view of salvation as merely a choice of the will. Thus, I can choose to be saved (accepting Christ’s sacrifice as payment for my sins), and then I can choose to walk away from Him.

As we said above, however, salvation is more than that. Salvation changes a person. Under the New Covenant, the believer is given a new heart that wants to follow God. The very core of his being is changed. To “no longer be saved,” then, would require that God 1) either undo what He has done, or 2) that a believer with a new heart be again subject to His wrath. From a plain reading of Scripture, it seems that neither of those are viable options.

Not only that, but it also seems that such a position would make God a liar, for He has promised (unconditionally) certain things to the believer. Let’s take a look at the Romans 8 passage quoted at the top of the page. What do we see there? First, we see that Paul is referring to those actions in past tense. They already happened. That is to say,

• He foreknew you. He knew beforehand who you would be, and more specifically, He created you that way. It’s not just that God knew what you would do, but He knew you (the same thought is expressed to Jeremiah in Jer. 1:5). Eph. 1:4 tells us that “He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world.” You were chosen, not because anything you would do, but because of His good pleasure.
• He predestined you. Not only did God foreknow and choose you, but He predestined you. The Greek word for this means “to predetermine, decide beforehand.” Those He knew, He also determined to conform to the image of His Son.
• He called you. When He determined that you’d be conformed to the image of His Son, He called you to Himself. When you placed your faith in Christ, you answered that call.
• He justified you. When He called you, He drew you to Himself and justified you (declared you righteous) because of the work of Christ, which He applied to you.
• He glorified you. This may seem strange to say in the past tense, because it seems we are not yet glorified. God, however, can speak in the past tense. The idea here is that He decreed it in the past even before you were born, and thus it shall be. Another way of saying this (and the other concepts above) is, “It’s already happened, you are simply living it out.”

Think about that last statement: It’s already happened, you are just living it out. That’s what the whole purpose of Rom. 8:28-35 is about—giving hope to the believer in the midst of struggles. And for the believer, sin is the biggest struggle, and the one that will last the longest.  But Paul goes on to tell us that nothing in all creation will ever separate us from His love.

No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord (Rom. 8:37-39).

[Note: Some of the material in this series has been adapted from my commentary The Righteousness of God: A Commentary on Romans.]

For by works of the law no human being will be justified in his sight, since through the law comes knowledge of sin. But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, although the Law and the Prophets bear witness to it—the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. (Rom. 3:20, 22).

But God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us (Rom. 5:8).

In the previous post, we left mankind in a bit of a fix. The gospel tells us that all mankind—every person born since Adam was created—have sinned against a perfect and holy God, violating His law. Because all have sinned, all stand under judgment, subject to God’s eternal wrath.

Just Do Better?

We also saw that even if a man could live perfectly from this point on, he has already violated God’s law and is therefore subject to His wrath. Not only that, but Paul tells us, that “by works of the law no human being will be justified in his sight, since through the law comes knowledge of sin.” Notice that Paul says that no human will be justified (that is, declared righteous, saved from God’s wrath) by keeping the law.

Why is that? Because the law does not produce righteousness. Instead, it produces “the knowledge of sin.” What does that mean? Its basic meaning is that the law sets the standard, and thus also the knowledge of what is sin (anything that violates that standard). However, as Paul will elaborate later, the law also arouses sin. If a parent tells a child, “Don’t go into the kitchen,” where is the first place the child will normally seek to go? The kitchen, of course—even if she had no thought of going to the kitchen before the command was given. So, the law can only tell you what is right and wrong. And, instead of giving you the power to obey, it actually tends to arouse sin in the flesh. The law simply can’t produce salvation.

By Faith Alone

Instead of keeping the law to be saved, God’s righteousness (and thus our justification) comes by another path: “But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, although the Law and the Prophets bear witness to it—the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe.” Justification by faith. In looking closely at this verse, we see a few important details:

• First, it is apart from the law. The righteousness of God is separate from the law, meaning the law is not the path to obtaining righteousness (as we have said many times in earlier posts, keeping God’s commandments is done from the ground of salvation, not the path to salvation).
• Second, the Old Testament writings (the Law and the Prophets) bear witness to it. Righteousness by faith stretches throughout biblical history, going back to Abraham and beyond, as we mentioned in the last post. The heroes of faith in the Old Testament weren’t righteous because they kept the law. All of them stumbled miserably. Rather, they kept the law because they had faith and thus were declared righteous in God’s sight.
• Third, the righteousness of God comes by faith in Christ. Paul is very specific here. Faith in Christ is the path to God’s righteousness (the justification of the believer). More specifically, this righteousness is given “for all who believe.” All who place faith in the Lord Jesus Christ are saved.

Jesus: The Way to the Father

What part does Jesus play in the gospel? Paul tells us, “Christ died for us.” What does this mean? Remember that the law requires death for sin. Jesus, then, died in our place and bore the penalty of sin—the wrath of God. He could do this because He lived a perfectly sinless life. He said, “I always do those things that please the Father” (John 8:29). Because He lived a perfect life, His death was not for Himself but in the place of others. Because He is God-incarnate (John 1:1-2), His death is sufficient for all (1 John 2:2; 4:10).

How do we know that His death was acceptable to God for our sins? Because He rose from the dead. Remember, death is the result of sin. Because Jesus never sinned, death had no claim on Him. He gave up His life voluntarily for us (John 10:11, 15, 17-18). His resurrection shows that He is righteous. And His righteousness is imputed (credited or reckoned) to those who believe in Him for salvation.

No Other Way

Many people say that there are many ways to God. There are, indeed, many man-made attempts to reach God. But they all fall short for several reasons:

The first reason is that of sin. Sin pervades every part of us and every part of creation. We are fallen people in a fallen world. Our best attempts to “reach God” fall woefully short of His standards.

Secondly, Jesus. Jesus said, “I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life. No one comes through the Father but by me” (John 14:6, emphasis mine). That automatically excludes every other “way” to God. Either Jesus was right, and all other attempts are wrong, or He was wrong, and thus we have no reason to believe anything else He has said. But again, His resurrection proves that everything He said was true.

How is One Saved?

The Philippian jailer asked Paul and Silas, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” (Acts 16:30). Their answer? “And they said, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved” (v. 31). To be saved, one places his trust/belief/faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. To put it another way, as Paul says,

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. . . . For everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved (Rom. 10:9, 13).

This is the essence of the gospel. Turn to Christ in faith and trust.

[Note: Much of the material in this series has been adapted from my commentary The Righteousness of God: A Commentary on Romans.]

God is a righteous judge, and a God who feels indignation every day (Ps. 7:11).

For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth (Rom. 1:18).

None is righteous, no, not one; no one understands; no one seeks for God. All have turned aside; together they have become worthless; no one does good, not even one. . . . For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God (Rom. 3:10-12, 23).

When we talk about the gospel, the first question we have to ask is, “Why do we need the gospel? What do we need to be ‘saved’ from?” Today, many people scoff at the idea of being saved from anything—or their idea of salvation is becoming a god in their own right (so-called human evolution). The problem, and the reason that the gospel is necessary, is sin.

What is Sin?

We all have at least a vague idea of what “sin” is. Sin, in a general sense, is wrongdoing. In the Bible, sin is defined as “falling short of the glory of God” (Rom. 3:23, the idea of falling short or missing the mark). Sin is also defined as transgressing the law of God (1 John 3:4, the idea being that one is a law unto himself and thus violates the law of God).

We should be careful to understand that sin goes deeper than just outward behavior. Why is this so? Because God’s law demands perfection, reaching beyond the appearance to the very attitudes of the heart (Ps. 19:7; Mark 12:30). “Wait, God requires me to be perfect?” He does. He is holy and perfect, with no moral blemish, and His law requires that same perfection.

But, no one is perfect. No human since the fall of Adam and Eve has ever kept the law perfectly. That’s a real problem. Why, you ask? That’s a good question.

The Wrath of God

What’s the problem with sin? Those who fail to meet the standard of God’s law are subject to His wrath. His eternal wrath. Some people teach that we are separated from God’s presence by our sin; however, God is omnipresent, everywhere at once. We are certainly separated from His goodness, mercy, and love, but not from Him. And we could never hide from Him, as the psalmist has said:

Where shall I go from your Spirit? Or where shall I flee from your presence? If I ascend to heaven, you are there! If I make my bed in Sheol, you are there! If I take the wings of the morning and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, even there your hand shall lead me, and your right hand shall hold me. If I say, “Surely the darkness shall cover me, and the light about me be night,” even the darkness is not dark to you; the night is bright as the day, for darkness is as light with you (Ps. 139:7-12).

All humanity, then is in danger of His wrath. Our experience in life confirms what Scripture has already said: No one is perfect. No one is righteous. All have sinned.

God the Righteous Judge

Many people object to the idea of God as a judge, since it means they are subject to His judgment. Scripture does affirm, however, that God looks down and makes righteous judgments, and is rightly indignant with human sin (Ps. 7:11). God’s judgment, however, is not capricious, cruel, or arbitrary. They are righteous. They are based on standards that are in accord with His character.

How is that so? Firstly, because we all are born with an instinctive awareness of God and His righteous decrees:

For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse (Rom. 1:19-20).

We all know instinctively that there is a God and He has standards. Those who deny His existence have been taught to deny His existence and violate their own instincts.

Secondly, besides the revelation of nature, man has awareness of right and wrong (God’s moral decrees) through the vehicle of conscience (Rom. 2:15). God has given humanity light to see His moral decrees.

God’s judgments, then, are based on evidence, and as Paul tells us, the judgement of God rightly falls on those who violate His law. The standard has been set, and when people violate the standard, he is subject to the wrath of God.

What is to Be Done?

What is the solution to this dilemma? How can a righteous and holy God justify and reconcile sinful man to Himself? Are we to simply “do better?” Is that enough? That can’t be enough, simply because even if one could be perfect from this point on (an impossible task), he has already sinned in the past! If salvation from the wrath of God is not possible by keeping the law, then what hope have we? That will be the subject of the next post.

[Note: Much of the material in this series has been adapted from my commentary The Righteousness of God: A Commentary on Romans.]

For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith, as it is written, “The righteous shall live by faith” (Rom. 1:16-17).

Out of all the books in Scripture, Romans gives by far the most detailed and systematic presentation of the gospel of Christ. Beginning with this post, we start a series looking at the gospel as articulated by Paul in Romans. We obviously won’t cover every verse in this long and deeply challenging letter, but we’ll look at the overall message of the gospel.

Paul wrote this letter as a means of introducing himself to the church of Rome (having not been there prior). He tells them that he is “eager to preach the gospel to you also who are in Rome” (v. 15). You might say his life’s work and passion is “the gospel,” and he would agree.

The Power of God

Why is this? Why should he devote his whole life to declaring the gospel? Because “it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes.” Salvation is solely of, by, and through God. It is His power at work in a person’s life. There is nothing that a man can do to save himself. Salvation is more than just the forgiveness of sin, however. Salvation is restoring of all things, setting the believer right with God and making possible the process of transformation into the image of Christ.

Notice the only condition of salvation is faith (“to everyone who believes”). One does not experience salvation apart from saving faith (more on that in a future post). Notice also that salvation is open to all (“to the Jew first and also to the Greek”). Here, Paul’s use of “Greek” should better be understood as Gentiles or nations, that is, all others not of the Jewish race. So, salvation is available to all (which he will show, and we will discuss, later).

The Righteousness of God

Not only is the gospel the power of God, but it also reveals the righteousness of God. The gospel reveals that God is good and holy, and all His ways are just. In addition, the Gospel proceeds because of God’s righteousness–that is to say the way of salvation is in harmony with His very character, as it reveals all that He is (holy, just, merciful, compassionate, longsuffering).

This righteousness, Paul tells us, has been revealed “from faith to faith,” or throughout all history. Righteousness by faith is not a new concept in the New Testament. Rather, it stretches back through all of history, even as far back as Abraham and beyond. A great example of this is found in Hebrews 11, the long list of the heroes of faith. In fact, as Paul reminds us, “The just live by faith.” The sense of that verse is that, “The just have always lived by faith.”

In the very first post of this blog (“What is the Gospel? Good News and Bad News”), we discussed the basics of the gospel. This series will take those concepts and elaborate on them.

The gospel tells us that:

• God is a righteous Judge, and all mankind stands guilty before Him, in danger of His eternal wrath.
• God’s way of salvation is by faith apart from works of the law, since man can do nothing to save himself.
• God sent His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, to pay the penalty for our sin (the wrath of God).
• One’s only hope of salvation is trusting in the Lord Jesus Christ rather than any form of self-righteousness.
• Those who trust in Christ can be assured of their salvation and eventual glorification.

At the end of this series, you’ll hopefully have a richer understanding of the gospel, why it was necessary, and what it means to you.  It is only by God’s grace that we are saved, and it by His grace that we stand.

[Note: Much of the material in this series has been adapted from my commentary The Righteousness of God: A Commentary on Romans.]