In Romans chapter 4, Paul explains how the righteousness which is of faith can be ours. Rom chapter 3 said that the righteousness which is of faith is revealed altogether apart from the law. How then is it revealed? By the Holy Spirit through faith. As it is written, Abraham believed and it was accounted or credited to him as righteousness (Gen15:6, the whole Rom4, James 2:23, Gal 3:6).
Rom 3:23 says that all have sinned and fell short of the glory of God, but verse 24 says that all have been justified freely by His grace. Now, if we look at a debit and a credit account, you get debts, and you get credits. Expenditures and Income. All men sinned through Adam, therefore all men have such great debts that they will never be able to pay it. According to Gal 3:20, the Law was a contract between God and Israel. All men sinned, but Israel got that contract with which they thought they could buy back their righteousness. The law and prophets testified about Jesus Christ, who came and paid the account in full, and all the debts were gone. So Abraham believed in the glad tidings preached to him, the promise, and Melchizedek ministered bread and wine (the Gospel) to him and he believed (Gen 14:18), and that faith was accounted to him for righteousness.
Rom 4:5 says But to one who, not working [by the Law], trusts (believes fully) in Him Who justifies the ungodly, his faith is credited to him as righteousness (the standing acceptable to God).
Rom 4:23-25 says But [the words], It was credited to him, were written not for his sake alone, But [they were written] for our sakes too. [Righteousness, standing acceptable to God] will be granted and credited to us also who believe in (trust in, adhere to, and rely on) God, Who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead, Who was betrayed and put to death because of our misdeeds and was raised to secure our justification (our acquittal), [making our account balance and absolving us from all guilt before God].
How great is that! Wonderful! This is indeed glorious. Our whole debt account is paid. The thing is though, if Jesus only balanced the account, and we sinned again, He would have had to come and suffer again after we sinned again.
Heb 9:25-26 Nor did He [enter into the heavenly sanctuary to] offer Himself regularly again and again, as the high priest enters the [Holy of] Holies every year with blood not his own. For then would He often have had to suffer [over and over again] since the foundation of the world. But as it now is, He has once for all at the consummation and close of the ages appeared to put away and abolish sin by His sacrifice [of Himself].
He put away and abolished sin in totality on the cross. Even the sins that had not yet been committed. His sacrifice was once for all, for all time, for all sin, for all people. This means that God did not only forgive your past sins, but all the sins of all time the world ever committed, forever. The sacrifice was for sin, all sin!
This is the bread and the wine. This is the Gospel of Christ. This is His sacrifice. It shall avail for all time! Sin will never be able to be bigger than the sacrifice, and grace of God. It can truly be said that where sin abounded, grace did much more abound Rom 5:20
Now, back to our debit and credit accounts. If the debts were too large to pay, and Christ only settled the debts to where it was manifested then, His sacrifice would not cover future sins. So now. His free gift is not at all to be compared to the tresspass.
Rom 5:15-17 But God's free gift is not at all to be compared to the trespass [His grace is out of all proportion to the fall of man]. For if many died through one man's falling away (his lapse, his offense), much more profusely did God's grace and the free gift [that comes] through the undeserved favor of the one Man Jesus Christ abound and overflow to and for [the benefit of] many. Nor is the free gift at all to be compared to the effect of that one [man's] sin. For the sentence [following the trespass] of one [man] brought condemnation, whereas the free gift [following] many transgressions brings justification (an act of righteousness). For if because of one man's trespass (lapse, offense) death reigned through that one, much more surely will those who receive [God's] overflowing grace (unmerited favor) and the free gift of righteousness [putting them into right standing with Himself] reign as kings in life through the one Man Jesus Christ (the Messiah, the Anointed One).
The account of sin was balanced, yes, but much more than that! We received something far better. Something out of all comparisson to the fall of man. Think of all sin of all men of all time as a drop of blood. The superceding, greater gift, that balanced out that drop, is the ocean of God's grace. Yes the sin was cancelled, but far greater than that, we have been given God's own righteousness.
If I were an insolvent man, my debts would be more than my assets. The proportion of Christ's free gift is só great, that I would never be able to get into debts great enough that it would exceed the gift. If I were a sinner the effect of His free blessing would be so great that I would never be able to outsin His grace. No matter what I do from this point on. I will never ever have any debt ever again. All my sins are forgiven.
This doesn't give you the mandate to live in sin, because the blessing is so much greater. Why would you want to try and remain in debt, when you can just go and enjoy the blessing. Why would I want to try and sin, if I can now enjoy the presence of Christ? But we do not carry this revelation in perfection yet, therefore we will still regress back to old habits now and then, but it doesn't matter, because His righteousness can not be touched by my sin. His blessing can not be touched by my debts! Think of the drop in the ocean. Even if you have all the sin of all time in your life, its still just a drop, and His grace is still the ocean. Wake up! You are not guilty! Your sin is not such a big deal! His blessing gives you the ability to live the Christ life.
Its like having a $500 fine that you can not pay, and you get a free gift of $ 1000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000. Will this free gift make you want to try and get out of your fine all day long? Will you then try to justify yourself and write letters to the authorities to try and quash the fine, to lower the standard of the law so you can be justified yourself? Or are you going to go and buy yourself a yaught and go fishing? Do we believe His sacrifice is enough to pay for my sin and more? We need to believe that the grace of Christ is indeed enough. Believe in His sacrifice! Do you want to remain in sin all the time, or do you want to go and cure HIV/Aids and Cancer, and raise people from the dead? Do you still want to try and overcome your own sinfulness, or do you want the blind to see, the lame to walk and the deaf to hear? Realise what you have. Start owning your blessing, then you will not be so focussed on the debt that you thought you had.
Jesus did not give you a weak and poor and sickly blessing. He did a good job on the cross and blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenlies (Eph1:3). I'm sorry, but what He did on the cross weighs more than your little drop of sin!
Isn't that great news? No more sacrifices for sin. No more remembrance of sin (Heb 10:17-18). No more trying to convince God that you're sorry enough for Him to forgive you. You are already forgiven. Accept it, believe it. Then you can start walking in the perfection of Christ: this mystery, which He has placed within you and which He is revealing to you by His Holy Spirit, is Christ in us, the hope of glory!
Have a blessed day
Gerrit
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