24)
Being justified freely by his grace through
the redemption that is in Christ Jesus:
25)
Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation
through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of
sins that are past, through the forbearance of God;
26)
To declare, I say, at this time his
righteousness: that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth
in Jesus.
27)
Where is boasting then? It is excluded. By
what law? of works? Nay: but by the law of faith.
28)
Therefore we conclude that a man is justified
by faith without the deeds of the law.
29)
Is he the God of the Jews only? is he not also of the Gentiles? Yes, of the Gentiles also:
30)
Seeing it is one God, which shall justify the
circumcision by faith, and uncircumcision through
faith.
31)
Do we then make void the law through faith?
God forbid: yea, we establish the law.
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he only way that “justification” is possible is by one being in “right standing” with God. Without God, righteousness is impossible. This is not to say that many people do not try many other “ways and means” to “ingratiate” themselves to the Lord. Most are quite “sincere” in their efforts, believing that one can “work” one’s way into His good graces. Oh, how terribly disappointed some will be when they learn that all of their efforts have gone for naught, not being “mixed” with obedience.
The reason why so many people err in their efforts before
God is because they fail to remember that all in salvation is based upon what
Jesus did at
There
is absolutely nothing that one can do to save himself
or change who he is, therefore it is required of all that we accept what
the Lord has already done for us. Actually, it is usually not a problem
to get us to accept what we are told that the Lord wants to do for us. A much
larger problem is getting us to accept what we need to do to be blessed. Why is
this such a problem? Because “what” we need to do is change.
If we are honest, we will admit that if the Lord is going to have a problem
getting us to “comply,” His greatest problem will be with getting us to change.
We
are “nowhere” with God if we resist “justification.” You see, before we can be
counted amongst the “righteous,” we must first join the ranks of the justified.
“Justification” is the reason that He shed His blood on
Do
you want o know the “secret” of success in salvation? If you really do, keep
reading. Come close and read closely: Guess what? You know all of those trials
and tests, those tribulations and the things that you just can’t stand?
Guess why they come? They come to us after salvation as part of God’s “teaching
process.” Believe it or not, He really is “brighter” than we are
knowing, as He does, exactly where our problems lie, He attempts to
impart to us the benefit of His knowledge. After all, we say that we want to
“make Heaven,” don’t we?
Now,
through the centuries, there have always been those who choose to do things
their own way. Through the centuries, many have always been able to get others
to see their point-of-view. Over the centuries, men have continued going to
hell not because of sin-for-the-sake-of-sin, but
“sin-for-the-sake-of-stubbornness” and “selfishness.” The “bottom line” is that
we “deal” with what we do only because of our refusal to turn things over to
the Lord.
The
blessings of God—you know, all of the “good” stuff
like prosperity, health, money, peace—come only to those who are willing to accept
His Word. The Lord loving us will not save us! You see, He loves all,
but for all to benefit from that love, men must submit to salvation. In
this scenario, there is no way out of personal responsibility. Without a doubt,
the message of “Jesus saves” is the greatest message of salvation, but
that message benefits only those who hear the Word and act upon
it.
It
will, no doubt, prove to be one of the most important lessons of the end times
that man learn that he can never afford to believe
what is said of him. Specifically, Satan has the “number” of most when it comes
to flattery and self-promotion. To the fleshly man, he knows just what to say,
when and how often to say it. He even knows who to send to get one to believe
it! Many of the “religious” men who men have “set up” will fall, ultimately,
because of believing what others had to say about them. They will fail
because with all of their gathering of the praise of men, they will fail to
find out what God really thinks of them. The man
who measures himself according to the standard of Man, rather than God, is a
“doomed” man, indeed.
How
does one establish a “relationship” with God? By living
their save life as a “walk of faith” from beginning to end. We were
never meant (by God) to “be” (live, “walk” and die) as “human” beings with
the Holy Ghost. The potential that the Lord has placed in Man is not reachable
through the flesh. The only way to reach our God-given potential is
through the God-given Spirit. What better reason to determine to be “justified
by faith.”