Participants: Shelley Quinn
Series Code: GPL
Program Code: GPL000009
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00:01 Hello, I'm Shelley Quinn.
00:02 Coming up next on "The Grace Pipeline," 00:04 learn how to be at peace with your past. 00:08 Please join us now. 00:30 Welcome to "The Grace Pipeline." 00:32 For the last several programs, 00:33 we've been talking about justification, 00:36 and today we're going to learn 00:38 how justification can bring you peace. 00:41 Forgive me for meddling, but I must ask 00:44 is there a sin from your past that haunts you? 00:47 Have you ever confessed to God, received His forgiveness, 00:52 but you just cannot forgive yourself? 00:55 Well, this program is for you. 00:57 Today, we will summarize 00:58 God's legal transaction of justification 01:02 which can bring you peace with the past. 01:05 This series follows the Bible study book 01:07 God privileged me to write, 01:09 which is also titled "The Grace Pipeline." 01:11 If you're using your companion book 01:13 to follow along, today we begin on page 75 of chapter 5. 01:18 Now to better grasp the idea of justification, 01:23 let's first look back to the scriptures 01:26 that were used by the early Christian church 01:29 which was nothing less than the writings 01:31 of the Old Testament and that supplied 01:34 the foundation for understanding 01:36 the teachings of the New Testament. 01:40 Deuteronomy 25:1 provides us with an insight 01:43 to the legal action of justification. 01:46 The scripture says if there is a dispute, 01:49 come to court that the judges may judge them 01:53 and justify the righteous and condemn the wicked. 01:57 In this setting, a judge heard 01:59 the case against an accused and made a judgment. 02:02 If there was insufficient evidence to prove guilt, 02:06 he cleared them and declared them innocent or justified. 02:12 Of course, if evidence existed, he condemned the guilty. 02:17 In the Old Testament, God warns He will not justify the wicked. 02:22 His anger is aroused where judges 02:24 who accept bribes to acquit the guilty 02:27 or condemn the innocent. 02:29 Anyone who perverts justice is an abomination to the Lord. 02:34 So weighing the Hebrew understanding, 02:37 we see that justification is a legal action. 02:42 It is performed by a judge. 02:45 Condemnation and justification are forensic terms. 02:49 They have to do with examining the evidence to decide questions 02:54 that arise from a crime. 02:56 They are polar opposites. 02:58 "To condemn means to declare an accused party guilty 03:04 and worthy of punishment. 03:06 To justify means to pronounce an acquittal of the charges, 03:10 making an official declaration that the accused is innocent." 03:17 We all know we are guilty of sin. 03:20 Romans 3:23 tells us, "All have sinned 03:23 and fallen short of the glory of God," 03:25 If we are guilty of sin, we are worthy of punishment. 03:29 Oh, but thank God that the verse ends with a comma 03:35 and the rest of the story is told in the following verse. 03:38 Listen with amazement to the love and redemption 03:41 God provides us through His grace pipeline 03:44 as I read Romans 3:23 and 24 together. 03:48 And it says, "All have sinned and fall short of the glory 03:53 of God, being justified freely by His grace 03:59 through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus." 04:03 Justification is the sovereign legal act 04:07 of a holy and just God. 04:09 It results from the atoning sacrifice 04:12 of Christ on the cross. 04:15 Let's summarize this legal process. 04:18 Roman 5:8 and 9 tells us that God loved us 04:21 while we were still sinners and sent Christ to die for us 04:25 that we might be justified by His blood. 04:29 Through repentance, we receive 04:32 the remission of our past offenses. 04:34 The blood of Christ covers the forensic evidence 04:38 that stood against us and redemption 04:40 and forgiveness are the pardon. 04:43 As we considered in the past program, 04:46 Romans 4:25 tells us that Christ was raised 04:49 to secure our justification. 04:52 The resurrected savior serves as our high priest 04:56 who is blotting out our sins in the heavenly sanctuary 05:00 and He is continually interceding as our advocate. 05:05 Roman 5:17 and 18 clearly states that 05:08 Christ's righteous act becomes our gift of righteousness. 05:13 His righteousness, His perfect character 05:17 stands in place of our character. 05:19 And robed in His righteousness, 05:22 His credit is given to our heavenly record 05:25 and that puts us in right legal standing with God. 05:29 What is the result of Christ standing in as our substitute? 05:33 Living the perfect life, 05:35 we never lived and dying the death we deserved, 05:38 the demands of diving justice are satisfied. 05:42 There are no longer legal grounds 05:46 to justly inflict the penalty of sin. 05:49 God declares us free of guilt and He grants us an acquittal 05:55 by His grace justification is ours. 05:59 And once justified, you can declare 06:02 I'm just as if I had never sinned. 06:06 This is the good news of the gospel of grace. 06:10 When we understand God's plan for us, 06:13 we can celebrate His goodness as Paul did in Romans 8:31-33. 06:20 And here he says, "What then shall we say to these things? 06:25 If God is for us, who can be against us? 06:29 He who did not spare His own Son, 06:31 but delivered Him up for us all, 06:33 how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things? 06:39 Who shall bear a charge against God's elect? 06:43 It is God who justifies." 06:46 Quite an exciting promise, isn't it? 06:49 Now let's turn our focus to Zachariah Chapter 3. 06:52 This is an important Old Testament passage 06:55 that demonstrates justification has always been by grace 07:00 through faith and the promised Messiah. 07:04 Let me set this up for you before we read. 07:07 In Zachariah Chapter 3, the prophet records a vision 07:10 that graphically portrays God's gracious plan 07:13 of both imputed righteousness or righteousness that has been 07:17 credited to our account and of justification. 07:21 In the first verse, he speaks of scene that angel of the Lord 07:25 who bible scholars agree and have identified 07:29 as Jesus Christ before His incarnation. 07:32 So there in Zachariah 3 Joshua is standing before him 07:37 and the accuser of the brethren satan 07:41 stands to oppose Joshua. 07:43 Zachariah receives this vision 07:46 following the release of a remnant group 07:48 of Israel's nation from Babylonian bondage. 07:51 God's justice had sanctioned the fiery trial of their exile. 07:57 The people have rebelled against him in action 07:59 and attitude and had warranted the sufferings of condemnation 08:05 which finally brought them to repentance. 08:08 Once again the Merciful Maker secured their release 08:11 from captivity and returned them to Jerusalem. 08:15 Joshua was the first appointed 08:17 high priest of the returning remnant. 08:20 Now in vision, the prophet sees Joshua standing 08:24 as a representative of the people before Jesus. 08:27 He was clothed in filthy garments. 08:30 He is defiled with sin and satan points 08:33 an accusing finger of blame at Joshua. 08:36 With violent opposition he lists the transgressions 08:40 of the covenant people arguing 08:42 that God should not restore them to divine favor. 08:45 Did satan have grounds for his allegations? 08:49 He knew that God has a perfect standard 08:52 of right doing and right being. 08:54 He knew the Lord's Ten Commandments of love 08:57 are a reflection of His righteous character 08:59 and that God requires created beings to observe His divine law 09:04 as an expression of their love, respect and covenant faith. 09:09 Certainly, this nation had all sinned 09:12 and fallen short of God's glory. 09:14 The Bible is clear in both the Old and the New Testaments 09:18 that the wages of sin is death. 09:21 Satan reasoned, they deserve to die 09:24 and questioned how the great God of justice 09:27 could ignore their transgressions. 09:30 So the arch accuser standing there underestimated 09:35 the love, mercy, and grace of the Lord. 09:40 Joshua's knees must have been trembling. 09:43 But then in Zachariah 3, let me read to you what happens. 09:48 Verses 2 through 5. 09:50 "The Lord said to Satan, 'The Lord rebuke you, satan. 09:55 Is this not a brand plucked from the fire?' 09:58 Now Joshua was clothed with filthy garments, 10:01 and was standing before the Angel. 10:04 Then He answered and spoke to those who stood before him, 10:07 saying, 'Take away the filthy garments from him.' 10:11 This is remission of sin and to him He said, 10:14 'See, I have removed your iniquity from you, 10:17 and I will clothe you with rich robes.' 10:20 There is imputed righteousness. 10:22 And I said, 'Let them put on a clean turban on his head.' 10:27 That's justification. 10:29 So they put a clean turban on his head, 10:32 and they put the clothes on him. 10:34 And the Angel of the Lord stood by." 10:39 The vision revealed God's continued plan of remission 10:43 of sin and imputed righteousness by grace. 10:47 The special turban that was placed 10:49 on the high priest had a golden plate 10:52 with the inscription "Holiness to the Lord.---- 10:55 In vision, this represented 10:58 the restoration of the priesthood. 11:00 God declared Joshua and His people justified 11:04 by grace and reconciled to Him. 11:08 Let me tell you something. 11:10 You may not have thought about this 11:12 but satan is not omnipresent. 11:15 He is a created being with limited presence 11:19 to only place at a time. 11:21 He assigns his unholy alliance of demons, those fallen angels, 11:26 to lure his into temptation and then to work his CSI agents, 11:31 the crime scene investigators, who go around 11:34 collecting forensic evidence to present against us. 11:38 The enemy wags an accusatory finger at us 11:41 declaring our guilt and trying to hand off a baton 11:45 of condemnation that we may use it on ourselves 11:48 to beat our heads and bash our hopes. 11:51 Don't accept it. 11:53 Don't be the devil's fool 11:55 or else you will never experience peace with God. 11:59 Many years ago, a precious friend of mine 12:02 lived in the darkness of a drug and alcohol addiction 12:05 that lead to a promiscuous lifestyle. 12:08 Hearing her testimony for the first time, 12:11 totally caught me off guard. 12:13 I could not believe this innocent Christ like woman 12:17 filled with love and heavenly wisdom 12:19 had ever dwelled anywhere but in the light of the Lord. 12:24 She is a brand plucked from the fire 12:27 and the living memorial to God's grace of salvation. 12:31 Although she received divine deliverance from sin, 12:36 sordid memories of the past haunted her 12:39 for sometime afterward and she could not forgive herself 12:42 for the damage that she had done. 12:45 So approaching her one day after church, 12:48 her pastor put his finger on the problem asking her, 12:52 "Do you believe God has forgiven you?" 12:55 "Well, of course," she replied. 12:57 And he said, "Then don't you think 12:59 it's a little arrogant of you not to forgive yourself. 13:03 Aren't you putting yourself above God?" 13:06 "Well, that's ridiculous," she steamed, 13:08 "I'm doing no such thing." And she stormed off. 13:12 His comments infuriated her. 13:15 But later that day as the Lord helped her 13:18 to reflect on the wisdom of the pastor's counsel, 13:22 she slowly began to accept it as truth. 13:26 The life changing breakthrough 13:28 she so desperately needed occurred. 13:32 And she dropped that baton of self condemnation. 13:36 She forgave herself at last. 13:38 God cleansed her conscience of guilt silencing 13:41 the torment of self accusation and giving her confidence 13:46 to draw ever closer to His throne of grace. 13:50 She lives at peace with her past now and with her Lord. 13:55 The Apostle John wrote in 1 John 3:20 and 21. 14:01 "For if our heart condemns us, 14:05 God is greater than our heart, and knows all things. 14:09 Beloved, if our heart does not condemn us, 14:12 we have confidence toward God." 14:16 Feelings of condemnation cause a guilty conscience before God. 14:21 Guilt keeps us at an arms distance from His embrace. 14:25 Our sympathetic Savior wants to give us peace of mind 14:29 so that we will feel confident in His presence. 14:33 If we repent and depend on Christ as our propitiation-- 14:38 which we've studied in an earlier program, 14:40 means to cover sin. 14:42 When we accept Christ as our covering for sin, 14:45 our propitiation, He makes atonement for our sin, 14:49 covering them over. 14:50 And Paul tells us in Romans 8:1. 14:54 "There is therefore now no condemnation 14:58 to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk 15:02 according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit." 15:06 To be in Christ is to have a personal relationship with Him. 15:12 Have you confessed your sins 15:15 and asked God for the gift of repentance? 15:17 Are you in Christ? 15:19 If so, because of your relationship with Christ, 15:22 God has pronounced you justified. 15:24 There is no longer any basis for His condemnation 15:28 or for your self condemnation where you once felt alienated 15:33 from Him, you can now draw close with confidence. 15:38 Isaiah 43:18 and 19 is one of my favorite verses. 15:43 Let me read this to you from the amplified. 15:45 "Do not earnestly remember the former things, 15:50 neither consider the things of old. 15:53 Behold, I am doing a new thing. 15:57 Now it springs forth, do you not perceive and know it 16:01 and will you not give heed to it? 16:03 I will even make a way in the wilderness 16:07 and rivers in the desert." 16:09 God does not want you to dwell on the past. 16:12 He does not want you to dwell on former mistakes 16:16 from which you have been justified. 16:18 What He's saying here is release the past and press forward. 16:23 You know Paul makes that clear also in Colossians 1:20-23, 16:32 that when God forgives you, He provides the blessing 16:35 of peace and the power of His promise linked with love 16:39 is to present you holy blameless and above reproach, 16:44 if you steadfastly continue in the faith. 16:48 It is through Christ that we have access by faith 16:53 to God's grace pipeline as Paul noted in Romans 5:1 and 2. 17:00 He says, "Therefore, having been justified by faith, 17:05 we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, 17:09 through whom also we have access by faith 17:13 into this grace in which we stand, 17:16 and rejoice in hope of the glory of God." 17:22 Stand firm in Christ and you will continue 17:26 to have access by faith 17:29 into the bountiful blessings of God's grace. 17:33 This is our fourth program on justification by faith. 17:36 We have examined how God can be a just judge 17:42 and at the same time, the one who justifies us. 17:45 We have considered the mercy seat covering, 17:48 the seat of God's judgment throne, 17:51 and how Christ is symbolically our mercy seat covering. 17:55 We've proven from scripture that 17:58 it is the imputed righteousness of Jesus Christ, 18:02 His righteousness credited to our account 18:04 by virtue of our relationship with Him that justifies us 18:09 freely by God's grace and through our faith. 18:12 We've also proven that there is no other way, 18:15 no other process by which we may be justified. 18:19 We have examined Paul's teaching 18:22 which proves, particularly in Galatians 5:4, 18:26 that if we attempt to be justified by works, 18:31 we have fallen from grace. 18:34 But if we stop here, there will be someone out there 18:38 who still wants to argue that the Apostles Paul 18:42 and James were at odds in their teaching, 18:45 one saying that we are justified by grace 18:48 and the other claiming that we are justified by works. 18:52 I don't want to leave any stone unturned that might hinder 18:56 your understanding of this vital topic. 18:59 So let's briefly consider what these two Apostles taught. 19:04 Paul makes a glorious defense of the gospel 19:08 of grace in his letter to the Romans. 19:11 In Chapters 3-5, he presents the picture of man's condition 19:17 before justification and sets forth the gift 19:21 of God's grace that freely justifies the human race. 19:26 Let's look at what he says in Romans 3:24-31. 19:33 "Being justified freely," he writes, 19:35 "by His grace through the redemption 19:39 that is in Christ Jesus that God might be just 19:43 and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus. 19:47 Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith 19:52 apart from the deeds of the law. 19:55 Do we then make void the law through faith? 19:58 Certainly not. 19:59 On the contrary, we establish the law." 20:04 Paul argues good works are not the cause of justification. 20:10 No one can be justified by conformity to the law 20:14 or dependence upon religious rights and ceremonies. 20:18 Justification is a gift from God received by faith 20:24 and Christ atoning sacrifice and His imputed righteousness. 20:30 Now you'll notice that concern someone might misapply 20:33 this teaching, Paul quickly added 20:35 that faith establishes the principle of the law. 20:39 The Lord did not give the law in vain. 20:42 It pointed man to Christ who perfectly fulfilled 20:47 God's requirements and as we recognize 20:50 all that He has done for us, we will be eager to please Him. 20:55 Anyone in relationship with Christ will uphold 20:59 His eternal principles and morality. 21:02 While good works are not the cause of our justification. 21:06 They certainly come as the consequence. 21:10 In Romans 4, and I believe it's 1-25, 21:14 Paul uses the Old Testament and the patriarch Abraham 21:19 as a witness to God's unchanging plan of salvation. 21:24 Through faith and in spite 21:26 of seemingly hopeless circumstances, 21:30 the childless Abraham believed God's promise 21:34 that he will become the father of a great nation 21:38 and God accounted it to him as righteousness. 21:41 Paul argues that the uncircumcised 21:44 patriarch Abraham was justified by grace 21:49 through the righteousness of faith. 21:52 And then Paul makes it clear in Romans 4:11 21:57 that it was only afterward that the law was added 22:01 and Abraham received the sign of circumcision 22:05 as a seal of the righteousness, of the faith which he had, 22:09 well, he was still uncircumcised. 22:13 Circumcision was merely the outward evidence 22:16 of an inward working that God had accomplished in Abraham. 22:20 A sign to the patriarch and his descendents 22:23 that the righteousness granted him was by faith. 22:27 In the same fashion, Christians today, 22:30 our baptism is a sign of the faith and justification, 22:33 we have already experienced. 22:36 So throughout his letter to the Romans, 22:38 Paul's focus was from the standpoint 22:41 of man's condition before justification. 22:46 Let me repeat this because I don't want you to miss it. 22:49 Throughout his entire letter to the Romans, 22:52 Paul's focus was from the standpoint 22:56 of man's condition before justification. 23:00 Now in contrast, the Apostle James 23:04 uses the example of faithful Abraham 23:07 as he sets forth a different aspect 23:10 of justification focusing from the standpoint 23:14 of man's condition after being justified. 23:18 In James 2:20-24, James writes, "But do you want to know, 23:26 O foolish man, that faith without works is dead? 23:31 Was not Abraham our father justified by works 23:35 when he offered Isaac his son on the altar? 23:38 Do you see that faith was working together 23:41 with his works, and by works faith was made perfect? 23:45 And the Scripture was fulfilled 23:47 which says, Abraham believed God, 23:50 and it was accounted to him for righteousness.' 23:53 And he was called the friend of God. 23:56 You see then that a man is justified 23:59 by works, and not by faith only." 24:04 You see what James is pointing out 24:07 is that God's faithful friend Abraham maintained 24:12 his right standing with God through actions 24:15 of obedience prompted by faith. 24:18 James argues that after justification 24:22 we will confirm to the Lord's commandments 24:24 as evidence that our faith is sincere. 24:28 Genuine faith seeks to be obedient to God's will. 24:33 We cannot expect to remain justified by faith 24:36 while living in sin. 24:39 Justification by grace leads to sanctification by grace 24:45 resulting in a life that separated from evil 24:49 and set apart for God and leading to personal holiness 24:53 as we develop the character of Christ. 24:56 Our Lord Jesus taught us to pray in Matthew 6:9-13 25:03 and I've added some notes here. 25:05 He taught us, "Our Father in heaven, 25:07 Hallowed be you name, Your kingdom come. 25:10 Your will be done On earth as it is in heaven. 25:14 Give us this day our daily bread. 25:17 Forgive us our debts, there's justification, 25:21 as we forgive our debtors. 25:24 And do not lead us into temptation, but 25:27 deliver us from the evil one, that's sanctification. 25:31 For yours is the kingdom and the power 25:35 and the glory forever. Amen." 25:39 By the blood of Christ and the grace of God, 25:43 our sin, debt is forgiven and we are anxious 25:47 not to offend our Heavenly Father again. 25:50 We desire sanctification. 25:54 Personal holiness is not the cause for our justification 26:01 but comes as the consequence of justification. 26:06 Justification is only by grace. 26:08 It takes but a moment as we receive 26:11 the Lord Jesus Christ as our savior and on the basis 26:15 of Christ imputed righteousness, God declares us justified 26:20 which entitles us to all the advantages 26:24 and rewards of His perfect record of obedience. 26:28 The Apostle Peter states this perfectly 26:32 in 1 Peter 2:24 where he says, "Who Himself, speaking of Jesus, 26:39 bore our sins is His own body on the tree, that we, 26:45 having died to sins, might live for righteousness." 26:50 Justification leads to sanctification. 26:55 Sanctification is also a work of grace, 26:59 the progressive work of a lifetime. 27:03 God sanctifies us by Christ imparted righteousness 27:08 which remarkable gift we will focus on in our next program. 27:12 But first I want to ask, I hope you've noticed that 27:16 difference between what Paul and James did. 27:20 Remember, Paul's argument in Romans is justification 27:25 before--he's talking about a man before his justification 27:30 where as James talks about it afterwards. 27:33 So what we want is to find sanctification 27:36 and yoked with Christ, 27:37 he empowers us to walk in harmony with His will. 27:41 Faith is the only method by which we can cease 27:44 hold of Christ and His righteousness. 27:46 From start to finish, it is from faith to faith 27:51 that just shall live by faith. 27:55 So please remember grow in grace 27:59 and in the knowledge of our Lord. |
Revised 2014-12-17