Bible Reading: Romans 3 NLT
Ms. Max teaches in a high school. She is a brilliant teacher. A gold medalist from a prestigious university. No one is as knowledgeable as Ms. Max in the entire region. She puts her best effort and creative techniques into teaching her students. However, her students had many distractions and could not focus much on their studies. Even after repeated warnings from Ms. Max, the class refused to complete their assignment and homework. Finally, the exam came. The question paper was distributed to all students. None of them could score high grades due to their lack of preparation.
Let’s pause here and think about this situation. Who is at fault? Can we say Ms. Max failed in her job because her students could not score good marks? Knowing her students were not prepared enough, can Ms. Max ask simple questions? This will degrade the standard of exam and lead to ethically unsound practice.
Why do we stand unqualified Before God’s righteousness?
Our God is a righteous and Holy God. He judges all of us based on our behavior and not based on our knowledge about Him. Just because we cannot come up to the standard of God, can God reduce His Holiness and accept all of us? God reducing his holiness is the same as Ms. Max trying to ask simple questions so that her distracted students can score good marks. Because we cannot meet God’s righteous standards, can we say God is at fault for setting the high standards? Well, the students of Ms. Max can say the same when they realize they could not score good marks. But God is not at fault. He is a holy God, and He remains Holy.
True, some of them were unfaithful; but just because they were unfaithful, does that mean God will be unfaithful? - v3 NLT
All of us fall short of God’s holy standard, independent of how religious and knowledgeable we are. No matter how much we try to control our tongue, we end up speaking the wrong words and making wrong choices due to our inherent sinful nature.
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.” - Romans 3:10-12
We all stand unqualified before God. We have fallen short of God's holy standards. The religious books gave us the knowledge about sin. But they could not cleanse and purify us. No amount of human effort could keep our clean.
God's plan to make unqualified as qualified:
God is Holy, no unclean and guilty men can go near God. But God still loves us so much, He wanted us to be closer to Him even though we are guilty and cannot meet his expectations. So He came up with the plan to make us righteous through the cleansing blood of Jesus Christ.
But now God has shown us a way to be made right with him without keeping the requirements of the law. v21 NLT
According to the law, anyone who is guilty ought to be punished. The punishment for guilt will cause all humanity cast away from the presence of God to a place called eternal death (Hell). How do we escape the punishment of eternal death? Can we do more good to compensate for the evil we have done? While good deeds are welcome, good deeds can not erase evil and offer forgiveness. When men could not come out of the evil, God gave His own son, Jesus as atonement for our sins. The sins of humanity fell on Jesus.
He (God) did this through Christ Jesus when he freed us from the penalty for our sins. For God presented Jesus as the sacrifice for sin. People are made right with God when they believe that Jesus sacrificed his life, shedding his blood. - V24, 25 NLT
We Receive Righteousness through Faith:
Jesus was offered as an atoning sacrifice for our mistakes and failures. His forgiveness is a gift. Since Jesus took all the punishment on our behalf, we are forgiven and made right (Justified) before God. Our forgiveness is not based on the good deeds we have done. No amount of diligence in following a set of commandments, money, and power can purchase the forgiveness, Jesus offered to us through His death on the cross. The only way to receive forgiveness is by placing our faith in what Jesus has done for us on the cross.
Once forgiven, we are allowed to enter the presence of the Most Holy God. We are no longer guilty as Jesus took all the punishment on himself.
So we are made right with God through faith v28 (NLT)
Did God offer his forgiveness only for a certain group of people?
The answer is no. God is common to all. He loves everyone. All of us are His children. The East and the West, rich and poor, skilled and unskilled, can receive forgiveness from Jesus for free when they put their faith in Jesus.
There is only one God, and he makes people right with himself only by faith, whether they are Jews or Gentiles.
Dear friend, have you received this forgiveness in your life? If not today is the day. Jesus is waiting for you with wide open hands. Are you ready to run towards Him? Let’s pray.
Dear Jesus, I cannot live a holy life. I have made many mistakes. Thank you for sacrificing your life on the cross for me. Thank you for forgiving my past mistakes. Thank you for loving me and taking up all my punishment on you. I am not worthy of it. There is no good in my life. I am a sinner. Still, you died for me and took away all the punishment I have to go through. Jesus, I thank you from the bottom of my heart. Help me live a holy life. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
