Not of Ourselves

 “For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, as it is written, “The righteous shall live by faith.”

(Romans‬ ‭1‬:‭17‬ ‭ESV‬‬)

Our tendency is to think of ourselves as good people. Our tendency is to believe that we can do good. And our tendency is to believe that we can make ourselves worthy of God’s blessings.

The Law of God, however, reveals that we are not good. It reveals that we’re inherently sinful. It makes clear that our actions, as well as our thoughts and intentions, are wicked and corrupt.

It reveals also the punishment we deserve. It reveals that we deserve death. And, more than that, it reveals that we deserve hell.

It reveals to us, finally, that there’s nothing we can do to change our circumstances. We cannot do anything to make up for our sins. Nor can we pay the penalty of our sins in any way other than suffering the condemnation we deserve.

In the gospel, however, the righteousness of God is revealed. This is what Paul is discussing in the above verse. This, however, isn’t speaking of the righteous nature of God, in contrast to our sinful nature.

In the gospel, the righteousness by which we are saved is revealed. And this righteousness is not our own. It’s not something that we generate or produce in any way.

The righteousness, revealed by the gospel, is that which is provided to us by God. It’s that which is produced by God. It is the righteousness of Christ, made available to us by his death and resurrection.

We refer to this as an imputed righteousness. It’s a righteousness, which comes from outside of ourselves, that is ascribed to us. It’s a righteousness, which comes from outside of ourselves, which is accredited to us.

When Jesus died on the cross, he died not for any sin of his own. He was completely innocent. He was without sin.

The sin for which he died is our own. He took upon himself that guilt of our sin, as well as the punishment that we deserve. And, in this way, his righteousness is made available to us.

This righteousness, then, is received by faith. As we believe in Jesus, we receive his righteousness. As we trust in his saving work, we receive his righteousness.

This righteousness, then, is revealed to us by the gospel. It’s revealed from faith and for faith, Paul says. It is based on faith, and it is received by faith.

The righteous, he reminds us, will live by faith. We receive life from faith. And we receive salvation from faith.

Although this seems deep, the point is very simple. The righteousness, by which we are saved, is revealed to us in the gospel. And this righteousness is not our own. It’s something provided to us by God that we receive by faith in Christ.

God With Us

 “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.”

(John 1:14 ESV)

 

As we gather to celebrate Christmas, we know what it is that we’re celebrating. We know that we’re celebrating Jesus. We know that we’re celebrating his birth.

 

We do so because, even though he was born into the world like you and me, he’s no ordinary man. We know and believe that he’s the Savior. He’s the Savior, promised by God, from the very beginning.

 

He’s the Savior, sent by the Father, to die on the cross. He’s the Savior, sent by God, to pay the penalty of our sin. He’s the Savior, sent by God, to deliver us from sin, death, and the devil.

 

Yet, although this is true, there is much more to it. There is so much, in fact, that it’s mind-blowing. And John highlights this in the first chapter of his gospel.

 

In verses 1 & 2 of this chapter, he writes: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God.”

 

Here we find that, although Jesus was born into the world like any other baby, this was not the beginning of his existence. We find, in fact, that he’s always existed. He was there in the beginning, when all things were made. He, in other words, preexisted all that’s been made. We find, then, that Jesus is eternal.

 

We find that Jesus is not a mere man. We find that he’s God himself. The Word, John says, “was God.”

 

Yet, although Jesus is God, he and the Father are two distinct persons. He was with God, John says. So, they are not two manifestations of one person. They are two persons who, together with the Holy Spirit, are one God.

 

In verse 3, John says: “All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made.”

 

We tend to think of God the Father, alone, as the creator. But, according to John, so too is Jesus. All things were made through him. Nothing was made apart from him. And this, again, assures us that Jesus is God.

 

“In him was life…” John tells us in verse 4. Jesus, he says, is the source of life. He’s the one who gave life in the beginning, and he’s the source of eternal life.

 

This is the person we celebrate at Christmas. And this person, who is the eternal God, the creator of all things, and the giver of life, became flesh. As we see in the above verse, he became flesh and dwelt among us.

 

God became man. The creator became like his creation. The eternal became finite. The immortal became mortal. And he did so that he might die. He did so that he might pay the penalty of our sins.

 

Even though it’s beyond comprehension, may this reality be part of our Christmas celebration. Let’s celebrate God made flesh. Let us celebrate God who provided for our salvation by the sacrifice of his Son.

Overcoming Shame

 “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.”

‭‭(Romans‬ ‭1‬:‭16‬ ‭ESV‬‬)

The Word of God, to the people of this world, is nothing more than nonsense. The gospel, to the people of this world, is nothing more than foolishness. It’s no surprise, then, when they react to it in a negative way.

God’s Word is mocked. It’s scorned. And it’s held in contempt.

Those who hold to his Word are seen as ignorant. They’re seen as stupid and uneducated. They’re viewed as lacking intelligence.

As we, then, live in this world as people of faith, this can lead to an unwillingness to speak of our faith. It can lead to an embarrassment of our faith. And it can lead to a sense of shame, when it comes to our faith.

This, of course, is nothing new. In 1 Corinthians 1:22, Paul says that the Jews demanded miraculous signs and the Greeks looked for wisdom. But he preached Christ crucified, which was a stumbling block for Jews and foolishness to Gentiles. So even then, believers encountered the same derision.

However, as we see in the above passage, Paul was not ashamed of the gospel. He was not ashamed of the message of Christ. And he was not ashamed because it’s the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes.

It’s through the gospel that the lost are brought to faith in Christ Jesus. And it’s by this faith that they’re enabled to receive the blessings of God. For this reason, then, it’s nothing of which he felt ashamed.

Now, this isn’t a matter of me telling you how you should feel. It’s clear that, as believers, it’s not right that we should be ashamed of the gospel. It’s clear that something is seriously wrong if we are ashamed of the message of Christ. But this alone does nothing to change the way we feel.

The effects of the gospel are what does so. It’s through the power of the gospel that you and I have been saved. It’s through the power of the gospel that anyone is saved. And, because of his desire for the salvation of the lost, we have been called to proclaim this message to the whole creation.

Having received the salvation of God, I am not ashamed. Knowing his desire for the salvation of the lost, I am not ashamed. And knowing his call, to proclaim this message to all, I am not ashamed.

A Mutual Blessing

 “For I long to see you, that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to strengthen you— that is, that we may be mutually encouraged by each other’s faith, both yours and mine.”

‭‭Romans‬ ‭1‬:‭11‬-‭12‬ ‭ESV‬‬

When it comes to our participation in and with the church, we tend to have one aim. One objective guides our choice of the church we’ll attend. And that one aim, that one objective, is what we receive from it.

If we prefer a certain style of music or worship, we seek out a church that offers it. If we’re musically gifted, we seek a church with a strong music ministry. If we have children, we seek out a church with a lot of children and ministries aimed at them. We tend to seek out a church where people are our age, that we might better relate to them. The examples are endless.

And this makes sense to a point. It makes sense that we’d want to be ministered to. But we often take it to the extreme. We look only at what we’ll receive rather than what we might give.

As we look at the words of Paul, in the passage above, we see a far different attitude. He had yet to visit the believers in Rome. And he earnestly desired to do so.

He desired to do so for two reasons. He desired to do so that he might impart to them some spiritual gift to strengthen them. He, in other words, wanted to minister to them and to be a blessing to them. But, at the same time, he wanted to be encouraged by them.

His desire was that they might be a mutual blessing, one to the other. And this, you see, is what we’re often missing. Although we want to be blessed by our church, few of us actively seek to be a blessing to our church.

Although we want to be served, we’re unwilling to serve. Although we want to be taught, we’re unwilling to teach. And although we want to be encouraged, we’re unwilling to be an encouragement.

Although you understand what I’m trying to say, perhaps you object to this. Perhaps you do so, noting that Paul was an apostle. He was a minister of the gospel. And, for this reason, he should desire to be a blessing to the church.

We must realize, however, that the same is true of each of us. I’m not suggesting, of course, that we’re all apostles in the same sense as Paul. But we are all called and gifted by God to serve the church. We’re called and gifted by God to bless the church.

If we notice an area in the church where ministry is lacking, if there is a need that clearly isn’t being met, this isn’t our cue to go out in search of a new church where our need will be satisfied. It’s, rather, our cue to bring this to the attention of the church that the situation might be remedied. It may also be our cue to step up and to take leadership in this area. It may be our cue to begin providing ministry in the area that is lacking.

Our ambition, again, is that we might be a mutual encouragement to one another. Our ambition is, most certainly, to receive the ministry of the church. But it’s also to provide ministry to the church. It’s both to be blessed, as well as to be a blessing.