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What if your faith could truly set you free from all your past mistakes? In this episode, we unpack the transformative power of justification by faith, using a compelling analogy of legal accountability to illustrate our need for spiritual accountability. Drawing from Romans 4, we highlight how recognizing our sinful nature and relying on faith, rather than self-justification, offers us true righteousness. Through timely examples, including the upcoming election and the legal issues facing former President Trump, we explore our human tendency to judge others by their actions while excusing our own intentions.
Take a deeper look into the life of Abraham to understand how his faith, not his works, granted him righteousness. We discuss contemporary challenges of living by faith, exemplified by a Chiefs football player who faced backlash for defending biblical truths. His story serves as a potent reminder of the importance of seeking to please God over people. The message is clear: just as Abraham’s faith was credited to him as righteousness, our faith in Jesus Christ can grant us a fresh start, free from the weight of past errors.
Finally, we explore the blessing of Abraham and its profound implications for both Jews and Gentiles. By dissecting Paul’s teachings, we reveal the essential truth that righteousness and salvation come through faith in Jesus Christ, not by adhering to the law. We contrast the necessity of societal laws with the freedom granted through faith, emphasizing the transformative change that occurs when one commits to following Jesus. This episode closes with an invitation for listeners to embrace the gift of faith and live in the freedom that Jesus provides, encouraging both new and seasoned believers to remember the price He paid for their salvation.
Where to dive in:
(0:00:01) – Understanding Justification by Faith (11 Minutes)
This chapter examines the concept of justification by faith, drawing parallels between legal consequences and spiritual accountability. We explore how, much like being unaware of a speed limit does not exempt one from a ticket, our actions and intentions must be scrutinized without self-justification. Using examples from everyday life and biblical references, particularly from Romans 4, I discuss the importance of recognizing our sinful nature and the need for faith to achieve true justification. Additionally, I reflect on current events, such as the upcoming election and legal challenges faced by former President Trump, to illustrate how we often judge others by their actions while excusing our own based on intentions. The focus is on understanding and addressing our personal flaws and seeking justification through faith rather than self-rationalization.
(0:11:28) – Justification by Faith in Romans (7 Minutes)
This chapter explores the concept of justification by faith, specifically through the lens of Romans, chapter four. We define ‘justified’ as being declared or made righteous in the sight of God, using Abraham’s example to illustrate this principle. I discuss how living by faith in Jesus Christ may lead to societal disapproval, as seen in the recent controversy involving a football player from the Chiefs, who defended traditional family roles in his commencement speech. Despite the backlash, his commitment to pleasing Jesus rather than people underscores the importance of living by biblical truths rather than societal norms. The chapter concludes with the reassurance that, like Abraham, our faith in Jesus Christ grants us righteousness and the promise of a new beginning, leaving past mistakes behind.
(0:18:14) – “Justification by Faith in God” (11 Minutes)
This chapter examines the significance of faith and righteousness in the context of Abraham’s relationship with God. We discuss how Abraham was not justified by works or adherence to the law, as the law had not yet been given in his time, but by his belief in God, which was counted as righteousness. This concept is further expanded by contrasting the nature of works, which earn a due reward, with the gift of righteousness that comes through faith. King David’s perspective is also considered, highlighting the blessedness of those whose sins are forgiven and covered by God’s grace. The chapter emphasizes that true blessing lies in the forgiveness of sins and having one’s name written in the Lamb’s book of life, rather than in earthly achievements or possessions. We are reminded to find our sense of blessing in being forgiven and freed from sin through the sacrifice of Jesus.
(0:29:43) – The Blessing of Abraham and Faith (14 Minutes)
This chapter explores the profound implications of the blessing of Abraham and its application to both Jews and Gentiles. We examine how righteousness was credited to Abraham by faith before the act of circumcision and the introduction of the law, making him the father of all who believe. By dissecting Paul’s teachings to the Romans, we uncover the essential truth that righteousness and salvation come through faith in Jesus Christ, not by adherence to the law or deeds. We highlight the importance of understanding justification by faith and how it ensures a life free from guilt and shame, emphasizing that the promise of righteousness through faith cannot be voided by the law. Finally, we touch on the role of laws in society, acknowledging their necessity while contrasting them with the freedom granted through faith in Christ.
(0:44:16) – Law vs Faith (5 Minutes)
This chapter explores the profound connection between faith, justification, and the grace of God. We emphasize that understanding the law’s power and the consequence of sin is crucial to appreciating the gift of faith and justification. Drawing from Abraham’s example, we illustrate how righteousness is attributed through faith alone, independent of works or adherence to the law. By believing in Jesus Christ’s sacrifice, we receive freedom from sin and are seen as righteous in God’s eyes. True belief transforms our actions, motives, and lives, reflecting a genuine faith that brings about real justification and a new life in Christ.
(0:49:31) – Justification by Faith Prayer and Welcome (6 Minutes)
This chapter focuses on the importance of faith and the promise of grace, emphasizing that these gifts are available to all who believe, just as they were to Abraham. We explore the significance of making Jesus Christ your Lord and Savior, highlighting the profound transformation that occurs when one commits to following Him. Through a heartfelt prayer, I invite listeners to accept this gift of righteousness, cleansing, and new life in Jesus. I also encourage those who have already accepted Christ to continually remember the price He paid and to live in the freedom He provides. Lastly, I extend an invitation for feedback and engagement, welcoming new believers into the family of God and offering continued support through various resources.
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Full Transcript
This transcript is auto-generated and not perfect. We hope it blesses you.
0:00:01 – Jaime Luce
I can get pulled over by a police officer for going the wrong speed in a particular zone, like a school zone, because I forgot what the speed limit is in the school zone, and just because I’m not aware of it, my defense cannot be. I’m sorry, officer, I just didn’t remember. I still broke the law and I’m still going to have to pay the ticket. So this is so important to understand understand the power of justification by faith, because even if you knew laws, whether you were not under the law or you were under the law, no matter your position, no matter Jew or Gentile without faith I can’t be justified. The law is the law, and there are consequences to it, whether I accept them, believe them, like them, want them or not. Welcome to the Jamie Luce podcast. I’m happy to be with you today. I hope that your day is going well.
I want to dive in today, and I’m really toying with whether we do break this into two or do one, so we’ll see how it goes, but we’re talking about faith today Justification by faith and the power of faith, so I’ve got two kind of things rolling around in my spirit today. All of it, though, is located we’ll be reading from the text in Romans 4. And I’ve been thinking about this a lot because I’ve been praying for the outcomes of the upcoming election and I’ve been also praying about the situation with all of the lawsuits that former President Trump has been battling with. And you know, it’s amazing that we can so easily, so easily, do this to other people, and what we do is we. We judge ourselves off of our intentions, and we always think that our intentions are right and good, our personal ones. We tend to think that the way we think is right, we think we’re right. Whatever we think we think we’re right, whatever we think we think we’re right and it can take some real doing to convince us that we’re not but in that estimating of ourselves and thinking that we’re right, what that often leads to is that we justify our decisions and behaviors. I could get really upset with someone driving on the freeway and blurt out in the car and then think nothing of it. You know how many times have we been singing Christian songs and worshiping the Lord and all of a sudden somebody cuts us off and then we spew whatever we want to spew for a moment and then go right back to singing like nothing happened and we simply justify our behavior as well. He shouldn’t have cut me off. You shouldn’t have done that. If you wouldn’t have done that, then I wouldn’t have done this, and we allow ourselves to justify ourselves. Here’s the thing when others do things, they’re justifying themselves as well.
So neither of us is correct in this, because neither of us is looking correctly at ourselves. We’re not from an unbiased position looking at our behavior. We’re simply thinking, you know, we think the best of ourselves. We’re not thinking about the reality of maybe what could be a short temper that we have, or something in our character, a flaw that is present in us, something that’s weak that maybe we need to strengthen, or something that has way too much strength that we need to take the power from in ourselves. And if we can’t look at ourselves correctly, then that’s, of course, the picture that Jesus was painting in saying that you can’t properly take the speck out of someone else’s eye until you first take the plank out of your own. So we have some personal work to do and in that personal work we want to seek not to justify ourselves.
Where I’m going with this is honestly, we can’t. Honestly, we can’t, we can’t. We are not afforded the luxury, because we are sinful by nature. We are not pure by nature, so that means my motives and my intentions most likely are not pure. I may not be dwelling on or thinking about all the reasons why they’re not.
In the moment, when I do something, I could do something good for somebody and, in and of itself, if you look at the very surface layer, that’s me being kind or being good to somebody. But maybe I’m being good or kind to somebody because I want them to be good and kind to me. Maybe I don’t have the strength to correct somebody in that moment and they need correction, but I and I’m justifying that I’m being kind, um, what if I am? Um doing that? But because I am looking to put that person in a position that they now owe me. Well, you know, there could be all kinds of underlying motives for the things that we do. The same can be said for those who do evil things.
Um, you know, we could have someone who does something terrible to somebody else, but we justify that behavior and we say, well, I did that because you did this. But the truth is, I did that because I feel this way, because I’ve, you know, I’m angry, I’m, I’m, I haven’t had enough sleep. I’m whatever. You know. You know what I’m saying and I and I’m not trying to pick us apart here, so I don’t want to go down this road too far but I want us to understand what it means to be justified, the only way that we can actually be justified. If you are going through something right now as a Christian and you are worried about what you have done, you are concerned that the things you’ve been doing or the words you’ve been saying, maybe they’re troubling to you. Maybe you’re being kind of haunted with the why did I do that again? Why did I say that again?
And because we don’t like to feel that way, we can fall into the trap of justifying ourselves, and I want to give you some help today. So what I want to help, you see, is that there is justification, there is a way to remove that heavy shame and guilt that we can sometimes carry, because there is a balance. Let’s just talk about this for a minute. There’s a balance between knowing that we have done something that we shouldn’t have done as a Christian. I’m talking about those who are actually followers of Jesus Christ, doing their best to be obedient to him regularly, those who truly are Christians, not those who, in name, only call themselves a Christian, not those who don’t read the Bible, don’t know what it says, don’t know what it means to be a Christian. Therefore, you cannot claim the title. I’m not talking about that. I’m talking about those who really are Christians.
And for those who are Christians, we have to walk the delicate line of understanding that there is justification by faith, and we’re going to talk about that today. There is justification by faith. The unbalanced and wrong way to handle justification by faith is then to fall into the category of complete works and walking away from that and thinking that you can earn or do and then, based off of your works and whether you do or do not do, then you carry guilt because you are allowing the law to have rule. So this is a tricky thing, because if I’m a Christian and I have been justified by faith, my works, my life, the things that I do should echo that decision to follow Jesus Christ. I should be living and walking and moving and acting and speaking in a way that I am drawing closer to him and becoming more like him.
And so I want us to understand, no matter what we’ve done, no matter what mistakes we’ve made we’ve done, no matter what mistakes we’ve made, no matter how difficult the circumstances and the heaviness that we may bear, whether that heaviness is guilt or shame, there is an answer and it is belief in Jesus Christ. It is truly what faith is, and it is by that faith in him that we receive our justification. So I want to break that down for you, um, so that you’re able to truly see in scripture why this is how this is, so that you can let go of guilt and shame, bad decisions and and bad um and old habits, things that maybe are clinging to you in your thought life. Maybe you have forgiven other people, but you struggle to forgive yourself, because all of us have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God, every single one. The word tells us that there is not one righteous, no, not one. Those of us of flesh that, because of sin, because of our father Adam and the sin that he brought into this world, we are now children of that sin, born in sin, and it takes a savior to redeem us out of that sin. So you’re no worse than anyone else and and we’re no better than anyone else, and if we can understand that, we all come to the cross at this even field of sin, and we are all able to make the decision to choose Jesus Christ, able to make the decision to choose Jesus Christ, then we can understand that a justification, the only justification that can come, is also due to each and every one. That we remain on that even playing field, so to speak, that we don’t end up falling into traps of justifying ourselves and not others and not treating one another the way that they should be treated and we should be treated. If Jesus said that, it is all summed up in this, that we love the Lord, god, with all our heart, our mind, our soul and our strength, and that we love our neighbor as ourselves, that is the picture of true followership of Jesus Christ, and part of that comes from the understanding of justification by faith. So let’s dig in.
We’re going to go to Romans, chapter four, and what does it mean? You know the term. You may have heard it justified by faith, justification by faith. In my Bible it actually says, as a heading over chapter four, abraham justified by faith. In my Bible it actually says, as a heading over chapter four, abraham justified by faith. And so I wanted to look up that word justified, just so we all are coming from the same understanding. And that word justified means declared or made righteous in the sight of God. Now, I can’t pretend that just because we are justified by faith and we are made right in the eyes of God, that people will always see us that way. So this is not. I can’t, I can’t make that happen. But what does it matter? You know in, what people think about us doesn’t matter. Right now, in the news, currently, if you’re watching this close to the time frame that it’s being aired, this is actually May. What is the date today? It is May 29th today that I’m recording this, may 29th 2024, just to give you, you know the date and time. And right now there is a football player who plays for the the Chiefs football team and he is being. He’s a Catholic, he loves Jesus Christ.
He gave a commencement speech and in it he simply simply said if you choose, even though you have graduated, to be a stay, stay-at-home mom and raise kids, you are just as important and just as valuable as the one who takes this degree and goes and works a job with it. I mean, that’s, in essence, what he was saying. He was not bashing one or the other. He didn’t call one better than the other. He was saying you’re both equal and you’re both wonderful and you’re both necessary. A wonderful message.
But our woke society has said that that is an evil thing to say. We can’t tell people that they can want to be home and raise a family. We can’t say that having children is a good thing. We can’t say and be accepted. We can’t say that we’re Christians and be accepted. We can’t say that the’re Christians and be accepted. We can’t say that the Bible has absolutes and truths that cannot be changed because our society is changing and because culture wants it to change. It says what it says and it means what it says and we live by this word.
We don’t compromise on the word. If I compromise, I’ve made a new Jesus and there are plenty of scriptures that talk about in the gospels. To beware of people with false Jesuses attached to them. You can’t follow. That’s a new doctrine. That is a new religion. That is not the religion of the Bible. That is not Jesus Christ we’re talking about. That is not the Messiah sent from the father, so not the Jesus who died for our sins. He has given us very specific things to live by, his principles and rules to live by in order that our lives are blessed.
So the sad thing about him in this, this football player going through this and dealing with all of this, is because he’s being come against and fought against so much he is not accepted in the eyes of the public. The whole public, the woke public, the Christian community is definitely backing him up. But just because we say the right things, just because we are justified by faith, does not mean that the world will see us in that light. So you have to decide. When you, when you choose to follow Jesus Christ, you have to understand you’re walking away from the love of the world. And that was this football players. I’m forgetting his name. That’s why I’m not saying it.
I don’t have it looked up or written on my phone, but because he has chosen Jesus, his rebuttal or his remarks about being fought against what he has said, he has responded by saying it’s not my job to care what people think. I care and want to please Jesus Christ. He’s the one that I’m wanting to please with my words and my actions. And so you have to decide that you have to. You have to approach the text and you have to approach the word of God from the position that you’re wanting to live this life and to please him. Not to please people, but yet to please God. We need to be clean, we need to be made whole, we need to be washed by his word, we need to have accepted and believe in his son, and so that is our prerequisite of understanding that the benefits of this are you will have eternal life. You will be washed clean. It won’t matter what you’ve done. Your past can truly be a yesterday that is forgotten and we can look forward and say today is a new day. Yesterday may have happened, but it doesn’t have to be my today. I don’t have to carry it into today. I can leave it behind and never look back. I don’t have to drown in my yesterdays. I can be justified by faith in Jesus Christ and have a new tomorrow.
So let’s read this. We’ll start in verse one. I’m reading this whole portion because I want you to have the context and I want you to get the full picture of this, because we know that if we are children of Abraham, then the promises of Abraham are also to us, and I will read a scripture in a little bit that, um, that’s that we are able to claim that as ours, in fact. Let me let me just read this to you, just so you have this in the back of your mind at the end of chapter 4, in Verse 23, it says this but the words it was counted to him and he’s referring to that it was said of Abraham that it was accounted to him as righteousness, that his faith was counted him as righteousness, and. But the words it was counted to him were not written for his sake alone, but for ours also. It will be counted to us who believe in him, who raised from the dead Jesus, our Lord, who was delivered up for our trespasses and raised for our justification. Okay, so that’s where we’re going. Let’s back it up.
Let’s go to verse 1. What then, shall we say, was gained by Abraham, who we consider to be the father of faith? We are children of Abraham, our forefather, according to the flesh. What was gained according to his flesh being our father of faith? I can’t really claim anything in the flesh to Abraham. There are some who can. But it says for if Abraham was justified by works, abraham was justified by works. If he was made righteous by works, okay, justified, and we’re saying made righteous. That’s what that I did. Did I even give that to you? Justified means declared or made righteous in the sight of God. I did give that to you, okay, so making sure.
Let’s look at this verse two. For if Abraham was justified by works and when the word talks about works here it’s talking about living up to the law so in Abraham’s day the law hadn’t been given yet, the law had not been established. That came with Moses, and Moses received the law and gave it to the children of Israel. So at this point there is no law. Okay. So, for if Abraham was justified by works, he has something to boast about, but not before God. Okay. So no works can impress God. He can’t justify himself before God by his works in the flesh. Okay, for what does the scripture say? Abraham believed God and it was counted to him as righteousness.
Now to the one who works. Now just think of your life. And if you actually go to a job and you receive a paycheck for that job. Now to the one who works His wages are not counted as a gift, but as his due works. What he’s explaining is that whatever work you do, anything you receive from that work is not an extra blessing, it’s not something super special, it’s not a gift that’s being given to you as a free gift. It’s what is due to you. Your works are producing a payment to you that you have earned. Okay, so works are not those that produce the gift of God.
Okay, verse five. And to the one who does not work Now we’re going to look at this in terms of, um, not a physical job, but as a Christian who follows the law, whether that’s the 10 commandments, whether that’s following in obedience to what God’s calling you to. I want you to see the difference here. He shifts now to the one, I’m sorry and to the one who does not work but so you’re not working for salvation, but believes in him, who justifies the ungodly. His faith is counted as righteousness. Okay, we’ve been talking about abraham, but I want you to think of yourself, just as david, talking about king david also speaks of the blessing of the one counts righteousness apart from works. So if I have worked, and worked to be good, to do good, I am trying to shun evil and I am trying to do good works and be a good person. Okay, this is what King David had to say. Verse seven.
Blessed are those whose lawless deeds are forgiven. So you are blessed if the things you have done have been contrary to God, contrary to his law, contrary to his ways and his commands. Blessed are those whose lawless deeds are forgiven and whose sins are covered. Blessed are the ones who have been forgiven of their sin. Their sin is now covered. They’re basically. Their lawless deeds are not remembered. They have been forgiven.
Verse 8,. Blessed is the man against whom the Lord will not count his sin. That’s the man who’s blessed. Not the man who has all the money, not the man who has the position. Not the man who has the power. Not the man who has a great family. Not the man who has the position. Not the man who has the power. Not the man who has a great family. Not the man who has great friends, not the man that has never had tragedy hit his life. None of those things are are. Those are earthly things. Those are good things, and every good gift comes from God, but none of those things is the is the place or the foundation from which blessing comes.
Blessing, being blessed, is the man who has had his lawless deeds forgiven and his sins covered. He is the one to whom the lord does not count his sin. That’s the blessed. Living. A blessed life doesn’t just mean having all your needs met, which the Lord promises to do, but the blessing is in that we are forgiven. What did Jesus tell his disciples when they came back, rejoicing that they had been able to go to the people and people were being healed when they would pray for them and demons were being cast out. And Jesus said to them don’t rejoice in that. Rejoice in that your names are written in the Lamb’s book of life.
First, we have to get the right perspective. I am blessed simply because I am forgiven and free from my sin. That’s where my blessing starts. If you’re struggling today to know and to think on good things for your life, to recognize, if you’re struggling with recognizing how good God has been to you because there’s trouble around you, because there’s trouble around you because things have happened around you, folks, all we have to do is start with this I am blessed if I have been forgiven. I am blessed if God has chosen to cover my sins with his own blood. He took my place as much as I would like to think.
And boy have I been wrong in prayer before, when? And I’m just being transparent here whenever I’ve gone through really difficult things and I cry out to the Lord to save me out of it or to help me with it, or to help me to know what to do, and and whatever that struggle might look like, we can cry out to God and we can say, and I’ve done this. We can say, god, I was doing all I knew to. It is by faith in the God that I serve, that he sent his son, and that son paid my ransom by dying in my place. Him dying in my place meant that his blood shed for my sin was payment for that sin. And now, going forward, I have to, by faith, rely on that price that was paid, so that I don’t fall into a mentality of what am I going to do and how, and will God save me and what’s going to happen? And do I deserve this or don’t I deserve this? It really doesn’t matter. It matters that I believe. It matters that I believe.
So let’s go back to this Verse nine. Is this blessing, then, only for the circumcised? Is this blessing, then, only for the circumcised? So is the blessing that King David is talking about only for those who followed the law, those who were Jews, who lived according to the law of Moses, those were the circumcised. All Gentiles were uncircumcised. Jews were circumcised. Is this blessing, then, only for the circumcised? Are you only covered because you are now a law abider? And now I know, as Christians, most of us who are watching this, 99.9% of the people watching this are not Jews, and so we were the Gentiles. We have to understand why Abraham was not justified by circumcision, because if we don’t understand this concept, you have a lot of people who have become Christians who then turn it to and follow what the gospels would call Judaizers, what Paul would call Judaizers, those who tried to now convert you into Judaism and not live as a Christian, but live according to the law, even though you believed that Jesus died for your sins. It was to go backwards. It was not to remain in faith, but to go back to the law, and so we have to understand why Abraham, the man who was not under the law and not circumcised, why he was able to have justification by faith, because it’s by him that we are the children of Abraham.
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The blessing of Abraham falls on us, so let me read that again. Is this blessing the blessing that we just read? Who’s blessed? The blessing of Abraham falls on us, so let me read that again. Is this blessing, the blessing that we just read? Who’s blessed? The one whose lawless deeds are forgiven, the one whose sins are covered, the man in whom the Lord does not count his sin? That’s the blessed person. So is that blessing, then, only for the circumcised or also for the uncircumcised? Or also for the uncircumcised?
For we say that faith was counted to Abraham as righteousness, that he didn’t have righteousness. Jesus hadn’t come yet, his blood was not shed yet. How did he attain righteousness? He attained that righteousness not by circumcision, not by Christ’s death, but by faith. Let’s continue reading. How, then, was it counted to him? Was it before or after he had been circumcised? It was not after, but before he was circumcised, he was called righteous.
Before circumcision, he received the sign of circumcision. The sign of circumcision meant that once you were circumcised, you now were set apart, belong to God. Okay, that was how that looked even before the law. Once the law came, circumcision remained. The law had not changed. The covenant had not changed. We are still in the old covenant. We are not in the new covenant yet. So this act of circumcision was a seal in the body of who you have chosen to put your life for. You are serving God, and God alone.
Okay, he received the sign of circumcision as a seal of the righteousness that he had by faith while he was still uncircumcised. How did God call him righteous when he hadn’t done any of the acts, hadn’t received the actual sign in the flesh, but he had the seal of God by saying you are righteous. The purpose was to make him the father of all who believe without being circumcised, so that righteousness would be counted to them as well, to all those who were not circumcised, the gentiles, not merely circumcised, but who also walk in the footsteps of the faith that our father Abraham had before he was circumcised. Now Paul is teaching the Romans because he’s wanting the Romans to understand the difference with Jew and Gentile and how this works, who’s involved and how they get it, how they receive it and how we are still all one in brethren under one father. We serve one Lord. Jesus is our savior, but we are heirs with him. Okay, how does all of this work together, being these two groups of people? And abraham is shown by the fact that he received this seal of righteousness by faith before circumcision, so that he would be father of the jew and gent both. The one who believes Okay, it is by faith. We become children and heirs to that promise by faith, not by works. So you aren’t disqualified If you are wanting a life that is blessed by the Lord, which we talked about, and this same King David we’re talking about says now don’t forget all of his benefits.
There are many benefits. This is the blessing but there are benefits to being blessed and serving the Lord Jesus. And if your life, if you’re wanting to see that manifest in your life and you’re wanting to be able to have a clean conscience, the justification is for clean conscience so that we can freely live for Jesus and not carry guilt and shame. So when we’re looking for that, when we want understanding for that, it’s understanding what it really means to be justified by faith. So let’s keep reading Verse 13,.
For the promise to Abraham and his offspring that he would be heir of the world did not come through the law but through the righteousness of faith, for it is the adherence of the law who are to be the heirs. Faith is null and the promise is void. Let me read that again For the promise to Abraham and his offspring that we would be heir of the world did not come through the law but through the righteousness of faith. For if it is the adherence of the law who are to be the heirs, then faith is null and the promise is void. Okay, this is really important, because I don’t want the promise void in my life, I don’t want to not have my, I don’t want my faith annulled, I don’t want it to have no power, I don’t want it to have no, no um ability to keep me in my walk with the Lord. So he’s saying you have to understand it was imperative that Abraham received that seal of righteousness before law, because if it’s before law, then the law has no power to void it. It didn’t come by law, so it can’t be canceled by law, which means your faith in Jesus. If that’s what brings righteousness and salvation, then it can’t be canceled by the deeds of your flesh. Because, in fact, let me read the next verse because that will help explain it. For the law brings wrath, but where there is no law there is no transgression. So if there’s, I mean we’re boy. Are we law making happy?
In the United States we have government people who serve in positions in government who want nothing more than to make more and more laws, and the more and more laws they make, that means there are more and more laws that we can be breakers of, and to be breakers of them come with penalties, and many times they’re financial penalties, they could be prison penalties. They could be um, oh, you could be. Under what do they call that when you um, probational penalties? Uh, there’s. You know there are consequences, but if there’s no law, you can’t break it. Therefore, there’s nothing to hold you guilty of. You’re free, you’re still in right standing. You didn’t break a law. Sometimes it’s necessary to have laws because without the law, you have no recourse.
I’m so grateful that there is a law, that, even though it was birthed in scripture, we still have this law today that it is illegal to murder. I’m glad. I’m glad it’s okay, I’m glad that’s a law. But if there was no law, then there’s no penalty for it. Then I mean, there was no law and Cain killed Abel, there was no law. And Cain killed Abel, there was no law.
So we have to understand that the this is also why it’s so important to know the heart of God, to care about what he cares about. Because what if there’s not a written law about something? But you know that by the spirit of God in you, you know not to go a certain direction. We’ve been talking over the last several episodes, prior to this one, about the Holy spirit, and when you have the Holy spirit, you have the mind of Christ. You’re able to know I shouldn’t. He doesn’t want me doing that. Paul said that all the time he wanted to go into Asia to bring the gospel, he says that the spirit forbade him, and probably for his protection.
So there are so many times that you you may not know what the law is, because you can, there can be a law, and you don’t know the law. But because there’s already a law, if you break that law, you will pay the consequences of that law, whether you knew it or not. For instance this will just go macro on this the law of gravity. You could say, well, I don’t understand the law of gravity, I’ve never read it. I so because I don’t understand it it you, you can’t say it doesn’t apply to you. I can’t jump off a building and say, well, I don’t believe in the law of gravity and think I’m not going to fall to my death or get seriously injured depending on how far I’m falling. I have to understand that the law applies, period. So the law.
Whether you are a Christian, if you have not accepted Jesus Christ, and you say I’m not aware of what the Bible says or calls the laws of God and you break those laws. You aren’t innocent of breaking those laws just because you weren’t aware. The law by itself has the power to condemn period. Whether you understand it, know it or are aware or not, I can get pulled over by a police officer for going the wrong speed in a particular zone, like a school zone, because I forgot what the speed limit is in the school zone and just because I’m not aware of it, I can’t. My defense cannot be. I’m sorry, officer, I just didn’t remember. I still broke the law and I’m still going to have to pay the ticket.
So this is so important to understand the power of justification by faith. Because even if you knew laws, whether you were not under the law or you were under the law, no matter your position, no matter Jew or Gentile, without faith I can’t be justified. The law is the law and there are consequences to it, whether I accept them, believe them, like them, want them or not. I don’t get to choose what I obey or don’t obey. That’s why it’s crazy in our society right now that we’re seeing people break laws left and right, and the fight of a woke culture is to not prosecute the ones committing the crimes, but to prosecute the ones who are preventing the crimes. It is so backward, it’s the most crazy, obnoxious thing and people think that they want that. These, the people who promote this, think they want it until a crime happens to them and then they want to scream that somebody should pay for that. I, I, in fact. I just saw this article today.
We are coming up on the month of June and if you live in the United States, they have made this is so upsetting to me, but they have made the whole month of June is supposed to celebrate something that the Bible speaks very specifically against and it is paraded in front of us with actual parades in clothing, in stores, commercials and television programs. It’s in every pharmaceutical commercial. It’s ridiculous what we are being fed and if you make those things your full diet, folks, you’ll be sick. It’s going to affect you in one way or the other. You’re either going to become sick in the heart and in the mind and possibly physically sick from being fed. All this that you know is contrary to the word of God, or you’re going to start to let it affect the way you think and let its influence influence you into believing and adhering to those kinds of thoughts and and and worldview.
So, as I, as I was saying, go back to where I get off my tangent. I saw this, this, I don’t know it was in social media and there is a on the street, the actual street you drive on someone painted an LGBTQ plus whatever flag, that they’ve given themselves a flag and they painted it on the ground that group of people who paints those on the property. If you carry an American flag for your country, you live in your country, you may have served in your country, you care about your country, you’re a legal citizen of your country and if you carry a flag, they want to take your flag, throw it to the ground, burn it, stomp on it, tear it and spew vile things about your flag, and they will not be prosecuted in a court of law. Right now, if you prosecute them for attacking what is yours legally, you can actually be the one who is prosecuted against, even though you’re the victim. They will turn it on its head and say they are the victim and that you offended them and that they are the ones who should be punishing you. However, if they’ve painted that flag and there have been people who have now, when they saw the flag, went and did exactly the same thing to them that they have been doing to others, and they took their cars and they drove like donuts, marking up the flag with their tire marks around it, and they’re screaming that that is hate speech. That is hate speech, but it’s not hate speech if they do that to the one who has an American flag, if they do that to the one who has an American flag.
If we don’t understand the power of law and its consequence, then you can’t understand the gift of God for your life by having faith and a justification that comes by that faith. If you don’t understand the penalty of sin is death, then you can’t understand the price that was paid, nor the blessing that you receive by receiving justification by faith alone. By faith alone, no works, no good deeds, no adherence to the law, because Abraham had received his justification by faith. He was called righteous by God simply because he truly believed. It was by faith. That faith alone is what justified him, and that same faith can justify you and I. That same faith can set us free from our sin, whether it was sins of commission or sins of omission or sins of omission. We are all sinners and need to be saved. And this beautiful understanding that we are children of Abraham and that this promise is to us as well, and not just Abraham.
Because it was to all, let me go back and read that to you. It was verse. Let’s see verse 11. He received the sign of circumcision as a seal of the righteousness that he had by faith while he was still uncircumcised. The purpose was to make him the father of all who believe without being circumcised, so that righteousness would be counted to them as well. I want us to rejoice in this. I’m going to finish reading this, verse 16. Do I want to read 17? Maybe 17 too, and we’ll go ahead and do the second.
I’ll go ahead and do a second episode after this so that we can get to the power of faith and bring you really build your faith. But I want you to understand justification and the power of justification, that the price has been paid. Our debt has been paid. If we will believe it’s not a work, you don’t have to pay penance. It’s not something that you can actually work for. The more you try to work for it, the guilty you, guiltier you are, because you are now trying to be justified by law, by works, by your actions, and that same law will be the law that says you’re guilty, you can’t. You can’t acquire it that way, thank God. Thank God because there’s nothing we could do.
The Bible tells us that our righteousness is as filthy rags. I could try all day long, every day, to do the right thing and think that that’s going to make me right in God’s eyes and that that will make me be able to take off the guilt of shame. But it won’t, because I can’t earn it. It’s impossible. It’s impossible to do enough good deeds to cover my sin, because those deeds are according to law. I’m like someone who is treading water. I’m not gaining any ground. I’m not going up, I’m not going down, I’m not going. It’s someone who’s on a stationary bike. I’m working and working and I’m not gaining any ground. I’m not going up, I’m not going down, I’m not going. It’s someone who’s on a stationary bike. I’m working and working and I’m getting nowhere.
It is only by faith, and thank God, that all he requires. He’s made it so free and so simple to us that all we have to do is believe. Believe. Now. If I truly believe, it changes who I am. It changes how I act. It changes how I talk. It changes where I go, it changes what I participate in. It changes my motives. It changes my goals.
That’s real belief. It’s not. I believe he lived and died for me and, yay, now I can go back to my life. That’s not really believing, because then you don’t. You’re simply looking for a way to feel better. You’re looking for a way to justify yourself. That’s not real faith.
But real faith does bring justification, he says, because you believe in my son, that he did pay your debt and that now the life you live is unto him. If you believe that, then I have washed you clean. Everything is gone, every stain is gone. All I see is the blood of my son, who was innocent and shed his blood. And the price has been paid. You have been ransomed and now you are free. You are not guilty. You are righteous in my eyes. You have been made right with God.
In fact, let’s let me read this, and then I want to pray for you, want to pray for you, verse 16,. That is why it depends on faith, in order that the promise may rest on grace and be guaranteed to all his offspring, not only to the adherent of the law, but also to the one who shares the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all. As it is written, I have made you the father of many nations in the presence of the God in whom he believed, who gives life to the dead and calls into existence the things that do not exist. Into existence the things that do not exist Now. That’s where we’re going, so you want to tune in next time for that. But before we close today, I just want to pray for you.
If you have not made Jesus Christ your Lord and Savior and this is a really serious thing, I’m not, this is not something I take lightly this means you’re willing to walk away from the world and follow Jesus Christ, to do life in a way that you live it like that football player who wants to please God and not man, that you’re willing to let him determine what’s a yes and what’s a no, that he determines what is good and what is not, that he determines the path for your life and you accept that and you, it is your joy to live that for him. If that’s you and you’ve never, ever asked Jesus into your life to be the Lord of your life, to wash you and cleanse you from all unrighteousness and make him Lord, then I would love this privilege today to pray with you so right where you are. I just want you to. Either you can either repeat after me or you can just, by faith, receive and accept this prayer and make it yours and speak to the Lord and receive his free gift. It’s by faith, it’s just a receiving. We’ll talk more about that, how that, how that plays out next week. You’re going to want to make sure and listen to that episode, but this is all we have to do.
Dear heavenly father, thank you for the gift and the price of your son, jesus Christ, who gave himself for my sin. Though he was blameless, he paid the penalty that I should have paid, that I owed and could never pay. I thank you that he did that for me, that he died for me and he rose again from the grave, bringing new life to what was dead, bringing life into my spirit, into my dead spirit. I was dead to you and now I am alive to you, and I thank you that he rules and reigns at the right hand of you, my father, thank you for paying my penalty and making me righteous before you. I receive your free gift of righteousness today. I receive the cleansing and the freedom from my sin that you have purchased for me, and I give my life to follow after you. Jesus Christ, I do all of these things today and commit my life into your hands today, and it’s in Jesus’ name. We pray Amen.
Thank you so much for spending time with me today. I pray that this has been insightful, helpful, brings you the understanding and the blessing. Make the blessing and the knowledge that you are justified by faith yours. Let it bring you joy today to know that you will not die in your sin, but you have been forgiven and you will now live a life of eternal joy, free from every curse of sin and the death of sin, and you have been risen to new life in Jesus Christ. I just feel so much like I wish I could reach out and give you a hug as brethren and say welcome to the family of God. I do say that to you. I want you to know that you are no longer tied to your sin. You are free in Jesus’ name, free to live a brand new life. Welcome to the family of God. And for those of you who have already made Jesus your Lord, keep this understanding in the forefront of your mind when you are going through your days. Remember the price that was paid for you and remember that you are free and walk in that freedom, making wise decisions in this crazy world that we’re living, knowing that God has done the work for you. We are simply saying yes to him and walking according to his truth. Thank you again for watching and paying attention to this.
If you are listening to this on podcast, you could do me a favor and you could give us a rating and do that for me. That would be a great help. I would also love it if this was a blessing to you, if you would hit that like button and click that bell and subscribe. It does help us. It changes algorithms and things. I don’t understand all of that, but those rules still apply to me. So anyway, that’s kind of the justification by the rules of social media, I guess, but I’m happy to hear from you. If you received Christ as your personal Savior, I definitely want to know about it. You can send me an email at mail at jaimeluce.com If you need to find I don’t know an old episode you want to go through, you want to read some blogs that I have written, or you need to send in a prayer request. You can go to my website, that’s jaimeluce.com J-A-I-M-E-L-U-C-E. I’d love to hear from you. Thanks again for being with me today. We’ll see you next time. Bye-bye.
