PUTTING ON CHRIST "And do this, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep; for now our salvation is nearer than when we first believed. The night is far spent, the day is at hand. Therefore let us cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armor of light. Let us walk properly, as in the day, not in revelry and drunkenness, not in lewdness and lust, not in strife and envy. But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to fulfill its lusts." (Romans 13:11-14, NKJV) Devotion 3 of 33 Some of the phrases used in Romans are unusually strong, driving home the point that our righteousness absolutely depends upon Divine intervention and recognition. If God does not initiate salvation, it simply will have no genesis at all. If He does not complete it, it will not be finished. WHY SAY THESE THINGS? It is an essential to say these things because they are so pivotal to our understanding of God and His great salvation. – Tomorrow:
1. "His [Abraham's] faith is COUNTED for righteousness" (4:5). It is GOD who does the "counting," accounting (NKJV), reckoning (NASB), or crediting (NIV). That is, this is how God looks at faith: He assesses it to be the suitable qualification to be identified as "righteous." It is as though Abraham's faith stood in the place of righteousness, of which he had none on his own.
2. "God imputeth righteousness WITHOUT works" (4:6). Again, it is GOD who "imputes," reckons (NASB), or credits righteousness to the individual. He does this without regard to "works," or man's efforts to keep the Law, which, apart from Christ, is the ONLY standard of righteousness. The word "imputes" comes from the same word as "counted."
3. "Faith RECKONED to Abraham for righteousness" (4:9). It is GOD who "reckoned," accounted (NKJV), or credited (NIV) faith to Abraham for righteousness. Again, the word comes from the same root as "counted," but with a slight variation that emphasizes declaration, as though God announced Abraham was righteous. The New Living Translation reads, "he was DECLARED righteous by God because of his faith."
4. "The righteousness OF THE FAITH" (4:11), and "the righteousness OF FAITH" (13). It was GOD who promised Abraham he would be the heir of the world "not through the Law," which was based upon doing, but through the righteousness that "comes from faith" (NAB), or "comes by faith" (NIB). The point is that God gives no precious promises to the unrighteous – none at all! What is more, the Law concludes that every person IS inherently unrighteousness, and has therefore "sinned and come short of the glory of God." In order for Abraham to receive such a magnanimous promise, he HAD to be righteousness, and his faith appropriated the only righteousness that is approved by God – His own.
5. "It [faith] was imputed to him FOR RIGHTEOUSNESS" (4:22). It was GOD who "imputed," accounted (NKJV), reckoned (NASB), or credited Abraham's faith to him for righteousness. That is, his faith was considered to be his righteousness: i.e., "reckoned to him AS righteousness" (NASB). The fact that Abraham believed God, rested upon Him, and relied upon Him to do what He had promised, became His righteousness. It was RIGHT for Him to trust God, for God is worthy of such dependence. Therefore, Abraham's faith was his righteousness – wholly right, for it is never wrong to trust God, believe Him, and lean upon Him.
6. "The GIFT of righteousness" (5:17). It is God who gives man righteousness as a gift, or "free gift" (RSV). Thus men are accounted as "righteous," NOT because of what they have done, but because of what they have RECEIVED – the "gift" of God. The medium, or spiritual currency, that is used to obtain this righteousness is faith, not work.
7. "By the obedience of One shall many be MADE RIGHTEOUS" (5:19). It is GOD who MAKES people righteous. He does not recognize them as righteous because of their own efforts or accomplishments. Furthermore, the BASIS for making people righteous is the obedience of Christ – the ONE who flawlessly obeyed. That obedience, however, is not Christ's keeping of the Law, even though He kept the Law flawlessly and without a single infraction. The "obedience" to which He refers is Christ's death – the laying down of His life. Verse eighteen refers to this "obedience" as "one act of righteousness" (ASV,NASB,NIV,NLT). Just as Adam's single act of disobedience ushered in sin and death, so Christ's single act of obedience ushered in a flood of life, making is right for God to confer His righteousness upon men, or to be both "Just and the Justifier of him that believeth on Jesus" (Rom 3:26).
8. "The righteousness which is OF FAITH" (10:6). The righteousness that "is of faith" is the righteousness God gives because of ones faith. It is the righteousness that is "BASED on faith" (NAS), "comes FROM faith" (NAB), and "that is BY faith" (NIV). No person who genuinely has faith is not righteous, and everyone who is really righteous has faith.
9. "Man BELIEVETH unto righteousness" (10:10). The Law demanded that righteousness be accomplished by doing: "For Moses describeth the righteousness which is of the law, That the man which DOETH those things shall live by them" (Rom 10:5). But that is not the manner of life in Christ Jesus. First, no one DID all that the Law required, for God Himself declared none were righteous (3:10). Righteousness is a condition INTO which we men BELIEVE – with their heart.
This series of devotions deals with "putting on Christ." It is imperative that two spiritual perspectives be grasped as we consider that theme.
First, those in Christ must have the assurance to engage in a wholehearted effort to do precisely what they are admonished to do – "put on Christ." If they are not persuaded they have been accepted by the Lord, and that their efforts are underwritten by the Lord Himself, they will soon become discouraged and become disobedient. Thus the need to reaffirm how men appropriate righteousness.
Second, there remains in man a tendency to find an excuse for NOT entering into consistent and hearty spiritual effort. It is natural for men to be casual about their life with God – but that must be overcome if they are to dwell forever in the courts of the Lord. Care must be taken to leave no reason for anyone to imagine God has called them to idleness, or that He will do everything for them without any of their own involvement.
The expressions I have listed, and similar ones, have led some to conjecture there is little or no involvement of the individual in justification. Thus doctrines such as "once in grace always in grace," "once saved always saved," or "eternal security," have arisen to the confusion of many. Keep in mind, none of these expressions are found in Scripture, in ANY version. They are not the conveyance of a Divine affirmation, but of human understanding. However sound these conclusions may appear to men, they are nothing more than conclusions. God did not say them, men did. The Holy Spirit did not move them to be written, men did.
Thus, sophists reason, if God makes us righteous, and that righteousness is based upon our faith in Christ, it is not possible for our works to interfere with the culmination of salvation. The fact that God begins salvation, therefore, is thought to be proof enough that He will finish it, whether He has the cooperation of the ones being saved or not.
This is a completely erroneous view of the situation. It wholly misrepresents God, demeans Christ, and misrepresents the grace of God, and salvation. God put Adam and Eve in the garden, then expelled them because of what they DID (Gen 3:24). There are angels who did not keep their "first estate" because of what they DID (Jude 1:6). Satan was expelled from heaven because of what he DID (Isa 14:12-14). Judas was numbered with the Apostles and obtained part of the ministry, yet that "part" was given to someone else because of what he DID (Acts 1:17-20). God brought Israel out of Egypt, then slew many of them in the wilderness because of what they DID (Num 14:33).
In the bidding to "put on Christ," we will be admonished to DO something. It is something that can only be done by faith – but it must be done. The admonition is given to those who are already in Christ. What is more, there is not the slightest hint in Scripture that anything pertaining to Christ is inconsequential, or can be ignored. If that is too difficult for some to receive, so be it. However, it has to be received anyway!
PRAYER POINT: Father, in the name of Jesus, help me to see that salvation enables me to do Your good, acceptable, and perfect will, and in no way exempts me from that obligation.