Justified
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28 And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.
29 For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. 30 And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified.
If you remember from last week - we began making our way through the Golden Chain of Redemption...
What you see on the screen now...
“For those whom God foreknew, God also predestined...and for those whom God predestined God also called, and those whom God called God also justified, and those whom God justified God also glorified.
And if you remember - last week - we began by starting at the back end of this golden chain...
THOSE WHOM GOD GLORIFIED..
And we saw that our glorification...
Our Glorification
In Part Now; In Full to Come
Becoming What We Behold
Finally Free from Sin & Corruption
IN PART:
We’re NOT FULLY YET - who God wants us to be.
We still exist in this fallen world...
SIn itself - still active in our flesh....
YET - we see glimpses of God’s glory ALL around us...
And it’s infused into EVERYTHING around us...and IN US
The human DNA
An orchestra
An F-5 tornado
All of these things - GLIMPSES of God’s glory - in this world...
BUT - in time - we will experience this - IN FULL
Until then - we are becoming what we BEHOLD...
When we BEHOLD and BOW to the world - we LOOK LIKE the world!
And as we WRESTLE with the fallen world we live in...
We WAIT - with Hope...
For the day that we are FINALLY FREE from all of the wrestling....(sin and corruption)!
ALL of the choices we make that HARM the body of Christ...
HURT our brother’s and sisters in Christ..
We - hopefully LONG for that day...
BUT - these truths last week = led us to ask a QUESTION:
SLIDE:
Why are believers in Jesus Christ glorified?
In other words - what leads to the glorification of those who have put their faith in Jesus?
And so TODAY - we SEE THE REASON why people - God’s people - are GLORIFIED!
Back to our text...
29 For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. 30 And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified.
And so the QUESTION which will lead us today is -
Why are believers in Jesus glorified?
We can see the answer in the text...
Those whom God glorified.… HAD BEEN - - JUSTIFIED!
But what does that mean - biblically?
SLIDE: Our Justification: Grounded in God’s Love for Us
Our Justification
Our Justification
I think it helps to paint the picture - together...
And I think it helps to start HERE>...
Remember the Abrahamic Covenant?
God began this thing - with a COVENANT between God and Man...
Sin had come into the world - And God MAKES a COVENANT with man...
What’s a covenant?
It’s a SOLEMN and BINDING agreement.
A - - Contract (in a sense)
And IN the Abrahamic covenant - God said what?
9 He said to him, “Bring me a heifer three years old, a female goat three years old, a ram three years old, a turtledove, and a young pigeon.”
10 And he brought him all these, cut them in half, and laid each half over against the other. But he did not cut the birds in half.
17 When the sun had gone down and it was dark, behold, a smoking fire pot and a flaming torch passed between these pieces.
*Explain the pieces
*Explain what God was saying
God was saying - If my people fail and BREAK covenant with Me - I will take upon Myself - the curse of the covenant - and you can DO TO ME - what you’ve done to these animals...
AND SO = God chooses to enter into a covenant with His people...
Think about it - GOD KNOWING that man is sinful..
KNOWING that Mankind was going to BREAK covenant...
STILL says - If YOU break covenant - I will lay MYSELF on the altar.
a CRAZY kind of love...
AND YET - we see a GLIMPSE of this kind of love - in our relationships with our kids...don’t we?
*what would you do for your kids??
I know some of you in here - ENOUGH - that if I asked you that question to your face - you’d start tearing up!
*Tia - sick when young
AND THAT - not even CLOSE to the depth of love Christ has for us...His children!
Our Justification - is grounded in the LOVE of Jesus!
ROOTED in the love of Christ!
And how GOOD - is this GOOD NEWS?
35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword?
36 As it is written, “For your sake we are being killed all the day long; we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered.”
37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.
38 For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers,
39 nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
This CRAZY LOVE - ANCHORS our justification!!
Listen - - FOREVER!
But that’s NOT ALL...
Our Justification IS grounded in Christ’s LOVE for us...
BUT ALSO...
SLIDE: Our Justification: Grounded in God’s Provision for Us
Our Justification
Our Justification
And really - I THINK - it’s THIS concept that the world does not understand.
The justification of God!
Justification - another word for - SALVATION....YET - not completely the same in meaning.
While Salvation is often meant at the same thing… and rightly so...
the TERM - Justification - is more pointed - i think - highlighting the LEGAL standing of a man - under God.
To be JUSTIFIED -is to be declared - Righteous by God - on the basis of FAITH...
AND NOT on the basis of WORKS...
20 For by works of the law no human being will be justified in his sight, since through the law comes knowledge of sin.
28 For we hold that one is justified by faith apart from works of the law.
Why does the Bible continually REPEAT this same concept - OVER and OVER again?
Because of what I said to start this section...
The world - cannot grasp this!
WHY?
WHY does mankind INSIST on trying to SAVE HIMSELF?
A couple of reasons I think....
19 And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil.
I THINK this is the first reason...
SLIDE:
The heart of man loves the darkness, and not the light.
And here’s why THAT’S a problem...
9 The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it?
The HEART is deceitful!
And if THAT’S true...and the heart of man LOVES the darkness over the light...
Then doesn’t it make sense that the HEART of MAN will try to convince us that the DARKNESS - - IS light??
It certainly does this - IN US - doesn’t it?
How many times have you found yourself at a SPIRITUAL FORK in the road - and you ...
KNOW that THIS WAY - is wrong - yet pleasing
And THIS WAY - is right - YET difficult!
How often have we JUSTIFIED - heading the BAD way?
Our HEARTS are good at convincing us = that the BAD way is the BEST WAY!
WHY? - Because our hearts - naturally LOVE the darkness.
NOW - What’s a 2nd reason why mankind WANTS to SAVE Himself?
SLIDE:
The heart of man desire to rule itself
Let’s go back - BEFORE the Garden...
12 “How you are fallen from heaven, O Day Star, son of Dawn! How you are cut down to the ground, you who laid the nations low!
13 You said in your heart, ‘I will ascend to heaven; above the stars of God I will set my throne on high; I will sit on the mount of assembly in the far reaches of the north;
14 I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High.’
Here we see the fall of satan...
What was he after?
He wanted to RULE OVER himself...
How about the garden?
1 Now the serpent was more crafty than any other beast of the field that the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God actually say, ‘You shall not eat of any tree in the garden’?”
2 And the woman said to the serpent, “We may eat of the fruit of the trees in the garden,
3 but God said, ‘You shall not eat of the fruit of the tree that is in the midst of the garden, neither shall you touch it, lest you die.’ ”
4 But the serpent said to the woman, “You will not surely die.
5 For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”
6 So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate, and she also gave some to her husband who was with her, and he ate.
What happened?
Eve heard that she could be LIKE God...and she took the BAIT!
She desired to RULE Herself!
Remember our trek through 1st and 2nd Samuel...?
The Israelites had FLOURISHED under the RULE of God as Samuel judged Israel...
BUT THEN the people DESIRED to RULE themselves...
Then entered - King Saul.
How about New Testament?
reminds me of the Rich Young Ruler...
A guy who WANTED heaven - but didn’t want to be RULED by Jesus!
He wanted Jesus as SAVIOR....but not Jesus as Lord of his life!!
Let’s read it...
16 And behold, a man came up to him, saying, “Teacher, what good deed must I do to have eternal life?”
17 And he said to him, “Why do you ask me about what is good? There is only one who is good. If you would enter life, keep the commandments.”
18 He said to him, “Which ones?” And Jesus said, “You shall not murder, You shall not commit adultery, You shall not steal, You shall not bear false witness,
19 Honor your father and mother, and, You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”
20 The young man said to him, “All these I have kept. What do I still lack?”
21 Jesus said to him, “If you would be perfect, go, sell what you possess and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.”
22 When the young man heard this he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions.
Wanted ETERNAL LIFE - didn’t want to be RULED by Jesus...
Didn’t trust Jesus
Didn’t love Jesus
The Israelites - just like the Rich Young Ruler - had experienced God’s BLESSING in their lives...
YET - we see in both cases - the DESIRE to LEAD THEMSELVES!!
The Rich Young Ruler - walked away from Jesus
The Israelites - Bribed judges to create their own justice system!
*But don’t we find ourselves living the same way?
*I know we all will find ourselves NOT REALLY INTERESTED in showing that person GRACE - well that’s US - wanting to RULE ourselves
*I know we all find ourselves NOT REALLY INTERESTED in being discipled - that’s US - wanting to RULE ourselves
*I know we all find ourselves not really interested in initiating hard conversations - that’s US - wanting to RULE ourselves
*I know we all find ourselves at times doing exactly what Adam and Eve did in the garden - running and hiding - that’s US - wanting to rule ourselves
But guess what - That’s the Way of the Heart
That’s what the FALLEN heart does!
IN SIN - a fallen heart is SEPARATED from God - and thus - desires to RULE itself!
We have to fight this! Even as Christians...
None of us are perfect - WHICH means - at times - WE ALL desire to RULE ourselves and we make choices that PROVE that!
EVEN SO - - God STILL PROVIDES for us what we need...what is required!
Our SALVATION - Our Justification - Grounded in God’s Provision for us!
And JUST LIKE We see examples of Man’s HEART loving darkness and wanting to RULE itself - in scripture...
We ALSO see examples of God’s PROVISION for His people - IN scripture.
Let’s go back to the Garden...
Adam and Eve - fall - they sin...
they are about to be cast out of the garden… They were ashamed....they were NAKED...
And what happened?
21 And the Lord God made for Adam and for his wife garments of skins and clothed them.
Garments of what?
Skins...
Man had just sinned under God...
And God PROVIDES a covering for their shame...
What kind of COVERING?
Skins - An animal needed to be - sacrificed...
Blood needed to be shed...
And this was SYMBOLIC of what was to come....
An example of - -
The innocent dying for the guilty!
What did God do?
He PROVIDED!
Fast forward...
1 After these things God tested Abraham and said to him, “Abraham!” And he said, “Here I am.”
2 He said, “Take your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I shall tell you.”
Abraham was to go and KILL his promised son - Isaac...
So he goes...
And Abraham’s about to go through with it...
What happens?
10 Then Abraham reached out his hand and took the knife to slaughter his son.
11 But the angel of the Lord called to him from heaven and said, “Abraham, Abraham!” And he said, “Here I am.”
12 He said, “Do not lay your hand on the boy or do anything to him, for now I know that you fear God, seeing you have not withheld your son, your only son, from me.”
13 And Abraham lifted up his eyes and looked, and behold, behind him was a ram, caught in a thicket by his horns. And Abraham went and took the ram and offered it up as a burnt offering instead of his son.
14 So Abraham called the name of that place, “The Lord will provide”; as it is said to this day, “On the mount of the Lord it shall be provided.”
Fast forward...
God wants to free His people from slavery in Egypt...
He sends Moses to speak to Pharaoh...
the 10 plagues come....
the 10th plague comes - the death of all firstborn sons...
And what happened?
God commanded the killing of a LAMB per household...
A lamb was to be sacrificed...
the BLOOD of the lamb - to mark the door posts of the house.
And this would SPARE those inside.
God had provided!
Fast forward!
The 10th plague comes and God frees His people...
God uses Moses to do so......
They head out...
Pharaoh and his army begin to track them down to kill them...
Moses and the people make it to the Red Sea...
But now they’re stuck...no where to go...
What happens?
13 And Moses said to the people, “Fear not, stand firm, and see the salvation of the Lord, which he will work for you today. For the Egyptians whom you see today, you shall never see again.
14 The Lord will fight for you, and you have only to be silent.”
21 Then Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and the Lord drove the sea back by a strong east wind all night and made the sea dry land, and the waters were divided.
22 And the people of Israel went into the midst of the sea on dry ground, the waters being a wall to them on their right hand and on their left.
And we know how it ends...!
God provided!
The Israelites enter the wilderness...
Who guided them?
GOD DID!
A pillar of cloud by day....
And a pillar of fire by night!
God provided...!
They became THIRSTY...
God provided water...Living Water
They became hungry...
God provided Manna...Bread from Heaven.
ALL of these things - and MANY MORE - Instances of God providing...!
SLIDE:
Skins in the garden
A ram for Isaac
A sacrificial Lamb in Egypt
An escape from death at the Red Sea
Living Water in the wilderness
Bread from Heaven in the wilderness
And ALL of these things - obviously POINTERS to Jesus...
JESUS Himself...
The covering for our shame
The substitute for our atonement
The lamb of God - sacrificed for our sins
Our path to Life
Our living water unto eternal life
THE bread from Heaven - TORN for us
GOD - Provided!
And NOW - Our Justification!
What does God provide for our justification?
4 For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes.
Jesus came to fulfill the requirement of the law...
And He did!
He accomplished - what we could not!
3 For God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh, could not do. By sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, he condemned sin in the flesh,
Who did it?
God did it!
God provides all that is required...!
Which then of course - leads to - our TRUST and FAITH - that THAT’s true!
SUMMARY
Our Justification:
Grounded in God’s Love for Us
Grounded in God’s Provision for Us
But - again - these truths are building.. week to week...
If we go back to our main text....
29 For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. 30 And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified.
We started by looking at -
those whom He glorified… and we asked - WHY people Glorified?
ANSWER...
Because they were Justified...
The text tells us - ALL that God justifies - He glorifies!
NOW - the question that will launch us into next week...
Why are people Justified?
The text tells us - and we’ll dive in next week -
Let’s pray!
