Jesus is the Solution to Our Problem

November 17, 2020

Didn’t know you have a problem? All of us sin. We make mistakes. We fail to do what is moral at the time. But the context of these failures is that we and our world are the products of a Creator God. And God is holy. No sin. No moral failures. So, our sin becomes a barrier to fellowship with him. And that is very bad news for us.

But God doesn’t let it end there. He sends his Son, Jesus Christ. Jesus is sinless. It has to be that way. Someone with the sin problem can’t save people with the sin problem. Yet though sinless, he willingly dies on the cross for the sins of the world. Paul explains this solution with a number of terms (Romans 3:21-31).

It means we are justified. This is a law court word. The charges are dropped against us in Christ, not because we are innocent, but because the demands of the law have been satisfied by our substitute. For those of us who are united to Christ this is great news. And Paul says later in Romans, “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus” (Romans 8:1, ESV)

It means we have redemption. Redemption is a marketplace term. It means to buy back or release by payment of a price. An Old Testament example of redemption is the buying back of the firstborn male sons of a family (Exodus 13:11-13). The firstborn male animals were to be sacrificed except the donkey which could be redeemed for a price or killed, but it couldn’t be sacrificed. The unfortunate practice of slavery gave another example of redemption. A price could be paid so that a slave was set free.

It means we have a propitiation (“sacrifice of atonement” NIV, “mercy seat” NET, CSB cf. Heb. 9:5). This word comes from the setting of the temple. Propitiation is a sacrifice which averts the wrath of God. Paul makes clear that the wrath of God is revealed again all ungodliness and unrighteousness (Romans 1:18, 2:5, 2:8, 3:5).

Jesus is the solution for our sin problem, but how is the solution applied to our lives. It is applied to “the one who has faith in Jesus” (Romans 3:26). The opposite would be by works (or earning it.) Yet, Paul’s definition of faith is not mere intellectual assent. Paul teaches “the obedience of faith,” that is obedience that is produced by faith and is an example of trust. So, within Romans, Paul mentions a number of things that clearly are not merit but fall under the category of faith/trust: repentance (Rom. 2:4), baptism (Rom. 6:3-4), and confession (Rom 10:10). We must trust in what Jesus had done for us with all that this trust involves.

Jesus is the solution to our problem!

— Russ Holden

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Posted by Russell Holden

The Death of Christ

June 21, 2019

“For the wages of sin is death…” (Romans 6:23) Physical death is the consequence of sin entering the world. Because of sin we are also spiritually “dead in the trespasses and sins” (Ephesians 2:1) outside of Christ. And if left uncorrected, this leads to eternal separation from God, what Revelation calls “the second death” (Revelation 21:8).

Someone may ask, “Why can’t God just forgive us? Why should anyone die on account of sin, including Jesus?”

In explaining the meaning of the death of Christ, Paul states: “It was to show his righteousness at the present time, so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus” (Romans 3:26, ESV). God’s own character is at stake in this business of forgiveness.

Suppose a defendant has a trial before a judge. All the evidence points to the defendant being a criminal worthy of punishment, but the judge lets him off. We would not consider such a judge to be just. We would question his character.

In the same way, God’s own justice demanded a substitute, a sacrifice. Paul uses three key terms in his explanation of the death of Christ (Romans 3:21-26): justified, redemption, and propitiation (the NIV’s “sacrifice of atonement”).

Propitiation is a sacrifice that averts wrath. Such a sacrifice satisfies the laws demands. It also involves substitution. The substitute takes our place and receives the wages of sin in our behalf.

Redemption is the payment of a price to set someone free. The debt owed is the wages of sin, which would lead to our eternal punishment. In the death of Christ, he paid our debt.

Justified is a law court term, the rendering of a favorable verdict. The charges are dropped against us in Christ, not because we are innocent, but because the demands of the law have been satisfied by our substitute. The debt we owe has been paid.

Humanity has a sin problem. If uncorrected, it leads to eternal separation from God. It even posed a problem for God: how to remain just and yet forgive. These problems find their solution in the death of Christ.

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Posted by Russell Holden

Just and Justifier

April 6, 2018

God forgives sins, right? The answer is, of course, yes. But I fear that many people have mistaken notions about forgiveness. One faulty idea is akin to balancing scales. If I have more good deeds than bad deeds, then the scales are in my favor, and God should forgive me. I’m a pretty good person after all. If my bad deeds outweigh my good deeds, then I’m in trouble and subject to judgment. But in this faulty idea, only really bad people have to worry about this.

The problem is that this is not the biblical view. Sin separates me from God. If I imagine my sin as a debt, then I must also imagine all of my good deeds as something I already owe. My good deeds are not extra credit that a teacher assigns to help students get a passing grade. My good deeds are not extra funds which I can place in an account that is overdrawn.

But the problem goes deeper. We must ponder how a just God can forgive sins. Is it as easy as we might first think? Imagine someone accused of a crime who opts to have the trial by judge rather than a jury. All of the evidence is presented, and it is quite overwhelming that the accused is guilty. But when the judge comes to sentencing, he declares the accused as not guilty. How would we respond to such a thing? Wouldn’t there be an outcry that justice had not been done? Wouldn’t the judge be accused of being unjust, and maybe the newspapers would investigate whether a bribe had taken place. The public would question the character of the judge.

In Romans 3:21-26, Paul uses three terms to explain the death of Christ. Justified comes from the realm of the law court. To be justified is to receive a favorable verdict, to be in right standing. Redemption is a marketplace word. It is to purchase something or in the case of the ancient world, someone out of slavery. The redemption in Christ is like a new Exodus from slavery — in this case slavery from sin. The third term is propitiation. It comes from the realm of the temple. It was a sacrifice that averts the wrath of God. Paul’s point is that Christ has done something in dying on the cross to make it possible for God to forgive sins.

This leads to Paul’s statement in 3:26: “It was to show his righteousness at the present time, so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus” (Romans 3:26, ESV). In other words, without the death of Christ God could not be the just judge and forgive sins. The penalty had to be dealt with. The redemption price had to be paid. The sacrifice had to be offered. But in doing this in Christ, God could maintain his justice and yet be the justifier of those who have faith in Jesus. God could forgive. He could render the favorable verdict without it compromising his character as in my story of the unjust judge.

Popular understandings of forgiveness are faulty. We must learn the biblical view and help others to see this view. Forgiveness is not possible without the death of Christ, and receiving forgiveness is not possible without faith in Jesus and all that it entails (ponder “obedience of faith,” Romans 1:5, 16:26).

Leave a Comment » | cross, death of Christ, forgiveness, God, just, justification, justifier, propitiation, redemption, sin | Permalink
Posted by Russell Holden

The Death of Christ

December 6, 2013

“For the wages of sin is death…” (Romans 6:23) Physical death is the consequence of sin entering the world. Because of sin we are spiritually “dead in the trespasses and sins” (Ephesians 2:1) outside of Christ. And if left uncorrected, this leads to eternal separation from God, what Revelation calls “the second death” (Revelation 21:8).

Someone may ask, “Why can’t God just forgive us? Why should anyone die on account of sin, including Jesus?”

In explaining the meaning of the death of Christ, Paul states: “It was to show his righteousness at the present time, so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus” (Romans 3:26, ESV). God’s own character is at stake in this business of forgiveness.

Suppose a defendant has a trial before a judge. All the evidence points to the defendant being a criminal worthy of punishment, but the judge lets him off. We would not consider such a judge to be just. We would question his character.

In the same way, God’s own justice demanded a substitute, a sacrifice. Paul uses three key terms in his explanation of the death of Christ (Romans 3:21-26): justified, redemption, and propitiation (the NIV’s “sacrifice of atonement”).

Propitiation is a sacrifice that averts wrath. Such a sacrifice satisfies the laws demands. It also involves substitution. The substitute takes our place and receives the wages of sin in our behalf.

Redemption is the payment of a price to set someone free. The debt owed is the wages of sin, which would lead to our eternal punishment. In the death of Christ, he paid our debt.

Justified is a law court term, the rendering of a favorable verdict. The charges are dropped against us in Christ, not because we are innocent, but because the demands of the law have been satisfied by our substitute. The debt we owe has been paid.

Humanity has a sin problem. If uncorrected, it leads to eternal separation from God. It even posed a problem for God: how to remain just and yet forgive. These problems find their solution in the death of Christ.

Leave a Comment » | atonement, Christ, death, forgiveness, Jesus, justification, propitiation, redemption, sin | Permalink
Posted by Russell Holden