This transcript was generated automatically and may contain errors.

Bibleline Bibleline, here God’s word on Bibleline, here God’s truth on Bibleline. Welcome to Bibleline with Dr. Ralph Yankee Arnold, pastor of Calvary Community Church in Tampa, Florida. Clearly declaring the gospel of Jesus Christ through the radio and the internet. Your regular prayers and monthly support make it possible for Bibleline to continue on the air. You can reach us toll-free at 1-800-576-3771. Online donations may be made by clicking on the donations link on the BibleLineMinistries.org homepage. We pray that you will enjoy our commitment to the clear gospel of Jesus Christ and that today’s message will be a blessing to you and your family.

So anyway, turn in your Bible to the book of Romans, the book of Romans. I call this one today the divine test of chapter 3. This is where God asked a whole bunch of questions, and it would be good if we knew the answers. God knows how men think. And God must be just when He is judged by man. Did you know that you said in judgment of God every day? You’re deciding whether or not He’s just or He’s unjust.

If God can or cannot provide your will against His will, is God wiser than you? Every decision you make, you might consider Him or you might not. It makes a statement to not leaning upon thine own understanding, but in all thy ways acknowledge God. In other words, think God, and He shall direct thy paths. So we’re commanded to do that. He says, his thoughts are not ours, his ways are not ours. He’s on a different level. So we have here in the book of Romans, a book of justification where God is showing you why he is just in what he does in justifying the unjust and why he can make the unjust just.

I know that sounds like a tongue twister, but it’s the truth. Why can God take a man who is a dirty lousy stinking rotten sinner and justify him? But God can. He spends the first two chapters telling us how bad we are, and body we are bad. But look there in Romans 3 and verse 1. He says, what advantage then hath the Jew or what prophet is there of circumcision? It says much every way, chiefly because that under them were committed the oracles of God.

had taken the nation of Israel and given to them the word of God, and proved that even though he gave them the word of God, that they didn’t take advantage of it. They had an advantage, but they didn’t take advantage of it. And even though they knew the revealed will of God and they had the revealed word of God, they had the world itself. And that’s why we talk about the world dealing with our conscience. You see there, look what he says in verse 14 of chapter two.

In verse 14 says, for when the Gentiles, which have not the law, do by nature the theme contained in the law. These have not the law or a law unto themselves. In other words, God knew and placed it within man without the law. Without knowing what the law said, God has placed it inside of man that man knows this even though it wasn’t written. So you have judgment, God given to you. And that’s why he says there in verse 15, which show the work of the law written in the law.

Their conscience also bearing witness. And their thoughts, get this, the thoughts, the means while accusing or excusing. You can’t accuse or excuse without judgment. So you’re making decisions, but does God have the right to make decisions? I believe. So God says, in the day when God shall judge the secrets of men by Jesus Christ according to my gospel. So even though that you may not reveal everything, why you do what you do, God knows the secrets of every man.

He knows the conscience of every man. He knows what you know and what you don’t know. He knows what you understand, what you don’t understand. He knows why you and I do the things that we do. So the first question in number one in your notes, Shall the unbeliever make the faithfulness of God of not effect? Look there in verse 3. For what if some did not believe? Should their unbelief make the faith of God without effect? No. He will save anybody who trusts him as Savior.

Or so you don’t believe it. Does that mean God is not faithful to keep his word to do what God says he will do? God’s still a faithful God just because some people don’t trust him. He is the Savior of the world though some people will not trust him. He is the Lord even though some people don’t recognize it. He is still who He claims to be. And that doesn’t change the facts. So shall it make the faithfulness of God of not effect.

The man who will believe what God’s word says, it will affect his life. You see, 50 years ago I trusted Christ as my Savior and God gave me eternal life. I set out on a course as a child of God. I want to know everything I can about my Father. I wanted to study His Word. I wanted to be just like Him. I wanted to walk the way He walked, talked the way He taught, in every area of my life.

Now I haven’t succeeded, but as a goal, it’s where you headed. And so God wants us to imitate Him, and He doesn’t make you and I respond, but He says there is judgment upon those who do not respond correctly. Look in chapter two again, I want you to see this verse. Look in verse two in chapter two. But we are sure that the judgment of God, and you are on the line this, according to truth, is according to truth.

God can’t lie, and you will not find any discrepancies in His judgment. He considers all the facts in every case, concerning every individual, and makes no wrong decisions. If a man goes to hell, you will not be able to point your finger at God. You may ask questions of why and how and what about all those people that’s never heard? I’ve asked them to. But God knows what a man knows. And God knows that there’s things He placed within heart.

And I believe if a man will seek the truth from the truth that God’s given him, truth will always lead to more truth, and light will lead to light and they’ll always find the Lord. Look in verse 6 of chapter 2, where he says, Who will render, get this, and you ought to line it, every man according to his deeds, every man according to his deeds, according to truth, and according to his deeds. Now he says in verse 7, to them who by patient, continuance, in will, do, and seek for glory and honor and immortality, eternal life.

God knows those that seek that. He also knows those that do not. And God can take a man and lead him to the light, to the truth, where he can see and understand and believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. Does God know the desires of every person? Yeah. I don’t have to try to figure out how God does everything. I don’t know. I don’t have all the answers to everything. But I know that God must be just. In the last part of verse 5 he makes his statement.

He says, but after thy hardness and impenitent heart treasures up unto thyself wrath against the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God, the righteous judgment of God. So the person who hardens themselves, rebels against God. What’s nothing to do with it? God says every man is going to be judged, give an account of himself to God. Now, if not in this life, he will at the Great White Throne judgment, and God will judge him. And then he makes the statement that God will give certain things.

I want you to see these two things. In verse 9, Tribulation, anguish upon every soul of man that doeth evil. Jew first, also to the Gentile. So you see, God, even though the Jews had an advantage, they caused God had given them the revealed Word of God, they didn’t take advantage of it. And God says, it doesn’t matter if he’s Jew or if he’s Gentile. God says, every man’s going to give it a count of himself to God. And that God is righteous and he’s just.

And there will be righteous judgment. And whatever decision God makes, believe it or not, he’s already made before the foundations of the world, on the vessels of wrath and the vessels of mercy. God has decided before any man was born to take those that would believe his word and show his mercy and those that would not believe his word and show his wrath. And you and I decide whether or not we’ll be a vessel of wrath or a vessel of mercy.

Will God use you or me to bestow his wrath upon or his mercy upon? And it all deals with Christ. And that’s why he says, the secrets of man will be judged by the gospel, down in verse 16. Paul says, my gospel, this is my message. And even though the Jews in the Gentile, they’re all the same in God’s eyes. Even though one had an advantage over the other, they’re all still lost. But God has given to them so much and to us so much.

Look in verse 11. In verse 11 says, for there is no respect of persons with God. Whether you saved or whether you’re not. God is not a respecter of persons. It means that God’s going to treat all of us the same way. Every person in this room has all been judged the same way by God. We were all sinners. We were all condemned. We could not save ourselves. And God says that if you and I would trust Christ as our Savior, anybody who believes can all be saved, all get the Holy Spirit, all become His child, all get to go to heaven, no difference.

He’s not a respecter of persons. So it’s up to the individual to accept or to reject the payment that Christ made on the cross for us. But when He makes statements along the line about those that seek eternal life and so forth and those that do and keep continuance in the law, showing you that by the law, whether it’s conscience of the law without the law or conscience with the law, George and Tao, God says we’ve all sinned and come short of that expectation.

We have not lived up to what we know. That’s why even though we know what to do is right, we don’t always do right. So anyway, see there, I just to show you verse 13, for not the hears of the law are just before God, but the doers of the law shall be justified, but nobody did the law. You see, the law was given to show us that we’re all sinners and we’re all guilty. So look there in chapter three now in verse 19.

Chapter three verse 19 where he says, now we know that what things, so wherever the law sayeth, it’s safe to them who are under the law that the whole world may become guilty before God. So who’s guilty before God? Just the Jews, just the Gentiles? The whole world is guilty. So number two in your notes is, Is God unrighteous to take vengeance upon man for sinning against him? Is God wrong for doing this? No, he’s not. Look there in verse five.

For if our unrighteousness command the righteousness of God, what shall we say? Is God unrighteous who take a vengeance? I speak as a man. In verse six, God forbid, no, God is not unrighteous. For then how shall God judge? Or how can God judge the world if he doesn’t judge sin? If he doesn’t judge unrighteousness. If he doesn’t judge wickedness, what kind of a judge would God be? You see, God’s not going to let people who’ve done all these wicked things in this world get away with it.

There’s a God of vengeance, and he’s going to see that every man pays the price for what he’s done. This is why you and I are very glad and should be that we escape the wrath of God because we accepted Christ as our judgment. He was our payment for our sin, so you and I get to escape. But he said, he that believe if not, shall not see life but the wrath of God by upon him so that day is coming.

But God says in verse four, let God be true, every man, a liar, as it is written, that thus thou might have be justified in thy sin and mightest overcome when thou art judged. See, not only are we going to be judged, but we said in judgment of God. So is God unrighteous? is God not fair. God says that He is. And now He’s proving that whenever He said, all have sinned. See, God must declare every man a sinner, every man condemned in order for Christ to die for every man.

So He couldn’t send His son to die for people who didn’t need a payment. He can only send His son to die for somebody who had to die. And the soul that sin of shall die. So he’s proving that every man is a sinner and condemned by God and cannot save himself so that when God sent his son, his son could die for the sins of every man. But God has to prove that every man is a sinner. And so chapter two and three is to show that this is the case and that no man is worthy of saving himself so that you and I ought to be settled on this.

This is why there’s not one person in the world that’s ever lived good enough to be justified. By his works. Therefore we conclude that a man, look at verse 28. Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith without the deeds of the law. But how can he do this? How can God justify a man without him deserving to be justified? See, there’s the problem. If a man cannot justify himself by keeping the law, then how can God justify him?

Then something has to take place. Something has to come in because he’s not a man. between. If man has no righteousness of his own to get to heaven, what did God do? Well, look there in verse 21. And you ought to on the line these two words, but now, but now. After the conclusion of that whole matter that every man’s a sinner, no man deserves to be saved, but now the righteousness of God without the law is manifested. I wonder how he did it.

I wonder who it was. You’ve ever heard of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. Jesus Christ is the righteousness of God. He is the wisdom of God. He is our sanctification. Jesus Christ who is the righteousness of God, so God sent His righteousness down to man. God does not want the righteousness of man sent up to God. Because God says you have none. And look there in verse 10. As it is written there is, and you are on the line in your Bible if it’s not on the line.

None righteous. No, not one. So there is not one. So look there at verse six in your Bible where he says, for God forbids how then shall God judge the world? How do you believe God should judge the world? Well, if he’s going to judge the world, how would he do it? He got to have a standard of righteousness. You got to have something that says, this is right and this is wrong. So God placed it inside of man.

The Ten Commandments is placed inside of man, in the heart of man. You already knew that it’s wrong, the kill. You know it’s wrong, the lie. Mom and Daddy didn’t have to tell me that. I already knew that. There was already this hunger inside of me, even though I never went to church. I never saw my parents read a Bible, never saw them have prayer, Never heard them talk about God and loving the Lord or Jesus Christ except as a swear word.

But I knew there was a God. Where did I get it from? Eternity is placed within the heart of man. As he says in the book of Ecclesiastes, Eternity set in our hearts. Where we have that desire to want to live forever and believe that we will. And the Holy Spirit goes throughout the world to convict the man, world of sin and righteousness and judgment. Sin because we haven’t believed. Righteous because we know we need to be righteous. Judge because we know that we’re going to be judged someday.

Those are the thing that God places within the heart of man. And man has to teach himself, educate himself that those things are not true. Atheism has to be taught. You’re not believing that when you’re born into this world and you live. I was talking to an atheist one time and he said, Oh, I don’t believe in God. I don’t believe in God. No, believe in heaven. Don’t believe in hell. I said, well, that’s your privilege. Can I ask you a question?

He said, sure. I said, did you always think this way? He says, no. I said, I know. I said, there was a time in your life when you didn’t think like this. I says, now you think like this. So it’s evident that you have changed your mind about what you used to believe. True. He said, yeah. I said, if there is a possibility because you’ve been human, you might change your mind about what you believe today and down the road change your mind to where you do want to know.

I said, isn’t it possible? It’s so impossible. I said, since it is, and I might not be around to answer it that time. Can I go ahead and tell you right now? Can I tell you now what you might want to know later? And when you believe it, I’ve had a couple of them buy on that and I’ve had a couple of atheists, so-called atheists, trust, Christ of Savior, just because you just outsmarted them. I’m not trying to change your mind.

I’m just gonna tell you that later on, you might change your mind, you wanna know, and then I won’t be around to tell you. So let me tell you now. I mean, it can be fun. It can be exciting. But here in the book of Romans, there’s a lot of questions that are asked. Look at number four in your book, in your notes there. Why am I also judged as a sinner? From a Jewish viewpoint, because you were given the law and you failed it, you didn’t keep it.

as a gentile you had it in your conscience. And you failed. So whether you’re Jew or Gentile, we’re all sinners and that’s why God says in verse 9, what then are we better than they? Are we better than the Jews? Or the Jews better than Gentiles? No and no wise, we have before proved Jews and Gentiles all understand. So what is the purpose of these first couple chapters to prove to prove that they’re all sinners? So as you read that, it’s not that God gave them up.

them up to go their own way. Didn’t God didn’t give up on them? God sent His son, Jesus Christ, to die for the sins of those people that He let them have their own way. I’ve heard a lot of sermons by some evangelists that take verse 24 of chapter 1, where for God had given them up to go their own way, so therefore they can’t be saved. No. He’s just showing you that you winch your own way. All we like, sheep have gone astray, and Christ died for the world.

Or we can’t say for the, as he says there in verse 14, I am dead or bow to the Greeks and to the barbarians, bow through the wise and the unwind. Now, who did he exclude? Nobody’s excluded. In the gospel, nobody’s excluded. Is he showing you that every man is a sinner and Christ died for every man? I love it. Number five in your notes, who is better than who in verse 9? Nobody is better than anybody else. In regards to how righteous you try to live, you’re no better, you’re a sinner.

And there’s no difference. You see, we don’t compare ourselves among each other. We’re supposed to compare ourselves with God who is perfect. Now how are you doing? Anybody who compares himself with God, come short. And that’s why in verse 23, for all have sinned and come short of his glory. Short of God’s perfection. You have to be perfect. perfect. The best way to show someone in their center is simply, are you perfect? Oh, I didn’t meet a person who claimed to be one day, but that’s another story.

Next question is Romans 3, 27, if a man is saved only by believing, where is boasting then? That’s the question that’s in the Bible. Look there in verse 27, where is boasting then? It is excluded by what law of works. No, but by the law of faith. What does a way with a person bragging about their salvation? Is if they’re saved by faith. If you’re saved by faith and you don’t get credit for it, it wasn’t because of anything you did.

It’s not because of your performance. Of stopping something or joining something, then you were saved by faith. Then you have to give the one who saved you the credit. But if you can save yourself by the law or by your good works, you get credit for that. You did it. So you have the right to boast, the right to brag. But the Lord says, we’re boasting that if you’re saved by faith, you can’t brag. Just to give you a quick look in chapter four, and look what He says in verse two.

For in verse two, for if Abraham were justified by works, he hath were up to glory or to brag, but not before who? Not before God you can’t. But it says, what hath Abraham found? The last part of verse one says, for what sayeth the scripture Abraham believed God, it was counted in him for righteousness. Now to him that worketh is the reward, not reckoned of grace, but of debt. If God has to give you salvation because you earned it, then that means God is in debt to you and you earned it and you can brag about it.

But there’s a verse in the Bible somewhere it says, for by grace are you saved? And that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God not of work, lest any man should boast. So evidently salvation is not by the works of man, because God has proven that no man can save himself. Every man has come short of perfection. Now what I want you to see there is in verse 22, look at verse 22. He says, even the righteousness of God, which is, get this by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that do what?

Because there’s no difference. So he proves that Jews and Gentiles cannot save themselves by their works. So God makes salvation simple. He sent his righteousness into the world. And Jesus Christ is the righteousness of God. See there are 21. But now the righteousness of God without the law is manifest being witnessed by the law and the prophet. Even the righteousness of God, which is by faith of Jesus Christ. So God will give you his righteousness. Now see, it’s unto all, but it’s only upon them that believe.

So when you believe it, and some people say, well, what about those who died before the cross or those that are after the cross isn’t in a different gospel? No, this was talked by the law and the prophets about this righteousness. See there in verse 21, man of it being witnessed by the law and the prophet. That’s Old Testament. And then he talks about in verse 24 being justified freely. by His grace because of the payment that Jesus Christ made on the cross forth.

Now look there in verse 25, whom God has set forth to be a propitiation or the payment, the satisfaction through faith in His blood. Because He gave His life to make a payment for our sin, now get to declare His righteousness for the remission of sins that are passed through the forbearance of God. That’s the pay for the sins of the Old Testament people, and righteousness is also to those people by faith and faith alone. And then in verse 26, to declare, I say, and underline these words at this time.

See ones on the other side of the cross, the ones on this side of the cross. So the payment Christ made his righteousness was for the people before him, they for the cross and after him to declare, I say, at this time, his righteousness. So where’s boasting then? There isn’t. It’s just those who believe are just. See there in verse 26, to declare I say at this time, his righteousness that he might be just and the justifier of him which believe it in Jesus.

Old Testament, New Testament, same person, same righteousness, the same payment for sins before and after the cross. So they were saved looking forward, were saved looking back, but you’re both saved by faith. whether you’re Jew or whether you’re Gentile. The next question here is there one God of the Jews and another God of the Gentiles, or just one God to judge both. Sounds a little redundant, but look at verse 29. Is he the God of the Jews only? Or is he not also of the Gentiles?

Yes, of the Gentiles, the same God. And he has declared because there’s only one true in living God, that Jew and Gentiles, all people on the face of the year are all guilty before God, and man can only be saved through Jesus Christ. Period. And he says, seeing it is one God which shall justify the circumcision, that’s the Jews, by faith. And the uncircumcision, that’s the Gentiles, by faith. So whether you’re Jew or Gentile, it seems like in my mind, we’re all saved exactly the same way.

True. I don’t know how world anybody can twist these scriptures and put a spin on it and make it say anything out there what God already says. So man has always been saved exactly the same way. You are Gentile before the cross, after the cross. And that one payment that he made is the righteousness that man needs to get to heaven because God hath concluded that all have sinned and no man is able to save himself. Verse 31, do we then make void the law through faith.

God forbid we establish the law. We have agreed with the law. We came to the conclusion. Yes, I am a sinner. That’s the conclusion of the law. I am a sinner. I cannot save myself. The law has served its purpose. It shows me that I’m not good enough to get to heaven by my works, nor ever will he. And all that I can do is to buy faith and faith alone except that payment that Jesus Christ made unto cross-border.

Are you a new listener to Bibleline? Do you enjoy the teachings of Dr. Arnold? Well, if you’ve never contacted us before, we want to give you Dr. Arnold’s book, The Gospel Driven Man. Every day we receive many emails from folks who have questions about repentance and salvation, about faith in works and about how to share the gospel with friends and loved ones. This book, The Gospel Driven Man, covers all those topics, and we want all new listeners of Bibleline to receive a free copy.

There’s no obligation, no donation necessary, simply call us at 1-800-576-3771 or write to us and request your free copy of The Gospel Driven Man. The mailing address is 4811 George Road, Tampa, Florida, 33634. Again, don’t forget to include your mailing address. And God bless you and thank you for listening to Bibleline. Thanks for joining us on Bibleline. If you are in the area, we welcome you to visit us. The address for Calvary Community Church is 4811 George Road, Tampa, Florida, 33634.

And now, a closing thought from Pastor Arnold. Friend, one day it will happen. The trumpet will sound, and we will be changed. Caught up to meet the Lord in the air. So live today and every day. leaving that the Lord is coming soon. Just keep looking up.