Here at The Armoury I don’t do comedy for one very simple reason:

I’m not funny (most of you know that by now).

However, some of the folks at Firefox apparently are. Take a peak at this video that tells the plain story of how I feel about Microsoft Internet Explorer (and frankly most of their programs for that matter). Please accept my apologies Mr. Gates.

WHEEE!

1 Corinthians 16:22: If anyone does not love the Lord, he is to be accursed.

When the Apostle Paul declared: “without love…I am nothing” (1 Corinthians 13:2), he clearly established that genuine love is absolutely central to the Christian life. By this simple and clear statement, Paul shows us that the true sine qua non of Christian life is in fact the love that is of God. This important instruction was given to a church that desperately lacked such love and thereby evidenced it through their licentiousness, internal divisions, abuse of spiritual gifts, rebellion and their proclivity for doctrinal error. So loveless was their “ministry” that Paul ended this epistle with two last charges concerning the centrality of love in all things:

1 Corinthians 16:14: 14 Let all that you do be done in love…

1 Corinthians 16:22: 22 If anyone does not love the Lord, he is to be accursed. Maranatha.

In this final chapter of 1 Corinthians the Apostle makes one last appeal for the centrality of godly love (agape & philos) in everything. Both of these statements closely resemble the first and second greatest commandments (Mark 12:28-31) where we are commanded to love God first and our neighbor second. Without such love, our efforts become like a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal (1 Corinthians 13:1). In the worst of all cases, those who have no love for God prove themselves to be the children of wrath no matter how zealous they are in their religious activities – if anyone does not love the Lord, he is to be accursed. In many ways the Corinthian church is here with us today, especially when the message of God’s love is polluted with human wisdom, sin, and foolishness.

I often think that if the modern church had a mascot, it would be Mr. Rollen Stewart; A.K.A., Rainbow Man.

Perhaps you remember Mr. Stewart. He was the one who began getting national attention by wearing bad leisure suits, loin cloths or even a rainbow afro wig at various basketball and football games around the country. He realized that his fame was taking on a life of its own and so he spent his days in his car and studied TV Guides in order to attend as many nationally televised games as he could. At one point Stewart was driving over 50,000 miles a year, and traveling to over a hundred sporting events. In the late seventies Stewart claimed to have found God while watching a TV show called Today In Bible Prophecy on television. Once he was “born again” he began appearing at football games along with a bright sign that simply read “John 3:16.” For Stewart, this was his “ministry.” He used his obscure appearance in order to attract attention to his sign of love – his John 3:16 sign. In the public eye, Stewart became a public fixture that represented Christianity; but sadly, Stewart’s life was quite tragic. In 1984 he married Margaret Hockridge – a marriage that lasted six short years when in 1990 she filed for divorce; but the travesty of his divorce did not slow him down. In fact, Stewart’s desire for more media attention (for his “ministry”) only increased. He sensed a need to do something much more fantastic – something that was more eye-catching to the world. Thus, two years later on Sept. 22 1992, Stewart devised a plan that would capture the media spotlight once again, though it clearly didn’t work out the way that he had hoped. Entering into a Hyatt hotel (near the Los Angeles airport), Stewart found a cleaning lady and decided to hold her as his hostage. As soon as the news of this crime was made public, the LAPD ordered up the SWAT Team, bomb squad and several fire trucks in order to deal with the situation. While all this commotion was going on outside, Stewart was posting biblical placards in his hotel room window, so that they could be read from the ground below. Finally, at 5:45 PM–when Stewart threatened to harm his hostage and start taking pot shots at jetliners as they passed near the hotel–the police decided to act. Shortly afterwards, the SWAT team stormed the room where they successfully seized him and arrested him. At the scene police found Stewart’s infamous blue, red, yellow, green, purple and pink Afro wig, along with a high caliber pistol, various incendiary devices, three days of food and Bibles, religious tracts and poetry. He was found guilty of kidnapping and remains in prison to this day. In February 2005, while in prison, he predicted that the rapture would occur on in October of that year. October came and went – with no rapture in sight.

To this day he remains in prison in even greater obscurity than ever before.

I say that Rollen Stewart is a kind of mascot for modern evangelicalism for this reason: Many times we see the modern church doing whatever it can in order to gain the world’s attention for the sake of evangelistic outreach. Sadly, when the professing church adorns itself with foolish and worldly tricks in order to capture the attention of the world, it proves itself to be no better than Mr. Rollen in his rainbow-afro wig. In many ways, it all smacks of the Corinthian error – they too believed that there was nothing wrong with infusing worldly wisdom into the ministry of the church. Sadly, their error wasn’t merely a procedural one. Their spiritual illness wasn’t merely viral in nature – the church had a severe heart problem. They had become a loud, boisterous, and confused assembly of messengers whose message of love had become corrupted and confused; and this is why the Apostle Paul delivered such a serious and sobering warning to them (1 Corinthians 16:22). It is even similar to Paul’s test of faith that he delivered in 2 Corinthians:

2 Corinthians 13:5: 5 Test yourselves to see if you are in the faith; examine yourselves! Or do you not recognize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you-unless indeed you fail the test?

Paul’s admonitions and warnings are strong and even severe – but we all need them. We need to understand that the message of God’s love is crucial. We must comprehend that, as messengers, it is not just what we say that impacts our message, but it is how we proclaim that message that matters so much. No doubt, the Corinthians espoused a message of God’s love; and yet, by their actions they were denying what they were trying to proclaim to the world – much like Rollen Stewart. In the worst of all cases, there were some in Corinth whose lives evidenced that they had no love for God at all. We need to remember that there is the true love of God, as opposed to the world’s corrupted ideals of love. Worldly love seeks the satisfaction and glorification of self, but the love that is of God is that which is holy and pure. It is a love that does not seek its own (1 Corinthians 13:5), but instead it is a love that heralds the Lord above all, and pursues one’s neighbor for their good and for God’s greater glory as its chief end.

Such a love as this should never be veiled by worldly wisdom, human trickery or even our own foolishness – more on this later.

I’m all for scientific research folks – I think that you know that by now. Not just because of my background in Physics, but as a Christian I believe that such research reveals the wonder of our habitable earth. The Universe in which we live is utterly hostile. Deep space subsists at 2.7 Kelvin – or -454.8F!; but miraculously, the Earth’s distance from the Sun, its magnetic field and atmosphere all add up to a space station that is perfectly suitable for life – so much so that even some secular scientists will reluctantly make reference to the anthrothic principle in order to describe the unique conditions that we presently enjoy in a relatively “flat” Universe. What honest scientists should discover is that planet Earth is indeed unique:

Isaiah 45:18: 18 For thus says the Lord, who created the heavens (He is the God who formed the earth and made it, He established it and did not create it a waste place, but formed it to be inhabited), “I am the Lord, and there is none else.”

And so, the research continues. More recently, NASA has been researching the effects of long distance space travel. For example, Erin Peterson is currently participating in the NASA-sponsored bedrest study at the Cleveland Clinic where she has been suspended in a simulated weightless state for 75 days and counting! According to CNN, the point of this study is to examine the effects of weightless and long term immobility on the human body. The information gathered from this will be helpful for long-term travel. She is recording her experiences on her blog, StardustHoliday (of which I have chosen to remove the link).

On another interesting note, NASA has released photos acquired by the European Space Agency’s Huygens probe of the moon Titan (one of Saturn’s moons). The Huygens probe was released by the Cassini spacecraft, which is managed by NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. The pictures are absolutely amazing! It’s beautiful – but you wouldn’t want to try to live there!

Technorati : Cassini, Erin Peterson, Huygens probe, bedrest study

Here are some energy conservation ideas that were sent to me via Mrs. Phyllis Drane. Thanks Phyllis! With the price of gas these days, these ideas are starting to look fairly reasonable!

Be sure to click on the graphics in order to see them close-up.

Technorati : Rising gas prices, economy

After 16 years at the typewriter, Mr. Les Stewart from Mudjimba (Australia) established a new world record. On November 25th, 1998, Mr. Stewart completed his objective of typing from one to one million without the use of any numbers; instead he typed it all out in full-length words (on a manual typewriter). His final entry (of course) was –

nine hundred and ninety-nine thousand, nine hundred and ninety-nine.
one million.

This massive project required a great amount of resources: seven manual typewriters, 1000 ink ribbons, 19,890 pages and over 16 years of his life!

The linked article above then goes on to say: “When asked why he has undertaken this time consuming and repetitious task, Les says that he has little else to do now that he has been classed as an invalid, and can no longer work. Besides that, Les enjoys typing and used to be a police typing instructor before his sickness which meant his withdrawal from the force. Typing an average three pages a day with one finger since April 1982, Les said his secret was to type for 20 minutes on the hour, every hour.”

It is interesting to me that the world would look at this and count it all as useless and vain – a labor that amounts to nothing. However, I would suggest to you that even men of “great” achievement, learning, and social status are not any better if they are living out their lives for their own glory, rather than to the glory of God. You see, in eternity nothing will matter save those deeds that have been accomplished by the children of God, who labor by the Lord’s grace and for His ultimate glory (1 Corinthians 3:10-15). Therefore, let a man find the cure for cancer, solve world hunger and even save our nation from nuclear catastrophy – but if such deeds are not done for the glory of Christ, then it is all assessed as being wood, hay and straw. Yes, there is a qualitative difference between wood, hay and straw – as there might be between a cure for cancer or typying from one to a million – but apart from Christ, all such deeds will go up in a billow of smoke that will be forgotten in eternity. With this in mind, it is important to remember that many go about in their lives being very impressed with their own works and achievements in life – many of whom would snicker at Mr. Stewart’s meaningless “achievement”; however, do these same people have any sense of eternity in all of their “important” tasks in life? Do they not comprehend that without Christ, the works of men are assessed as the acts of madmen who are going to the grave?:

Ecclesiastes 9:3: 3 This is an evil in all that is done under the sun, that there is one fate for all men. Furthermore, the hearts of the sons of men are full of evil and insanity is in their hearts throughout their lives. Afterwards they go to the dead.

The inhabitants of hell will not care about the earthly deeds of men because in that place of eternal torment, men will finally comprehend that the One of matchless value and worth was the very Lord whom they despised and rejected; and for this, all of their lives and their deeds will be counted as loss. Such a meditation as this should remind us as believers that our life and labor must always be centered upon the person and work of the Lord Jesus Christ. As well, this meditation should also remind us that our stewardship of sharing the Gospel should not be affected by who it is that we share Christ with. Whether we have the opportunity to speak to men of great power and reputation, or to people whose lives are devoted to pointless tasks – all in all, they need Christ just the same – just like we do.

As I have mentioned already, I am thankful that I was able to get away for a few days and participate what many have called a “reunion” at Together for the Gospel. The first day was quite long as I had to drive eight hours to get there. I arrived a bit later than I first hoped, but was able to get in the last thirty minutes of the Band of Bloggers meeting. After this I made my way over to my room only to find my friend Gordon Broadbent who pastors in Lansing Illinois – our families have been together on several visits since seminary, and I have always been grateful for my brother’s long distance relationship over the phone. He has quite a sense of humor & often at my expense: knowing that I enjoy Starbucks coffee, Gordon did not cease from telling me that a new Starbucks store was being built just a few blocks from his house. I counted his first announcement of this matter as just a matter of simple news-reporting; the subsequent ten times were just plain harassment! It was a blessing to have his fellowship and sit through the sessions with him – that is, all but one.*

We then ran into Timothy Martin who now pastors Grace Church in Roanoke VA. I haven’t seen Tim since seminary days (he graduated in ’94) – he’s a dear brother who loves the Lord and His people.

On Thursday we went over together for a TMS alumni lunch – it was a great blessing, but we could have had more time for fellowship (30+ pastors in a room together – what else?). It was also a blessing to see Dr. George Zemek at the lunch – many thanks to Doug Sachtleben and others for setting everything up.

The conference speakers were very encouraging overall. What stood out for me were Ligon Duncan’s presentation on the importance of preaching the OT, C. J. Mahaney’s message on (and demonstration of) humility and John MacArthur’s presentation on pastoral ministry. Everyone’s contributions were profitable, but these particular messages were especially encouraging for me. I am especially challenged when I spend time with other men in the ministry – hearing about what the Lord is doing in their lives, thier families and their churches. It was a great time to see old friends as well as make some new ones.

A T4G statement of faith was distributed towards the end of the conference – it was very sound and encouraging, but I do hope that in the future there will be a firm foundation of Scriptural references added to it. The statement itself contains no Scripture references (except for two at the end). Now let me say this – in the context of the conference itself, the statement of faith had a biblical framework (in some ways) since it was essentially presented amidst the Scriptural messages of the conference speakers. However, for the long term, the statements that have been made in this document, while wonderfully agreeable, really do need textual justification if they are going to communicate the truth of Sola Scriptura along with Sola Fide, Solus Christus, Sola Gratia & Soli Deo Gloria. I am quite sure that the document will be refined and scripturally under-girded more in the future. One article in the statement that was especially refreshing to see is this one:

Article XVI: We deny that the distinction of roles between men and women revealed in the Bible is evidence of mere cultural conditioning or a manifestation of male oppression or prejudice against women. We also deny that this biblical distinction of roles excludes women from meaningful ministry in Christ’s kingdom. We further deny that any church can confuse these issues without damaging its witness to the Gospel.

Praise the Lord (Titus 2:3-5, Ephesians 5:22-33)!

*Finally – Jerry M., it was good to see you again brother. I hope that you enjoyed that Starbucks™ Grande Marble Mocha Machiato™ – I was saving it for my dear brother Gordon, until I realized that he hadn’t saved me a seat for the afternoon session ; )

(Well, he can just get his own at that new Starbucks of his!)

The conference is under way. It is well attended; even a bit snug – you could say that we’re really together here! But it has been a blessing to see so many pastors who have gathered together for fellowship in the precious Gospel of our risen Savior. I will make very brief posts as I have a very limited budget of time here, but I will mention that I was very encouraged to hear Mark Dever’s presentation of The Pastor’s Understanding of His Own Role. The one thing that continued to resonate with me is this theme of the pastor as an undershepherd. While I can’t recall that he used this term per se – this was indeed his point, clearly argued from 1 Corinthians 4.

This important meditation turned my thoughts again to John 21:15-17, where the Savior charged Peter to tend His lambs; to shepherd His sheep and to tend His sheep. Three times Peter was given the reminder that his stewardship in Christ was that of an undershepherd, whose responsibility was to serve on behalf of the Chief Shepherd who purchased His sheep with His own blood (Acts 20:28). Without such a foundation a shepherd will only look to shepherd and feed the sheep after his own whims and appetites – this is no small principle – it is massive.

Ever since I began serving in pastoral ministry, I have used this term – undershepherd in order to describe this understanding of true pastoral ministry. However, I find that the knowledge of this principle is one that will never be fully exhausted during the days of human groaning and travail since every day of ministry is yet another opportunity to grow in my conviction and application of this truth. It is like the one who says “I love the Lord my God.” That has been true ever since the Lord, in His precious and sovereign grace, enlivened our hearts to love Him – however, we will all go to the grave while seeking to know the breadth and length and height and depth of His infinite love, while seeking to know the love of Christ which surpasses knowledge. We are like miners who seek to dig deeper and deeper for the riches of God’s Word; even looking for the riches of how we should live in view of what He has revealed; and while we will find much wealth in such digging, our wealth in this life will be dwarfed by the perfection that will come in the world and life to come. Until then, I’ll just put my hard-hat on and continue plummeting God’s riches for the sake of my own life and doctrine, as well as for those whom I serve on behalf of the Chief Shepherd (1 Timothy 4:14-16).

Technorati : Together for the Gospel

The recent controversy concerning N. T. Wright’s affirmation of Marcus Borg’s profession of faith has been a very revealing one indeed. In an interview on The Australian, N. T. Wright (Bishop of Durham, Church of England) offered a belittling view of the resurrection in order to defend his personal friend, Marcus Borg (Professor of Religion at Oregon State University). In this controversial interview, in which N. T. Wright opined about the salvific relevance of believing in the bodily resurrection of Jesus Christ, we find some very strained reasoning:

“I have friends who I am quite sure are Christians who do not believe in the bodily resurrection,” he [Wright] says carefully, citing another eminent scholar, American theologian Marcus Borg, co-author with Wright of The Meaning of Jesus: Two Visions. “But the view I take of them – and they know this – is that they are very, very muddled. They would probably return the compliment. Marcus Borg really does not believe Jesus Christ was bodily raised from the dead. But I know Marcus well: he loves Jesus and believes in him passionately. The philosophical and cultural world he has lived in has made it very, very difficult for him to believe in the bodily resurrection. I actually think that’s a major problem and it affects most of whatever else he does, and I think that it means he has all sorts of flaws as a teacher, but I don’t want to say he isn’t a Christian.” [The Australian – Feature, April 13th 2006]

He wouldn’t say that Borg isn’t a Christian? Really? In some ways, this whole controversy has enabled the teachers of heresy, and those who defend them, to come out of their closets and account for what they really believe. All of this raises a very important question: do believers have the freedom to minimize the bodily resurrection of Christ, even concluding that a person can deny this doctrine and still be counted as a Christian? As the Apostle Paul would say – me genetai, may it never be! I fear that believers have become a bit sleepy over this matter, particularly if they are not violently repulsed by such a comment as Mr. Wright’s. Too many people today seem to fear the opinions of men, rather than fearing God and reverencing His Word (Isaiah 66:1-2). If the Scriptures were not clear on this issue (the resurrection), then we would certainly have a different issue on our hands; but unbeknownst to these aforementioned “biblical scholars,” the question concerning Christ’s bodily resurrection is clearly answered by God’s Holy Writ; yes, especially in the Gospels:

John 2:13-22: 13 And the Passover of the Jews was at hand, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. 14 And He found in the temple those who were selling oxen and sheep and doves, and the moneychangers seated. 15 And He made a scourge of cords, and drove them all out of the temple, with the sheep and the oxen; and He poured out the coins of the moneychangers, and overturned their tables; 16 and to those who were selling the doves He said, “Take these things away; stop making My Father’s house a house of merchandise.” 17 His disciples remembered that it was written, “Zeal for Thy house will consume me.” 18 The Jews therefore answered and said to Him, “What sign do You show to us, seeing that You do these things?” 19 Jesus answered and said to them, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.” 20 The Jews therefore said, “It took forty-six years to build this temple, and will You raise it up in three days?” 21 But He was speaking of the temple of His body. [NASB, bold added for emphasis]

When it comes to establishing the reality of Christ’s bodily resurrection, John 2 is unavoidably clear. In verse 21, John used the Greek word soma – body, which clearly identifies the reality of a physical, bodily resurrection. Thus Christ’s reference to “this temple” clearly meant His own body, such that what would be physically destroyed through death, would also be physically raised again in resurrection life.

Not even a mountain of liberal education can hide the clarity of that statement!

But this is not all. The Apostle John helps us to understand the importance of Christ’s clear statement as it relates to being a true disciple who believes the Lord and His word:

John 2:19-22: 19 Jesus answered and said to them, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.” 20 The Jews therefore said, “It took forty-six years to build this temple, and will You raise it up in three days?” 21 But He was speaking of the temple of His body. 22 When therefore He was raised from the dead, His disciples remembered that He said this; and they believed the Scripture, and the word which Jesus had spoken. [NASB, bold added for emphasis]

The bodily resurrection of Jesus Christ is not some chalkboard doctrine that can be wiped away with impunity. Ultimately, beliving in the bodily resurrection of Christ means believing the Scriptures, and the word which Jesus had spoken. Antithetically speaking, not believing in His bodily resurrection means not believing the Scriptures, and the word which Jesus had spoken. To speak frankly about it all: not believing in the bodily resurrection of Jesus Christ means calling the Lord of all truth a liar. This said, the fact that Mr. Wright has called Marcus Borg a “Christian” friend reveals that he is admitting complicity with this anti-resurrection heresy. His affirmation of Mr. Borg’s profession of faith reveals a disturbing confederacy of doctrine:

PROFESSOR MARCUS BORG: “I have learned that the message of Jesus was not about requirements, was not about here is what you must do or believe in order to go to heaven. It was about entering into a relationship to God now in the present–I see in that–wisdom teacher and a social father. And for me as a Christian what Jesus was like as a figure of history is a powerful testimony to the reality of the sacred or the reality of God. Being a Christian doesn’t mean that one has to believe that Jesus really walked on water, or really multiplied loaves, and so forth. And I think that a literalistic approach to scripture has in the minds of many Christians become a major obstacle. I think I would be willing to say that the teaching of Jesus makes profound religious sense to me, whether Jesus said it or not. I’ll simply say that I think given my understanding of Christianity there’s all the room in the world for disagreement about whether the resurrection of Jesus involved something happening to his corpse, things like that. I grew up in a tradition which stressed correct belief, and I now see it’s not about correct belief it all. It’s about, you know, being in relationship to that to which all this stuff points. I think the resurrection of Jesus really happened, but I have no idea if it involves anything happening to his corpse, and, therefore, I have no idea whether it involves an empty tomb, and for me, that doesn’t matter because the central meaning of the Easter experience or the resurrection of Jesus is that His followers continue to experience Him as a living reality, a living presence after His death. So I would have no problem whatsoever with archaeologists finding the corpse of Jesus. For me that would not be a discrediting of the Christian faith or the Christian tradition.” [PBS Interview, March 28th 1997]

Whenever I read this, I am grieved in my heart for what this means for Mr. Borg. Like the Apostle Paul, even the enemies of the cross should be the object of our compassion and sorrow, especially in view of their certain doom (Philippians 3:18-19). Not believing the central promise of Christ – that His temple would be destroyed and raised again on the third day – reveals a dark and damning epistemology. He who denies the bodily resurrection of Christ, has rejected the One who calls Himself the way, and the truth and the life (John 14:6); even the resurrection and the life (John 11:25). Thus, finding the “corpse of Jesus” would mean exposing Christianity as a pitiable fraud:

1 Corinthians 15:3,4,12-19: 3…I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4 and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures…12 Now if Christ is preached, that He has been raised from the dead, how do some among you say that there is no resurrection of the dead? 13 But if there is no resurrection of the dead, not even Christ has been raised; 14 and if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is vain, your faith also is vain. 15 Moreover we are even found to be false witnesses of God, because we witnessed against God that He raised Christ, whom He did not raise, if in fact the dead are not raised. 16 For if the dead are not raised, not even Christ has been raised; 17 and if Christ has not been raised, your faith is worthless; you are still in your sins. 18 Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. 19 If we have hoped in Christ in this life only, we are of all men most to be pitied.

For a man to deny the centrality of the bodily resurrection of Christ is about as meaningful as saying that the human body does not require a heart in order to live. Without a beating heart, all that you have is a dead corpse; in like manner, without the bodily resurrection of Christ, Christianity is a lifeless religion and we are all still dead in our trespasses and sins (1 Corinthians 15:17, Ephesians 2:1-3). Should we find a body – then we are most to be pitied. But thanks be to God, by His immutable power and promises, the Savior who died in sinners’ stead is risen.

Matthew 28:5-6: “……the angel answered and said to the women, “Do not be afraid; for I know that you are looking for Jesus who has been crucified. 6 “He is not here, for He has risen, just as He said. Come, see the place where He was lying.”

He has risen – just as He said.

That’s worth repeating: He has risen – just as He said! We have Good News to share with this world because the Savior’s tomb is empty – He is no longer here – just as He said. What the Lord of glory said that He would do, He did with immutable perfection, and therefore the hope of the Gospel message is a sure hope – without wavering.

To close, let me offer the following: having mentioned Mr. Wright in this article as I have, I would challenge him to answer for his public comments concerning Mr. Borg. What a wonderful thing it would be to see him renounce such comments for the glory of the risen Savior. Frankly, in view of Christ’s precious words of promise, it is only right that he do so:

John 8:31 “If you abide in My word, then you are truly disciples of Mine…”

Brethren – there is no “corpse of Jesus” to be found – anywhere. Being that there is no body in the tomb, there is therefore no pity needed for those who believe in Christ. The disciples of Christ are not the ones who are to be pitied in this world. Instead, we ought to pity those who have no hope because they have not believed in the Lord Jesus Christ – who has risen, just as He said.

There is no injustice in God – period.

Right? Most of you would consider this to be too simple a concept to be worthy of a debate since it is of course such a primitive concept – isn’t it? Of course it is a simple truth, however, this statement’s simplicity should not deceive us into thinking that its impact on Christian doctrine is in any way small. Those who compromise this simple truth, in any way, enter into the dark domain of idolatry; after all, a god who is unjust, is no God at all. This very truth is one that is stringently defended by the Apostle Paul throughout his epistle to the Romans as evidenced by the fact that the Apostle employs the term dikaios 64 times in reference to the righteousness of God, or the unrighteousness of man. Central to this theme is the crucial truth of justification by faith in Jesus Christ; and so central was this theme of the Justice of God that, in two instances in Romans, Paul raised the question of whether we should believe that God is unjust. In each of these cases, Paul forcefully responded with “may it never be!” Through this inductive process, Paul teaches us that such a hypothetical deity cannot save, nor judge humanity in any way. In one such instance, Paul reminds us that the Lord’s sovereignty over evil, does not make Him an unjust God:

Romans 3:5-6, 5 But if our unrighteousness demonstrates the righteousness of God, what shall we say? The God who inflicts wrath is not unrighteous, is He? (I am speaking in human terms.) 6 May it never be! For otherwise how will God judge the world?”

The Lord’s sovereign dealings with sinful men do not taint His perfect holiness in the slightest bit. This is equally true concerning our salvation. When God saves a sinful man, He does not nullify His justice in any way. When a sinner is forgiven of his sin, it is not because God had chosen to forsake His holiness and justice – may it never be! No, God remains just when He graciously forgives the sinner, because Christ died for sinners as their righteous substitute (Isaiah 53:5): Christ personally bore their sin, and the penalty of their sin when He died upon the cross (Gal. 3:13):

Galatians 3:13 Christ redeemed us from the curse of the Law, having become a curse for us—for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree.”

The entire verbal adjective in this verse (circled in red above), further defines the work of Christ’s redemption, and is therefore foundational to our understanding concerning the very means of our redemption. Periphrastically, we could present this verse in this way: “Christ, who become a curse on our behalf, redeemed us from the curse of the law.” In other words, it is because Christ became our penal substitute on the cross, that He could redeem us from the curse of the law. By bearing our sin, and the wrath of God that we deserved in view of our sin, Christ perfectly satisfied God’s demand for justice: He who knew no sin, became sin on our behalf, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him (2 Corinthians 5:21). Without this reality of Christ dying as our substitute (having become a curse for us), there can be no redemption of sinners. Therefore, it is by Christ’s righteous sacrifice that God remains just, while justifying the sinner who believes in Christ:

Romans 3:24-26: 24 being justified as a gift by His grace through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus; 25 whom God displayed publicly as a propitiation in His blood through faith. This was to demonstrate His righteousness, because in the forbearance of God He passed over the sins previously committed; 26 for the demonstration, I say, of His righteousness at the present time, that He might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.

God is just. He remains just when He justifies the sinner who has faith in Christ, because Christ died as his righteous substitute, having become a curse in his stead. This crucial reality is called the doctrine of penal substitution. While there are many, many other truths which flow from the doctrine of Christ’s atonement, this crucial understanding of Romans 3:5-26 cannot be cast aside as though it were irrelevant or optional. Like the doctrine of the resurrection, the truth of Christ’s penal substitution on our behalf stands as a crucial foundation for God’s justice and our redemption in Him. Without such truths as these, we would remain condemned in our sins, having a worthless faith, being most pitied in this life as fools who are without hope (1 Corinthians 15:12-19).

But thanks be to God that He is just, and He is the justifier of all who have believed in the One who became sin on our behalf, and now lives to intercede on our behalf.