Good evening, and welcome to EBible Fellowship’s Bible study in the book of Romans.  Tonight is study #33 in Romans 3,  and we will read Romans 3:19-23:

Now we know that what things soever the law saith, it saith to them who are under the law: that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God. Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin. But now the righteousness of God without the law is manifested, being witnessed by the law and the prophets; Even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe: for there is no difference:  For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;

We are continuing to look at  Romans 3:19 where God is declaring, “Now we know that what things soever the law saith, it saith to them who are under the law: that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God.” 

There is an excellent chapter in the New Testament that really gets into the whole issue of the Law.  It is Galatians 3, which gets into it in a detailed way.  For example, it says in Galatians 3:9-13:

So then they which be of faith are blessed with faithful Abraham. For as many as are of the works of the law are under the curse: for it is written, Cursed is every one that continueth not in all things which are written in the book of the law to do them. But that no man is justified by the law in the sight of God, it is evident: for, The just shall live by faith. And the law is not of faith: but, The man that doeth them shall live in them.

Then we read in Galatians 3:19-22:

Wherefore then serveth the law? It was added because of transgressions, till the seed should come to whom the promise was made; and it was ordained by angels in the hand of a mediator. Now a mediator is not a mediator of one, but God is one. Is the law then against the promises of God? God forbid: for if there had been a law given which could have given life, verily righteousness should have been by the law. But the scripture hath concluded all under sin, that the promise by faith of Jesus Christ might be given to them that believe.

I will stop there.  We read in verse 21 that if there had been a Law given which could have given life, truly righteousness should have been by the Law.  Someone might say, “Hold it!  There is a Law that gives life.  The churches state that law again, and again, when they tell the people, ‘Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved.’”  Then someone might respond, “That is not the Law.  That is faith, and faith is not the Law.”  Where do they read that if they believe, they will be saved?  There are a few verses that say that, like in Romans 10:9-10:

That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.

So they might respond, “Well, yes, it is written there, but that is not the Law.  It is speaking of faith.”  Hold it, because this is what they do not understand, and that includes untold numbers of churches, and their leaders and pastors, as well as a great many outside of the churches.  They do not understand that the Bible is the Law book of God.  All Scripture is to be understood as Law.  We will not go through proving that in this study, but we can go to numerous verses where references are made to historical occurrences in the book of Genesis in the lives of Moses, Abraham, Sarah, and Hagar the Egyptian handmaid, but in Galatians 4, God says, “Do ye not hear the law?”  Then He lays out the scenario that the child born to Sarah and the child born to Hagar are two covenants.  You see, even though it is a historical account, it is called “the law,” and God says, “Do ye not hear the law?”  All Scripture, or all the Bible, is the Law.  And when you read any statement in the Bible, that is the Law of God.  Romans 10:9-10, which we just read, are commandments of God.  All of the Bible is full of the commandments of God.  God tells us in 1John that He does give commandment concerning “believing,” as we read in 1John 3:23-24:

And this is his commandment, That we should believe on the name of his Son Jesus Christ, and love one another, as he gave us commandment. And he that keepeth his commandments dwelleth in him, and he in him…

Do you see that He refers to keeping God’s commandments right after giving the commandment to believe on the name of His Son Jesus Christ?  So that is indicating that the elect are the only ones who keep the commandments of God perfectly.

And one must keep the commandments perfectly, as the Bible tells us that we have to keep the whole Law without exception; if you offend in one point, you are guilty of all.  So if you choose to go that route of keeping the commandments to get right with God, you cannot “pick and choose.”  You cannot say, “I will keep the commandment to believe on the name of Jesus Christ, and then I will be saved.”  No.  You would only be saved if you kept all the other commandments that are in the whole Bible too, because what you have done is placed yourself under the Law.  You are trying to get right with God through your “work of faith,” and the Bible speaks of faith being a work.  It uses that very language in 1Thessalonians 1:3:

Remembering without ceasing your work of faith…

What is a work of faith?  It is when you have believed by exercising belief in response to God’s commandment to believe.  And to whatever degree you did it, it does not matter because it is still a “work of faith,” and no man is justified by the works of the Law, and the whole Bible is a Law book.  And one of God’s Laws, or commandments is to “believe on the name of his Son Jesus Christ.” 

You see, this is the great deception that the churches have deceived themselves and others with in thinking that they can do this work.  And as they carry out this work (of faith), they have been deceived into believing that it is actually not a work because it has to do with faith.  They do not realize that this commandment comes right from the Bible, and God specifically identifies it as a commandment.  Therefore they have place themselves under the Law, and no one can be saved by the works of any Law.  No man is justified by the works of the law, whether it is keeping one of the Ten Commandments, or in keeping the commandment to believe on the Son.  No man can get saved that way, as it declares in Galatians 2:16:

Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified.

Here, we see that the faith is not our faith.  That is why He tells us in Ephesians 2:8:

For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:

And the gift of God is Christ, and it is His faith that He showed forth at the foundation of the world when He was the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.  It also tells us in Hebrews 4:3:

…although the works were finished from the foundation of the world.

The work of Christ’s faith was performed and finished at that point in eternity past for all those that He died for, the chosen elect of God.  And that is the only way of salvation.  It is the salvation that belongs to the Lord, and the Lord bestowed it upon whom He would bestow it: “I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion,”  whether a person might “claim Him” or “name Him;” or whether they do another work like “walking down the aisle;” or whether they are immersed in a baptismal service; or whether they say the Sinner’s Prayer, or whether they say, “I accept Christ,” a thousand times.  It is all the works of man, and none of it will justify the sinner.  It is the faith of Christ, the faith belonging to Him.  It is in the genitive case, indicating possession.  It is His faith. 

You know, that is exactly what is in view earlier in Galatians 3:11:

But that no man is justified by the law in the sight of God…

This helps us to understand what it means regarding no man being justified by the works of the Law, which means keeping the commandments.

Again, it says in Galatians 3:11:

But that no man is justified by the law in the sight of God, it is evident: for, The just shall live by faith.

The way God words this, it leaves open the possibility that it could be man’s faith, and the overwhelming majority of people understand it as their own faith, and they think that is how they are justified by faith. 

This is also mentioned in Hebrews 10:37-38:

For yet a little while, and he that shall come will come, and will not tarry. Now the just shall live by faith: but if any man draw back, my soul shall have no pleasure in him.

We know this is a quotation from the Old Testament, as we see how verses 37 and 38 are joined together, and we find the same kind of wording in Habakkuk 2:3-4:

For the vision is yet for an appointed time, but at the end it shall speak, and not lie: though it tarry, wait for it; because it will surely come, it will not tarry. Behold, his soul which is lifted up is not upright in him: but the just shall live by his faith.

Verse 2 agrees with Hebrew 10:37, and verse 4 agrees with Hebrews 10:38.  The just shall live by “his faith,” which is Christ’s faith.  It is not the individual sinner’s faith because all men have not faith.  We can read that in 2Thessalonians 3:2:

And that we may be delivered from unreasonable and wicked men: for all men have not faith. But the Lord is faithful, who shall stablish you, and keep you from evil.

God is faithful.  God is the essence of faith.  Jesus is the Faith once delivered unto the saints at the point of the foundation of the world.  He is the One who is the Saviour because it is His faith that justifies.  No man is justified by the works of the Law.  No man is justified by the work of faith, especially since all man have not faith, so how in the world could they justify themselves through something they do not have due to their sins?  That is not within the realm of possibility.

Going back to Galatians 3, it says in Galatians 3:21:

Is the law then against the promises of God? God forbid: for if there had been a law given which could have given life, verily righteousness should have been by the law.

But there is not.  There is no Law (that can give life).   Keeping the Law of circumcision will not save you.  Keeping the Old Testament Sabbath will not save you.  The Israelites found that out.  Keeping the Law of “believing on Jesus” will not save you.  The New Testament corporate church has found that out through the experience of God’s judgment upon them. 

If a man’s faith could save, why is it that when the door to heaven was shut, and there are those outside knocking to get in, and crying, “Lord, Lord,” they cannot enter in?  They are not the atheists, the secularists, and the peoples of the world, but they are the professed Christians that had accepted Christ.  They call Him “Lord,” and they say, “Have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works?”  They are the people of the churches that believed.  Sadly, they also believed the lies told them from the pulpit on Sunday, after Sunday: “If you will just exercise your belief.  Just take these few steps: one, two, three, and then you will have salvation.  You will have entry into the kingdom of God.  You are one of us.”  These poor, poor people in the congregations do not realize that, yes, they have become one of them, as the preacher said, but the problem is he is a “child of hell,” and now he has made them twofold more the children of hell than himself.