I'm preparing for a Men's Bible Study tomorrow AM and I found Hendrickson's points on Romans 3:24 to be very edifying. It's a great "rollup" of the doctrine of Justification that you could take with you in your back pocket replete with verses that sustain the Biblical doctrine. Without further ado:
When used, as here in Rom. 3:24, in the dominant forensic sense, to justify means to declare righteous; and justification may be defined as that gracious act of God whereby, on the basis solely of Christ’s accomplished mediatorial work, he declares the sinner just, and the latter accepts this benefit with a believing heart. In defense of this definition see not only the present context (Rom. 3:24–30) but also 4:3, 5; 5:1, 9; 8:30; Gal. 2:15, 16; 3:8, 11, 24; 5:4; Titus 3:7. Justification stands over against condemnation. See Rom. 8:1, 33, 34.
Justification is a matter of imputation (reckoning, charging): the sinner’s guilt is imputed to Christ; the latter’s righteousness is imputed to the sinner (Gen. 15:6; Ps. 32:1, 2; Isa. 53:4–6; Jer. 23:6; Rom. 5:18, 19).
While justification is a matter of imputation, sanctification is a matter of transformation. In justification the Father takes the lead (Rom. 8:33); in sanctification the Holy Spirit does (II Thess. 2:13). The first is a “once for all” verdict, the second a lifelong process. Nevertheless, although the two should never be identified, neither should they be separated. They are distinct but not separate.
If the sinner is to be declared righteous at all, it will have to be freely, for, as has been shown in the preceding, as measured by the standard of God’s requirement (Lev. 19:2; Matt. 22:37 and parallels), human merit is impossible. Man cannot earn the great and basic blessing of justification. He can only accept it as a gift (Isa. 55:1).
Grace is God’s love directed toward the guilty, just as his mercy is that same love directed toward those in misery. It is easy to understand that “freely” and “by his grace” go together.
This design points back to the divine eternal counsel. In that counsel or decree Christ Jesus was designed to be the One through whom the plan of salvation would be realized. Christ Jesus and his people can never be separated. Note such parallel passages as Eph. 1:4, 7, 10, 11.
Though it is being constantly denied, there is indeed such a thing as the wrath of God that rests on the sinner and must be removed if he is to be saved. See Rom. 1:18; 2:5, 8; 3:5; 5:9; 9:22; Eph. 2:3; 5:6; Col. 3:6, I Thess. 1:10; 2:16; 5:9; Rev. 6:16, 17; 11:18; 14:10; 16:19; 19:15.
When atonement is rendered, God’s wrath is removed. Rom. 3:25a mentions a wrath-removing or propitiatory sacrifice, namely, Christ Jesus himself. It was he who gave—voluntarily offered—his blood; hence his life; hence himself (I Tim. 2:6) for his sheep, bearing the wrath of God in their stead, thereby causing them to be reconciled to God.
The Greek Paul uses “wrath-removing (or propitiatory) sacrifice,” in the LXX (Greek translation of the Old Testament) indicates the blood-sprinkled lid of the ark of the covenant. This is the “mercy seat” (A.V.) or “atonement cover” (N.I.V.). See Exod. 25:17, 18; Lev. 16:2, 3; etc. In all, the word occurs more than twenty times in the Pentateuch, most often in Exodus. In the description of tabernacle furniture (Heb. 9:1–5) it is logical to believe that verse 5 similarly refers to this cover. However, although the same Greek word is found also in Rom. 3:25, it is understandable that most translators—there are exceptions—hesitate to call Christ Jesus either a “mercy seat” or an “atonement cover.” “Wrath-removing sacrifice,” “sacrifice of atonement” (N.I.V.), or simply “propitiation” (A.V., A.R.V.) is better. See also I John 2:2; 4:10.
Christ’s propitiatory sacrifice does not go into effect automatically. If a person wishes to obtain this great blessing—the turning away of God’s wrath, forgiveness, acceptance with God—he must exercise genuine faith in Christ, in and through whom God Triune reveals himself.
By way of summary it can be pointed out, therefore, that justification, as taught by Paul, is in no sense whatever the work of man. On the contrary, it is:
a. God’s gift (Rom. 5:15–18)
b. the product of his grace (3:24; 4:16; 5:15)
c. free (5:16)
d. not of works (3:20)
e. the opposite of condemnation (8:1, 33, 34)
f. that which deprives man of every reason for boasting (3:27)
g. appropriated by faith, even that faith being God-given (Eph. 2:8).
May the Lord give you grace and wisdom, and may it be to the further sanctification of all who hear it.
