Paul has demonstrated that all people are in need of salvation. Jew and Gentile alike are under deserved condemnation. We are guilty of a multitude of sins, but our chief transgression is our willful rejection of God. He looked for faithfulness, but found failure. We are left with no remedy, so God must provide our salvation-or we are hopelessly, helplessly, irrevocably, irreversibly doomed.

God provided our salvation through Jesus Christ. In Him, the universal need is universally met, and it is not a salvation acquired by meritorious deeds, but by faith in Jesus that results in a change in us.

From long ago, the prophets and the Law had pointed forward to a Messiah, One who would provide righteousness not connected to legal obedience. This righteousness is the condition of being in harmony with God and His will for humanity. It is more than a mere “not guilty” verdict. It describes a state of perfect reconciliation, love, peace and joy. It is this righteousness that God grants to us on the basis of our faith in Jesus Christ. It is available to all humanity since all are guilty of sin.

This righteousness is the answer to God’s cosmic dilemma: what to do with human beings. He made us right, but we’ve gone wrong. If He punishes us as we deserve, we die and cannot benefit from the lesson. If He forgives our sins without any penalty (or with a penalty less than deserved), He is found false to His own nature since He is a God of justice. Should He be just (and punish us as we deserve) or be the justifier (and save us alive)? His answer to this impossible question is to provide Jesus to accept our penalty for us (preserving justice), but apply His righteousness to our lives (thereby justifying us and saving us alive). God provides this avenue of salvation to all because He is the God of all, Jew and Gentile alike.

Paul indicates that Abraham is our forefather “according to the flesh.” Paul hints here at a theme that will become very much more important in the book: the tension between the flesh and the spirit. In this chapter, he will demonstrate that if Abraham is our forefather according to the flesh, he is far more important as our forefather in the faith!

Paul lays tremendous emphasis on the fact that Abraham was granted righteousness from God on the basis of his faith in God, not because of his good deeds. He points to two important facts: 1) This righteousness was “credited,” and therefore not earned and, 2) This righteousness was credited before Abraham’s circumcision-the sign of his covenant with God. In fact, circumcision was a primary element in the Israelite covenant with God, predating the Mosaic Law! It defined those who were interested in serving God according to His will. Yet Paul demonstrates that this sign of the covenant is no longer important because our covenant is based on faith, and because the sign of our covenant with God is the Holy Spirit living within us (Ephesians 1:13; 4:30; see Romans 5:5). God commended Abraham for his faith, not his works.

Abraham continued to believe the God of all and so he serves as the father of us all, not only the Jews but the Gentiles, too. We all must come to God in faith, not in the strength of our good deeds and fine character. Abraham’s faith carried him forward and caused him to continue to trust in God, resulting in the birth of Isaac. The point to Paul’s extended treatment of the promise and fulfillment to Abraham is that these things were written for our benefit so that we might know that God commends faith in His people.

In this chapter, Paul lays out a rather detailed argument that depends on repeated comparisons between our condition before Christ and the world under the authority of Christ. He begins with the understanding that our justification comes through faith. However, we must remember that Paul is writing to Christians. These people had been baptized for the forgiveness of their sins (and this becomes very clear in the next chapter) and knew nothing of the modern notion of salvation by “faith only,” meaning a faith that requires no response. Paul’s emphasis is to demonstrate that God saves us because of our faith, not because of our good deeds.

In our salvation, we have peace with God-a true harmony of soul. In this transformed state, we rejoice no matter what our outward circumstances because we are being transformed by the power of God to acquire the character of God. This great blessing has come to us all undeserved, while we were in a state of open rebellion and downright malice toward God. While we were in this hideous condition, Christ gave His life for our salvation.

Paul launches a series of contrasts pointed up by the phrase, “how much more.” He points out that since we’ve been justified (declared righteous) by God while we were still sinners, “how much more” shall we then be saved from His wrath! If we were reconciled to God while we were still His enemies, “how much more” shall we be saved by His life now that we are reconciled! In his discussion of the effects of Adam’s sin, he shows that many died because of one man’s trespass, but “how much more” will many gain grace from God because of one man: Jesus Christ! And if death reigned in the world because of one man (Adam), then “how much more” will those who gain grace reign in life through one man (Jesus)!

The point to this extended contrast is that while one act brought condemnation to all, even so one act of justification brought salvation to all. The God of all commended Abraham, the father of all, for his faith. We demonstrate that same kind of faith when we commit ourselves to Jesus Christ, the Savior of all! The universal need is justification from sin. That need is universally met in Jesus, the Son of God!

Discussion Questions:

1. Which prophets pointed forward to a Messiah? What kinds of predictions did they make about His coming?

2. How does the gospel vindicate God’s justice? What would lead Him to offer His own Son in our place as the satisfaction of justice?

3. What is Abraham’s importance to us? What is the purpose of a sign of a covenant with God? Who sees the Holy Spirit dwelling in us?

4. How did Adam’s sin bring death to all people? How does Jesus’ righteousness bring life to all people? How can our faith save us?