#97. Romans 3:24 – Sin will be Justified, Part 2 (Justification Series, Part XX)
Being justified gratuitously in His grace…
So Let’s Apply It!
If you are having trouble doubting God’s hand in evil for the sake of good, then I believe that a careful reading of Joseph’s account clearly quells all doubts. The evil act done to Joseph has been used for much good. This can only be seen from God’s foresight and planning, and could not have been seen by man. Apart from God’s direct operation, Joseph’s brothers would have produced sin and death for him.
We see, then, that we are not obligated to “do” evil, so that good may be coming. Blind chance will not “oopsie” your bad action into a good one. Even under the best motivations, our kindest or bravest actions are often met with horrible disaster. We are rather being taught to let go of the scoreboard. The point is that our intent does not change God’s use of us. We will serve His purpose, whether we fully realize it or not, and if God has imparted a measure of belief upon us, then He is using our sins for the ultimate welfare of all, being accounted righteous.
Moreover, He is using the evil on all creation for the ultimate welfare of all. It is clear, in many passages, that God is responsible where evil has been found. I am called a heretic for pointing this out, yet I am only repeating what scripture itself explicitly says (2 Ki. 6:33, Neh. 13:18, Jer. 19:3, 21:10, 32:42, 36:3, 31, 39:16, 40:2, 42:17, 44:2, 11, Lam. 3:38, Ezek. 14:22, Mic. 1:12, and more.) And, just as important, this One inflicts evil for a good result. All the evil brought on His example, Israel, only contributed to their welfare – some, in the moment, yet with a greater, lasting lesson for their future millennium, still yet to come.
2026?
Let’s take this “evil” into the modern age. What of those who “reject” the word of God? Worse still, what of those who claim to “teach” the word of God, while refusing to acknowledge concepts such as “justification?” Surely, such stubbornness must be deserving of the seventh level of hell, or at least the sixth!
In truth, scripture does not “distinguish” between those who reject and those who do not, as if God works evil “specially” upon believers, but “especially” upon non-believers (Ma. 5:45.) Even the supposed theory that we can “reject” God is a relative distinction drawn by the church arbitrarily, in ignorance. As our brother A.E. Knoch asks, in his book, The Problem of Evil, “How much light must a man have before he is a ‘rejector?’ If he hears one clear gospel message, is that enough? What is a ‘clear’ gospel message? Some of the ‘heathen’ have never heard of Christ. If they ‘hear’ of Him, does that make them eligible to eternal torment, or must they hear a given formula to be doomed forever?”
In truth, all men are enlightened to some capacity, whether a little or a lot, so that all can be said to be locked up in stubbornness (Rom. 11:32.) Yet this is only so that God may be merciful to all (Rom. 11:32.) Even as Joseph’s brothers did evil, while God meant it for good, so also, we do evil, while God means it for good. Where we sin, grace super-exceeds (Rom. 5:20.) We do not sin “more” to provoke grace, nor do we enact “more” evil so that it becomes good. Such an argument is as asinine as Joseph’s brothers saying something like, “Since selling Joseph into slavery will eventuate in good, let’s just kill him now, so that Joseph would receive even greater blessing!”
Unfortunately, this is the loaded strawman from most of Christianity concerning justification. It supposes that justification and blessing is due to our hands – not God’s hands. This is what most may call “projection.” It really exposes the disposition of those who claim it, in ignorance. We do not say that “we should do evil that good may be coming.” Rather, we do evil whether we like it or not, yet only God can inflict evil to evolve good.
Joseph a Figure
If you’ve been paying strict attention to Paul’s message of justification, then you will certainly see elements of his point in Joseph’s story, since the righteousness of God was attested by the law and the prophets (Rom. 3:21.) Joseph’s treatment by his brothers is a figure for Jesus’ treatment by His brothers, the Israelites according to the flesh (Rom. 1:3.) Joseph’s brothers did not follow through their intent, though this was bad enough (Matt. 5:22.)
To disguise his disappearance, Joseph’s brothers dressed his special coat in animal blood, and showed it to faithful Israel, who wept in despair. The brothers are examples of the nation which crucified their Messiah, shedding His blood on Golgotha, for faithful Israel to witness in horror. In both cases, the aggressors fail to complete their murder. Jacob then, and faithful Israel now, have suffered greatly from the withdrawal of the kingdom at the hands of their faithless brethren.
Note that Jesus and Joseph were the ones treated unjustly; these who did not commit the sins for which they suffered. Moreso, Joseph is a figure of the spotless Victim Who suffered most of all. Joseph’s suffering is for their sin, not his own. This was essential for the justification of his brothers, which was the only way God could vindicate them, and follow through on his promised blessings for Israel!
Some happy-go-lucky occurrence to counteract sin? No! Of course not! This was a freedom from guilt itself vicariously, through Joseph’s sufferings and exaltation. He did not deserve their sin, yet endured it for their benefit – so much so that he did not angrily seek to exact his own vengeance upon his brothers. Instead, he wept bitterly when he saw them. He concocted a ruse, and tried his best to keep up a façade long enough to see his entire family again.
His brothers deserved banishment. Some would say they deserved imprisonment, and some would even claim that they deserved death (Rom. 1:32.) There is an undeniable element of injustice at play. The brothers could not justify his sufferings. At most, they may have been able to make reparations, but they could not use their wrong for Joseph’s right. Thus what does God do as a means of justifying Himself, and further justifying Joseph?
It is Joseph’s glorification which justified his suffering. He was seated at the right hand of Pharoah – second only to Egypt’s lord on earth at the time. While the suffering of Joseph justified his brothers, it was his glorification which justified God in enabling Joseph to carry their burden. He suffered gravely in prison – but was indeed praised in saving his family. Moreover, it is Joseph who attests to God’s hand in all of this, in view of his eventual exaltation to impose blessing upon his personal malefactors.
We
will soon breach Romans 3:25, reading Paul’s explanation of how the
cross’ blessings are imparted to us. But even here, as early as Genesis, we can
perceive that the sin of mankind can be justified through the suffering
of a Savior. We can further see that any relative “injustice” which the
Savior faces is fully compensated by God, by seating Him at His own
right hand (Eph. 1:20,) and highly exalting Him (Phil. 2:9-11.)
An “Atonement?”
Hmmph. I don’t like that word. It would be more likable to me if it had not been so perverted by Christianity, but regardless: I don’t like chatting about “atonement” where an even greater message of justification should be discussed.
For those who don’t know, “atonement,” even in scripture, is the act of making amends, reparations, or a payment for a wrongdoing or an injury. If we are looking at the “atonement” of Joseph’s brothers, we could say that they are repaid during the period of Joseph’s imprisonment. They clearly bemoaned watching their father grow old in sorrow and depression (Gen. 42:16.) Their residence in Jacob’s house may have “covered” or “concealed” their sins, for the time being.
But what is this atonement, really, where grace’s endgame is revealed? In light of Paul’s message, the justification in Genesis far outshines any atonement. Neither could we say that “atonement” is grace’s endgame for his brothers. Popularly, it is taught that “x” amount of suffering must account for “x” amount of sin. Therefore, Christ’s “x” amount of suffering accounts for your “x” amount of sin. Thus Christ may be said to have died “in our stead.”
Such a transaction is certainly not what we are being taught in 3:21-26. If the above formula were true, the best humanity is given is an escape from judgment. Such a premise falls far short of the copious blessings God gives. The fact that there are so many blessings which God imparts over Paul’s writings should indicate that something is wrong with the “popular” view. Indeed, the Greek prefix meaning “INSTEAD” is anti. Yet when Paul says, “While we are yet sinners, Christ died for our sakes,” he uses the prefix huper, or “OVER,” meaning “on behalf of.”
We could not say that Joseph suffered in the place of his brothers. It would give God no right to bless them as he does in the finale. He would have to leave them with their house, and leave them and their father to starve. Yet since Joseph suffered on their behalf, they were not “merely” released from sin’s penalty, but were actually delivered from the evil which was impending over all the earth. It was only in this way that they could be justified, and Joseph glorified, and them glorified in him.
This
relation between “justification” and “deliverance” will be explored as we move
forward. For now, may we learn the simple message of the sovereignty of
God, shown in Joseph’s plot, and further see the elements of justification which
teach us the disposition of God, and interest us in His good purpose for
the universe.
The Pillar of Our
Justification
We gain so much from all of these points. With a broader scope, we can see how God can justify sin, on the basis of His Son’s obedience. It is because God ultimately introduced sin’s travesties upon the universe, having planned the conditions for the necessity and execution for His Son’s sacrifice. Further, it is because God has an intention through them which justify their temporary application. So long as tragedy is a lesson, no traumatic experience runs too deep, nor can hatred grip our hearts so greatly that love could not relieve the burden of our guilt and shame.
There
are three great facts, then, which surround this message of justification. At
this point in Romans, Paul has alluded to the first, explicitly expressed the
second, and has implied the third:
1.
All is out of God
2.
All blessings for mankind stem from Christ’s death,
entombment, and resurrection
3.
All is for God, that He, through His Son, receives
all that He has created, saved, and matured
The second fact is rooted clearly in Rom. 3:22. The third fact will be explicitly stated in Rom. 5:18. Paul continually returns to this point as well, and it will be found many more times in his letters. The first fact, too, is stated explicitly in Rom. 11:36, and serves as the beginning of the comprehensive, perfect conclusion to the first eleven chapters of Romans.
…Okay, yes, I guess the actual issues are of greater importance, such as the greed, wickedness, and… well, all 20 other wrong actions (Rom. 1:29-31.) Everyone has suffered them, involuntarily. It is a great shame that our actions often don’t align with our wills. An even greater shame that we cannot do that which we know is right. And, of course, there is an inevitable guilt where our inability to perfectly act, to save all whom we hold most dear, to preserve the life of our loved ones, to maintain healthy relations with all, to help estranged relatives, to bring great glory to those who deserve it… warps our lives, taking everything we hold dear, dangling it over a cliff, and dropping it, while we look at ourselves in weakness.
Even these words are unsatisfactory. They could never relay the depths of the devastation and havoc running through our veins, with which we are accursed. We are perverted so as to attribute divine glory and honor to ourselves in war and strife, in a fight for a brotherhood founded on blood and soul. Yet both the war and comradery decay into death. We delude ourselves over whatever remains in the fallout of these tragedies – sometimes even to madness. I could never spin enough yarn to demonstrate its impact, beyond pitiful emotion, itself too incompetent to consider the whole issue. Even the greatest writers could not dream of it.
Yet all of this, the God of love intended.
As only He can measure the extent of sin’s impact upon us, so also only He can measure the extent of Christ’s suffering upon us. Christ, Who had all created in Him (Col. 1:16,) witnessed the estrangement of all creation from Him. He alone faced all possible doubt from those manifested through Him. He had no way to “see” that all is for Him (Col. 1:16-17.) It was entirely by faith that He alone could believe that His God and Father would make good on such apparent chaos, for Their glory. For this, Christ would be divested of all power and glory, and would instead be made low (Phil. 2:5-8,) a simple Galilean Who would again be rejected even by His lowest brethren. Until now, Christ has suffered and endured the doubts of the entire universe, which had culminated at the cross.
On the other side of this calamity, however, God may declare the sinner justified. The question now is: Can God be just, and a Justifier of the sinner? If so, how? This question will be the driving thought as we press on into Rom. 3:25-26. But first, there are a number of other features of verse 24 which we may consider – the thematic basis for the “how” and “why” of salvation.
- GerudoKing
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