The Unrighteousness of Man - (Part I)

MAY 17, 2023 STUDY NOTES ROMANS 3:9-20 BIBLE TEACHER: CLIFTON JONES THE UNRIGHTEOUSNESS OF MAN---(PART 1) Rom 3:9 What then? are we better than they? No, in no wise: for we have before proved both Jews and Gentiles, that they are all under sin; “What then,” is a common question of introduction for Paul (Rom 3:3,4:1, 6:15, 8:31, 11:7) Here Paul is back to the questions of, Rom 3:1 What advantage then hath the Jew? or what profit is there of circumcision? Rom 3:2 Much every way: chiefly, because that unto them were committed the oracles of God. Now the question is, “Are we better than they?” (As individuals) Paul probably has in mind the Jews which is the context of the passage Their question, can we claim to be better off and stand superior toward God over the Gentiles? Paul is quick to answer, and his answer is strongly presented, “No, in no wise” Absolutely not, not in any way, don’t even think that way, and Paul tells them why “For we have before proved both Jews and Gentiles” (As individual Jew or Gentile) Which Paul did in the previous verses The blame, the accusation, the charge has already been presented, “all are under sin” “All,” Jew and Gentile alike, all individual Jews and all individual Gentiles are “under sin” Which means that they have not just committed sin, but they are under the control of sin Held down by sin, subject to the power of sin, and under the control of a sinful nature “All under sin” explains the doctrine of “total depravity,” which is the results of the fall of man As a consequence of the fall of man, every person is born with a sin nature Total depravity does not teach that a person is as bad as they can be, they could be worse The teaching is that sinful fallen man is as “bad off” as he can be, he is under sin Which does not teach that sinners will commit every act of sin known to man But that sinners are capable of committing any sin known to man (Watch the daily news) The meaning is that lost sinful man has nothing in his nature that allows him to stand before God Sinful man can do good works that others will appreciate but they lack the holiness God requires Paul is going to thoroughly explain his conclusion that “all” are under sin Rom 3:10 As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one: “As it is written” is used many times in the NT to introduce an OT scripture What follows will then be a quotation or a reference from the OT In the following verses Paul is going to refer to several OT passages of scripture Therefore, that which “is written” presents the authority on any given subject The authority of truth on any subject related to life and eternity is the Word of God Which our world today does not agree with, thinking that authority is in the hands of man Society today believes that man has and will have the final word But God will have the final word, just “as it is written” Throughout the Bible scripture states the sinful nature of man and the need of salvation Here Paul is referring to, Psa 14:1 The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God. They are corrupt, they have done abominable works, there is none that doeth good. Psa 14:2 The LORD looked down from heaven upon the children of men, to see if there were any that did understand, and seek God. Psa 14:3 They are all gone aside, they are all together become filthy: there is none that doeth good, no, not one. Page 1 of 6 Sometimes people attempt to exempt themselves from the OT, stating that’s “Old” Testament We often find the NT writers referring to OT scripture to verify the truth of what they are saying Paul is telling us that his words from the OT are still relevant and as true today as ever have been, Psa 119:89 For ever, O LORD, thy word is settled in heaven. (As it is written) God’s Word stands written today and will stand forever, Isa 40:8 The grass withereth, the flower fadeth: but the word of our God shall stand for ever. (As it is written) God’s Word will be fulfilled “as it is written,” Mat 24:35 Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away. In God’s Word we find written an eternal salvation, as eternal as His Word, 1Pe 1:23 Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever. The Lord has spoken, and His Word endures forever, 1Pe 1:25 But the word of the Lord endureth for ever. And this is the word which by the gospel is preached unto you. And the Gospel of the Lord’s Word endures forever, our salvation is an eternal life The Gospel that has been written in God’s Word has been offered to all those Paul describes There is none righteous, no, not one, which is why we have the Good News of the Gospel There is none righteous, no, not one, since the fall of man, Rom 5:12 Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned: There is not a single exception, none, no one, not even one stands righteous before God Because of the sin nature of mankind no one is capable of doing right in the sight of God The evidence of none righteous is the “sins” of those under sin We need to understand the Biblical explanation of “sin” and “sins,” and their difference “Sin” is the nature, “sins” are the results, such as a disease and the symptoms of the disease “Sin” is the disease, our nature, “sins” are the symptoms of the disease of our sin nature Paul is teaching us that we must receive a new nature, which is why Jesus went to the cross God, the righteous Father sent His righteous Son to the earth, Joh 17:25 O righteous Father, the world hath not known thee: but I have known thee, and these have known that thou hast sent me. God sent Jesus, the righteous, Act 3:14 But ye denied the Holy One and the Just, and desired a murderer to be granted unto you; (The Holy One, the Just, is Christ as the God-Man) As Christians we have an advocate with the Father, He is Jesus Christ the righteous, 1Jn 2:1 My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous: Little children is John’s favorite way of identifying with genuine born-again believers John is telling us that as Christians we will still be guilty of committing sins Which is why John includes himself as one who needs an “advocate with the Father” Those who are lost and without Christ in their life do not have what we have as Christians We have “An advocate,” which literally means “one called alongside” One who is there to help, comfort, counsel, encourage, intercede, or whatever the need might be An advocate is one who comes to our side whenever we are in need John presents Jesus as our “Substitutionary Advocate” who stands before God for us Jesus is presented as our defense attorney who comes forward, on behalf of our interest Jesus is our “Defense Lawyer” in the court of Heaven, the one who speaks in our defense He does not plead that we are innocent, He acknowledges before the Father that we are guilty But He presents Himself and His vicarious work before the Father on our behalf Jesus can stand before God because as the “Righteous” He died for the “unrighteous,” 1Pe 3:18 For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit: Peter reveals five great truths about the Person and Work of Jesus Christ the “Righteous:” Page 2 of 6 (1) He suffered for our sins (2) The “Just” or the “Righteous” suffered for the unrighteous (3) The purpose of the suffering was to bring those who would trust Him to God (4) He was put to death in the flesh (5) He was made “alive in the spirit” Only Jesus can stand before God the Father and completely please God for us Christ the “the Righteous” must stand before God for us, without Christ there is none righteous Righteousness is not evaluated by a percentage level on the scale of daily life Righteousness is not attained by daily doing more good things than evil things Righteousness is according to God’s standards which Jesus possessed and presented in His life Throughout His earthly life Jesus lived according to God’s standards of life The “Good News” of the Gospel is that God provided a way for sinners to become righteous before God That way is the way of salvation, Jesus is the “way,” Joh 14:6 Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me. And Jesus is the only way of salvation, Act 4:12 Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved. Salvation is offered to us through the love and grace of God, Eph 2:4 But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, Eph 2:5 Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;) Eph 2:8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Eph 2:9 Not of works, lest any man should boast. Eph 2:10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them. Our works of righteousness is God working through us in and through Jesus Christ The whole world is in need of righteousness, but we are not to be guided by the standards of man Ten men will probably give 10 different opinions concerning what is right and what is wrong The world today will not agree with what Paul now says Rom 3:11 There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God. “None,” not one natural sinful mind of humanity even begins to understand God The natural mind of man cannot intelligently discern or comprehend the True Person of God Paul explains why in, 1Co 2:14 But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned. The “natural man” is one who is not saved and without spiritual life and spiritually ignorant, Eph 4:18 Having the understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God through the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of their heart: The one who is spiritually dead is ignorant of the truth of God because of their sin nature His heart is naturally hardened, and his mind is naturally darkened to the spiritual truths of God A common characteristic of humanity is described in, Php 2:21 For all seek their own, not the things which are Jesus Christ's. People are constantly seeking their own thing and not the things of Christ People are continually occupied with the desires of self because self is “Number One” Today, too many are only concerned about themselves, interested only in self and not others The truth that there is none that seeketh after God had its beginning with Adam Adam sinned and fled from the Holy God who had created him, Gen 3:8 And they heard the voice of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day: and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God amongst the trees of the garden. God entered the garden seeking Adam even though He knew what Adam had done, Gen 3:9 And the LORD God called unto Adam, and said unto him, Where art thou? God knew where Adam was, His question was to make Adam aware of where he was Adam was to realize that God knew where he was and why he was hiding from God Page 3 of 6 And that even though God knew what Adam had done, God came seeking Adam Throughout the ages God has continued to seek sinners, Luk 19:10 For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost. God sent Jesus to seek the lost who were not seeking God Our sinful world is seeking a god who agrees with their thoughts concerning life now and forever They are not seeking the One and Only True God who reveals the truth of life today and forever Paul explains why “there is none that seeketh after God” in the next verse Rom 3:12 They are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one. “They are all,” and there are no exceptions, “All” are born with the same problem Which is, “gone out of the way,” all have turned aside, leaned the wrong way, off the right path Psa 14:3 They are all gone aside, they are all together become filthy: there is none that doeth good, no, not one. There is only one way to go, and it is not our own way, Isa 53:6 All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all. Jesus is the only way to go because the Lord hath laid on Him the iniquity of us all, Joh 14:6 Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me. Receiving Christ and living for Christ is often identified in scripture as “the way” Early Christians faced persecution because they were of “the way,” Act 9:2 And desired of him letters to Damascus to the synagogues, that if he found any of this way, whether they were men or women, he might bring them bound unto Jerusalem. Christians faced more than verbal persecution, Act 19:23 And the same time there arose no small stir about that way. That way referred to the “way of salvation,” Act 16:17 The same followed Paul and us, and cried, saying, These men are the servants of the most high God, which shew unto us the way of salvation. Sinful humanity called it heresy, but it was the Good News that had been written by the prophets, Act 24:14 But this I confess unto thee, that after the way which they call heresy, so worship I the God of my fathers, believing all things which are written in the law and in the prophets: Which Hebrews describes as a new and living way, Heb 10:20 By a new and living way, which he hath consecrated for us, through the veil, that is to say, his flesh; The word translated “new” is found only here in the N.T. The original meaning in the Greek was newly slain or freshly slain; just slaughtered It was a term related to religious sacrifices, many have been offered throughout the ages The sacrifice of Jesus was a sacrifice that never existed before, such as had never been offered There had never been such a sacrifice and there will never be another one like it Jesus is the freshly slaughtered sacrifice or the newly slain Savior His blood is as fresh and powerful today as it was 2,000 years ago The blood of Jesus has never lost its freshness or its power and it never will On the day of our individual salvation, it was as Jesus had just died for us, for our sins That is how “new” the blood of Jesus is For any lost sinner at the time of their salvation, His blood is new unto them for new life If someone accepts Jesus as Savior today, it will be as if Jesus has just died for them It will be as though Jesus was just freshly slain, just for them The contrast is not a new way and an old way, the truth is that the new way is the “only way” The old way of sacrifice always pointed to the need of the “new way” Page 4 of 6 Now because of the new way there is no more need of sacrifice and offerings for sin The way into the presence of God is the freshly slain Jesus, which is the “Living Way” The newly slain sacrifice is the fresh sacrifice of today because it is no longer a dead sacrifice The sacrifice of Jesus is alive, the Jesus that died is the Christ that arose from the dead He is not a lifeless sacrifice, He is the Living Lord Sinful man continues to seek another way other than Jesus, which they think is right, Pro 14:12 There is a way which seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death. Which is why Paul says, “they are together become unprofitable” “They are together,” all being the same, they are as one, all alike, all in the same sense In the sense that all humanity is useless, unprofitable, and of no benefit, a very strong statement The meaning is they are unfit for the purpose in which God created mankind All lost sinful humanity has gone wrong and have become unprofitable and worthless They are unprofitable to themselves and to one another because they are unprofitable to God “There is none that doeth good,” absolutely none, not even one, and there are no exceptions Again, Paul refers to that which is written, Psa 53:1 The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God. Corrupt are they, and have done abominable iniquity: there is none that doeth good. Psa 53:3 Every one of them is gone back: they are altogether become filthy; there is none that doeth good, no, not one. Ecc 7:20 For there is not a just man upon earth, that doeth good, and sinneth not. Which is true because they are unprofitable, they are not useful unto God They cannot fulfill God’s purpose for their life, the word good is translated kindness in, Col 3:12 Put on therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, bowels of mercies, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, longsuffering; Good works requires God’s work of salvation in us, Eph 2:10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them. In Christ we are a unique people doing a unique work for God, Tit 2:14 Who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, (unique) zealous of good works. The evidence of “there is none that doeth good, no, not one” is seen on the daily news But can also be seen in the mirror, we must all look in the mirror and agree with Paul We are all included within the none that doeth good, and we must agree with no, not one of us Paul now X rays the lost sinner from head to foot, covering every area of his life Rom 3:13 Their throat is an open sepulchre; with their tongues they have used deceit; the poison of asps is under their lips: Paul is describing to us what God sees in sinful humanity, in order that we might also see it God’s holy eyes are looking upon us, we can see what He sees through His Holy Word Paul explains to us why sinful mankind likes to hear dirty jokes and filthy language That which comes from a rotten heart through a foul, stinking mouth of vulgarity and bitterness The deceit of such words is seen through those who are using the tongue in the same way You can hear the same words come from the mouth of those who are angry or happy “Their throat is an open sepulchre; with their tongues they have used deceit” When I was a child and went to the doctor, he would say, stick out your tongue The first thing he would do is examine your tongue, diagnose you through your tongue The classic on the diagnosis of the tongue is found in James, Jas 3:5 Even so the tongue is a little member, and boasteth great things. Behold, how great a matter a little fire kindleth! Jas 3:6 And the tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity: so is the tongue among our members, that it defileth the whole body, and setteth on fire the course of nature; and it is set on fire of hell. Jas 3:7 For every kind of beasts, and of birds, and of serpents, and of things in the sea, is tamed, and hath been Page 5 of 6 tamed of mankind: Jas 3:8 But the tongue can no man tame; it is an unruly evil, full of deadly poison. Jas 3:9 Therewith bless we God, even the Father; and therewith curse we men, which are made after the similitude of God. Jas 3:10 Out of the same mouth proceedeth blessing and cursing. My brethren, these things ought not so to be. No wonder Paul says, “the poison of asps is under their lips,” the asp was a deadly serpent Psa 140:3 They have sharpened their tongues like a serpent; adders' poison is under their lips. Whose poison was contained under their lips, James said, the tongue is full of deadly poison A good description of daily soap operas and prime time T.V. shows, as well as internet sharing All of which is no longer alley talk but now daily conversation among many people and is deadly Page 6 of 6