Take up Your Cross Blog Forum

A more modern translation of Romans 4.6-8 reads;

“Just as David also speaks of the happiness of the man to whom God counts righteousness apart from works: “Happy are those whose lawless deeds have been pardoned and whose sins have been covered; happy is the man whose sin God will by no means take into account.”

Those verses, and that whole chapter of Romans is very complex. After giving it much thought and prayer, I understand Paul's words like this;

Under the Mosaic law, people had to offer physical sacrifices, the blood of animals, to “Atone for sins.” This was in recognition of their imperfect (sinful) condition. However, Jesus “Fulfilled the law” meaning that Christians were no longer under it's obligation. But this didn't mean that they are not sinners. Paul tells us, under inspiration, that “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3.23). Paul included himself in this, even after his appointment by Christ, when he wrote “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners. Of these, I am foremost.” (1 Timothy 1.15). Note that Paul says “am” not “was”! There is a common belief among many believers that someone who accepts Jesus is “Once saved, always saved,” but those words are not actually in the Bible. During the “Reformation”, Protestant leaders added words to the Bible, for example they added the word “alone” to Paul's words – making him say that we are saved by “faith alone.” But Paul never said that. James reminds us that our faith should naturally inspire good deeds (works) when he says “Faith without works is dead” (James 2.17). However, that does not mean that we can earn salvation through our deeds. God's gifts, including everlasting life, are just that – gifts “Undeserved kindness” or “grace.”

So what then does Paul mean by God counting people righteous by faith, not works? The interesting word used in that scripture is “counting.” This is the Greek verb “lo·gi′zo·mai” - “count.” Jesus used the same word, but in a different context when he said that people could be “reckoned (lo·gi′zo·mai), with the lawless ones” (Luke 22.37). This word is an numerical term, as used in accountancy. Human beings owe God an enormous debt, not just for life and all good things but, for the sins we commit on an almost daily basis, We can't pay that debt, it's too big. The scripture at Psalm 49.7-9 says “ None of them can ever redeem a brother, or give to God a ransom for him, (The ransom price for their life is so precious that it is always beyond their reach;) That he should live forever and not see the pit.” However, if we accept Jesus' life and blood, and we put faith in him, God can “count” it as righteousness, as if he is crediting a large sum to our life account. Then, when Jesus judges the world, all those who have shown faith in Jesus, will receive the full value of his ransom, paying the full debt to God, and they will have the opportunity to never die. I heard an excellent illustration of this recently - Ransoms are sums of money exchanged for a prisoner or kidnap victim. But sometimes a ransom exchange can be a prisoner swap, like nations handing over political prisoners. That is similar to what Jesus has done for all of us. We are prisoners to “The last enemy - death." But Jesus has exchanged himself, someone perfect and undeserving of death, for us - prisoners on death row.

But Jesus warned his disciples that only “He that endures to the end is the one that will be saved.” Paul expands on this when he says to anointed Christians “For as regards those who were once enlightened and who have tasted the heavenly free gift and who have become partakers of holy spirit and who have tasted the fine word of God and powers of the coming system of things, but have fallen away, it is impossible to revive them again to repentance, because they nail the Son of God to the stake again for themselves and expose him to public shame” (Hebrews 6.4-6).

So, even someone who has accepted Jesus, and received the holy spirit, can turn away and lose salvation – a warning to us all!