ARE YOU SAVED?

Background Passage: ROMANS 3:21-4:25

Lesson Passage:ROMANS 3:21-28; 4:1-2,18-25

A PERSON RECEIVES SALVATION ONLY BY TRUSTING IN JESUS CHRIST.

KEY BIBLE VERSE: ROMANS 3:28

Barbara had a problem with her heart, but she didn't know it. She considered herself to be in excellent health, so the thought of a heart problem had never crossed her mind. That's why the news about her problem shocked her when her doctor discovered it during a routine physical examination..

At first she couldn't accept what he had told her. Her heart had always been fine, she thought to herself, so her doctor must have been mistaken. She got another opinion, which only confirmed what her doctor had discovered. Finally convinced she had a problem, she began to address it by making an appointment to see a heart specialist.

People everywhere have the same deep ]spiritual problem, but many of them don't know it. They can't accept the fact that they need to give themselves to Christ A Christian's testimony about being saved through faith in Christ, however, can convince them to trust Him for their salvation.

Throughout his letter to the Christians in Rome, Paul assured us that anyone who places his or her trust in Christ will be saved. In this week's portion of Romans, Paul testified that addressing our deepest spiritual problem means trusting in Jesus Christ Studying the passage will encourage us to share our testimonies about how Jesus saved us when we placed our trust in Him.

BACKGROUND PASSAGE OVERVIEW

Paul wrote that everyone has sinned against God. But God has done something to make us right with Him. He gave us the free gift of salvation through Jesus Christ He sets us free when we believe in Christ, who died for us. By allowing Christ to die for us, god has done what's necessary to remove our sins from His presence. That's why Christ's death makes us right with God once and for all.

Because our salvation comes from God alone through Christ, we cannot boast about anything we did to make ourselves right with God. We can't do anything to earn our salvation. The same reality applies to everyone in the world. No one earns his or her salvation by being good or doing religious things. God saves us when we respond to Him in faith. That's the only way we will ever experience His pardon for our sins.

Abraham did not have any reason to brag about his salvation. He was right with God, but not because he was circumcised. Abraham responded to God by trusting Him, not by trying to be good or to be religious. When he trusted God, he was made right with God.

In His grace, God made Abraham a promise. Abraham and his descendants would inherit the world, but not because they were religious or because they were devoted to doing things for God. Abraham was convinced that God would keep His promise. Accordingly, Abraham believed in God and glorified God with his life of faith.

The walk of faith that characterized Abraham's life is still the standard for us too. If we place our trust in God through the resurrected Christ, God will make us right with Him. Jesus alone died to pay the price for our sins, and He rose from the grave to grant us God's pardon.

In these verses Paul showed us that being good or doing religious things cannot save anyone. Salvation is a gift from God that we receive only through faith in Jesus Christ

STUDY QUESTIONS 1.What did Paul mean when he wrote that God justifies us?(Romans 3:24)
2.Why did Paul say that boasting about our salvation is excluded?(3:27)
3.Why is Jesus Christ the focus of our faith?(4:25)

SALVATION: GOD OFFERS IT ( ROMANS 3:21-26)

Romans 3 21 But now the righteousness of God without the law is manifested, being witnessed by the law and the prophets;
22 Even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe: for there is no difference:
23 For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;
24 Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus:
25 Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God;
26 To declare, I say, at this time his righteousness: that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus.

VERSES 21-22 ~ Paul had been writing about people who tried to keep the law because they thought it would save them from God's judgment. As Paul explained, the law showed them their sin, but it couldn't save them (3:20). But now God has shown His way to be saved. His righteousness, His way of making people right with Him, comes faith in Christ Jesus. Trusting Jesus can save us, not trying to keep the law.

VERSE 23 When we attempt to be right with God on our own, we always fall short. And we are not alone. All people everywhere fail in their efforts to work into the glory of God all by themselves. The reason is simple. In spite of our best efforts to gain God's favor, we cannot ignore the hard reality that all of us have sinned against Him.

VERSE 24 ~ As a stark contrast to our failed efforts to earn God's favor, Paul brought up God's free gift. In His grace, God took the initiative to do something about our sin. He made it possible for us to be justified. In other words, God forged a way to pardon or forgive us. (See study question 1). His way allows us to experience spiritual redemption, which is liberty at a price. We can be set free from our slavery to sin because Jesus Christ paid the price for our liberty.

VERSES 25-26 ~ God also expressed His grace in the way He presented Jesus to be a propitiation for us. In other words, Jesus has turned away God's wrath. As Paul had written earlier, all of us can expect the wrath. As Paul had written earlier, all of us can expect the wrath of God because of our sin (1:18; 2:5-11). Nothing but Jesus' death for our sin could remove it from God's presence. Wi9th our sin removed, God's wrath can be turned away. God can declare us righteous because of what He did for us through Jesus Christ.

SALVATION: WE CANNOT BRAG ABOUT IT (ROMANS 3:27-28; 4:1-2)

Romans 3 27 Where is boasting then? It is excluded. By what law? of works? Nay: but by the law of faith.
28 Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith without the deeds of the law.

Romans 4
1 What shall we say then that Abraham our father, as pertaining to the flesh, hath found?
2 For if Abraham were justified by works, he hath whereof to glory; but not before God.

CHAPTER 3, VERSE 27 ~ A diploma is proof that you have earned an academic degree. If you are proud of your degree, you may frame your diploma and mount it on a prominent wall in your home or workplace. People who see it know that you are proud of your academic achievement.

Many people would consider salvation something to be earned. Once they earn it, they can brag about their spiritual achievement. But god's free gift of salvation through Christ leaves no room for boasting among the people who have received it. Boasting is excluded because we didn't do anything to earn our salvation. (See study question 2) It's not something we can work to achieve like a degree. Rather, it's a gift we receive by faith in Christ

VERSE 28 ~ As Paul wrote about being saved, or being justified, he separated God's gift of salvation by faith from salvations that's earned by works of the law. Paul set trusting Jesus Christ to save us completely apart from doing things to earn our salvation..

CHAPTER 4, VERSE 1 ~ To make sure we understand that being saved leaves no room for boasting, Paul directed our attention to Abraham. The Jewish people in Paul's day considered Abraham to be their forefather. By pointing out the importance of faith in Abraham's story, Paul underscored the necessity of trusting in Jesus in order to be saved.

VERSE 2 ~ Abraham demonstrated by his life that salvation cannot be earned. If he had earned his right to have a personal relationship with God, he could have bragged about it to everyone. Before God, however, he had no reason for boasting. As his story demonstrates, Abraham had a personal relationship with God, but not because he worked for it. Therefore, he couldn't boast about it.

Like Abraham, we cannot brag about being saved. We could never do enough to earn it. Rather, salvation is God's free gift to us, a gift we receive through Jesus Christ

Since salvation is God's free gift to us through Jesus Christ, how can we receive it? Throughout his letter, Paul gave the same answer. We receive it by trusting in Jesus Christ

SALVATION: WE RECEIVE IT BY FAITH (ROMANS 4:18-25)

18 Who against hope believed in hope, that he might become the father of many nations, according to that which was spoken, So shall thy seed be.
19 And being not weak in faith, he considered not his own body now dead, when he was about an hundred years old, neither yet the deadness of Sara's womb:
20 He staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith, giving glory to God;
21 And being fully persuaded that, what he had promised, he was able also to perform.
22 And therefore it was imputed to him for righteousness.
23 Now it was not written for his sake alone, that it was imputed to him;
24 But for us also, to whom it shall be imputed, if we believe on him that raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead;
25 Who was delivered for our offenses, and was raised again for our justification.

VERSES 18-19 ~ Paul gave an example of trusting in the Lord by referring to a critical period in Abraham's life. God had promised Abraham and Sarah that they would have a son (Gen 17-18). Fulfilling that promise would be necessary for Abraham to be the father of many nations. But Sarah and Abraham were too old to have children. The situation looked hopeless, but Abraham continued to believe in God.

VERSES 20-21 ~ Abraham's trust in God left him fully convinced that God would give him and Sarah a son. He rested in the certainty that God would fulfill His promise.

VERSES 22-23 ~ How did God respond to Abraham's trust in Him? He credited, or regarded, Abraham as being a person who was right with Him. Abraham's faith opened the door to a personal relationship with God.

VERSE 24 ~ The good news is that our faith in Jesus to save us can make us right with God too. As we trust in Him, the door between us and God can be unlocked and opened wide. God allowed Jesus to die on the cross, but He didn't allow Him to remain in the grave. The resurrection of Christ from the dead is the eternal focal point of God's great gift of salvation.

VERSE 25 ~ Jesus Christ is the focus of our faith because of what He did for us. He died for us, and He rose from the grave for us. Through His death, our sin can be forgiven. Because of His resurrection, we can be pardoned. (See study question 3).

God's gift of salvation is available to anyone who will trust in Christ Just as Abraham entrusted his life to the Lord, you can give your life to Jesus in the full assurance that He will save you. You can't earn His salvation. However, you can receive it as a gift if you place your faith in Christ

WHAT ABOUT YOU?

As you have studied this portion of Paul's letter, perhaps God has spoken to you about your need to be saved. Before you encountered the truth about your situation through this Bible passage, you may have considered yourself to be in good spiritual shape. But now, after reading God's Word, your eyes have been opened to the reality that you need to receive the gift of God's salvation. How can you be saved?.

* Agree with God that He has done everything necessary to make salvation possible for you.
* Agree with God that you can't work your way into a personal relationship with Him.
* Believe that God sent His Son, Jesus Christ, to die to forgive you; and Christ rose from the grave to pardon you.
* Place your trust in Christ.

If you have already received God's gift of salvation, God may be prompting you to testify about how you placed your faith in Christ He may be stirring you to share your faith at work, at school, or at home. You may never know the impact of your testimony on someone who needs to be saved.

*Pray for opportunities to share your testimony.
*Pray for courage to testify about your faith in Christ
*Pray for God to enable you to share your testimony in a way that will help someone be saved.