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“Let us look at what the Word of God says.”
> “For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;
> Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus:
> 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;
> To declare, I say, at this time his righteousness:
> that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus.”
> — Romans 3:23–26 (KJV)
The central theme is this: the righteousness of God revealed in the gospel. Not the righteousness of man, not religious effort, not human morality, but the righteousness that comes from God, on the basis of faith, through the blood of Jesus Christ.
The lyrics you have given are almost a compressed paraphrase of Paul’s argument:
We have three great realities:
1. The universal problem: all have sinned.
2. The divine solution: justified freely by his grace.
3. The revealed purpose: to demonstrate his righteousness.
We need to see that clearly. God is not improvising. The cross is not an emergency measure. It is God’s planned, righteous way of saving sinners without compromising His own justice.
Romans is Paul’s great systematic presentation of the gospel. The early chapters (1–3) are like a courtroom scene.
Paul writes to believers in Rome—Jews and Gentiles together—in a city that was the center of political power and human pride. Rome represented what man could achieve by his own strength: empire, law, culture, military might. Paul confronts this with the spiritual reality: even at its best, man falls short of the glory of God.
The passage Romans 3:23–26 sits at the turning point of the argument:
Paul is explaining how God can justify the ungodly without ceasing to be righteous Himself. This was a problem that had to be answered:
The answer: the cross of Jesus Christ. God set forth Jesus as a propitiation—a sacrifice that satisfies His righteousness. The cross is the public demonstration that God is perfectly righteous while He justifies those who believe.
So when the lyrics say, “He did this to demonstrate his righteousness,” they are touching the very heart of Paul’s argument. The cross is not only for our benefit; it is for the vindication of God’s own righteousness in the sight of the universe.
Let us focus on two key words: “justified” and “propitiation / sacrifice of atonement.”
### 1. “Justified” – *dikaioō* (δικαιόω)
Romans 3:24: “and all are justified freely by his grace…”
The Greek verb *dikaioō* does not primarily mean “to make righteous” in the sense of moral transformation. It is a legal term. It means:
It is the opposite of “to condemn.” In a law court, a judge justifies the righteous and condemns the wicked. So “justified” relates to our legal standing before God, not first to our inward character (that is the work of sanctification, which follows).
This means:
Not because we have never sinned, but because our guilt has been placed on Jesus, and His righteousness has been imputed to us. The righteousness is not earned; it is credited.
Romans 4:5:
> “But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness.”
God justifies the ungodly—not the religious, not the self-righteous—but those who come with nothing but faith in Christ.
### 2. “Propitiation / Sacrifice of Atonement” – *hilastērion* (ἱλαστήριον)
Romans 3:25: “Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood…”
The Greek word is *hilastērion*. This is a very significant word. In the Greek translation of the Old Testament (the Septuagint), *hilastērion* is used for the mercy seat—the cover of the Ark of the Covenant in the Holy of Holies, where the high priest sprinkled the blood once a year on the Day of Atonement (Leviticus 16).
The mercy seat was:
So when Paul calls Jesus the *hilastērion*, he is saying:
“Propitiation” means a sacrifice that turns away wrath by satisfying the demands of justice. God’s wrath is not a loss of temper. It is His settled, righteous opposition to sin. The blood of Jesus satisfies that righteous requirement.
This deepens our understanding of the lyrics:
> “God presented him as a sacrifice of atonement, through the shedding of his blood—to be received by faith.”
God Himself “presented” (or “set forth”) Jesus as the mercy seat, the place where wrath is turned away and mercy is released, on the basis of blood received by faith.
Let us walk through the themes of the lyrics in the light of Scripture.
### A. “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” (Verse 1 & Outro)
Romans 3:23 states a universal, non-negotiable fact:
> “For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God.”
Three vital truths here:
1. All have sinned
No race, no culture, no class, no religious group is exempt.
Romans 3:10: “There is none righteous, no, not one.”
Sin is not only what we do; it is what we are by nature—rebels, self-centered, independent of God.
2. Sin is measured against the glory of God
The standard is not other people. The standard is the glory (Greek *doxa*) of God—His radiant moral perfection. Compared to that glory, we all “fall short,” we lack, we are deficient.
3. Sin is falling short
The phrase “fall short” (Greek *hysterountai*) means to lack, to be behind, to be destitute of. We are not simply a little below the standard. We are totally lacking the glory required.
This demolishes human pride, religious boasting, self-righteousness. There is no “good person” by nature when measured by the glory of God. The first step to righteousness is to accept this verdict: I am a sinner; I fall short of God’s glory.
Psalm 51:5:
> “Behold, I was shapen in iniquity; and in sin did my mother conceive me.”
The scope of sin is universal; the depth of sin is internal.
### B. “And all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.” (Chorus)
Romans 3:24:
> “Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.”
Here is the divine answer to universal sin:
1. “Justified” – declared righteous in God’s court.
2. “Freely” – Greek *dorean* = as a gift, without cost, without payment from our side.
The same word is used in John 15:25: “They hated me without a cause (*dorean*).”
We could say: We are justified “without a cause” in us—no merit, no worthiness, purely of God’s grace.
3. “By his grace” – Grace (*charis*) is God’s unmerited favor, His active inclination to do us good, entirely apart from our deserving.
Ephesians 2:8–9:
> “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:
> Not of works, lest any man should boast.”
4. “Through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus” – Redemption (*apolytrōsis*) means:
We were not simply guilty; we were enslaved—under sin, under Satan, under the curse, under death. A ransom had to be paid. That ransom is the precious blood of Christ.
1 Peter 1:18–19:
> “Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold…
> But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot.”
So the chorus proclaims the central truth of the gospel:
### C. “God presented him as a sacrifice of atonement, through the shedding of his blood—to be received by faith.” (Verse 2)
Romans 3:25a:
> “Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood…”
Notice:
1. God presented him
The initiative is entirely God’s. Calvary is not man’s attempt to reach God; it is God’s act to reach man.
2 Corinthians 5:19:
> “God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself…”
2. As a sacrifice of atonement / propitiation (*hilastērion*)
Jesus is both:
3. Through the shedding of his blood
There is no atonement without blood.
Hebrews 9:22:
> “And almost all things are by the law purged with blood; and without shedding of blood is no remission.”
The blood is the life poured out. Sin incurs the penalty of death. The only righteous payment is life for life. Jesus, the sinless Son of God, offers His life. He becomes our substitute.
Isaiah 53:5–6:
> “But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities…
> and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.”
4. To be received by faith
The blood is objectively powerful, but it must be subjectively appropriated by faith. The Israelites in Egypt were safe not merely because the lamb was slain, but because its blood was applied to their doorposts (Exodus 12). Many Christians believe in the historical fact of the cross but never apply the blood to their own lives by faith and confession.
Romans 5:9:
> “Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him.”
Faith in His blood means:
Revelation 12:11:
> “And they overcame him [Satan] by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony…”
### D. “He did this to demonstrate his righteousness…” (Bridge)
Romans 3:25b–26:
> “…to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God;
> To declare, I say, at this time his righteousness: that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus.”
Two times Paul uses the expression “to demonstrate / declare his righteousness” (*endeixis tēs dikaiosynēs autou*). Why?
Because throughout history:
How can He forgive and still be righteous? The answer is that all past and future forgiveness was on credit, anticipating the cross.
Isaiah 53:10:
> “Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin…”
So the cross has a twofold declaration:
1. It demonstrates that God is just.
He does not simply pardon; He punishes sin—either in the sinner or in the substitute. At the cross, sin is punished fully in the substitute.
2. It demonstrates that God is the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.
God can now righteously acquit the guilty, because the penalty has been paid by another.
This is the great tension resolved: God is both just and justifier. He does not compromise one attribute to exercise another.
The lyrics of the bridge capture this:
“He did this to demonstrate his righteousness, because in his forbearance he had left the sins committed beforehand unpunished.”
The cross is the public manifestation of God’s justice in the moral universe.
### E. The Repeated Chorus
The repetition of the chorus in the lyrics mirrors the emphasis of the gospel: every part comes back to this refrain:
> “And all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.”
For spiritual warfare and deliverance, this is crucial. Satan is “the accuser of the brethren” (Revelation 12:10). His chief weapon is guilt. He operates in the realm of law, accusation, and condemnation. The antidote is this revelation:
When that is believed and confessed, Satan’s accusations lose their legal ground.
Doctrine must become experience. The righteousness of God must not remain a theory but become the basis of your daily walk, your warfare, and your relationship with God.
Here are four practical steps.
### 1. Acknowledge God’s Verdict About Your Sin
First, we must accept God’s diagnosis without defense.
1 John 1:8–9:
> “If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.
> If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”
The word “confess” (*homologeō*) means “to say the same as.” You say about your sin what God says.
### 2. Place Your Whole Trust in the Blood of Jesus
Second, we must transfer our confidence from ourselves to Christ.
Romans 5:1:
> “Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.”
Make deliberate, spoken declarations about the blood. For example: “Through the blood of Jesus, I am justified, made righteous, just as if I had never sinned.”
### 3. Confess God’s Righteous Verdict Over Your Life
Third, we must agree with God’s declaration of righteousness.
Justification is a verdict in the highest court. Satan will try to appeal that verdict in your conscience and emotions. You must hold fast your confession.
Hebrews 10:23:
> “Let us hold fast the profession [confession] of our faith without wavering; (for he is faithful that promised;)”
When accused, speak the Word:
Spiritual warfare is fought largely in the realm of words. You overcome the accuser “by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of your testimony.”
### 4. Walk in the Freedom and Responsibility of Righteousness
Fourth, we must live in a way that corresponds to the righteousness given to us.
Justification is not a license to sin. It is the foundation for a new life.
Romans 6:11–13:
> “Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord.
> Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body…
> Neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin:
> but yield yourselves unto God, as those that are alive from the dead…”
Because we are justified:
The righteousness revealed is not only a legal status but a call to holy living, empowered by the Holy Spirit.
Titus 2:11–12:
> “For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men,
> Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts,
> we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world.”
Grace that justifies also trains us to live righteously.
### Proclamation
Make this declaration aloud, thoughtfully, and with faith:
> I proclaim that all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and that includes me.
> I confess that I have no righteousness of my own.
> But I also proclaim that I am justified freely by God’s grace,
> through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.
> God has presented Jesus as my sacrifice of atonement,
> and I receive this by faith in His blood.
> The blood of Jesus has paid for all my sins, past, present, and future.
> God has demonstrated His righteousness at the cross.
> He is just, and He is my justifier, because I believe in Jesus.
> Through the blood of Jesus I am justified, made righteous,
> just as if I had never sinned.
> There is now no condemnation for me,
> because I am in Christ Jesus.
> Amen.
### Prayer
Lord God,
I bow before the authority of Your Word. I acknowledge that I have sinned and that I fall short of Your glory. I confess that I cannot save myself, and that all my own righteousness is as filthy rags before You.
I thank You that You loved me so much that You presented Jesus as a sacrifice of atonement for my sin. I thank You for the blood of Jesus, shed on the cross, that fully satisfies Your justice and turns away Your wrath.
Father, I choose now to put my whole trust in the blood of Jesus. I renounce all confidence in my own works, my religion, my efforts. I receive, by faith, Your verdict of justification. Thank You that in Christ You declare me righteous. Thank You that You are both just and my justifier.
Holy Spirit, write these truths deep in my heart. Teach me to walk daily in the freedom of justification and in the reality of righteousness. Strengthen me to resist every accusation of Satan with the blood of the Lamb and the word of my testimony. Enable me to live a life that reflects the righteousness that has been given to me in Christ.
I ask this in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Amen.
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