And the promised excerpts from Macarthur's Romans Commentary regarding Chapter 3
13 charges against mankind
First, mankind in universally evil, there being absolutely no exceptions.
Second, man is not only universally evil but also spiritually ignorant. Quoting again from Psalms, Paul says "There is none who understands (see Pss. 14:2, 53:3). Even if men somehow had the ability to achieve God's perfect righteousness, they would not know what it is or how to go about attaining it.
In his letter to the Ephesians the apostle Paul points out that man's spiritual ignorance is not due to unfortunate outward circumstances (my note for Jim: this could apply towards the American Indians) or lack of opportunity. It is due solely to his own innate sinful nature that does not WANT to know and understand, much less obey and serve God.
Men are not sinful and hardened against God because they are ignorant of Him, but to the contrary, they are ignorant of Him because of their sinful and hardened disposition. .... He not only does not understand God but has no inclination to do so.
Fallen and condemned man, trapped in his sin, is similarly confused. Because he sees it as a threat to his life-style rather than an eternal blessing, he makes every effort to escape the gospel, which the Lord has so graciously provided for salvation.
Third, in addition to being universally evil and spiritually ignorant, fallen man is rebellious.
But man-made religions are demon-inspired efforts to escape from God, not to find Him. Every person who comes to Jesus Christ for salvation has been sent to Him through the divine intervention of God the Father (John 6:37, 44)
Fourth, Paul charges that men are naturally wayward.
Fifth, Paul charges that the natural man is spiritually worthless.
Sixth, the natural man is charged with being corrupt, which is both a repetition of the first charge and something of a summary of the previous five charges. "There is none who does good," Paul says, "there is not even one."
The seventh charge of Paul's indictment is that by nature fallen mankind is spiritually dead....A spiritually dead heart can generate only spiritually dead words.
The eighth charge is that by nature fallen mankind is deceitful
The ninth charge in Paul's indictment of the unconverted man is closely related to the previous one.
The tenth charge in the indictment continues the imagery of speaking, describing the ungodly as those "whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness."
The eleventh charge is that the ungodly are innately murderous: "their feet are swift to shed blood."
The twelfth charge in the overall indictment, and the second one that is manifested in man's conduct, is that of general destructiveness.
The thirteenth and last of the charges in Paul's indictment of condemned man is that of his peacelessness
Romans 3:21-25a
How to be right with God
The very reason that religion is universally common to mankind reflects man's attempts to answer such questions. As noted in the last chapter, people cannot escape feelings of guilt, not only for doing things they know are wrong but for being the way they are. Man's sense of lostness, loneliness, emptiness, and meaninglessness is reflected in the literature and archaeological remains of every civilization. So are his fear of death, of existence, if any, beyond the grave, and of divine punishment. Nearly every religion is a response to those fears and seeks to offer a way of reaching and satisfying deity. But every religion except Christianity is man-made and works-centered, and for that reason, none of them can succeed in leading a person to God.
Scripture makes clear that there is indeed a way to God, but it is not based on anything men themselves can do to achieve or merit it. Man can be made right with God, but not on his own terms or in his own power. In that basic regard Christianity is distinct from every other religion. As far as the way of salvation is concerned, there are therefore only two religions the world has ever known or will ever know--the religion of divine accomplishment, which is biblical Christianity, and the religion of human achievement, which includes all other kinds of religion, by whatever names they may go under.
Whether he law of God is the Mosaic law of the Jews or the law written in the hearts and consciences of all men, including Gentiles (Rom 2:11-15), obedience to it can never be perfect and therefore can never save. That is a devastating truth to everyone who seeks to please God on his own terms and in his own power--which is why the gospel is so offensive to the natural man.
Hilasterion (propitiation) carries the basic idea of appeasement, or satisfaction. In ancient pagan religions, as in many religions today, the idea of man's appeasing a deity by various gifts or sacrifices was common. But in the New Testament propitiation always refers to the work of God, not of man. Man is utterly incapable of satisfying God's justice except by spending eternity in hell.
The only satisfaction, or propitiation, that could be acceptable to God and that could reconcile Him to man had to be made by God. For that reason, God in human flesh, Jesus Christ, "gave Himself as a ransom for all" (1 Tim 2:6), He appeased the wrath of God.
The Hebrew equivalent of hilasterion is used in the Old Testament in reference to the Mercy Seat in the Holy of Holies, where the high priest went once a year....But the yearly act, although divinely prescribed and honored, had no power to remove or pay the penalty for a single sin. It could only point to the true and effective "offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all...For by one offering He has perfected for all time those who are sanctified" (Heb 10:10, 14)
Romans 3:25b-31
How Christ died for God
The theme of the book of Romans, and the heart of the gospel message, is the doctrine of justification by faith alone in response to God's grace. It is a doctrine that has been lost and found again and again throughout the history of the church. It has suffered from understatement, overstatement, and perhaps most often, simply from neglect. It was the central message of the early church and the central message of the Protestant Reformation, under the godly leadership of men such as Martin Luther and John Calvin. It is still today the central message of every church that is faithful to God's Word. Only when the church understands and proclaims justification by faith can it truly present the gospel of Jesus Christ.
One of the most significant passages that teaches that truth is the present text (Rom 3:25b-31). At first reading this passage seems terribly intricate, complicated, and baffling. But its basic truth is simple, while also being the most profound truth in all of Scripture: Justification for sinful mankind was made possible by God's grace through the death of His Son Jesus Christ on the cross, and it is appropriated by men when they place their trust in Him as Lord and Savior.
The greatest lie in the world, and the lie common to all false religions and cults, is that, by certain works of their own doing, men are able to make themselves acceptable to God. The greatest error in the belief is its sheer impossibility. But the greatest evil of that belief is that it robs God of His glory.
Paul completely cuts the ground out from works righteousness by declaring, "For we maintain that a man is justified by faith apart from works"
First we will consider some things that neither prove nor disprove true faith. Although they will be evident to some degree or another in true believers, they can also be evidenced, sometimes to a high degree, in unbelievers.
First is visible morality. A person can be outwardly moral yet not be saved. Some pagans and cultists put many Christians to shame by their high standards of behavior. When a certain young man came to Jesus and asked, "Teacher, what good thing shall I do that I may obtain eternal life?" Jesus told him to keep the commandments and then proceeded to list some of the major ones. When the man responded, "All these things I have kept," Jesus did not challenge his sincerity. According to outward appearance and his own human perception of obedience, the man probably was speaking the truth. But when Jesus told him to sell all his possessions and give the proceeds to the poor and then "come, follow Me," the man "went away grieved; for he was one who owned much property" (Matt 19:16-22). By his refusal to obey Christ, the man demonstrated that his outward obedience to the law was not done out of love for God or for the purpose of His glory but was done out of self-love and for the purpose of his own self-interest. When commanded to give all of his possessions as well as all of himself to Christ, he refused. And by this refusal, even his seemingly good works were exposed as spiritually worthless works, because they were done out of selfish motivation.
Second, intellectual knowledge of God's truth is not necessarily a proof of saving faith. It is possible to have a great deal of knowledge about God's Word and yet be unsaved.
Third, religious involvement is not necessarily a proof of saving faith.
Fourth, active ministry in Christ's name is no certain proof of saving faith. Outwardly, Judas was as active as any of the other disciples.
Fifth, even conviction of sin does not necessarily demonstrate saving faith. Mental institutions throughout the world are filled with people who are so burdened by their knowledge of their sinfulness that they cannot function in society. Their sense of guilt became so overpowering that it drove them to insanity--but it did not drive them to Jesus Christ.
Sixth, assurance of salvation is not an infallible mark of saving faith. The world is full of people who are sincerely convinced in their own minds that they are right with God and that their place in heaven is secured. If being persuaded that we are Christians makes us Christians indeed, we would need no warnings about being deceived by false hopes. If it were not possible to believe oneself saved when one is not, Satan would have no way to deceive people about their salvation.
Seventh, the experience of a past "decision" for Christ does not necessarily prove saving faith. If no evidence of godly living results form the event...it is no proof of salvation.
There ARE, however, some reliable proof of saving faith. God does not leave His children in uncertainty about their relationship with Him.
The first reliable evidence of saving faith is love for God. The unsaved person cannot love God and has no desire to love Him.
A second reliable evidence of saving faith is repentance from sin and the hatred of it that always accompanies true contrition. The second mark of saving faith is the reverse side of the first. The person who genuinely loves God will have a built-in hatred of sin. It is impossible to love two things that are contradictory of one another. To love the holy and righteous God is, almost by definition, to have a deep abhorrence of sin.
The true believer often hates sin even while he is doing it and ALWAYS after he has done it, because it is completely contrary to his new nature in Christ. Even though a believer's humanness sometimes draws him into sin and, like Paul, he does the very thing he knows he ought not to do (Rom 7:16), he will have no peace of conscience until he repents of it.
If a person's sin does not bother him and increasingly put him under conviction about it, that person's salvation is questionable. The test for true repentance is not simply sorrow....
A third reliable evidence of true faith is genuine humility. A person cannot be saved as long as he trusts and exalts himself.
A fourth reliable evidence of true faith is devotion to God's glory, which is closely related to the love of God and repentance of sin.
A fifth reliable evidence of true faith is prayer. Every genuine Christian will freely admit that he does not pray as often or as earnestly and persistently as he should. But in their innermost being, communion with his heavenly Father will be the desire of his heart.
A sixth mark of saving faith is selfless love, not only for God, as in the first mark, but also for other people, especially fellow Christians.
A seventh mark of saving faith is separation from the world.
An eighth mark of saving faith is spiritual growth.
The ninth and final mark of saving faith is obedient living.
Hebrews 11 makes clear that God's way of salvation by faith alone extended back to the Fall, when the need for salvation began.