Session 4: The Gift of By Bryan Kessler

In the last session, having navigated through Romans 1-3, we looked at God's wrath, our sins being imputed to on the cross, Jesus as our atonement and propitiation, and the liberating truths of the finished work of the cross, such as the complete forgiveness of our sins, a cleansed conscious, victory over the devil's accusations, and freedom from condemnation, wrath, punishment, and anger.

Now we are ready to discuss Romans 4-5 as we study the gift of righteousness in this session and in the next session. Before we get started, however, there is a vital truth that we need to understand first if we want to fully comprehend the gift of righteousness and that is our union with Christ.

Our Position In Christ

Paul used the phrase "in Christ" 84 times in his epistles, underscoring the importance of this essential truth. Yet many believers can't accurately articulate what it means to be in Christ. Without a firm grasp of this vital concept, understanding the gospel, especially as it is revealed in the book of Romans, is difficult. Therefore, let's spend some time looking at what it means to be in Christ.

To begin, we have to realize that Paul's audience was very familiar with covenant, for covenant was a common way of securing alliances, pacts, and treaties in the first century. Because of this common method of binding two parties together, Paul did not have to explain covenant terms to his readers. He used covenant terms freely, without explanation, because his audience understood what he was talking about.

For us in the western world who are unfamiliar with covenants and covenant concepts, it can be difficult understanding the truth Paul was trying to convey. To help us see this, let's suppose that we reverse the roles and Paul steps into the twenty-first century. Someone hands him a popular Christian book, and as he begins to read, Paul gets hung up on the phrase, "If you Google 'the book of Romans', you will see hundreds of resources and commentaries that will give you insight into this book." As you can imagine, Paul would have to put the book down and ask his host, "What does it mean to Google?" Paul's host would then proceed to tell him, "Oh, Google is just a search engine that you can use to quickly find things on the internet." To which Paul would respond, "What is the internet?" The host would reply, "Oh, the internet is a vast network of connected computers that serve up information, such as the news, maps, and the weather." And Paul would look at his host with a confused look and ask, "What is a computer?" The host would respond, "Oh, a computer is a device that runs on electricity and allows you to type documents, send email, and create videos?" To which Paul would ask, "What is electricity, what is email, and what are videos?"

To us in the twenty-first century, almost everyone understands what it means to "Google," so an author would not have spend time explaining search engines, the internet, and computers to the reader. Yet for someone like Paul who lived in the first century, it would take at least 6 months of extensive training to help him understand one phrase that we are so familiar with. The same is true when Paul used the phrase "in Christ" 84 times in his epistles. To Paul and his audience, this covenant concept of being "in" a representative was so familiar that he did not have to explain what he meant by "in Christ." To us in the

1 twenty-first century, however, especially if we live in the western world where the only covenant that we are familiar with is the covenant of marriage, this covenant concept can create confusion.

Though a detailed explanation of covenant is beyond the scope of this class, let's quickly look at what a covenant is and then focus on an important step in covenant making, the selection of a covenant representative, for this will help us fully grasp what it means to be in Christ (For more information about covenant, please refer to the Lifeschool class Understanding Your Inheritance in Christ).

The word “covenant” is used approximately three hundred times in the Bible. It is a concept that permeates both the Old and New Testaments and is a central theme throughout Scripture. In fact, what we normally call the Old Testament and New Testament should be translated as the Old Covenant and New Covenant. The covenant is so important that it separates two dispensations in the Bible!

A covenant is a formal, solemn, and binding agreement that joins two parties together as one. A covenant is often secured by a blood sacrifice and unites two parties together based upon a common agreement, often extending to future generations. Whenever a covenant was cut between two parties, a covenant representative was always selected on behalf of each group. These representatives entered the covenant on behalf of everyone in their party and would thus bind the entire group to the expectations of the covenant agreement. Everyone who belonged to a particular party was considered to be "in" its representative, so that everything the representative did and agreed to in making the covenant would be imputed to each member of the group.

For example, let's suppose that the Zata tribe, renowned for its strength, valor, and cutting- edge tactics in warfare, wanted to cut covenant with the Zoe tribe, famous for their farming practices. The covenant between the two tribes consists of the Zatas agreeing to protect and defend the Zoes from enemy attack and the Zoes agreeing to train the Zatas in the art of agriculture. To begin the covenant ceremony, a representative is selected from the Zata tribe and the Zoe tribe. To signify their vow to protect every member of the Zoe tribe from enemy attacks, the representative from the Zata tribe hands the representative from the Zoe tribe a sword. Likewise, to show their commitment to train the Zatas in farming, the representative from the Zoe tribe gives the representative from the Zata tribe a stalk of corn. Though each member of the Zata and Zoe tribe did not directly cut covenant with each other, they are treated as if they were "in" their representative when the covenant was enacted. That is, each member of the Zata tribe is reckoned to have received the stalk of corn and each member of the Zoe tribe is reckoned to have received the sword because they were considered to be "in" their representative when the covenant was cut. Since the individual members of each tribe were "in" their representative and the agreement of the covenant was imputed to them, everyone in the Zata tribe can call on their covenant partners to help them farm and everyone in the Zoe tribe can call on their covenant partners to help them fight their enemies.

Once again, we see the concept of imputation, for everything that the covenant representative does and agrees to in the covenant ceremony is imputed to every member of their tribe because they are considered to be "in" their representative. Thus, whatever the covenant representative does and agrees to in the covenant ceremony is reckoned to be what every individual member of the tribe has done and agreed to.

Being fully God, Jesus was the representative of the Father in the New Covenant. Being fully man, Jesus was also the representative of humanity in the New Covenant. It is important for us to understand that the New Covenant was not cut between God and you or God and

2 me; it was cut between and . We then enter into the New Covenant, which was cut over two-thousand years ago, when we are .

Just as Abraham was Israel’s representative in the Abrahamic Covenant, Jesus was humanity's representative in the New Covenant. In the same way Abraham’s descendents shared in the blessings of Abraham by being in him, believers partake in the blessings of the New Covenant by being in Christ. In a manner parallel to the Old Testament saints entering the Abrahamic Covenant through circumcision, we enter into the New Covenant that was cut with Jesus by faith through the circumcision of the heart when we are born again (Rom. 2:29).

In the book of Romans, Paul emphasized this theme of us being in our covenant representative, Jesus Christ, the moment we are born again and thus partaking of all that Jesus is and accomplished in securing the New Covenant on the cross. For example, Paul said that we "have become united with Him in the likeness of His death" and that we were "joined to another, to Him who was raised from the dead" (Rom. 6:3-5; 7:4). So how are we united with Christ and joined to Him? The easiest way to answer this question is to highlight what happened when we were born again. When God saved us and put His Spirit within us, our spirit became new and was joined to the . Paul said, "But the one who joins himself to is one spirit with Him" (1 Cor. 6:17). Pause for a moment and meditate upon this glorious truth. We are one spirit with the Holy Spirit.

The Holy Spirit is the One in Genesis who executed the commands of Jesus to create the heavens and the earth (Gen. 1:2; Col. 1:15-16). He is the One who formed the sun, the moon, and the stars out of nothing in obedience to the Son's directives. He created the dry land, the oceans, the mountains, and the rivers. He made the earth and the universe in stunning beauty. This same Spirit who created the earth and the galaxies lives within every born-again believer. The same Spirit who impregnated the virgin Mary and raised Jesus from the dead dwells inside of us. Our spirit is now one with the Holy Spirit.

Think about it this way. Let's say that you like instant coffee and fix a cup for yourself every morning. You begin by boiling hot water and pouring the coffee granules and two teaspoons of sugar into a cup. When the water is ready, you pour it into the cup and then the water, the coffee, and the sugar are blended together. Mixing in some half-and-half, the individual ingredients have become one, so that now you cannot separate the coffee, the sugar, the water, or the half-and-half. They are permanently one. In a similar way, our spirit became one with the Holy Spirit when we were born again, so that now it is impossible to separate our spirit from Him. We are inseparably joined, spirit-to-Spirit, to the God who created the universe, impregnated a virgin, and raised the Son of God from the dead.

The Holy Spirit is "the Spirit of Christ" (Rom. 8:9), which means that through the Holy Spirit, Christ dwells in us (Col. 1:27). And if Christ dwells in us and we are joined to Him Spirit-to-spirit, we are also in Him. Paul said, "But by His doing you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, and righteousness and , and redemption" (1 Cor. 1:30). We are in Christ by God's doing. It is impossible for us to be in Christ through our own self-efforts or law keeping. We are in Christ by God's doing when He saved us and put His Spirit within us. Now, because Christ lives within me through the Holy Spirit and my spirit is joined to Him spirit-to-Spirit, He is in me and I am in Him. Jesus taught the very same thing about how He and the Father were one. He said that the Father was in Him and that therefore He was in the Father (John 14:11 17:21, 23). In the same way, because Christ is in me, I am in Him.

Now that we are in Christ, just like a marriage between a man and a woman, everything that is ours becomes His and everything that is His becomes ours. When you get married,

3 everything that you have belongs to your spouse and everything that your spouse has belongs to you, whether good things like a large bank account, nice cars, and a beautiful house or things that you would rather not have, such as debt, a difficult family, or a smelly dog. The covenant of marriage joins two people together as one and results in an exchange whereby everything from each partner belongs to the other. The same is true in our union with Christ. Paul said that when God put us supernaturally into Christ then Christ became to us wisdom, righteousness, sanctification, and redemption (1 Cor. 1:30). That is, everything that Jesus is or has experienced became ours as well.

This concept of being joined to our covenant representative Jesus Christ, whereby what is of us is transferred to Him and what is of Him is transferred to us, is detailed throughout the book of Romans. It revolves around the covenant concept of imputation by representation. Because we are joined to Christ and are in Him through His indwelling Spirit, we are considered to be in our covenant representative. As a result, everything which belongs to us, namely our sins, is imputed to Jesus and everything which belongs to Jesus is imputed to us. In the book of Romans, Paul highlighted several things which are imputed to us because we are in Christ. Some of these are:

1. The punishment, wrath, and condemnation that Jesus experienced on the cross, so that in Christ, we are reckoned to have already had our sins punished, judged, and condemned (Rom. 3:25; 8:1-3);

2. Jesus' crucifixion, death, and burial, so that in Christ, we are reckoned to have been crucified, to have died, and to have been buried with Him, so that now we are considered to have died to sin and to the Law (Rom. 6:2-11; 7:1-6);

3. Jesus' righteousness, so that in Christ, we are reckoned to be as legally righteous as Christ before the Supreme Court of heaven (Rom. 4:3-5; 4:22-24; 5:12-21).

We looked at the first act of imputation in the last session. We will focus on the second act of imputation in Session 6 when we talk about our deliverance from sin and in Session 9 when we talk about our deliverance from the Law. In this session, let's concentrate on the third act of imputation whereby Jesus' righteousness is imputed to us, so that in Christ, we are reckoned to be as legally righteous as Christ before the Supreme Court of heaven.

The Gift of Righteousness

Paul said, "For if by the transgression of the one, death reigned through the one, much more those who receive the abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness will reign in life through the One, Jesus Christ" (Rom. 5:17). This verse is packed with powerful truth, but for right now, let's just focus on "the gift of righteousness."

Reading carefully through Romans, we see that Paul had two things in mind when he wrote about "the gift of righteousness." First, Paul taught that the impeccable righteousness of Christ, as He obeyed the Law perfectly as a Man, was imputed to all who are in Him, so that we become righteous, not by what we do or how well we obey, but because of the flawless obedience of Christ. Because we are in Christ, His righteousness is imputed to us so that we are reckoned, before the Supreme Court of heaven, to be as righteous as Him. Paul wrote about this in 2 Corinthians 5:21: "He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him." Here we see the concept of double imputation. Our sins were imputed to Christ, so that God dealt with Christ as if He were a depraved sinner, even though He wasn't; and Christ's perfect righteousness was imputed to

4 us, so that God treats us as if we have impeccable obedience to His commandments, even though we don't.

Not only has the righteousness of Christ been imputed to us, but secondly, His righteousness has been imparted to us. Before showing this in Scripture, let's take a step back and differentiate between impute and impart. To impute is to transfer responsibility, blame, or righteousness to someone, because of a relationship, so that the receiving party is treated as if responsible, guilty, or acquitted, even though they are not. To impart, on the other hand, is to transfer something, such as wisdom, a skill, or a gift, so that the object transferred becomes a part of the one who received it. For example, when someone imparts knowledge to me, I then possess that knowledge. When someone imparts a skill to me, then I can use that skill apart from the person who trained me. The key difference between impute and impart is that the object imparted becomes part of the one who receives it, so that they now posses what they lacked before, whereas the imputed object does not belong to the recipient, even though they are treated legally as if it did. For example, when Christ's righteousness is imputed to us, God deals with us as if we are righteous even though we are not. When Christ's righteousness is imparted to us, we actually possess in our DNA His very own righteousness, so that we are actually righteous.

Imparted righteousness is what Paul had in mind when he stated, "If Christ is in you, though the body is dead because of sin, yet the spirit is alive because of righteousness" (Rom. 8:10). When we are born again and Christ comes to dwell within us, our spirit is made alive because His righteousness is imparted to our spirit. This means, if there was a DNA test for the human spirit, it would reveal that our spirit's DNA matches perfectly the DNA of Jesus Christ. Why? Because the Holy Spirit has imparted the righteousness of Christ into our spirit.

In summary, is legal and affects our position and standing with God. Imparted righteousness is transformational and affects our nature. Imputed righteousness covers us legally while imparted righteousness transforms us inwardly.

Now, having laid out the differences between imputed righteousness and imparted righteousness, let's spend some time looking at both in more detail.

The Gift of Imputed Righteousness

The Gift of Imputed Righteousness in Romans 4

Beginning in Romans 4, Paul began unpacking the concept of imputed righteousness by showing that it was not only a New Testament truth, but it originated in the Old Testament, especially in the life of Abraham and David.

Paul stated,

For if Abraham was justified by works, he has something to boast about, but not before God. For what does the Scripture say? 'ABRAHAM BELIEVED GOD, AND IT WAS CREDITED TO HIM AS RIGHTEOUSNESS.' Now to the one who works, his wage is not credited as a favor, but as what is due. But to the one who does not work, but believes in Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is credited as righteousness (Rom. 4:2-5).

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In this passage, Paul quoted Genesis 15:6, when Abraham believed God and God therefore credited righteousness to his account. Paul wanted his readers to know that God "justifies the ungodly" by faith in the New Testament just like He did in the Old Testament.

To get a better understanding of what it means for God to credit righteousness to us, let's look at the Hebrew word for credit in Genesis 15:6 and the Greek word for credit in Romans 4:6.

The Hebrew word for credit is chashab and means "to think, plan, esteem, calculate, invent, make a judgment, imagine, count, to charge, impute, reckon, to be accounted, be thought, be esteemed, to be considered."1 Though there are many words in this definition, let's keep it simple and take note of the following words and phrases: "to charge, impute, reckon, to be accounted, to be considered."

The Greek word for credit is logizomai and has a very similar definition as chashab, meaning "to reckon, count, compute, calculate, count over, to pass to one's account, to impute."2 Vine's Expository Dictionary states that this word primarily signifies "to reckon," whether by calculation or imputation.3 This word was so important to Paul and his articulation of the gospel he used logizomai 19 times in the book of Romans, with 11 uses in Romans 4 alone. Thus, Romans 4 could be thought of as the "Imputation Chapter."

From both the Hebrew and the Greek words for credit, we have the concept of crediting to one's account either by calculation or imputation. Thus, we have a financial analogy and a legal analogy. Let's look at examples of both to better understand what Paul meant by crediting righteousness.

In a financial context, to credit to one's account signifies that money owed by an individual is reckoned to have been paid by that individual, even though another has made the payment on their behalf. For example, let's say that I will go into foreclosure if I don't make my next mortgage payment of $2,000 but I only have $100 in my bank account. Wouldn't you agree that I have a real problem? Suppose that my dad has $10,000 in his bank account and agrees to make the payment for me. He pays the mortgage company directly but my loan is reckoned to have been paid by me. Did I pay the loan? Of course not—my generous dad did! But to the mortgage company, it does not matter who paid the mortgage. The only thing that matters is $2,000 was credited to my mortgage account as if I paid it myself.

Money can be credited to our account either as wages that are earned or as a gift that is given. When we are employed, our wages are credited to us by our employer as a right, a debt, and an obligation, for we earned our payment by the work we performed. The gift of righteousness, on the other hand, is entirely different, for it is not based upon our right doing or right being but solely upon the perfect righteousness of Christ. Thus, the gift of righteousness is an unearned, unmerited gift of grace, not given to those who work and attempt to be justified by obedience, but rather to those who put their faith in the One who justifies the ungodly.

In a legal context, to credit to one's account implies imputation, which we have seen extensively throughout this class. In fact, rather than translating logizomai as credit like the NASB, the NKJV sometimes translates this word as impute. For example, Romans 4:6 in the NKJV states: "Just as David also describes the blessedness of the man to whom God imputes righteousness apart from works."

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Whether we understand the gift of righteousness through the financial imagery of counting and crediting or through the legal imagery of imputation, both mean to reckon something as belonging to someone, whether its money, innocence, or guilt.

When God imputes righteousness to us, it does not mean that we are made righteous but that we are reckoned to be righteous and treated legally in the Supreme Court of heaven as if we are righteous.

We are actually made righteous in spirit, soul, and body through a three-step process:

1. At the new birth when the righteousness of Christ is imparted to our spirit (see below); 2. Through the lifelong process of sanctification as our soul becomes Christ-like in thoughts, emotions, and decisions through the truth of God's Word and the enabling grace of the Holy Spirit; 3. Through the instantaneous glorification of our body when we are resurrected on the last day.

Here is the good news for us: The gift of imputed righteousness covers us legally as we are becoming righteous through the lifelong process of sanctification in our soul and ultimately through the instantaneous act of glorification in our body.

Back to Romans 4, the Imputation Chapter, Paul made two things clear. First, God does not impute sin to sinners, although it belongs to us. Quoting Psalm 32:1-2, Paul wrote, "Blessed [are those] whose lawless deeds are forgiven, and whose sins are covered; blessed [is the] man to whom the LORD shall not impute sin" (Rom. 4:7-8, NKJV).

Second, God imputes righteousness to us, as He did to Abraham and David, although we are unrighteous. Notice these verses from Romans 4:

For what does the Scripture say? "ABRAHAM BELIEVED GOD, AND IT WAS CREDITED TO HIM AS RIGHTEOUSNESS" (Rom. 4:3).

But to the one who does not work, but believes in Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is credited as righteousness (Rom. 4:5).

Just as David also describes the blessedness of the man to whom God imputes righteousness apart from works (Rom. 4:6, NKJV).

For we say, "FAITH WAS CREDITED TO ABRAHAM AS RIGHTEOUSNESS" (Rom. 4:9- 10).

That he might be the father of all those who believe, though they are uncircumcised, that righteousness might be imputed to them also (Rom. 4:11, NKJV).

Therefore IT WAS ALSO CREDITED TO HIM AS RIGHTEOUSNESS (Rom. 4:22).

Now it was not written for his sake alone that it was imputed to him, but also for us. It shall be imputed to us who believe in Him who raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead (Rom. 4:23-24, NKJV).

In summary, Paul made it clear in Romans 4 that God does not impute sin to sinners, although it actually belongs to us, and that God imputes righteousness to us, although we are actually unrighteous in our soul and body. Throughout this chapter, Paul made it evident that the gift of imputed righteousness is not based upon obedience to the Word of God (4:2;

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9-12); is based solely upon faith in the finished work of the cross and in the God of creation and resurrection (4:5,9,11,17), and is a gift of free and unmerited grace (4:4,16). Thus, we are not righteous because we do right but because Jesus has done right. Nor are we righteous because we are good but rather because Jesus is good.

The Gift of Imputed Righteousness in Romans 5:12-21

In Romans 5:12-21, Paul continued his teaching about imputed righteousness, this time comparing the old creation in Adam with the new creation in Christ. Because God deals with humanity solely on the basis of whether we are in Adam or whether we are in Christ, understanding these two creations is vital.

The old creation in Adam is characterized by a dead spirit, an independent and proud soul, and a lust-driven body. By virtue of its self-enthroning nature, the old creation in Adam is under condemnation, wrath, and judgment and will either be punished in hell or on the cross. The new creation in Christ, on the other hand, is characterized by a new and righteous spirit, a soul that is being purified, and a body that will be glorified but presently must be yielded to the spirit. The new creation in Christ, by virtue of its relationship to the Jesus, is in a position of legal righteousness and is justified before the Supreme Court of heaven.

It is these two humanities, these two creations, which Paul addressed in Romans 5:12-21. John Stott summarized this section well when he wrote,

The text divides itself naturally into three short paragraphs, in each of which Adam and Christ are related to each other, although with significant differences. First (12- 14), Adam and Christ are introduced, Adam as responsible for sin and death, and as “a pattern of the one to come” (5:14), who is Christ. Secondly (15-17), Adam and Christ are contrasted. In each of these three verses the work of Christ is said to be either “not like” Adam’s or “much more” successful than his. Thirdly (18-21), Adam and Christ are compared. The structure now (in 18, 19, and 21) is “just as…so also.” For through the one man’s one deed (Adam’s disobedience or Christ’s obedience) the many have been either cursed or blessed.4

This section introduces Adam and Christ, contrasts Adam to Christ, and compares Adam with Christ so that we will fully realize that Christ's one act of obedience is vastly superior to Adam's one act of disobedience, that Christ's imputed righteousness far exceeds Adam's imputed sin, and that the eternal life resulting from imputed righteousness transcends the death resulting from imputed sin.

In Session 2, we already saw how Adam's sin was imputed to the whole human race, so that we are reckoned to be sinners, not because we sinned like Adam, but because we sinned in Adam when he ate the forbidden fruit. Upon first hearing that we are held responsible for the decision our ancestor made 6,000 years ago, we may have felt that it was unfair and that God is unjust. Nevertheless, once we realize that God reckons us as righteous, not because we are righteous, but because of the righteous obedience of Christ on the cross, we rejoice! This is the primary message that Paul wanted to convey in this section of Romans.

Adam, as the first man, was given a unique burden of responsibility and leadership that has affected all of mankind. Adam's one sin has made all men, women, and children from every tribe, tongue, people, and nation sinners. Not because we sin, which we do, but because Adam sinned. As we saw in Session 2, this was clearly what Paul taught.

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Just as we looked at Adam's sin imputed to the entire human race in Session 2 by studying Romans 5:12-21, let's use this same section of Scripture to see Christ's imputed righteousness to all who are in Him. Paul wrote:

The free gift arose from many transgressions resulting in justification (Rom. 5:16).

Those who receive the abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness will reign in life through the One, Jesus Christ (Rom. 5:17).

Through one act of righteousness there resulted justification of life to all men (Rom. 5:18).

Through the obedience of the One the many will be made righteous (Rom. 5:19).

As sin reigned in death, even so grace would reign through righteousness to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord (Rom. 5:21).

The point of this section is that the perfect of obedience of Christ, His obedience unto death as a sin offering, is the foundation for us receiving the gift of imputed righteousness. Through His "one act of righteousness" and His "obedience", many have been "made righteous" and the result is "justification of life to all men", so that His imputed righteousness leads to our eternal life.

Christ's valiant act of obedience, as He faced death and the wrath of God as our substitute, is vastly superior to Adam's disobedience, even though his sin has resulted in such universal damage to God's creation. The spreading of sin and death to all mankind because of one sin is reversed by one act of courageous obedience, the crediting of righteousness to the unrighteous, and the subsequent eternal life for all who are in Christ. What the "" did on the cross undoes all the ramifications of the first Adam's transgression in the garden (1 Cor. 15:45). In Adam all are sinners; in Christ all are righteous. In Adam all are condemned; in Christ all are justified. In Adam all will die; in Christ all have eternal life.

The Gift of Imparted Righteousness

As you study Romans and read different commentaries, listen to various teachers, and browse the internet, what you will discover is that there is a debate about whether the gift of righteousness is imputed to us or imparted to us. This debate began in the sixteenth- century between the Roman Catholic Church and the Protestant Reformers. The Catholics insisted that righteousness was infused into us while the Reformers argued that righteousness was imputed to us.

As we have already seen, the gift of righteousness is clearly imputed to us, so now let's look at how the gift of righteousness has also been imparted to us when we were born again. Hundreds of years before Christ, Ezekiel prophesied what would transpire in the New Covenant, stating, "I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; and I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. I will put My Spirit within you" (Ezek. 36:26). God revealed three important things that would take place in the New Covenant: 1) He would give us a new heart; 2) He would put a new spirit within us; and 3) He would put His Spirit within us.

When Jesus talked about the necessity of being born again, He was not using some parabolic language to hide His precious pearls from the Pharisaical swine of His day. He meant exactly what He said. We must experience a second birth, a new birth, to enter the

9 kingdom of heaven. Jesus said, "Unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God....unless one is born of water and the Spirit he cannot enter the kingdom of God" (John 3:3-5). For us to enter the kingdom of heaven, we must be born again by the Spirit. This naturally leads to the question: What transpires when we are born again by the Spirit? Jesus answered this for us when He said one verse later, "That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit" (John 3:6).

In Session 2, we looked at what it means to be born of the flesh—namely, that we come out of the womb with a sin nature inherited from Adam. Now it is time to address the positive side of this Scripture and to see that the new birth by the Spirit affects our human spirit. That is, just like Ezekiel said, the Holy Spirit recreates our spirit and makes it brand new the moment we are born again.

Now the question is: If God is righteous and perfect, would He create anything that is less than righteous and perfect? No—of course not! How could God create our spirit less than righteous or imperfect? He can't. Everything that God creates is righteous and perfect, for it is impossible for Him to do otherwise. That means God has created our new spirit in a state of righteous perfection. Paul validated this statement when he said, "If Christ is in you, though the body is dead because of sin, yet the spirit is alive because of righteousness" (Rom. 8:10). When Christ in us recreated our human spirit, He did so in perfect righteousness. Though our body is dead because of sin, our spirit has been recreated and is alive because of His imparted righteousness.

Hebrews 12:22-23 states, "But you have come to...the general assembly and church of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven, and to God, the Judge of all, and to the spirits of the righteous made perfect." Some read this verse and contest that the author is talking about heaven; therefore, they say, our spirit will not be perfect until we get to heaven. However, the context alternates between heaven and earth to emphasize the portal which the church on earth has into heaven. The author specifically stated that we have come to the church which is enrolled in heaven, not to the church which is in heaven. Therefore, the author of Hebrews is most likely highlighting what transpired at the new birth when God recreated our spirit in perfect righteousness, for why would the perfect God recreate us imperfectly?

To further emphasize that God created our new spirit in perfect righteousness, Paul said, "Put on the new self, which in the likeness of God has been created in righteousness and holiness of the truth" (Eph. 4:24). What is our "new self"? It is that part of our being which becomes new when we are born again, which we have already seen is our spirit. So how did Paul describe our new spirit? He said that our new spirit has been created in the likeness of God in righteousness and holiness. Because our spirit is righteous, this means that God's righteousness has not only been imputed to us, but also imparted to us.

Amazingly, God is not more righteous than the righteousness He freely imparts into our spirit at new birth. By His Spirit, God has deposited 100% of His righteousness into our spirit the moment that we are saved and regenerated.

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Figure 1: Our new righteous spirit joined to the Holy Spirit by new birth.

The Three Phases of Salvation

At this point in the class, we should pause for a moment and consider the three phases of salvation that the Bible clearly emphasizes. It is what theologians refer to as the tension between the "already" and the "not yet." Throughout the New Testament, salvation has a past tense, a present tense, and a future tense. That is, we have been saved, we are being saved, and we will be saved.

We Have Been Saved

The first phase of salvation is what happens to us the moment we are born again. When we put our faith in Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit recreates our spirit, dwells within us, makes our spirit one with Him, imparts His righteous DNA into our spirit, gives us a new heart, and seals us for the day of salvation. At that moment, we are given the gift of imputed and imparted righteousness and we are justified. That is, all of our guilt, shame, and condemnation is removed, we are acquitted, our punishment is lifted, and we are declared legally righteous in the Supreme Court of heaven. This entire transaction is summarized by the past-tense phrase we "have been saved" (Rom. 8:24; Eph. 2:5,8) or He has "saved us" (2 Tim. 1:9; Titus 3:5).

We Are Being Saved

Whereas the first phase of salvation is instantaneous, the second phase of salvation is a lifelong process of sanctification as our mind, will, and emotions are progressively and often slowly conformed into the image of Christ through Spirit-empowered obedience to the Word of God. Sanctification is what happens to our soul gradually as we become more like Jesus.

Paul said, "As you have always obeyed...work out your salvation with fear and trembling" (Phil. 2:12). The salvation in our spirit is to be worked out into our soul through obedience, so that our mind, will, and emotions become increasingly Christ-like.

This lifelong, progressive, and gradual process is summarized by the present-tense phrase we "are being saved" (1 Cor. 1:18; 2 Cor. 2:15). This arduous, step-by-step transformation

11 of our thoughts, intellect, feelings, affections, inclinations, and desires is what Paul termed "salvation through sanctification by the Spirit and faith in the truth" (2 Thess. 2:13). Salvation is not only instantaneous but gradual and involves the sanctifying work of the Holy Spirit in our soul as we obey the truth.

James echoed Paul's teaching, stating "in humility receive the word implanted, which is able to save your souls" (James 1:21). The moment we are born again our spirit is perfected with God's righteousness, but our soul remains unchanged. The sinful mindsets that we inherited from Adam—those prideful, rebellious, and independent thinking patterns—are initially unaffected by the new birth. Our self-willed inclinations, our self-aggrandizing desires, and our selfish affections are at first untouched by the indwelling Spirit. That is why James emphasized that our souls needed to be saved through receiving and obeying the Word of God.

Even Peter reiterated the teaching of James and Paul, stating that "the outcome of your faith" is "the salvation of your souls" (1 Peter 1:9). The Greek word for outcome is telos and means "the end, the termination, the limit at which a thing ceases to be, the last in any succession or series, that by which a thing is finished, its close."5 When will our faith reach its end? When we see Jesus face to face, for until that time, as Paul said, we walk by faith and not by sight (2 Cor. 5:7). This means our souls will be finally saved when our faith has reached its end and we see Jesus face to face. Until that time, our souls are being saved.

We Will Be Saved

The last phase of our salvation is when our bodies are instantaneously transformed into the likeness of Jesus' resurrected and glorified body. Paul said that we are children of God because the Holy Spirit dwells in us but our adoption has not yet been finalized (Rom. 8:15- 16). What has to take place for our adoption to be final? Paul said, "We ourselves, having the first fruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting eagerly for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our body" (Rom. 8:23). The final stage of our adoption as God's sons is "the redemption of our body." Though we already have the Spirit of adoption we do not yet have the body of adoption, for that will not be given to us until Jesus returns and our bodies are resurrected from the grave (Rev. 20:6).

When Jesus returns, God will “transform the body of our humble state into conformity with the body of His glory” (Phil. 3:21). The Bible says that we will “be like Him” and that we will “be revealed with Him in glory” because “we will see Him just as He is” (Col. 3:4; 1 John 3:2).

Paul summarized this final phase of salvation with the future-tense phrase "we shall be saved" (Rom. 5:9). At the end of history, on God's day of reckoning when His wrath is poured out on those who have rejected Christ (Rom. 2:5, 8), we will be saved from the negative experience of wrath, judgment, and hell. On the positive side, we shall be saved ultimately and finally when we receive a resurrected and glorified body as our adoption is at last complete.

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The table and picture below describe and illustrate the three phases of salvation.

Salvation Description Term Area Affected

Past We have been saved. Justification Our spirit has been saved.

Present We are being saved. Sanctification Our soul is being saved.

Future We shall be saved. Glorification Our body will be saved.

Figure 2: The Three Phases of Salvation

Imputed Righteousness Covers Us During Sanctification

Throughout the lifelong process of sanctification we will likely fail repeatedly. As the pride and rebellion in our soul begins to manifest and the lusts in our body attempt to dominate and suppress our spirit, imputed righteousness is an invaluable gift. Even when we stumble on our journey toward holiness and purity in our soul and body, the gift of imputed righteousness covers us legally in the Supreme Court of heaven, so that when we fail, we are not condemned.

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Figure 3: Imputed righteousness is our legal covering as we are sanctified and glorified.

What and confidence we have before God as the gift of imputed righteousness covers us legally while God's imparted righteousness is worked out from our spirit into our soul and body!

1 Blue Letter Bible. "Dictionary and Word Search for chashab (Strong's 2803)". Blue Letter Bible. 1996-2012. See http://www.blueletterbible.org/lang/lexicon/lexicon.cfm?Strongs=H2803&t=NASB, referenced on August 13,2012. 2 Blue Letter Bible. "Dictionary and Word Search for logizomai (Strong's 3049)". Blue Letter Bible. 1996-2012. See http://www.blueletterbible.org/lang/lexicon/lexicon.cfm?Strongs=G3049&t=NASB, referenced on August 13, 2012. 3 Blue Letter Bible. "Dictionary and Word Search for logizomai (Strong's 3049), Vine's Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words". Blue Letter Bible. 1996-2012. See http://www.blueletterbible.org/lang/lexicon/lexicon.cfm?Strongs=G3049&t=NASB, referenced on August 13, 2012. 4 John R. W. Stott, The Message of Romans (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1994), p. 149. 5 Blue Letter Bible. "Dictionary and Word Search for telos (Strong's 5056)". Blue Letter Bible. 1996-2012. http://www.blueletterbible.org/lang/lexicon/lexicon.cfm?Strongs=G5056&t=NASB, referenced on August 13, 2012.

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