ROMANS 4:4-5 GRACE OR DEBT Contrary to what most people would like to believe, the more a person labors to make themselves righteous before God, the greater is the debt they owe. The works they do are not done according to the grace of God, but according to the debt they owe. How many works does it take to pay off the sins that deserve death? There is no laborious efforts that all men put together could do that would cancel that debt, because that all have sinned and all are sinners by nature. No one ever got righteousness because of their worth or their works. One must stop trying to be righteous before God by what he does.
The person who tries to pray themselves into favor with God, must not trust in prayers to make him or her acceptable to God. What God wants to hear from the contrite sinner is, "God be merciful to me the sinner." God will justify the ungodly when they truly mean this. Another may set about to do great acts of penance to make themselves righteous, but salvation is by grace alone, "Not of works least any man should boast." One may count on church membership as a work that would earn favor of God, but it is the ungodly who God justifies.
People make distinctions between sinners. Some will say, "I know I am a sinner, but basically I am a good person." Others compare themselves to others and say, "I know I am not perfect, but I am better than them." It is essential that everyone, no matter who they are or what they have done - good or bad, acknowledge the truth that they are ungodly. Everyone who is convinced of the fact they are a sinner before God, are lost by nature and practice, and are helpless to do anything to change that terrible state, will find no problem understanding and admitting, they are ungodly. When we grasp that fact, we are in a place where we can be justified by God.
When such an admission of being ungodly comes from within the heart and soul of the repentant sinner, then one's faith is willingly and heartily placed on the Person of Christ and the blood that He shed for ungodly sinners. The precious blood of Christ is that which puts away sin, and it is on that foundation God can declare righteous the one who believes on Jesus. He can justify the ungodly - not the "godly." We are all ungodly whether we like to admit it or not. It is not the born-again person God justifies - it is the ungodly. It is not the praying person God declares righteous - it is the ungodly. It is not the faithful church-attendee God declares righteous - it is the ungodly.
If a person has not come as an ungodly one to trust Christ alone for salvation - that person is not justified, has not been declared righteous. God only declares righteous the ungodly who believe on Him. So the "working" way in verse four is contrasted with the "believing" method in verse five. There is no room for boasting when it comes to salvation. Works and grace do not mix. When a person stops working for divine favor, and hears the message of the Gospel that Christ died for our sins, was buried and rose again and finished the work of redemption by paying the ransom price for sin with His own blood on the cross, he can rest there. He knows He is a sinner and is ungodly. He comes to Christ just as he is. He is received through Christ and God justifies him just as he is. God's Word assures him or her that they are welcomed into His family. There is no boasting - only thankfulness from a grateful heart.
There are so many people trying to be just in their own way. For some reason they won't stop to consider what God Himself does say. If they would take the time to trace salvation to its Source, They would understand from the Word that to be justified there is a course.
God had to find a perfect man to be our acceptable substitute. And the path to the place of death had to follow a defined route. So, from Bethlehem to Calvary, the Savior followed that path; That by virtue of showing His sinlessness He could bear God's righteous wrath.
That was done completely, there is nothing more we can do. God was satisfied with what Christ did and expects us to be so too. To try to add by our own works to what the Lord has done, Would be an insult to the Father who gave for us His Son.
The more we try to justify ourselves the greater is our debt. Sin-stained works of whatever kind implies there are some sins God did forget, When He laid on His Lamb He provided, to bear all our sins away;. Or else there were some costs Christ was unable by His death to pay.
That very attitude would incur a righteous wrath more fierce.
It implies a doubt that the cleansing blood when Christ's side was pierced - Was sufficient to meet the demands of God's own righteousness, And if that is the case our own salvation completely depends on us.
We know that idea cannot be true because every day we fail - To meet the standard of perfection and all that righteousness entails. In grace God has fully provided everything that we did need Christ justifies the ungodly sinner when to God's Word he heeds.
God justifies the ungodly, not those who think they are fine. All the encumbrances of works that around one's life entwines - Cannot begin to declare one righteous, that is something God does do. The faith of the ungodly in the work of Christ is what makes it good to me and you.
"Father in heaven, the holiness of God seems unreal to sinful man. For some reason blinded people can't grasp the necessity and value of the work of the Lord Jesus on the cross. O God, please help all that declare Thy Word today in fellowship with Thee, to make the truth of justification plain to the hearers. In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, Amen."