The Four Cornerstones of Romans (Part 1: God's Righteousness)

The Four Cornerstones of Romans (Part 1: God's Righteousness)

Introduction

The epistle of Romans is the foundational epistle of the Christian faith. An analysis of its contents reveals that the letter can be divided into four parts, each part representing a cornerstone of the Christian faith. Missing any one of these four cornerstones, the faith foundation of a Christian can become compromised and shaky. It is vitally important to have a good understanding of each of these four cornerstones to ensure that the foundation of your faith is stable and secure.

Cornerstone 1: God’s Righteousness (Rom.1-3)

We learn from scripture that God is absolute in EVERY way. He is absolutely righteous, absolutely holy, and absolutely just.

Deut 32:4  He is the Rock, his work is perfect: for all his ways are judgment: a God of truth and without iniquity, just and right is he.

The miracle that hardly anybody speaks about

The miracle that hardly anybody speaks about

Justification is a miracle in itself! It is the declaration of your complete innocence and righteousness by God, through the imputed righteousness of Christ, when you believe in God's Son, Jesus Christ, for your salvation (Rom.3:21-28; Rom.5:1-2). This is not the miracle I refer to in this post, but it is certainly connected to what I'm about to share.

The seemingly unspoken miracle that happens after one comes to the knowledge of what Biblical justification really means, is the tangible experience of liberty from a heavy bondage of sin, followed by a slow, but increasing experience of victory over its hold on you, like, the bad habits you were held captive to, the mental prison you endured, the bad language you spoke, anger, lusts, pride, and uncontrollable actions that plagued your life.

I write this, having personal experience of this miracle, and I have heard testimony of others that have had the same experiences in their lives too. Why is it so unspoken? Why don't people perceive it as a miracle? Well, it happens over time. It is not an instant change. In addition, through this whole process, one's mind and attention should be fixated on Christ and His Word, so it is only once you look back on your life that you recognize how it has been liberated, and how it has changed.

How does this miracle work?

This is NOT a sales pitch. The following is a summation formed from verses extracted from the Bible that will help you to understand the gift of justification and how it can change your life. If you are struggling with sin, if you are in bondage to its firm grasp, if you have tried everything without success, you're at the end of your rope, and constantly under condemnation, then the following can help you to break sins hold and find peace with God.

Beware of those who mind earthly things

Beware of those who mind earthly things

Israel walked under the physical letter of the law. Their faith was connected to signs and miracles which showcased the power of God in this earthly environment. Their inheritance is the earth, the physical realm, the tangible things.

Today, however, in this dispensation of grace, we are called to walk according to a different realm. We walk according to the newness of the spirit (grace), not the oldness of the letter, (law). (Rom.7.6). Our dispensation is not connected to the natural world. Our faith is not connected to signs and miracles, or to anything tangible. Paul writes that our walk is from faith to faith (Rom.1:17), from our initial faith in the gospel to our continued faith in the knowledge of the Word, applied to our daily walk. Our inheritance is the heavens, the spiritual realm, the things that are not of this world.

Now, why do I mention all this?

The 4 Foundational Cornerstones of the Christian Faith

The 4 Foundational Cornerstones of the Christian Faith

ROMANS is the foundation book in Paul’s epistles. It is the book that firstly, establishes 'the faith', the doctrine that provides us with a fundamental knowledge of God's will and purpose for us as grace believers today, and secondly, that 'stablishes' a grace believer, meaning that it lays a foundation of truth, or principle, that helps us to be grounded and stable in our faith, and guides our walk to complement Gods will and purpose for us, not only here on earth, now, but also in the life to come, our heavenly destination as the Body of Christ.

If one takes a step back from the details in the Roman epistle, and looks at the contents from an overview perspective, one will see four key principles emerge. These four key principles are of great importance. As the title of this post suggests, they are the four cornerstones that keep the foundation of our faith stable. Without any one of these cornerstones, our Christian faith will be unstable and ineffective. Anything that we build upon this foundation will be shaky and problematic, and our growth in the doctrine of 'the faith', will be hindered, weakened, or even completely stunted. Needless to say, recognizing these four key foundational principles, and gaining an intimate knowledge of them, are crucial.

Christians Bottleneck their Growth due to Misunderstanding Grace and Justification

Christians Bottleneck their Growth due to Misunderstanding Grace and Justification

A lot of my articles have had their basis in the book of Romans lately. It springs from a renewed observation of a widespread lack of spiritual understanding that many Christians have today. The absence of effectual teaching in the modern denominational churches have caused Christians to stumble and fall in the most fundamental, and critical concepts of the Christian faith. Lacking these basic concepts have caused stunted growth towards spiritual maturity, and unity in the faith, that Paul defines in his writings. It is my humble opinion that Christians need an urgent and in-depth review of the book of Romans in order to regain a solid understanding of its core principles and spiritual value.

Isn't justification just an excuse to ignore our commitment to Christian morality?

Isn't justification just an excuse to ignore our commitment to Christian morality?

Question (in response to a previous post):

There is a modern tendency to claim to be justified, when sin is still reigning within the heart. Some people tend to say, “Jesus covers my sins: past, present, and future.” Is it really possible to repent of sins that you haven’t committed yet? This kind of mindset is often supported by treating the gospel as a kind of “indulgence” to sin. Like on the bumper stickers that say, “I’m not perfect, just forgiven,” which seems to indicate that forgiveness is just a free pass on the sins of the past and has nothing to do with internal affairs of the heart.

Answer:

If God does not forgive us by His grace alone through Jesus Christ, then all believers are on a highway straight to hell.

One of the greatest passages of literature ever written

One of the greatest passages of literature ever written

Rom 3:21 But now the righteousness of God without the law is manifested, … 22 Even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe … 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: … 28 Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith without the deeds of the law. Rom 5:1 Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ: 2 By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God.

I stand by the title of this post! There is no other literature on earth that comes close to the value and significance of the words above. If one had to put all professional, literary, and academic writing together, it would pale in worth and magnitude.