Everybody get plenty to eat? Everybody get too much to eat? I made the mistake of eating today, so this will probably be a short message. And it may drag a little bit, but I'll do my best. You know, I'm having a hard time getting back to Romans chapter 1. I'm vacillating again. And it really, it's a worthwhile study looking at the things that are revealed in the gospel as indicated by the Apostle Paul in chapter one of Romans. The righteousness of God is revealed in the gospel. And so that's one thought that is worth really looking at and asking the question how is How is that? How is the righteousness of God revealed in the gospel? And then, the second thing he says is that the judgment of God is revealed from heaven. And the implication is that it also is revealed in the gospel. And so, that's an interesting thought, and I've spent a couple of Saturdays working on that now. And I'm not sure that that's where I need to go. But I think maybe it is. I think let's go to Romans chapter one and see how we do. And I know we won't get through all of it. When you start working on one set of verses, it can get pretty long in one session. But if you have two sessions, it can get real long. So I won't do that to you. We'll just take the first portion of that. I found it very interesting. And this is more like a theological study than a sermon, although we can certainly make it a sermon and try to do that. Yeah, that's chapter one. Still can't turn and talk after all these years. Just give it up. So the verses that we want to look at, the righteousness of God revealed. Remember last Sunday afternoon, we started talking about in chapter one, the things that God reveals. He revealed something, some important things about the Apostle Paul, you remember. And then he revealed some things about the church members at Rome, the Christians at Rome. And But then the word specifically comes up, starting in verse 13, where we'll begin. Well, let me start at verse 15. I think that would be good. And I'll leave off. Yeah, I'm going to leave off some of the introductory thoughts that I was going to share in my original notes. I think I'll just dig right in to verse 17. But let's start at verse, well let's start at verse 15, sorry. I told you I shouldn't have eaten. Let's start at verse 15. So as much as in me is." I would say that's a bunch. I am ready to preach the gospel to you that are at Rome also. For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God unto salvation to everyone that believeth, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith. As it is written, the just shall live by faith. Let's stop there and ask the Lord's blessing upon what we've just read in my attempt to preach coherently from it. Our Father, we do thank you in the name of Jesus for this blessed Lord's Day you've given us, and for the sweet blessings that we've enjoyed already in the first portion of the day. And now we come again into the sanctuary, gathered here with a handful of your people, and we trust their interest is in hearing. Hearing you speak to them from your word about your righteousness, as it is revealed in the gospel. Help us with that intriguing thought, dear Lord, as we attempt to speak from it now. We need the leading of your Holy Spirit, and so anoint our tongues and the ears of here gathered that they might hear you speaking about this powerful thought. And may it all redound to your glory and may it help us better appreciate the gospel that we have, the gospel that you've given to us, which is the power of God unto salvation to everyone that believes it. We ask it all in the name of Jesus and for his sake, amen. You know, it's interesting that Paul, in the verse that we started with, verse 15, he said that he was ready Ready as much as was in him. He was ready couldn't be more ready to preach the gospel to those people in Rome and Yet it would be I think about three years before he ever got there So think about that with me He was chomping at the bit. He was ready to preach the gospel. If he'd have been called on in Rome, if he'd have been transported instantly as pretty much you can do today, if he'd have been teleported into Rome, he'd have stepped out of the teleporter and he'd have started preaching. He was ready to preach. He was full. And he wouldn't have had to study it up. He would have just preached. But it was three years before he ever got the opportunity to preach to them. So we ask the question, why was he that ready? And the answer is kind of like what we dealt with in a little different vein this morning when we were talking about the profound fact that is lost on us so much of the time, that it is God that is inside of us, wanting to come out. That one fact would, you know, would revolutionize, as we touched on this morning, our lives. And so with this, what he says next, he tells us why he was so ready to preach. And notice what he said in verse 16. He tells us what the gospel is. And why he was so ready, so eager, so prepared to share it. And this is what he said. I'm not ashamed of it. Now, let's pause at that for a minute because his saying that and our unreadiness to share Christ with people, what's the takeaway? Could it be that we're ashamed of it? In other words, it would embarrass us or it might make us look weird or people might make fun of us. you know, less and less in the world we live in do people want to hear it. So I think this is important to think about what Paul said, that I am ready to preach. He didn't get there for three years, but he was ready then, eager then, and then he tells us why. For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ. And so we need to own that first statement, that if we are hesitant, If we don't want to, if we don't feel we're not ready to, it may be that there's this shame element there where we don't want to experience the discomfort or the laughter or the loss of respect among an unbelieving peers. whatever it might be that brings shame. There's a lot of things that can bring shame or embarrassment to us. So that one thought is something worth chewing on, if you will, and considering it at least that, you know, is this what is behind, quietly, secretly behind my hesitancy to share Christ? Paul, you know, now you can say he was an apostle, but as we saw last week, you know, the words that he used about who he was, a servant of Jesus Christ who had been called unto the gospel, you know, he uses the same kind of terminology further down with the people in the church, didn't he? That they were called to be saints, set apart to serve the Lord Jesus. And so we also have been called as we established last week. And so even though he was an apostle, think with me what he says next in this verse 16. First he said, I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, and then he tells us why he's not ashamed of it, because this gospel, this message of Jesus Christ that we all own, that we all have in our possession, some of us multiple copies, that this gospel, much of it we could tell in a pretty good version without having to even look at the book. We could share the gospel, couldn't we? We could share the message of the death and the burial and the resurrection, why he came, the kinds of things that we talked about. You've heard enough, you've read enough of your Bible, you could do that. But what he says about it here, that this gospel, he's not ashamed of it because of what it is. It is the power of God unto salvation. That's kind of like work out your own salvation because it is God Almighty that's living in you wanting to bust out. If that truth became vibrantly real to us, it would change us. And so here, too, about the gospel, to realize, and not just read it, we've all read this verse, we all probably have it committed to memory, that I'm not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God unto salvation to everyone that believeth, to the Jew first and also the Greek. But it's like Mark dealt with in his Sunday school lesson this morning, it isn't what you know, it's what you do. We know we have liberty, but what are you gonna do with it? Are you going to use it at the expense of your witness because you have the right to do it? Or is love going to trump your knowledge? Because if love doesn't come through what you know, you might as well not know it. And that's the same thing here. What we know about the gospel, having committed this verse to a memory, really doesn't matter doodly. if what we know it is doesn't have some impact on what we do with it. You know, it was amazing as I pondered on this thought for just a little bit. Paul said, I'm not ashamed of it because it is the power of God unto salvation. What a statement. The gospel message is the power, the dunamis, you knew that, you remember this dunamis, the Greek word, miracle working power, wonder working power. And that a sinner can be made a saint of God by the power of the gospel demonstrates the truth. the word and its definition. It is the power of God. It is the dynamite of God, the eternal dynamite, the blasting power of God to take a dead sinner and make him come to life for the glory of God with the life of Christ within him. That is a miracle power, isn't it? And Paul said this Bible, this gospel IS the power of God unto salvation. Every power is unto something. A nuclear bomb is the power of man unto destruction. Penicillin is the power of scientists to eradicate disease, or at least it once was. But you get the idea. Everything that has a power is unto something. I was with a friend of mine, an old racquetball friend of mine. Buddy and I had dinner with he and his fiance the other night and had a nice discussion. And they couldn't wait, and I'm not making fun of them, they couldn't wait to get done with dinner and show me her new car. I was envious. I mean, it was a nice, it was a nice brand spanking new 4Runner. leather interior, understated gray paint, big tires. Oh, it was pretty. It was so pretty. And Carrie said to me, it's got a 4.0 motor in it. So if we want to pull a travel trailer, we'll have plenty of power. It had the power of Toyota in it. Unto pulling a travel trailer. And they wanted to talk about that? There's a lot of things that you have. You know, I think about how excited we get over some kind of a supplement. I've had people talk to me about the power of supplements that they've discovered. And I've got a whole pantry full of them. I've got protein powder and all those things and I've had people give me, I can't even remember the name of some of those things, you know, supposed to make you feel calm, supposed to give you energy, spirulina, you know, all this stuff, you know. All of those things represent some kind of power and people get excited when they get a hold of something new that has some power. But you know, all of those powers, whether it be a 4.0 motor made by Toyota, or whether it be Spiralina, you know, anything that gives us some energy and is a power onto something that we want, we're ready to tell somebody about it, aren't we? We're ready to tell them, you need to try this powder. And aren't you quick to share it? Or if you found a new place to exercise, I know, you know, we talked about that this morning. Boy, you got, man, this is a workout now. And I'm losing weight, I'm getting buff, and I have more energy now. You gotta try it. But this is the power of God unto salvation. That's eternal. Whatever benefit you're gonna get from that car, it's gonna wear out one day, and you'll no longer be able to drive, and it'll be worthless. Everything this side of eternity wears out, so it doesn't matter how powerful it is, it's temporary. But the gospel is the power of God unto eternal salvation. We've got a power in our hands and we have some understanding about that power that we can talk to people about it that don't understand it. And yet, we don't talk about it. And we'll talk about protein powder. We'll talk about the size of the motor in the new car or an old car. I bet you if you asked Ethan, he'd tell you about his motor. I was 16 once, I know about that. But son, the important thing, I think you get it, don't you? That Ford can only get you down the street, it can't get you to glory. But this book can. The gospel can. The gospel can. And see, this is another one of those, let this get a hold of you, what Paul said. I am not ashamed of the gospel because it is the power of God unto salvation and you own it. But you ain't telling people about it. You're not sharing it. You're not excited about it. You're more excited about protein powder than you are gospel. There's something wrong with that. You're more excited about your new Galaxy phone or your new smartphone 18. then you are the power of God unto salvation. And as spiritual beings, saved by the blood of Jesus Christ, to borrow a phrase from the New Testament, brethren, that ought not to be. James, I think, said something along that order. So anyway, that's one of the points that I wasn't going to talk about. Let's get into what it's worth talking about, don't you think? I mean, that really is, I think, a very important point. And actually, if that point doesn't get us, it doesn't matter the details of what Paul said is revealed. So what? If you're not going to share it, why know it? Just like again, Mark's lesson, you know, it doesn't matter what we know from the scripture. If it doesn't translate into love being shared, the love of Jesus Christ with other people, you might as well not know it. And that is the bottom line. Said another way. So let's get into the meat of it. So then what he says about it, he goes on to talk about it. For therein, that is in the gospel, which is the power of God unto salvation to everyone that believeth it, for therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith, as is it written, the just shall live by faith. The righteousness of God in the gospel Now, when we talk about the Gospel, there's a lot of it. When somebody says, I want to share the Gospel with you, or have you heard the Gospel? Some people say, well, the Gospel, just like Paul wrote. Now, he wrote it in 1 Corinthians 15, the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. But it's much more than that. The Gospel is revealed in the Old Testament. Details about it, pictures of it, types of it, understanding of it. The Gospels, Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, gospel truth contained in those Gospels because they reveal the person and the work of Jesus Christ. And so, those are God, you know, the Gospel is the power of God. That's the power of God. All of those things are included. And so, in the Gospel is revealed the righteousness of God. That word revealed, it's laid bare. The righteousness of God is laid bare. I like that definition, laid bare. It is stripped for all to see and look upon. Have you ever thought about the gospel that way? That it is, it reveals the righteousness of God. And so what I want to lay before you, lay bare before you, is my understanding of what Paul means by that. How is the gospel, or how is the righteousness of God revealed in the wonders of the gospel? as found in the scriptures, particularly in the New Testament. It's laid bare, it's made known, it's manifested, it's disclosed what has been previously hidden. The righteousness of God is revealed in the gospel. So now another little definition needs to be given. What do we mean by the righteousness of God? That may seem pretty straightforward to you, you understand what the righteousness of God is, but maybe not. The first meaning of the righteousness of God is the condition which is acceptable to you. Does that sound right? Maybe you're shaking your head no. It doesn't sound right. I just want to see if you're awake. The righteousness of God is the condition which is acceptable to God, and that's the one that matters. You know, we read about Israel, every man was doing that which is right in their own eyes. They're doing that today too, aren't they? Every man's doing that which is right in their own eyes. And they think that's righteous. But the righteousness of God is that which is acceptable to God. That's revealed in the gospel. And that's what's important. What does God think? I don't care what the mayor thinks. I don't care what my friends think. I don't care what my enemies think, or shouldn't. But I surely, and you surely, mankind made by God, made in the image and likeness of God, should certainly be concerned about what God thinks is acceptable. You see where we got to where we are when we turn our back on what being concerned about what God thinks is acceptable? The righteousness of God is revealed in the gospel. The condition which is acceptable to God. What is that condition? What is God accepted? What conditions would He accept you in? Well, we read about that a little bit. In Hebrews 4.15, for example, it says that we have not a high priest who is speaking about Jesus Christ. What is acceptable to God is revealed in Jesus Christ in the Gospels. Hebrews 4.15, we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our firmities, but was in all points tempted like you and me are, yet in his temptation he had no sin. That's acceptable with God. That's the righteousness of God, isn't it? John chapter 1 and verse 14, and the Word was made flesh, talking about Jesus Christ again, and He dwelt among us. This is gospel information about Jesus Christ, who is the gospel, the message of the gospel. The Word was made flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as the only begotten of the Father, full of nonsense. full of grace and truth. That's acceptable to God. Grace and truth. It's seen. You see, what we read about in the Gospels about Jesus Christ, what we're reading about is the righteousness of God. What is acceptable with God? How do we know that was acceptable with God? Well, we know it because In John chapter 8, Jesus said regarding God the Father, I do always, in verse 29, I do always those things that are pleasing to Him. That's acceptable to God. Do you always do what's pleasing to the Father? Blaine, you don't? Neither do I, Blaine. And neither does anyone else in here. The gospel REVEALS the righteousness of God, what is acceptable to God. And you see, in DOING that, it also reveals that none of us could be acceptable. That's part of the power of God, to be made to realize that we can never be acceptable to God, but Jesus IS. And how do we know that? Right after his baptism, what happened? The baptism of Jesus at the hand of John the Baptist. Matthew 3, verse 17, this is the very beginning of his ministry, isn't it? The very beginning. He began to preach after his baptism, but right after he came out of the water, there was a voice from heaven saying, this is my beloved son, in whom I am well pleased. This is acceptable. He's acceptable with God. This is God's righteousness that we're looking at. A righteousness that you and I could never attain. So you see, this is part of the power of the gospel. First, to strip us bare. To lay bare the reality that this is what God is looking for. This is what God accepts. This is what God receives. Who he receives. And we began to realize that ain't me, that ain't me. You see, that's an important prong of the power of the gospel. The righteousness of God, what is acceptable to God revealed in no uncertain terms, revealing to us what we really are. That's part of the gospel. That work has to happen or a sinner will never feel inclined to receive it. There's no need. Every man does that which is right in their own eyes. I'm A-OK. I'm OK. You're OK. We're all OK. You do your thing. I'll do mine. You don't bother me. I won't bother you. It makes me happy. It turns me on. It's OK. Did you check in with God about that? Who cares? Everyone should care. because one day everyone will stand before him to give an account for what they've done in the body, whether it be good or bad. So that was at the beginning of the ministry of Jesus. Much later in his ministry, getting close to the cross, in the same Gospel of Matthew in chapter 17, we go from 27 AD to 32 AD, according to Unger, In Matthew chapter 17, he's well into his ministry now, he's drawing closer and closer, he's revealing some things to his disciples, preparing them for his departure. Chapter 17, we go from chapter 3 to chapter 17, he takes them up on the Mount of Transfiguration, and while the speaking was going on, a voice out of the cloud which said, this is my beloved son, in whom I am well pleased. So what's the takeaway of that? That Jesus, the righteousness of God, what is acceptable to God has been revealed from the beginning of His ministry to the end of His ministry. What the standard of God is for being accepted. We see it in His teaching. Six times in Matthew chapter 5, Jesus in His teachings about the righteousness of God says, you have heard But I say unto you, what was he doing? He was showing us the righteousness of God, wasn't he? Why was he doing that? So that you would know that you only think you're righteous. You have heard of old, he said in verse 28, thou shalt not commit adultery. Even that's being called into question now. But I say unto you, that whosoever looketh on a woman to desire her, hath committed adultery with her already in his heart. So what was he saying? That you've got to do better than just not committing it? No, he was revealing what the spirit of God's law really meant. And that law was given not that you could be righteous before God, but to reveal to you that you ain't near righteous. because we have thoughts that are unrighteous. And the thoughts as good as a deed, apparently, according to Jesus Christ, the Son of God. And all He was doing was to reveal to us that the law of God was never given for a man to be made righteous, but it was made that we would know what sin is, and we would know that we are sinners. But it is revealing the righteousness of God, isn't it? And these clowns that wanna suggest that Jesus Christ had affairs with men like Mary Magdalene, there are people that actually have written books about that, maybe you've heard about them. That is blasphemy based upon what we just talked about. Jesus Christ was tempted on every point as were we, yet without sin. That means he didn't sin in his thoughts either. And so you can, by the authority of scripture, you can banish that. You can call a spade a spade and say, hey, that's just not true. It can't be true. Because Jesus Christ is the righteousness of God revealed, pure, perfect, in whom God the Father is well pleased. And so here you see how the righteousness, what is acceptable unto God is revealed in the gospel. It's revealed in Jesus Christ, revealed in his teachings. You have heard it said, an eye for an eye. That sounds fair. You put my eye out, I'll put your eye out. We're even. That's equitable, right? Well, a lot of people believe that. But that's not the righteousness of God. The righteousness of God In the teaching of Jesus Christ, you have heard it said, an eye for an eye, but I say unto you that you resist not evil, but whosoever shall smite thee on the right cheek, turn the other cheek also. That's the righteousness of God. Who does that? Jesus Christ. He did do that, didn't he? You see, in the gospel is revealed the righteousness of God. what is acceptable unto God. And in the process, it reveals to us just how unrighteous we really are, which is part of the point of the power of the gospel, without which that power, we're only on one cylinder. So it's interesting when we begin to break this out a little bit. There's some more teachings of Jesus that we could go to, but we won't for the sake of time here this afternoon. But there's another way that the righteousness of God is revealed in the gospel. If we go all the way to the cross, and there we see also the righteousness of God revealed. That's part of the gospel, isn't it? Christ died on the cross, died for sinners. But he didn't just die. He displayed the righteousness of God right up until He drew His last breath, didn't He? Revealing that He was a suitable Savior, He was a suitable substitute sacrifice. And so, if the righteousness of God had had any defect as revealed in His life, any weakness, any failure, any fault whatsoever, He would not have been the Lamb of God that taken away the sin of the world. But the righteousness of God is revealed in Jesus Christ. What is acceptable to God? And so when we go to the cross, we see Him doing what you talked about last week. Again, the scene is so graphic. He's hanging on the cross, gasping for breath. the life being sucked out of him, bearing the shame and reproach in his nakedness. The Lord of glory come down from heaven, as we discussed this morning, spat upon a crown of thorns driven upon his head in agony and pain. And those that put him there are laughing and mocking him and gambling for his garments. And he says, Father, forgive them. They know not what they're doing. You see, the righteousness of God is revealed in the gospel. The righteousness of God is seen in his death. What happened when he drew his last breath? It thundered, and the rocks were rent, and that thick 4-inch veil, 30 feet or so high, was rent in two. How is the righteousness of God revealed in that? Why was that veil there? Because of the unrighteousness of you and me. The access into the presence of God was denied to us. But when the righteousness of God was satisfied, God rent the veil, and I believe He rent it gladly. Now the way was open because the righteousness of God was satisfied. That's what Isaiah meant when he wrote in Isaiah 53, wasn't it? God looked upon His Son on that cross and the Bible said He was satisfied. It doesn't mean He was happy, you know, satisfied. It means that He was satisfied that righteousness was satisfied. The righteousness of God is revealed. Have you ever thought about these things? You say, no, I hadn't either. That's why it was so compelling to me. What does Paul mean by that? How is it revealed in the gospel? It's something we've all heard, we all believe, we're all committed to memory, probably many of us, if not all of us. But have we really put our arms around it, got our arms around what Paul is saying to us, what God is saying to us, that the righteousness of God is revealed in the gospel. But there's a second definition to righteousness. It's not just what is acceptable with God, we've seen that already. In the gospel, in Jesus Christ, on the cross, is revealed to us in his teachings, in his life, in his choices, in his responses. He revealed to us again and again and again the righteousness of God is on display, what is acceptable to God. But the second important definition of the righteousness of God is this, and it is also revealed in the gospel. And the second definition of the righteousness of God is the doctrine concerning, get this part of the definition and appreciate with me John 14.6 a little more. The righteousness of God is the doctrine concerning the way in which a person may attain to a state that is approved of God. Now put that together with John 14 6. I am the way. The righteousness of God is revealed in the gospel. I'll never read John 14 6 quite the same way. I am the way. He is the doctrine, isn't He? How can a man be acceptable? How can a sinner? The righteousness of God on display in Jesus Christ, what is acceptable with God, has made us understand, if we understand anything, that we are not acceptable. But how beautiful in the same package of the gospel, in the same person, in the package of the gospel, we are shown the doctrine. how we, as unacceptable as we are, can be made acceptable. Clearly, the life of Christ, the teachings of Christ, and the willing sacrifice of Christ for sinners is profoundly evident that apart from Jesus Christ, there is none righteous. No, not one. In Romans 3.20, a little later on in the same book, it says, Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight. For by the law comes the knowledge of sin, not justification. Men have had that backwards for centuries, haven't they? They imagine that by the keeping of the law, that if they just kept the law, they just tried a little harder, that they could be righteous, and they thought themselves righteous. And Paul believed himself to be righteous, even while he was persecuting the righteous one. That's how unrighteous we are. We can be so religious and yet so utterly unrighteous. And if we're not careful, we can be like them. Gotta be careful about that. So, we've seen some things. So here too, the righteousness of God is revealed in the gospel, showing sinners the way. they may attain to a state that is approved by God. Again, verse 17 said, for therein is the righteousness of God revealed. He's talking about the gospel. Therein, in the gospel, is the righteousness of God revealed. This time he's talking about the doctrine, how I can, even though I'm a sinner, a rank sinner, and there's no hope for me, and there's no way that I can keep the law of God, I can never be acceptable before God in my own righteousness, never ever. But he gives the answer. For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith. As it is written, the just shall live not by works, but by faith. We can't do it by works. And so God said, the righteousness of God is revealed in the gospel. The righteousness which is by faith in the righteous one. Mr. Weymouth, the Greek scholar, gives the clearest definition or clearest translation of that verse 17 when he writes, ìFor in the good news,î thatís the Gospel of course, ìin the Gospel a righteousness which comes from God is revealed, depending on faith and tending to produce faith. That's a beautiful translation of that verse. In the gospel, then, in this sense, the righteousness of God is revealed, a righteousness that is by faith and tends to encourage more faith as we experience it. And so the righteousness of God revealed in two ways. what is acceptable unto God, and then the way, the doctrine whereby we can attain unto the righteousness of God. The quote that is given there in that verse 17 is an Old Testament quote. It comes from the writing of the prophet Habakkuk about whom very little is known. But what is important to know? Why did he choose Habakkuk? Well, it could have had to do with where Habakkuk fell on the historical timeline. Habakkuk was just before, just before the captivity, just before the judgment of God came down. Interesting timing. So he was a prophet just before God pulled the trigger of judgment upon the nation. from which they never have yet recovered. And that's where we find this statement in the early writing of Habakkuk, it's only four chapters long, but in chapter two and verse four, behold his soul which is lifted up, that is the proud, the self-righteous. is not upright in him, but the just, the righteous, shall live by faith, by his faith, is the way Habakkuk writes it. And so the righteousness of God revealed twice over. Both definitions of the righteousness of God covered. What is acceptable to God is revealed in the Gospels in the person of Jesus Christ and the teachings of Jesus Christ and on the cross. And then the doctrine about what is the way that I, utterly unrighteous, can attain to the righteousness of God, that also is revealed in the gospel, isn't it? And so we've answered the question. Romans 3.23, all have sinned and come short of the glory of God, being justified freely by His grace. through the redemption that is in Jesus Christ, whom God has set forth to be a propitiation, a sacrifice, an atoning sacrifice, through faith in His blood, to declare His righteousness. Again, God is revealed. The righteousness of God is revealed in the doctrine of how we can obtain to it. It took the sending forth of His Son as a propitiation and atoning sacrifice, and it is by faith, not works, faith in what He did, which reveals the righteousness of God. Yet again, something must die that I can live. I've told you before, I'll tell you again. It just comes with old age. But anytime I come to this kind of a thought, I think about that hawk. Now it's probably 44 years ago, 40 some years ago, on 45th Street, crying out for breakfast. I said, he's preaching the gospel. He's preaching the gospel. Something must die that I can live. In a sin-cursed world, the whole food chain is the gospel. Something must die that I can live. The righteousness of God is revealed in the righteous one being offered up as a propitiation. That's the righteousness of God being executed. so that the righteous God could turn to you and say, I forgive you of your sins. If by faith you trust in Him who is righteous. Herein is the righteousness of God revealed. The righteousness of God is as big as the God of righteousness who offers salvation to whosoever believeth. That's the rest of that verse in Romans chapter 3. 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 has set forth to be a propitiation through faith in His blood to declare His righteousness for the remission of sins that are passed 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. Herein is the righteousness of God revealed. Jesus Christ had to die for God to be righteous in forgiving you. Because there's always a penalty. The law of God must be satisfied. So in these three ways, the righteousness of God on all points is thoroughly revealed. And the righteousness of God, as I said a moment ago, is as big as the God of righteousness, as seen in His offer, whosoever believeth. 322 of Romans, even the righteousness of God, which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all, and upon all them that believe, for there is no difference. As it is written, the just shall live by faith again in the backer. That's how the righteousness of God is revealed in the gospel. May the Lord bless His word. You can see now why I say that's more of a theological study, but I think it's a study worth studying. May the Lord bless it to our hearts as we appreciate what the Lord has said to us about the righteousness of God revealed in the gospel. Let's stand and sing, brother, some appropriate hymn. Some brother, help us out.