Now that Christ has died and has been raised from among the dead, it is impossible for God to change His mind about forgiving us. Rather, we have the ground to say to Him, “O God, whether You love me or not, You must forgive me. Before Christ died on the cross, You could have changed Your mind. But because He has died and because You have raised Him from among the dead, You have no legal standing to refuse to forgive me. O God, You must forgive me now, for You have no right to change in this matter. You are bound by Your righteousness.” In this way, righteousness is the power of the gospel.
Both love and grace may change, but righteousness is solid and steadfast. God is free either to love us or not to love us. However, He is bound by His righteousness. Now that Christ has died to fulfill God’s righteous requirements, God has put Himself into a position where He is legally bound. Whether He loves us or not, He is bound by His own righteousness to forgive us. Thus, the foundation of our salvation is righteousness, not love or grace. Psalm 89:14 says, “Righteousness and justice are the foundation of thy throne” (Heb.). The very foundation of God’s throne is also the foundation of our salvation. Can the foundation of God’s throne be shaken? Certainly not. Likewise, the foundation of our salvation cannot be shaken, for this foundation is not love nor grace, but righteousness.
The Bible does not say that love is the power of the gospel; neither does it say that grace is the power of the gospel. But it does reveal that the righteousness of God is the power of the gospel. If we consider ourselves, we shall realize that we are not lovable nor worthy of God’s grace. We simply do not deserve anything from God. But God is righteous. He put Christ to death on our behalf, and He has recognized the death of Christ as the full payment of our debt. Furthermore, the resurrected Christ sitting at God’s right hand is the receipt of payment. Since God has already issued this receipt, how could He righteously claim payment again from us? If He would do so, we could point Him to Christ and remind Him that He must take care of His righteous position, even the foundation of His throne.
We can boldly tell God, “If You don’t deal with me according to Your righteousness, Your throne will be shaken. The important issue is not whether I shall be saved or perish; it is whether or not You will allow the foundation of Your throne to be shaken. God, for me to perish is a secondary matter. The primary matter is the righteous foundation of Your throne. God, I remind You of Your righteousness. Christ has died for my sins, and He is now at Your right hand as proof that You have received His payment of all my debts. According to Your righteousness, You have no choice except to save me. Christ has died, You have accepted His death and have resurrected Him from among the dead, and now You are legally bound to forgive me. By resurrecting Christ You indicated that You were satisfied with His payment and You issued a receipt of payment. O God, if You were not satisfied with Christ, then You should have allowed Him to remain in the tomb. O Father God, I appreciate Your love and Your grace. But now I stand before You not so much in love or in grace, but in Your righteousness. Now, no matter what my condition is, You must forgive me.”
Have you ever prayed to God in such a way? It pleases Him whenever someone prays like this. This is a prayer that appeals to God according to His righteousness. The gospel of Christ is the power of God because the righteousness of God is revealed in it.
In 3:21 Paul speaks a further word about righteousness: “But now without law the righteousness of God has been manifested, being witnessed by the law and the prophets.” To say that the righteousness of God has been manifested without the law means that the righteousness of God is not based on our doing; that is, it is not based upon our keeping the law.
God’s righteousness is shown forth, in the forbearance of God, in His passing by of the sins that occurred before (3:25). This means that in view of the redemption of Christ that was to come, God passed by the sins of many saints in the Old Testament, such as Abel, Noah, Abraham, Jacob, and David. During the Old Testament age, God neither condemned ones such as these to the lake of fire, nor did He forgive their sins. Rather, He passed by their sins. Their sins still existed, but they were covered by the type, by the blood of the sacrifices which typified the sacrifice of Christ. The Old Testament type in this matter may be likened to a promissory note. The type was not the actual payment of debt, but a sure promise that full payment would be made. Because Christ had not yet come to die on the cross, God gave sinners in the Old Testament a promissory note. The propitiatory or expiatory sacrifice, which foreshadowed Christ, satisfied all the requirements of God’s righteousness. Hence, He could pass by the people’s sin that occurred in the Old Testament age. Furthermore, in order to show forth His righteousness, He had to do this.
This is what 3:25 refers to. This verse reveals that the Lord Jesus is the propitiation place, the propitiation-cover, whom God set forth for showing forth His righteousness in passing by the sins of the Old Testament saints; for, as the propitiatory sacrifice, He has made the full propitiation on the cross for their sins and has fully satisfied the requirements of God’s righteousness. When the Lord Jesus died on the cross, He fulfilled all the types of His sacrificial and redemptive death. At that time, the promissory note was replaced by the actual payment.
By forgiving us God shows forth His righteousness. He makes a declaration to the whole universe that because He is righteous, He must forgive us of our sins. Because His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, was put to death by Him on the cross on our behalf, He is legally obligated to forgive us. Whether He is happy with us or not, He must forgive us according to His righteousness. God knows that whenever a person points to the resurrected and ascended Christ as the receipt for the payment for sin, God must forgive that one. In this matter, God has no choice.