Root and Fruit: Comparing James and Paul

Order of Service

• Prayer of Invocation
• Sermon
• Pastoral Prayer

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Sermon Title: Root and Fruit — Comparing James and Paul

Scripture: Romans 3:28 and James 2:24

I. Introduction — The Apparent Conflict Between Paul and James

A. Paul states in Romans 3:28: one is justified by faith apart from works of the law B. James states in James 2:24: a person is justified by works and not by faith alone C. These statements seem contradictory but are not — Paul and James are addressing two different conversation partners

1. Paul addresses the legalist: one who believes he is saved by his works
2. James addresses the antinomian: one who believes grace requires nothing further — faith without fruit

II. The Context of Romans — Paul's Audience and Purpose

A. Paul writes to a mixed congregation of Jews and Gentiles in Rome

1. At some point the Jewish believers were expelled from Rome, leaving a Gentile-only congregation
2. When the Jews returned, the reunited church struggled to reintegrate as one body
3. Some returning Jewish believers had fallen back into legalistic ideas from their upbringing B. A specific symptom: the question of whether Gentile believers must be circumcised
4. Circumcision represents a broader problem — a lingering Pharisaism demanding obedience to the law as a condition of salvation
5. Paul's overarching question through Romans 1–11: How can a person with a condemnation problem be cured of that problem?

III. Paul's Argument Leading to Romans 3

A. Paul levels the ground by establishing universal sinfulness

1. Romans 1:18 through end of chapter 1: the pagan Gentile world is living in gross sin
2. Romans 2: the Jews are likewise sinners — all mankind stands under condemnation B. Paul's thesis: Romans 1:16–17
3. The gospel is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek
4. The righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith — the righteous shall live by faith C. Romans 3:10–18: the universal indictment — none is righteous, no not one D. Romans 3:19–20: direct address to the legalist — by works of the law no human being will be justified; through the law comes only knowledge of sin

IV. The Righteousness of God — Romans 3:21–31

A. The pivotal phrase: But now — Paul turns the corner in his argument B. What is the righteousness of God?

1. It is God's own righteousness — his perfection and holiness
2. It is more than the righteousness that belongs to God; it is righteousness that comes from God as a gift (see Romans 5)
3. John Murray: the emphasis rests on its divine property — even a perfect human righteousness would be inadequate given our sin; we need something greater
4. This righteousness is found in Christ — his perfect, sinless life fulfilling the whole law, offered as a perfect sacrifice
5. Through union with Christ, his righteousness is credited to us — the great exchange: our sin laid on him, his righteousness given to us
6. Tim Keller: it is a perfect record given to us C. How do we receive this righteousness? A progression in Romans 3:22–25
7. Through faith in Jesus Christ — not vague faith but faith in a person and his work
8. Because all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23) — the ground is level at the foot of the cross
9. It is given as a gift by grace (Romans 3:24)
10. It comes through propitiation — Christ as the propitiation in his blood (Romans 3:25) D. Propitiation defined
11. The Greek word (hilastērion) is translated variously: propitiation, expiation, sacrifice of atonement
12. Expiation = the wiping away of wrongdoing
13. Propitiation includes expiation but goes further: it is the turning away of God's wrath
14. God's wrath is the reason we are out of relationship with him; propitiation reconciles that relationship
15. Keller: the judge takes the judgment
16. The concept echoes the Old Testament Day of Atonement — Christ fulfills what the annual animal sacrifice foreshadowed

V. The Purpose of the Law

A. The law is good — it reveals sin and shows us our deep need (Romans 3:20) B. Paul in Galatians affirms the law's goodness: it is meant to drive us to Christ C. Distinction between aspects of the law

1. Ceremonial and dietary laws are fulfilled in Christ and no longer bind believers
2. The moral law (summarized in the Ten Commandments, unpacked by Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount) continues as a standard for all people — not as a means of salvation but as the fruit of faith
3. The moral law is written on the heart even prior to the entrance of sin