Romans 5: 1-10

Theme: Justification part 1

PARDON ME, MY SIN IS SHOWING

I have visited death row and sat in the electric chair in the Tennessee State Prison. It is an eerie feeling to sit in the death chair where men had been executed for the capital crimes. I have never visited Angola State Prison, but I would imagine that scene is just as bad if not worse.

How would you like to find yourself falsely accused and convicted of murder? How would it feel to sit on death row in Angola waiting for the appeals to play out and for the day of execution to come?

Albert Ronnie Burrell is a mildly retarded man. In 1987, at age 32, Burrell was living with his mother in rural North Louisiana. He was arrested and convicted of double murder of an elderly couple from Union Parish and he was sentenced to die. Burrell once came within 17 days of execution before a stay of execution was granted. On January 3, 2001, Albert Brurrell was released from Angola State Prison a free man. Warden Burl Cain said that it was the first time he had seen an inmate freed from death row. Another death row inmate told reporters that he had never seen Burrell smile until heard a radio new report of his impending release.

On the day of his release, his stepbrother and sister picked him up about 5:00PM. He told reporters that "he thought he would never get out of here." He said that, in the future, he wants to repair cars like he once did in Union Parish.

What happened? A lawyer became interested in the case and found a number of irregularities and even false testimony used against Burrell and Michael Ray Graham who was convicted with him. But what seems be the thing that set him free was the result of DNA studies that were not available when he was convicted in 1987. The DNA evidence did not match that of Burrell. ( From The Advocate Online, 1/3/01)

Albert Burrell was justified in court by the witness of DNA. If you are accused of a crime, you cannot declare yourself just before the Law, you must defend yourself according to standard courtroom procedure. If something goes wrong and you are convicted falsely, the only way the verdict can be overturned is if someone else can prove your innocence. You cannot justify yourself. To be justified is to be declared right, to be vindicated, to be right before the Law. The greatest feeling in the world must be when you are falsely accused and you have been proven right, justified.

But, what if you are guilty, can you be justified? It seems impossible. And we would be outraged if a judge declared a murderer to be just and set him free. But this is exactly what Paul says has happened to us! Paul uses this legal language to describe how sinners are saved. And Paul says that we are justified. What we must understand is that we are sinners guilty before God. There is not doubt about our guilt. There is no question about what we are.

Paul uses the language of a courtroom. But, this is not the court of a judge and jury. It is the courtroom of a Sovereign King. The King is Lawmaker, ruler as well as Judge and jury. It is His kingdom, His world and His rules under which we live. It is into this court that we are brought, shackled by chains created by our own sins. Our sins snare us and enslave us and are ever before us. We enter the courtroom in the filthiest of apparel as those who reek with shame and guilt for whom we are. We stand before the most Holy Judge whose very presence convicts us of our deeds and of our state of sin.

We sit in the chair of the accused. The prosecutor (that Ancient Accuser) approaches the bench and says to the Judge, "This one is an open and shut case. He is guilty beyond any doubt. We will seek the death penalty."

"Do you have any evidence?" Asks the Judge.

"I can prove that He has broken every Law that your Honor has declared." Hissed the Accuser. And the accuser points out every act of rebellion, hate, greed, lust, and covetousness in your life. You hang your head low for you know it is true.

"Your Honor, by your own words, if a person breaks one of Your Laws, they are guilty of them all. I move for a summary judgment. I ask for the death penalty," says the Accuser with a rather vicious smile.

"Is there a counter argument?" Asks the Judge.

The Defense Attorney rises and speaks, "Yes, your honor, I have one overwhelming argument. Let the record show that the defendant is already dead and cannot be persecuted before this court!"

The great Judge strikes His gavel and says, "In that case, I declare this defendant Justified!"

"How can this be?" Screams the accuser.

The Judge ruled, "It is by faith that he is Justified. Court dismissed."

For a moment, you are puzzled by what has taken place. You know that you are guilty, how can you be justified? Paul explains. While we were still helpless in our sins, Christ died for us. God, the Son became flesh. He is the utterly unique God-Man, Fully God and Fully Human. He became flesh so that He might become our substitute. The whole purpose of the incarnation is our salvation.

Jesus is the infinite God in the flesh. He is infinitely righteous and infinitely innocent. But He became sin and bore our penalty on the cross. The Holy became our substitute. Jesus knew every person who could come by faith to Him. And for each person who would come by faith, Jesus died as their substitute. Jesus paid the price demanded by the Law that the sinner must die.

You may ask, how can someone else die in my place? Here is how Paul explains it. When we come to Jesus by faith, we become "In Christ." It is a new relationship, Christ is in us and we are in Him. In this union with Christ, we die with him on the cross. His death becomes our death. And His resurrection becomes our resurrection. Paul explains this in Romans 6:

When we come to Jesus by faith, we die with him and we are raised to new life with him. And when we stand before the court of God, we are declared justified because we are new creatures in Christ. The old person has already died with Jesus on the cross. He died in our place, as our substitute. We are dead with Him and we are no longer in the jurisdiction of the Law. This is why Paul was able to say, "There is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus." (Rom. 8: 1, NASB)

To be justified is to be declared right before God. Who would not want to be declared right before God? We are guilty of violating God’s Law. There is nothing within our ability that can save us. We cannot meet the requirements of the Law nor can we buy our freedom. All we can do is come to God by faith seeking His pardon. And instead of treating us with justice and as the object of His holy wrath, God treats us with mercy and grace. In fact, he invites us to His Grace.

King David of ancient Israel had sinned greatly by murdering Uriah so as to cover up an affair he had with Uriah’s wife, Bathsheba. When the full weight of his sin fell upon him, he realized he had no hope at all short of the mercy of God. In Psalm 51 we have his pleading before God.

In that pleading for mercy, David found the mercy of God and was justified.

When God convicts us of our sinfulness, we fall before God like David and we plea, "Pardon me, for my sin is showing, my soul is exposed before Thee." We know that are sitting on death row. We have no more appeals, we have no other place to go. In the moment that the Holy Spirit brings us to faith in Jesus and we become justified and we are set free death row. We become new creatures in Christ.