From the MLJ Archive

Romans 4:4-8 — Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones asks, “Who is the man who can be justified?” He answers that it is anyone that produces no works and is ungodly. In accordance with Paul’s preaching throughout Romans that would be everyone. Paul says this because the act of justification is entirely a work of Christ and no work that we do could ever be part of that process. In this sermon titled “Justifying the Ungodly” from Romans 4:4–8, Dr. Lloyd-Jones also explains that because all are ungodly, justification does not make them righteous: it means that Christ has imputed His righteousness to their account. In this passage, Paul discusses both Abraham and David, both of whom were people of the Old Testament that received salvation by faith. Paul quotes David in this passage and Dr. Lloyd-Jones explains that forgiveness is noted as the first step in the process of reconciliation. Christ covers sins, forgives iniquities, and does not impute the sins against the sinner. Instead, God imputed those sins on His Son Jesus, which were then taken to the cross. A Christian realizes that they play no part in this process and salvation is purely God’s work on the cross.