Turn with me, if you would, to Ephesians 2, Ephesians chapter 2, as we read together the first 13 verses of that chapter. Ephesians chapter 2. Beginning with verse 1, hear now the reading of the Word of God. As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature objects of wrath. But because of His great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ, even when we were dead in transgressions. It is by grace you have been saved. And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with Him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, in order that in the coming ages He might show the incomparable riches of His grace expressed in His kindness to us in Christ Jesus. For it is by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God, not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do. Therefore remember that formerly you who are Gentiles by birth and called uncircumcised by those who call themselves the circumcision, that done in the body by the hands of men, remember that at that time you were separate from Christ, excluded from citizenship in Israel, and foreigners to the covenants of the promise, without hope and without God in the world. But now in Christ Jesus, you who once were far away have been brought near through the blood of Christ. And in the back of this altar hymnal for our confessional consideration this morning, turn with me to page 30, Heidelberg Catechism, Lord's Day 23. Page 30, questions and answers 59, 60, and 61. As you recall, we have spent time in the previous Lord's Days considering what we believe when we profess the Apostles' Creed as we profess our triune God and His work. And this Lord's Day then necessarily follows up with the ending of our consideration of the Apostles' Creed. And we confess together with our mouths what we believe concerning these things. Question 59 asks, What good does it do you, however, to believe all this? In Christ, I am right with God and heir to life everlasting. How are you right with God? Only by true faith in Jesus Christ. Even though my conscience accuses me of having grievously sinned against all God's commandments and of never having kept any of them, and even though I am still inclined toward all evil, Nevertheless, without my deserving it at all, out of sheer grace, God grants and credits to me the perfect satisfaction, righteousness, and holiness of Christ. As if I had never sinned nor been a sinner, as if I had been as perfectly obedient as Christ was obedient for me. All I need to do is to accept this gift of God with a believing heart. Why do you say that by faith alone you are right with God? It is not because of any value my faith has that God is pleased with me. Only Christ's satisfaction, righteousness, and holiness make me right with God. And I can receive this righteousness and make it mine in no other way than by faith alone. Beloved of the Lord, called to be saints, as a Christian, what is it that you believe? Now, of course, we've considered this together somewhat as we have considered together what we believe when we profess our faith in the triune God using the words of the Apostles' Creed. The Apostles' Creed, that summary of Scripture's teaching about God, the Father and our creation, the Son and our redemption, the Holy Spirit and our sanctification. You see, this is the all this of question 59. We have considered what we believe concerning our profession of the Apostles' Creed. And now this question necessarily says, what good does it do you, however, to believe all this? All that you have professed beforehand. You see, as this question implies though, we're not finished yet. There's more. The catechism, true to its form, gets very personal, and that's because Scripture gets very personal. Yes, we know that God works with a people. The Bride of Christ is the church. But those who make up the church by the grace of God are individual believers, those in whom God has replaced their heart of stone with a heart of flesh. And therefore, after having considered what we believe as professing Christians, then we are called to consider this question, what does this mean to you? What does this mean to me? In other words, beloved, what comfort do you have from what you believe? What does it profit you now that you believe all this? That's how the question is phrased in the older version of the catechism, and that's how I would like to consider it this morning. What does it profit you now that you believe all this? Profit. That's a familiar word to us. Profit is something that is to our advantage, isn't it? It's to our good. We like profit. And isn't it wonderful that with God's grace there is always something in it for me? Don't ever forget that, beloved. With God's grace there's always something in it for me. In fact, with God's grace, His people are the main focus. But can you personally testify to profit from believing what you profess to believe? And if so, what is it? Is it a source of blessing to you? And is this profit a treasure that you would never want to be without? Peter says, But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts And always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you. Beloved, the hope that Peter speaks of is our prophet. That hope is to our good. That hope that is to be in us and is indeed in the believer by the grace of God deals with our relationship with God. But it's not just any relationship, you see. It's a specific relationship because salvation depends upon one's relationship with God. We consider this Word of God this morning. Justification by grace through faith defines the believer's relationship with God. It gives definition to the believer's relationship with God. First of all, as a right relationship. Secondly, as a declared relationship. And then finally, as an applied relationship. Now, there's one phrase that has sounded loud and clear over the past 500 years, especially throughout Reformation history. It's this, justification by grace alone through faith alone. And of course, throughout the same history, throughout the same period of time, and especially today, this marvelous truth of justification by grace through faith has been attacked because it takes all credit and ability and glory away from man and it makes everything dependent upon God. Yet, congregation, this is what we believe, isn't it? Because this is what the Bible teaches. And I believe that John Calvin was right when he said that this doctrine of justification by grace alone through faith alone, he said it is the main hinge on which religion turns. How are you justified before God? How do you stand before Him? It's the main hinge on which religion turns. This truth, beloved, determines or defines your relationship with God. And for those who believe in the Lord Jesus Christ by the grace of God, they have, through justification, a right relationship with God. What good does it do you, however, to believe all this? what profit is it to you now? In Christ, I am right with God and heir to life everlasting. As believers, we profess our faith in the triune God and His work and this right relationship before God is the great blessing of His work. Again, profit. We know what profit is, don't we? It's some sort of gain. It's something to our advantage. It's something for our good. We like profit. But the profit that the catechism speaks of here, beloved, cannot be measured in terms of dollars and cents or earthly success or prosperity. In fact, faith may involve the exact opposite of what we normally think of profit as being. Jesus says in Matthew 8, verse 20, Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head. And he said in Matthew 16, verse 25, For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. That's the prophet that we as professing believers look forward to for ourselves. You see, to the world, true faith, believing on the Lord Jesus Christ is not a wise business move because it involves cost. It involves continual loss. And we all know that no one ever got ahead in life that way. But it involves self-denial and a cross. Beloved, true faith may very well cost you a high position in your company. It may cost you your job. It may cost you your life. It may cost you your friends. The profit of true faith is not the profit of gold or silver, but of sacrifice. And the symbol of true faith is not the wallet or any other earthly thing. But it is the altar, again, the altar of sacrifice. The prophet of believing all this is the blessing of who I am in Christ Jesus. In Him I am right with God. In other words, God sees me as righteous because of Jesus Christ. I have a right relationship with Him. Now think about this for a moment. Righteousness deals with not having offended God, not having crossed over the line of His law, which we know we do daily. Sometimes moment by moment. But righteousness means that He looks at me. Righteousness in Christ means that He looks at me with favor through the eyes of His love. But not only am I righteous before God, I am an heir of life everlasting. This is the blessing of that right relationship. Now we know that an heir is a child. If you believe on Him, beloved, you can say with confidence, I am a child of God. In fact, go ahead and say that right now in your mind and in your heart. Say it. Say, I am a child of God. Can you say it? If you can truly say that, how awesome, huh? you see when others may boast that they have all that this world has to offer I can say but I have God because I am His for the sake of Jesus and therefore my profit my payoff by the grace of God is an eternal payoff this is my payoff earned by Christ in Him I have everything for this life and the life to come Congregation, righteousness and life are the basic blessings of believing. The wealth of this truth, the wealth of this truth is overwhelming and indeed will be overwhelming to those who have true faith. And this wealth of being righteous before God and an heir of life everlasting ought to produce happiness in us in each and every circumstance of life. You see, this faith in Jesus Christ keeps me safe on the solid rock when life is tough, filled with difficulties and pain that work to wear me down and tear me away from God. This faith supports me in dark days. This faith keeps me safe in the cleft of the rock in times of danger. But it also, not just for times of difficulty, but it also makes me thankful in prosperity when nothing's going wrong. when everything seems to be going my way, instead of becoming proud and arrogant and self-serving, it makes me thankful in prosperity. True faith keeps my eyes focused on the true giver of every good and perfect gift, as James says. But when the wealth of this happiness in Christ is not there, That is evidence that one does not reflect on that imperishable possession. Or worse yet, that one is without it altogether. Now we know that an heir receives an inheritance. It's not earned. It's given. And our comfort, beloved, is that when everything in this life can be taken away from you and me, then no one can take away my righteousness in Christ. No one can take away my inheritance of a life everlasting. And why is this? Well, we must take comfort in Peter's inspired words about that inheritance in which he says it is incorruptible and undefiled and that does not fade away reserved in heaven for you who are kept by the power of God through faith for salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. People of God, nothing compares with being in a right relationship with God. The opposite of being righteous before Him is to be damnable before Him. But true faith, believe it or not, true faith includes knowing that by nature, we all, each and every one of us, is ripe for hell. True faith understands. True faith has a true estimate of oneself. We have earned eternal death because we have offended Him. Of ourselves, like a prisoner on death row, all we can do is wait for eternal judgment. But in Christ, the prison door flies open and our God says, You are acquitted. You are set free. Enter into the joy of your Lord. This is the unbelievably wonderful message of the Gospel. Jesus Christ, who came to declare liberty to captives, has set His elect, those formerly held captive by Satan, He has set them free by grace through faith. Yeah, beloved, even knowing all this, as we stand before a sovereign God who knows our thoughts before we think them, and He knows our words before we say them, He knows the innermost recesses of our hearts, we can't help but in astonishment to ask, how? How is this possible? Question and answer 60. How are you right with God? Only by true faith in Jesus Christ. Even though my conscience accuses me of having grievously sinned against all God's commandments and of never having kept any of them, and even though I am still inclined toward all evil, nevertheless, without my deserving it at all, out of sheer grace, God grants and credits to me the perfect satisfaction, righteousness, and holiness of Christ as if I had never sinned nor been a sinner, as if I had been as perfectly obedient as Christ was obedient for me, all I need to do is to accept this gift of God with a believing heart. Now this catechism answer is a beautiful definition of justification. When Paul speaks of being justified by faith in Romans 3, and when he says, Nevertheless, knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but through faith in Christ in Galatians 2, this is what he's talking about. Justification is a declaration. It's a statement. When you justify yourself in a given situation, you make a declaration in support of yourself. I did this because. Or I am this way because. It is to make a declaration of how you stand over against a standard or a rule. And with regard to the believer, that standard is God and His law. Justification is a legal term, a courtroom term, boys and girls, that points to a declaration with regard to one's standing. Guilty or not guilty. But with regard to our sin versus the righteousness of Christ, justification, we must know, is not our doing. Again, we know that throughout the ages there have always been those who teach that man can justify himself by his works. Man can make himself right with God. He can earn His salvation. It was largely through God's eye-opening of Martin Luther causing him to see that that kind of thinking is nothing less than heresy. Largely through that that the 16th century reformation of the church came about. And of course, that false teaching continues today even in subtle forms. That man can make himself right before God wherever he chooses, whenever he chooses, and however he chooses. Justification is by grace through faith. And it defines, it gives definition to the believer's relationship with God. And that definition includes the fact then that it is a declared relationship. And the one who does the declaring, the speaking, is God Himself. Paul says in Romans 3 that God is just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus. And that means that he declares that his child is not guilty, but righteous. This is his verdict. The catechism answer, and rightly so, takes away any thought of man justifying himself. Even as Ephesians 2 says, For it is by grace you have been saved through faith, not by works. Again, it's only the work of God. Notice verses 4 through 6. But because of His great love for us, God who is rich in mercy, God made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions. It is by grace you have been saved. And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with Him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus. The truth is that one who has true faith could only look at himself apart from Christ and declare himself to be guilty. There would be no other way. No other possible verdict. His conscience accuses and speaks against Him. I am guilty because, as the catechism rightly says, I have grievously sinned against all the commandments of God. In my unrighteousness I have kept none of them, as well I am unholy. Why? Because I am still inclined toward all evil. You see, beloved, true faith does not treat sin as unimportant, or vague, or meaningless. or selective. True faith never winks at sin, covers it up, or lessens the seriousness of sin, but instead knows that even the least of my sin is committed against the Most High Majesty of a holy God, and even the least of my sin deserves, is worthy of hell. The believer knows that the reason he goes to heaven is not because he is a good person. The believer with true faith knows that apart from Christ, He stands before God as guilty and separated without one plea. But what does God do in justification? He declares me not guilty. In other words, in justification, God forgives all my sins. He removes from me my sin-stained robes. He removes that which separates me from Him. And He gives me, He clothes me in the robes of Christ's righteousness. Beloved, He gives me, He gives me that which I need to be right with Him. I've done nothing to deserve this. It is all the work of Jesus Christ through His act of obedience to the law of God and His passive obedience to the wrath and punishment of God for my sins unto death. This obedience of Christ is granted and credited to me. Or again, as the older version of the catechism says, granted and imputed to me. You see, God not only gives it to me, He not only grants it to me, but He puts the benefits of Christ on me. That's what imputation means. He doesn't just, as it were, give me a robe and say, put it on now, but He puts it on me. He clothes me with the righteous robes of Christ. Or we can think of it in accounting terms as the catechism in the back of our Psalter puts it. God erases my ledger balance of the debt of my sin and enters the credit balance of Christ's perfect satisfaction, righteousness, and holiness. God declares the believer to be right before Him as if, and that's a big if, As if I had never sinned or been a sinner. And as if I had been perfectly obedient as Christ was obedient for me. Paul says in Philippians 3 verse 9 that he is found in Christ not having my own righteousness which is from the law. But that which is through faith in Christ. The righteousness which is from God by faith. And he also says in Romans 5 verses 1 and 2. Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom also we have obtained our introduction by faith into this grace in which we stand and we exult in hope of the glory of God. This new relationship, beloved, is a new way of standing before God. No longer guilty, but not guilty. As I said in the earlier service, as we think back to this past week, I'm sure David Westerfield would have loved to hear those words, not guilty. Our crimes, beloved, as heinous as that crime may have been, our crimes against the most holy God are so much worse than that. And we hear from our Savior's own lips, from our God's own lips, not guilty. We hear those words that he may have longed to hear. And the catechism says it is without my deserving it at all, out of sheer grace, or as the older version beautifully puts it, without any merit of mine, of mere grace. Beloved, God doesn't justify the good and the brave who have first accomplished this or that. He doesn't justify the already reformed and the orthodox In His grace, He justifies the godless who, through the regeneration of the Holy Spirit, strike their breath, pleading, God, be merciful to me, the sinner. As if I'm the one and only. This justification by grace through faith is mine. This justification by grace, beloved, is mine through true faith in Jesus Christ. This is what I believe with my born-again heart. And this true faith is itself a gift, as Ephesians 2 verse 8 reminds us. It is a most precious, valuable possession because it is that which binds one to Christ and His saving benefits. But we need to be aware of counterfeit faith. Again, as the catechism makes clear, one of the ways that true faith manifests itself or evidences itself is through the conscience. Some worry whether or not their faith is really true. And if that includes you, be encouraged because with counterfeit faith, with false faith, the conscience is silenced. It's rusted. It's completely spoiled. But with the believer, the conscience, in a sense, is as accurate as the needle of a compass. The unbeliever cannot truly speak the language of self-accusation and dissatisfaction with self. But the language of true faith knows what it is I deserve and is truly sorry. But it also knows and understands what I have in Christ and truly rejoices. And notice again, beloved, what it is that God grants and credits or imputes to the believer. The perfect satisfaction, righteousness, and holiness of Christ. And notice then how these, we could say, ease my conscience. You see, my conscience has accused me of crimes against all of God's commandments. But I have Christ's satisfaction as if I had paid for these crimes. I have kept none of God's commandments. But with Christ's righteousness, it is as if I have been completely obedient. I am still inclined toward all evil, but Christ's holiness removes that. What a beautiful contrast here. We know that whereas justification is God's declaration about us, for us, but outside of us, and it happens at a point in time when God says, not guilty. Yet sanctification, which flows from justification, is a process whereby the Holy Spirit of God works in us, daily renewing us more and more in the image of God with true righteousness, holiness, and obedience. The Holy Spirit is working toward our perfection which will be one day in glory, yet for the sake of Jesus. God looks at the believer and sees him already now as perfect in Christ. Christ's perfection is transferred to the believer through true faith so that my confidence and I trust your confidence already today is owning, possessing the gift of salvation and life everlasting. We must understand, beloved, that this right relationship with God then finally is an applied relationship. But why do you say that by faith alone you are right with God? It is not because of any value my faith has that God is pleased with me. Only Christ's satisfaction, righteousness, and holiness make me right with God. And I can receive this righteousness and make it mine in no other way than by faith alone. A congregation, this is a very, very important thing for us to consider. As a believer, I am not justified because of my faith, but by faith. You see, there's a big difference. Some would make faith some sort of a good work that because I am so good and kind to believe, because I have made the decision to believe in God without any help from Him, therefore God grants me in exchange for that acquittal and eternal life. Just a little trade. But that would make justification be because of my faith. We are not justified, beloved, because of our work of faith. But we are justified because of Christ's work of satisfaction. My faith doesn't make me worthy and it doesn't have any intrinsic value because it's not, first of all, my faith. I believe because God has given me, of His electing love, He has given me the faith to believe. Paul makes that clear when he says that faith is not of ourselves, it is the gift of God. God has given to His people the gift of faith in order that we might receive that which is to be received from Christ. Again, perfect satisfaction, righteousness, and holiness applied through faith. And God makes that mind, my very own, through faith, applied through faith, through a believing heart. People of God, faith is necessary, but it is, boys and girls, listen, It is as the stretched out hand of the beggar which takes hold of that which God places in that hand. A beggar who has been given a dollar bill did not earn that dollar. It was placed in his hand and he received it with his hand. Faith can only be firmly anchored in Jesus Christ. And our trust is not to be in the instrument called faith. but our trust is to only be in Christ. If it is in the faith itself, then it is like one who is drowning. And when a man throws a rope and pulls him out, the one who was saved says, well, the rope saved me. But that rope, you see, was only the instrument to perform the saving act. Christ is the anchor of our soul, anchored in the very presence of God. And beloved, we are inseparably connected to the anchor of Christ in the presence of God through that instrument, through that rope called faith. God has declared that His people have a right relationship with Him and they enjoy it, they own it, and they claim it through true faith. One commentator beautifully describes what God does in Christ through faith when he says, Faith in Jesus Christ is such a blessed miracle, It makes the godless righteous. It makes those guilty of death saints. And it makes the condemned to be inhabitants of heaven. This is how God transforms the lives of His children through true faith. Salvation depends upon having a right relationship with God through Jesus Christ. It is God Himself for the sake of Jesus who makes one right with Him. And that is evidenced by true faith with a believing heart. But if you are here this morning and you don't believe in the Lord Jesus Christ by grace through faith, please understand that you also stand in a relationship with God. But it's not right, not a right one. You stand guilty, subject to His justice, headed for eternal separation and death. But you are called to repent of your sins and believe in the Lord Jesus Christ because He is the only way, truth, and life to be right with God. And as we said earlier, His faithful promise is that whoever comes to Him, He will in no wise cast out not a one. But whoever comes to Him in true faith will find forgiveness and eternal life in Him. A right relationship with God by His grace through true faith. Beloved, there is no greater possession. And I hope and pray that you claim no greater possession. Is that the hope that is in you? Amen. Shall we pray? Father, again in Jesus' name, we come before you and we praise you and thank you for that most gracious, blessed gift that you have given to us. That you are the one who says to your people, you are not guilty in my sight. I have forgiven all your sins and I give you the righteousness of Christ. I give you eternal life, full and free. Father, that may this be a wonderful truth by which we live each and every day of this life. May we go forward with this joy firmly embedded in our hearts. Lord God, we pray that as your word has gone forth today and continues to go forth, saints would be edified, sinners would be converted, and you, O Lord, would be glorified and praised. For Jesus' sake, amen.