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This is the third sermon in this series entitled, “A Biblical Examination of the Cultural Marxist Movement”. I want to again remind you of two things before we begin:
- In the first two sermons, I have stated how we will have a thesis for this entire series. Our thesis is, “Cultural Marxism, and all of the ideologies that are associated with it, are both cancerous and incompatible with the Christian faith and message.” We will seek to confirm this thesis by the end of the sermon.
- The way we will prove this thesis is a very straight-forward approach. As I have said before, “How we will do this is quite simple, much like examining a hundred dollar bill for a fake, we will begin each session by going through Scripture and reaffirming what we hold as truth and then the second part of each sermon will consist in ‘holding up’ the teachings of Cultural Marxism with the truths of God’s Word. In the light of God’s Word, the errors will reveal themselves.”
I have been blessed to have an open door for ministry at our local jail. This ministry has been a great opportunity for exposing so many lost men to God’s Word and the Gospel. The men down at the jail have different questions for me but one particular question I have often been asked is, “How would you summarize the message of the Bible in a sentence or two?” Think about that question for a moment, how would you briefly summarize what the Bible is all about? The short answer I give is this, “The Bible is the story about the glory of God in the Gospel of Jesus Christ.” From Genesis to Revelation we see God working out His sovereign will, or His decree, to the praise of His own glory. His sovereign will deals specifically with foretelling the coming of Jesus Christ and the work He would accomplish, as one author says, “The Old Testament is Jesus predicted; the Gospels are Jesus revealed; Acts is Jesus preached, the Epistles, Jesus explained; and the Revelation, Jesus expected.” (J. Alec Moyer) The main focus of the Bible is God’s glory; the means of God being glorified is found in the person and work of Jesus. In summary, what is the Bible is all about? God’s glory. And how is God most glorified in the Bible? Through the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
So, why do I bring all of this up? This third sermon in our series entitled, “Sin and Atonement” deals specifically with this topic. We have already dealt with different areas where this Cultural Marxist movement is in direct conflict with the clear teaching of the Bible and today, we will examine how it corrupts the very heart of Scripture, the Gospel of Jesus Christ. To understand the Gospel, and where Cultural Marxism comes into conflict with it, you need to have a working knowledge of three specific teachings: the doctrines of sin, God’s law, and atonement. So, to understand what the Bible teaches about the Gospel of Jesus Christ, we are going to walk through one passage of Scripture, Romans 3:9-26.
As you are turning there, I want to remind you of the context. Paul is writing to the Christians in Rome; the opening fifteen verses contain a greeting from Paul to this church. In 1:16, he transitions to an explanation of this Gospel that he is eager to preach to those who reside in Rome, “For I am not ashamed of the Gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, ‘But the righteous man shall live by faith.’” (Romans 1:16-17) From this point forward he begins to thoroughly explain what the Gospel of Jesus Christ is, and so, if Paul wants to clearly explain the Gospel he must start with the sinfulness of man. I remember Paul Washer emphasizing this point, as Ernie actually used it recently also, the Gospel is like a diamond. In the sense that, a diamond will be presented in front of a black backdrop so you can see it in all of its beauty. Likewise, with the Gospel, it is most clearly seen, in all of its beauty, with the backdrop of the depravity and utter wickedness of man. The Gospel’s beauty shines forth in the black backdrop of man’s sin and rebellion. And so, Paul, from 1:18-3:20, proceeds to explain this sinful, fallen nature of man and God’s righteous anger against man’s rebellion, “For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who suppress the truth in unrighteousness,” (Romans 1:18) So, as we approach this portion that we will be walking through, 3:9-26, Paul has just been answering a few objections that he has probably received throughout his ministry. We are going to break this passage down into three parts: sin (3:9-18), God’s law (3:19-20), and atonement (3:21-26).
So, lets read 3:9-18,
What then? Are we better than they? Not at all; for we have already charged that both Jews and Greeks are all under sin; as it is written, ‘There is none righteous, not even one; there is none who understands, there is none who seeks for God; all have turned aside, together they have become useless; there is none who does good, there is not even one.’ ‘Their throat is an open grave, with their tongues they keep on deceiving,’ ‘The poison of asps is under their lips; ‘Whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness’; ‘Their feet are swift to shed blood, destruction and misery are in their paths, and the path of peace they have not known.’ ‘There is no fear of God before their eyes.’
In this passage, Paul is bringing to completion his teaching on the doctrine of sin. From 1:18-3:18, he has been explaining to the Romans the universal reality that all men have sinned before God. In this portion, he is doing a final recap, or summary, and his teaching can be broken down to one key point: sin’s vile, universal nature.
Notice how Paul starts with an objection, in the form of a question, “What then? Are we better than they?” The ESV supplies the word ‘Jews’ to help the reader understand the objection. Paul had previously stated how the Jews had benefits that Gentiles (or Greeks) didn’t have, like circumcision and the oracles of God. But were Jews better off because of these benefits? No, because what Paul had been doing in the last two chapters was establishing that all men have sinned before God. Notice, this is why his answer was, “Not at all; for we have already charged that both Jews and Greeks are all under sin;”. Paul then quotes multiple passages from the OT (Psalms, Proverbs, Jeremiah, and Isaiah) to show that it clearly teaches that all men are guilty before God. According to the OT, all men are unrighteous, don’t understand, don’t seek for God, and don’t do good. This is who we are as fallen sons and daughter of Adam, we all have gone astray and are useless. We were made in God’s image but because of our sinful nature we have so marred and disfigured that image, left to ourselves we are incapable of bringing glory to God or to be righteous in His sight.
If you don’t see yourself as guilty or vile, if you respond to me, “Well Blake, I know I am not perfect, but I am not that bad! I’m not some thief, rapist or murderer.” I’ll let Paul respond to your objection, “Therefore you have no excuse, everyone of you who passes judgment, for in that which you judge another, you condemn yourself; for you who judge practice the same things.” (Romans 2:1) Paul’s point is this: that even if you agree that lying, theft, immorality, murder, or any other sin is just that, a sin, and it is evil and deserving of God’s judgment then you must understand that God won’t let you slide for even a single violation. He is a perfect, just judge, if you do what He determines to be wrong, and especially if you know it’s wrong, you have only agreed that God’s holy wrath against you is justified. This is the devastating reality of sin, we are all guilty of it and God is a holy, righteous God, do you see the problem? It was either Paul Washer or Voddie Baucham that said something along the lines of, “When Jesus, the perfect Son of God, took on sin His Father crushed Him, what do you think God will do to you?” This is why Paul’s statement, in verse 9, “… that both Jews and Greeks (or all men) are all under sin;” is so heart-wrenching. We are all under sin, we are slaves to both its power and its guilt. As Jesus said, “ Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who commits sin is the slave of sin.” (John 8:34) Lastly, notice just how vile this sin is, some of the OT passages that Paul quotes give vivid descriptions about sin: our throat is an open grave, deceptive tongues, the poison of asps is under their lips (the picture is that like a snake we attack others with our mouths), full of bitterness and cursing, feet running swiftly to evil, destruction, misery, and we haven’t known the path of peace and have no fear of God.
And so, as we have seen, sin is universal and utterly vile. Paul then transitions to explain one of the purposes of God’s law, lets read the next section, verses 19-20,
Now we know that whatever the Law says, it speaks to those who are under the Law, so that every mouth may be closed and all the world may become accountable to God; because by the works of the Law no flesh will be justified in His sight; for through the Law comes the knowledge of sin.
In this next portion, Paul is explaining the purpose of God’s law. Think about this question, what makes something a sin? Or what makes a sin a sin? This question is so vital, as you will see at the end of this sermon, but the answer can be found in God’s law. The 1693 Baptist Catechism, question #17 is, “What is sin?” The answer given is, “Sin is any want (lack) of conformity unto, or transgression of, the law of God.” You see what makes a sin a sin, is the law of God. The law of God is God’s holy standard for what is right or wrong. Paul’s point, in these verses, is to show that God’s law is meant to be a standard to show us our guilt before Him. Paul starts by saying, “Now we know that whatever the Law says, it speaks to those who are under the Law…” So, Paul is probably referring to the ten commandments, or to the OT as a whole, when he speaks of ‘the Law’, but his point is that God revealed Himself to the Jews. To those Jews, the Law revealed God’s very word to them. Notice Paul then gives this explanation of the purpose of God’s law, “… so that every mouth may be closed, and all the world may become accountable to God.” God’s revelation of Himself, through His Law, was given to the Jews to (1) close every mouth and (2) make the whole world accountable to God. Well, how does it do that? Augustine once said, “The law orders, that we, after attempting to do what is ordered, and so feeling our weakness under the law, may learn to implore the help of grace.” Augustine is touching on the point Paul presented, the law is meant to show us that we are guilty, that is what closes our mouth and make us accountable to God. God’s law is meant to be a standard to show us how we fail to live up to the righteousness He requires of us. Notice this is what Paul clearly states in verse 20, “because by the works of the Law no flesh will be justified in His sight; for through the Law comes the knowledge of sin.” The Law of God, specifically the ten commandments, weren’t given so that we could make ourselves right with God by obeying them but to give us understanding that we are sinners before Him. This is why Paul, in Galatians, speaks of the Law in this way, “… the Law has become our tutor to lead us to Christ, so that we may be justified by faith.” (Galatians 4:24) The Law, isn’t just a set of rules but with it comes the requirement of perfect obedience unto it. It is our tutor by showing us that it’s an impossible task to perfectly obey it and therefore, it leads us to look outside of ourselves to be saved.
The Law leads us to the last part of this passage, verses 21-26:
But now apart from the Law the righteousness of God has been manifested, being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets, even the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all those who believe; for there is no distinction; for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified as a gift by His grace through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus; whom God displayed publicly as a propitiation in His blood through faith. This was to demonstrate His righteousness, because in the forbearance of God He passed over the sins previously committed; for the demonstration, I say, of His righteousness at the present time, so that He would be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.
As we have seen, we are all guilty, vile rebels before God. We all have sinned, and the Law was given to be the prosecutor that shows how you have violated God’s Law and are completely deserving of judgment. This is why Johnathon Edwards famous sermon, ‘Sinners in the hands of an angry God’ was so brilliant, he was simply declaring to those listening that if you simply understand how you have broken God’s Law, you have sinned against God, you would recognize the weight behind that charge. What’s amazing is that even after one sin He hasn’t thrown you into hell already. It is His goodness that keeps Him from executing His sentence against you immediately.
Notice, “But now …” if we just stopped at the Law of God and sin, we would be doomed with no hope before God. But God’s grace has made a way for us to be righteous before Him. Paul transitions to the Gospel that, “has been manifested by the Law and the Prophets”. Paul is hitting on what I stated earlier, God had been predicting throughout the OT the coming of a Savior. Because we have sinned, by violating God’s Law and incurring its curse against us, we have two problems before God: (1) we need God’s perfect righteousness to be in fellowship with Him and (2) we need a substitute to satisfy God’s holy, just wrath against our crimes. This is what makes the Gospel the greatest news, God has accomplished both through Jesus Christ.
We need God’s perfect righteousness to be in fellowship with Him: Paul declares that God’s own righteousness has not only ‘been manifested’ but is given freely to those who place their faith in Jesus. Notice, “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God being justified as a gift by His grace…” Though we all have sinned, and we all fall far short of the glory that God requires, God freely declares guilty men not guilty. He justifies us freely; this is a legal term declaring that before Him we are spotless! We don’t earn God’s righteousness by doing works, we are given it freely by faith alone, as Paul later states, “Now to the one who works, his wage is not credited as a favor, but as what is due. But to the one who does not work, but believes in Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is credited as righteousness,” (Romans 4:4-5)
We need a substitute to satisfy God’s holy, just anger against our crimes: By God’s grace, through faith, we are given God’s righteousness but how can we just simply be declared not guilty though we are? Taking this into consideration that God, in His Law, declares this, “The person who sins will die … the wickedness of the wicked will be upon himself.” (Ezekiel 18:20) and “He who justifies the wicked … is an abomination to the Lord.” (Proverbs 17:15) If you must be held accountable for your sin, how can God simply declare you legally righteous before Himself? How can He justify you, who are wicked, without being an abomination to Himself? Notice, the answer is found in our text and can be summarized by the word atonement. Paul says that we are justified, “through the redemption which is in Jesus Christ; whom God displayed publicly as a propitiation in His blood…” The reason God can let you slide is because He didn’t let Christ slide. You were under the curse of God’s Law, ‘the soul that sins shall die’ but “Christ redeemed us from the curse of the Law, having become a curse for us.” (Galatians 3:13) Notice by crushing Jesus on our behalf, the Righteous for the unrighteousness, God has done what Paul stated, “This was to demonstrate His righteousness, because in the forbearance of God He passed over the sins previously committed; for the demonstration, I say, of His righteousness at the present time, so that He would be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.” How can God declare righteous a guilty sinner and still be just? How can He, ‘be just and the justifier’? The Father freely sends the Son and Jesus, out of love for His people, freely went to a cross and took the wrath of God for us! He satisfied God’s anger, that is what propitiation means, and by making propitiation for us, He has made atonement for all of our sin. Jesus, the spotless Lamb of God, has accomplished the true ‘Day of Atonement’ on the hillside of Calvary. This is why Paul will go on to declare this truth, “Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” (Romans 8:1) To the Christian who struggles with assurance, look at the cross where atonement was made and let me present some quotes that should help you rest in that love of Christ:
- Steve Lawson, “Grace was purchased by Christ. Grace washes away sin. Grace buries the past. Grace gives a new start. Grace leads to Heaven. Grace will never let go.”
- Paul Washer, “God is not a god who tolerates you. He is a God who loves you. He is a God who desires you.”
- Sinclair Ferguson, “In Christ a ‘wonderful exchange’ took place. He became what He was not, a condemned criminal, in order that we might become what we are not, men declared righteous and justified in the sight of God.”
- A.W. Pink, “He foresaw my every fall, my every sin, my every backsliding; yet, nevertheless, fixed His heart upon me.”
Though I would love for us to just sit under the foot of the cross and glory in what Jesus has done, we must move on to see how this glorious Gospel is being perverted. Let me remind you of a few key points that were seen in God’s Word:
- All men are guilty before God, there is none righteous or not guilty
- Sin is determined by God’s Law, whether lack of conformity to it or transgression of it
- To establish sin, you must prove someone has violated God’s law
- The atonement of Jesus has fully accomplished forgiveness for His people
- The Gospel is solely the message of salvation by grace through faith in the work of Jesus Christ
To remind you of this Cultural Marxist worldview, I am going to read you a quote from a person who has not only bought into this worldview but has applied it to dieting. This applying of Critical Theory, or the Cultural Marxist worldview, to dieting has been called, ‘critical dieting theory’.
“Junk food” does not exist. Food is food. The use of this language is generally to police fat people, but fat people have existed before that language and will exist after it’s long gone. Food is food. You need fats and carbohydrates, too. Food is not “healthy” or “unhealthy”. It’s food. Railing against “junk food” or “unhealthy food” is anti-Black, classist, and anti-fat. Food is food. Food provides nutrients. Food is good. So many people have such horrific relationships with food because diet culture teaches us to. Imagine that everything you thought you knew about food was taught on a white supremacist, capitalistic, anti-Black foundation because it was.
I’m not for sure if this person is a professor and I am not saying everyone is clearly as bought in as this person, but I think this quote gives so many clear examples of the assumptions of this worldview. Notice the assumptions of power structures and this never-ending conflict between the oppressors and the oppressed. He sees that language has been created by ‘white supremacists’ who have created a system to benefit the hegemony and oppress the victims.
When this worldview begins to influence the Gospel, it conflicts with it at various points:
- All men are guilty before God, there is none righteous or not guilty:
- Certain skin colors aren’t able to sin while other skin colors are only guilty
- Sin is determined by God’s Law, whether lack of conformity to it or transgression of it and to establish sin, you must prove someone has violated God’s law:
- Privilege or ‘white privilege’ is contrary to a biblical worldview and doesn’t violate God’s law
- Disparities = sin/injustice is false
- It is slanderous and evil to charge someone of sin who hasn’t violated God’s law
- Systemic sin cannot just be assumed based on a worldview, it must be demonstrated by the violation of God’s law (Israel’s idolatry, Hitler’s holocaust, America’s murdering of innocent children)
- The atonement of Jesus has fully accomplished forgiveness for His people:
- No true, lasting forgiveness in Cultural Marxism, only constant penance
- The Gospel is solely the message of salvation by grace through faith in the work of Jesus Christ
- Mixture of Law and Gospel
In summary, if we accept Cultural Marxism then we will have to adjust the doctrine of sin, throw out God’s Law, and pervert the Gospel with works; thus, proving that it is both cancerous and incompatible with Christianity.