The Gospel of Jesus Christ that Saves

The third chapter of Romans contains what is arguably the most important passage in the entire Bible for understanding salvation today. Specifically, Romans 3:19-26 clearly lays out the gospel of Jesus Christ that has the power to save a soul from hell in this present dispensation of grace (Rom 1:16, Eph 3:1-10).

While the gospel is stated most succinctly in 1 Corinthians 15:1-4, Romans 3 provides essential depth and doctrinal clarity that explains why and how that gospel saves. Together, these passages form the clearest and most complete presentation of salvation under grace today and are indispensable tools for biblical evangelism and assurance of your own salvation.

The World’s Guilt Before God

Romans 3 begins by establishing a universal problem:

“Now we know that what things soever the law saith, it saith to them who are under the law: that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God. Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin.” (Rom 3:19-20)

God’s law does not justify sinners; it condemns them. Its purpose is to expose sin and silence every excuse. All, Jew and Gentile alike, stand guilty before a holy God, unable to produce righteousness through their own works or religious effort.

The Righteousness of God Without the Law

Paul then introduces one of the most significant phrases in all of the Bible:

“But now the righteousness of God without the law is manifested…” (Rom 3:21)

This “but now” marks a dispensational change. Righteousness is no longer offered through the law but is revealed through the finished work of Jesus Christ (Titus 3:3-7). Though witnessed by the law and the prophets, this righteousness is now given apart from the law altogether.

“Even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe: for there is no difference: For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God.” (Rom 3:22-23)

Salvation is available unto all, God is no respecter of persons, but it is only applied upon all them that believe. Universal guilt demands a universal solution, yet only faith in Christ's sacrifice for sins and resurrection receives God’s righteousness (Rom 4:24-25).

Justified Freely by Grace

The passage continues:

“Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.” (Rom 3:24)

Justification—being declared righteous before God—is a free gift. It is not earned, maintained, or completed by human effort. Grace excludes your works entirely: it is a gift. If anything is added, grace is no longer grace (Rom 11:6); it is a wage, a debt owed, something paid in return for work (Rom 4:4-5). Salvation today is not conditioned upon your confession, water baptism, church membership, altar calls, or personal commitment; it is conditioned on faith alone in Christ’s finished work, not your work (Eph 2:8-9, 2Ti 1:9-10).

Faith in His Blood

“Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood…” (Rom 3:25)

God’s justice demands death for sin. Life is in the blood (Lev 17:11–12), and Christ shed His blood as an atoning sacrifice to satisfy God’s righteous wrath. Faith in His blood is faith in His substitutionary death, burial, and resurrection—the very content of the gospel of Christ:

“How that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures.” (1Co 15:3-4)

Through this sacrifice, God can remit sins righteously—past, present, and future—and remain perfectly just in doing so. He does not overlook sin or allow the guilty to escape judgment. Instead, He places the full punishment for sin upon His Son, nailing it to the cross, and freely imputes righteousness to the one who believes (2Co 5:21, Col 2:13-14).

“To declare, I say, at this time his righteousness: that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus.” (Rom 3:26)

Here is the heart of the gospel. God judges sin fully in Christ and, at the same time, freely justifies the sinner who believes the gospel. Salvation is entirely the work of Jesus Christ—leaving no room for human merit and ensuring that all glory belongs to Him alone (1Co 1:18-31).

A Call for Clarity

The gospel is simple, but it is often corrupted by vague, unbiblical language—phrases such as “asking Jesus into your heart,” “accepting Jesus,” or “becoming a follower of Jesus.” These expressions are not found in scripture or are plucked from a different dispensational context, and do not communicate the saving message of the cross (1Co 1:18).

We are warned that Satan corrupts the simplicity that is in Christ (2Co 11:3-4), and that there are false gospels which cannot save (Gal 1:6-9). If we care about souls, we must communicate clearly.

Let us faithfully proclaim the glorious gospel of Christ as God has revealed it: salvation by grace alone, through faith alone, in the finished work of Jesus Christ alone.