“For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard.” — Romans 3:23 NLT
It’s one of the most important questions anyone can ever be asked:
Are you saved?
Not, “Are you a good person?”
Not, “Do you go to church?”
Not, “Do you believe in God?”
Not even, “Have you tried to live a good life?”
The question is much more personal:
Are you saved?
Saved from our sin. Saved from the judgment our sin deserves. Saved and made right with God.
Romans 3 gives us the answer.
1. Everyone has a sin problem
Paul doesn’t leave much room for argument.
“Everyone has sinned.”
It doesn’t matter how religious we are, how moral we are, how successful we are, or how much good we have done. Every one of us has fallen short of God’s standard.
Romans 3:10 says:
“No one is righteous—not even one.”
That is humbling.
We often compare ourselves with other people and think, I’m not so bad.
But God doesn’t ask us to compare ourselves with someone else. His standard is perfect righteousness.
And when we measure ourselves against God’s standard, we all fall short.
2. Being religious cannot save you
Romans 3 is especially challenging because Paul was speaking to people who knew God’s law.
They had Scripture.
They knew the commandments.
They had religious traditions.
But knowing God’s law isn’t the same as being made right with God.
Romans 3:20 says:
“For no one can ever be made right with God by doing what His law commands.”
The law shows us our sin. It reveals how far short we fall.
Think of a mirror.
A mirror can show you that your face is dirty, but the mirror can’t wash your face.
In the same way, God’s law reveals our sin, but keeping religious rules cannot remove our sin.
We need something more.
We need a Saviour.
3. Our good works cannot earn salvation
This is one of the most important truths in Romans 3.
We cannot save ourselves.
We can’t accumulate enough good deeds to cancel out our sin.
We can’t give enough money.
We can’t attend enough church services.
We can’t pray enough prayers.
We can’t become good enough.
If salvation depended on our performance, none of us would have hope.
But then Paul makes an incredible statement.
4. God has provided a way
Romans 3:21 says:
“But now God has shown us a way to be made right with Him without keeping the requirements of the law.”
Notice those two words:
But now.
Everything changes because of Jesus.
Our sin created a problem we could never solve.
So God provided what we could never provide for ourselves.
Jesus Christ.
Romans 3:22 says:
“We are made right with God by placing our faith in Jesus Christ.”
That is the Gospel.
We don’t earn salvation.
We receive salvation.
We don’t work our way toward God.
God reaches down to us.
We don’t make ourselves righteous.
Jesus makes us right with God.
5. Jesus paid the price for our sin
Romans 3:24–25 says:
“Yet God, in His grace, freely makes us right in His sight. He did this through Christ Jesus when He freed us from the penalty for our sins. People are made right with God when they believe that Jesus sacrificed His life, shedding His blood.”
This is the heart of Christianity.
Jesus didn’t simply come to be a good example.
He came to be our Saviour.
He took the punishment we deserved.
He died in our place.
He shed His blood for our sins.
And He rose again.
The cross is where God’s justice and God’s mercy meet.
God didn’t ignore our sin.
He dealt with it through Jesus.
6. Salvation is received by faith
Romans 3:28 says:
“So we are made right with God through faith and not by obeying the law.”
Faith means trusting Jesus.
Not simply believing that Jesus existed.
Not simply believing the facts about His death and resurrection.
It means putting your trust in Him.
It means saying:
“Jesus, I cannot save myself. I need You.”
That is where salvation begins.
7. There is no room for boasting
If we saved ourselves, we could boast about it.
We could say, “Look what I accomplished.”
But salvation leaves no room for pride.
Why?
Because it is God’s gift.
Romans 3:27 asks:
“Can we boast, then, that we have done anything to be accepted by God? No, because our acquittal is not based on obeying the law. It is based on faith.”
When we understand grace, we stop boasting about ourselves and start worshipping Jesus.
“Look what Jesus has done!”
That becomes our testimony.
8. God’s grace is available to everyone
Romans 3:23 says:
“For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard.”
But the wonderful thing is that the verse doesn’t stop there.
Verse 24 continues:
“Yet God, in His grace, freely makes us right in His sight.”
Everyone has sinned.
But everyone can come to Jesus.
Your background doesn’t disqualify you.
Your past doesn’t disqualify you.
Your failures don’t disqualify you.
Your sins don’t have to keep you separated from God.
The invitation is open.
Come to Jesus.
Receive His grace.
Put your faith in Him.
9. Salvation changes everything
Being saved isn’t simply getting a ticket to heaven.
It is being reconciled to God.
It is receiving forgiveness.
It is becoming a new person.
It is beginning a relationship with Jesus.
It changes the way we live, the way we think, the way we worship and the way we treat others.
We don’t obey God in order to be saved.
We obey Him because we have been saved.
Grace doesn’t give us permission to continue living in sin.
Grace gives us the power and desire to live differently.
10. So, are you saved?
This brings us back to the question.
Are you saved?
Not, “Are you religious?”
Not, “Are you a decent person?”
Not, “Did you grow up in church?”
Not, “Do you know about Jesus?”
Do you know Jesus?
Have you placed your faith in Him?
Have you received His forgiveness?
Have you surrendered your life to Him?
Romans 3 gives us both the bad news and the good news.
The bad news is that we have all sinned.
The good news is that Jesus has paid the price for our sin.
The bad news is that we cannot save ourselves.
The good news is that God offers salvation freely through faith in Jesus Christ.
The bad news is that we all fall short.
The glorious news is that Jesus does not.
Final Thoughts
There is no more important decision you will ever make than what you do with Jesus.
You don’t have to clean yourself up before coming to Him.
You don’t have to become good enough.
You don’t have to earn His love.
Come just as you are.
Confess your sin.
Put your faith in Jesus.
Receive His grace.
And surrender your life to Him.
Romans 3:22 says:
“We are made right with God by placing our faith in Jesus Christ. And this is true for everyone who believes, no matter who we are.”
So let me ask you one more time:
Are you saved?
If your answer is yes, then take a moment today to thank Jesus.
If you’re not sure, don’t ignore the question.
And if you’ve never placed your faith in Jesus, today can be the day you say yes to Him.
Jesus is the answer to our greatest problem—and salvation is God’s greatest gift.
Prayer: Jesus, I believe You died for me. I ask You to be the Lord of my life. I surrender my life to you. Forgive my sin and make me new. Amen.
