¹ Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.

Now, no more condemnation! There is no better way to say it. Like the most beautiful, elegant piece of music, perfectly composed and expertly played, “[t]herefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” This refrain rings out from the pages of Scripture, the answer to mankind’s problem that has cursed our existence from the beginning, when Adam and Eve rebelled against their Creator.

Everything in the book of Romans has prepared us to appreciate this great truth that liberates us from the law of sin and death. Take a moment to review our case: We all have sinned (3:23), whether the godless sinner, the moralist or the religionist. We are all just as guilty as everyone else (2:1), our condemnation is fair (3:8), and that condemnation is carried out in our death (6:23). This condemnation is a judicial pronouncement, not just on our sin, but on us individually. I was condemned. You were condemned. BUT …

Jesus, right after the well-known Gospel verse John 3:16, said, “For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world might be saved through Him. He who believes in Him is not judged; he who does not believe has been judged already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God” (John 3:17–18). We were condemned already, before we believed. David said, “Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, and in sin my mother conceived me” (Ps 51:5). We were born with sin. And so we entered into this world condemned along with Adam and the entire human race.

While we might dwell on our philosophical concerns about the fairness of this and judge God by our fallen, imperfect ethical concerns, the fact remains that our lives prove the truth of what Paul said earlier, “All have sinned.” We have no excuse. Those who cannot accept this truth of God’s Word, likewise cannot appreciate the immensity of the truth that there is now no condemnation. For how can one be happy about being declared not condemned if one thinks he was never guilty to start with? But to the person who fully understands that he is guilty before a holy and righteous God, the One who created him—to that person the news of no condemnation is absolutely wonderful! It just doesn’t get any better than this. Whereas before I was estranged from my Creator, now He has declared me “not guilty.”

There is no longer any penalty for me; the Judge has spoken. The rest of Romans 8 expounds this truth and crescendos to the finale, that nothing “will be able to separate us from the love God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord” (8:39).

Lord, how can I ever thank You enough for saving me from condemnation?