“They are justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.”
If you’re like me, for the majority of your life, you may not even know this verse existed. So many Christians I know have the previous verse memorized and burned into their hearts: for all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. This is not bad, but Paul does not stop with his teaching at the end of verse 23. In verse 24 he declares how all can be saved. The dark sky of guilt gives way to a single beam of grace. Romans 3:24 is one of the most beautiful summaries of the gospel ever written. Every word in this verse carries the weight of eternity — justified, freely, grace, redemption, Christ. Together they form the basis of salvation.
The Wonder of the Word “Freely”
Paul begins with a word that almost sounds too good to be true: freely.
It means “without cost” to us, though it came at infinite cost to God. Salvation cannot be purchased, earned, or inherited. It comes as a gift.
This word “freely” (Greek dōrean) appears in John 15:25 where Jesus said, “They hated Me without a cause.” Here in Romans 3:24, the same word means we are justified without a cause in us; not because of anything we’ve done, but because of who God is. It reminds us that grace is not God’s reaction to our worthiness; it is His response to our need.
What It Means to Be Justified
Justification is a courtroom word. It describes the moment when God, as Judge, declares a guilty sinner “righteous.” It’s not that we have never sinned, but that our record has been cleared and we have been declared righteous by the sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the cross.
To be justified does not mean we have achieved perfection, but that we now stand in a right relationship with God. Moser emphasized this distinction when he wrote, “Law can justify only the innocent, but all have sinned. Hence, righteousness or justification cannot come by law.” (Moser, The Gist of Romans, p. 17)
In justification, the penalty is paid and the relationship is restored. Romans 4:5 says that God “justifies the ungodly.” He doesn’t wait until we are righteous to declare us righteous. He declares us righteous so that we can become what He has declared.
Freely: The Cost of Grace
While salvation is free to us, it was not free to God. The cross was the price of grace. The word “freely” points to the generosity of the Giver, not the worthiness of the recipient.
K. C. Moser wrote, “Salvation is a gift based on the sacrifice of Christ. Grace is possible because of the cross, and grace demands faith.” (The Gist of Romans, pp. xviii–xix.)
Grace never ignores justice; it satisfies it. God did not set aside His law or pretend our sin didn’t matter. He dealt with it fully and finally at the cross. Jack Cottrell described this so well: “Grace is a favor bestowed when wrath is owed.” (God Most High, p. 370.)
That’s what makes the gospel so astounding. We didn’t just receive something we didn’t deserve … we received the opposite of what we did deserve. We deserved wrath; God gave mercy.
By His Grace: The Heart of the Gospel
Every part of salvation flows from grace. Grace is not merely a mood in God but an action. He decides to make righteousness available through Jesus Christ. Grace means that God took the initiative when we could not.
Ephesians 2:8-9 says,
“For you are saved by grace through faith, and this is not from yourselves; it is God’s gift — not from works, so that no one can boast.”
Grace removes all boasting. It leaves us humbled and grateful.
As Paul said earlier, “Where then is boasting? It is excluded.” (Romans 3:27)
Grace means that God does not treat us according to our sins but according to His steadfast love. It is the divine motive behind every redemptive act in Scripture: from Eden to the empty tomb
Through the Redemption That Is in Christ Jesus
Paul ties grace and justification to one more word: redemption.
Redemption is the language of the slave market. It means to be bought back, to have the price paid for release. We were held captive by sin, unable to free ourselves. Christ paid the ransom with His blood.
Moser explained it this way: “We are saved upon the principle of grace, but grace stands upon the cross. The power to save is in the blood of Christ, not in conditions on man’s part.” (The Gist of Romans, p. ix.)
This is why Paul always links redemption to Christ’s death.
“In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace.” — Ephesians 1:7
Redemption means we are no longer our own. The debt is canceled, the chains are broken, and we are free; not to live for ourselves, but for the One who bought us.
Resting in Grace
When Paul says that we are “justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus,” he gives us both assurance and direction. Assurance, because our salvation rests on what God has done, not what we can do. Direction, because grace calls us to live in gratitude and obedience.
Faith is never a substitute for obedience; it is a posture of dependence. We obey not to earn favor, but because we already stand in it. Grace doesn’t make obedience unnecessary … it makes it meaningful.
Titus 3:4–7 captures this perfectly:
“But when the kindness of God our Savior and His love for mankind appeared, He saved us — not by works of righteousness that we had done, but according to His mercy — through the washing of regeneration and renewal by the Holy Spirit. He poured out His Spirit on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Savior so that, having been justified by His grace, we may become heirs with the hope of eternal life.”
That is what grace does. It turns rebels into heirs. It replaces fear with peace and guilt with gratitude.
The Message for Us
When you read Romans 3:24, slow down and take in every word: justified — freely — grace — redemption — Christ Jesus. Each one is a treasure. Together they describe the greatest exchange ever made: wrath satisfied, mercy extended, righteousness given.
God’s grace is not cheap. It cost the blood of His Son. But for all who believe, it is absolutely free. Maybe it’s time we all memorized Romans 3:24.
So rest in that truth. Stop striving to earn what has already been given.
Stand beneath the cross, where justice and mercy meet,
and hear the gospel whisper again —
“You are justified freely by His grace.”
