Justifcation by Faith

Its Meaning and Importance

From time to time a Christian will find himself called to advise another believer who is tempted to worship in a communion which the Christian will find troubling. In many of these cases, the heart of the matter will be Justification by Faith. However, having said so, he'll find that the other person has no real idea of what is meant: The other will have heard that it's important, but won't be able to say why, and may be tempted to dismiss it as just a theological quibble.

This state of affairs is a perilous one, as, at the very least, the other believer's peace of mind and assurance of salvation are at risk. At the worst, he may be led into an anti-Christian system of belief, all because he did not understand this doctrine on which the church stands or falls.

God and Man

In the first paragraph of his Confessions, Augustine addresses God: Thou has formed us for Thyself, and our hearts are restless till they find rest in Thee. Augustine was putting things mildly, as the first two chapters of the book of Genesis make clear: Adam was made in God's image, and fellowship with God was central to his being.

The third chapter of Genesis tells the story of Adam forfeiting that fellowship. But God did not acquiesce in that state of affairs, and the beginning of the twenty first chapter of the book of Revelation promises that the final state of affairs between God and Man will be even more glorious than its initial state:

And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be His people, and God himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.”

One way of looking at the Bible is as the story of how God brings about this consumate state: How, in short, does He get from the beginning of Genesis to the end of Revelation? That story centers on the Person of His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, who, though He - in the words of the Nicene Creed - is very God of very God, yet for us men and for our salvation came down from heaven. As the Apostle Paul tells us in the fifth chapter of his Letter to the Romans and the fifteenth chapter of his first letter to the Corinthians, He became The New Adam. The Apostle John tells us in the first chapter of his gospel that, to all who receive Him, He gives the right to become children of God. That is, He gives them a place in that consumate state.

The question then - a question with eternal consequences of either the most blessed or terrible sort - is how does God do this in Christ? What does He do in Christ to make us fit for eternal life with Him in “the New Heaven and the New Earth, where righteousness dwells”? A companion question - one on which our joy depends - is, How can each of us know personally that he or she will participate in this?

Righteousness

The last verse of The Old Hundredth (Psalm 100) is as follows:

For why? The Lord our God is good,
His mercy is forever sure;
His truth at all times firmly stood,
and shall from age to age endure.

Translation of the word rendered here as mercy differs from version to version of our Bible. It may be steadfast love or lovingkindness or simply love. The word rendered here as truth is often rendered as faithfulness. So this verse tells us something wonderful about God's character: He is by nature loving and absolutely dependable. We are told in Scripture that He cannot lie. Much more of this sort of thing is true of Him. Taken together, it can be summed up by saying that God is altogether good, altogether righteous.

Immediately after their disobedience, Adam and Eve show that they no longer share God's character where righteousness is concerned: Instead of being loving and faithful, they have become devious blame-shifters. They hide from God and then, when confronted, respond with excuses. Adam not only blames Eve, but God! (The woman whom You gave to be with me, she ....) Reading on in Genesis, we have an appalling story of many other perversions (beginning in the next chapter with murder). God's image in man has been defaced.

While mankind has become like this, not only is God altogether righteous, but Habakkuk makes the point in the first chapter of his prophecy, that He is of purer eyes than to see evil and cannot look at wrong. In addition to that, God is just and He has pronounced a death sentance on disobedience. This brings out the greatest issue involved in our salvation: The goal of salvation is eternal fellowship with God, Who can have no fellowship with unrighteousness. But we are unrighteous, and His justice demands that we suffer for that! How then can we be saved? To use Paul's words from the third chapter of his letter to the Romans, how can God be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus?

The answer to this, for those who receive His Son - the perfectly righteous New Adam, is threefold:

1. Glorification: At the consumation, we will be transformed, so as to be altogether righteous.
2. Sanctification: In our time here “as pilgrims and strangers” His Spirit will work in us to conform us to Christ.
3. Justification: When, born again by His Spirit, we believe on Christ, God will, for Christ's sake, judicially declare us to be righteous, reckoning Christ's righteousness to us, and reckoning Christ's suffering as payment for our transgressions. Moreover, He declares us to be His children, having eternal life.

The amazing grace involved in the last part of that answer is captured by Paul in the forth chapter of his letter to the Romans as follows: ... to the one who does not work but believes in Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is counted as righteousness. This is what we know as Justification by Faith. On it depends the joy of Christian life.

Assurance

For many believers, life as a Christian is seen as follows: “Salvation is by grace, since we can't save ourselves. So God will help us to be saved. If we work very hard at it, and do our very best, we'll make it.” The subtext in that is that one who sees salvation that way can never be sure he will be saved and attain eternal life. The result is a life of fear, rather than joy in the Lord.

In the fourth chapter of John's first letter, we are told that perfect love drives out fear. It's clear that this will not be true of a believer who views his salvation as just described. But - Praise God! - this letter of John was written to cure the believer of fear and anxiety about salvation: John explained his reason for writing the letter at its end, I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God that you may know that you have eternal life.

That is, John's first letter is about assurance.

Assurance is a grace which the Holy Spirit works in us, and it may be weaker in some than in others, and it may wax and wane in a Christian's life, especially if he grieves or quenches the Holy Spirit. It can be very weak in a back-slidden Christian. But, while this may be so, John's letter also assures us that the Holy Spirit will not desert him altogether, that God's seed abides in him, and he cannot go on sinning.

So, while our assurance may fade at times, it depends on the same Holy Spirit by whom we were reborn and enabled to believe on Christ. The link between this doctrine - that of assurance - and justification by faith is made clear by Paul at the opening to the fifth chapter of his letter to the Romans:

Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Through Him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God. More than that, we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit Who has been given to us.

Reformation

Some churches today celebrate “Reformation Day” on what is commonly called “Halloween” - itself a shortening of “All Hallows' Evening” - that is, the night before All Saints Day. Doing this transforms the day into a celebration of the Protestant Reformation by commemorating an event which is commonly associated with its beginning, Luther's 95 Theses:

On October 31, 1517, following a common practice where the discussion of theological subjects was concerned, a lengthy proposal for a Disputation on the Power and Efficacy of Indulgences was posted on the door of All Saints' Church in Wittenberg, in the eastern part of what is today the Federal Republic of Germany. Its preface - hardly inflamatory - read as follows:

Out of love and concern for the truth, and with the object of eliciting it, the following heads will be the subject of a public discussion at Wittenberg under the presidency of the reverend father, Martin Luther, Augustinian, Master of Arts and Sacred Theology, and duly appointed Lecturer on these subjects in that place. He requests that whoever cannot be present personally to debate the matter orally will do so in absence in writing.

A casual reading of the theses that follow supports their title: The subject was the sale of indulgences, based on a supposed treasury of merit at the disposal of the church and its head, the Pope, which could be used to free from purgatory the souls of those who had died. While Luther's theses were controversial, they could not be called revolutionary. It was not so much the theses themselves, but the direction in which they led which brought about revolution:

The scheme in which indulgences figured involved a process of salvation which led to heaven (if at all) through purgatory, release from which depended on merit, either one's own merit or that dispensed by the church. As the rationale for this scheme was debated, positions hardened. The reformers came to see that the real issue at hand was not abuses in the sale of indulgences, but rather the whole view of salvation of which indulgences were a part. For that view was opposed to what the reformers had come to see was the very heart of the gospel: There is one - and only one - basis for salvation, namely the merit of Jesus Christ, our Savior, and His Saving Merit is received “by faith alone”. Those who held with Luther that ... when this doctrine fails, the church must needs fail and fall to ruin .... were unable to remain in a “church” where “that doctrine had failed”.

In theological language, this doctrine - the one on which the church stands or falls - is Justification by Faith.

Slavery or Freedom?

When choosing a congregation with which to worship, it is very important to be discerning: Paul tells us in the fifth chapter of his letter to the Galatians that it is for freedom Christ has set us free. However, some congregations offer not freedom, but slavery. The most important questions to ask are:

• Is it truly a Christian congregation?
• If it is, does it rightly teach justification by faith?

A Christian Church?

The closing verses of the fifth chapter of Paul's second letter to the Corinthians read as follows:

Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making His appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. For our sake He made Him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God.

Any “church” needs to be tested by these verses: Is this its primary message?

• Does it earnestly present our sinful condition and need for reconciliation with God?
• Does it earnestly hold out Christ as God's remedy - and His only remedy!- both as the One who has paid for all our sin, and as the One in Whom we can be righteous before God?

It is a very sad fact that many organizations which call themselves Christian churches do not pass this test.

Cults

Characterizing organizations which call themselves Christian, but, in reality, are cults, is a difficult matter. Whole books have been written on the subject. One good test, however, is the following: Do they profess the Nicene or the Apostle's Creed? Organizations that won't tend to have a view of Christ that can fairly be descibed as “non-Christian”. While they may claim to esteem Him, they will have a low view of His work.

Liberal Churches

Many organizations which historically were Christian churches have descended into representatives of a different religion which can be called Liberalism. Instead of focusing on Christ, His person and His work, their focus is on the affairs of this age, in some cases through political action, in others by being simply a social fellowship. In many cases, they may explicitly deny the historical Christian teachings of sin and redemption. But, deny it or not, they do not teach it.

Justification, Sanctification and Glorification

Above, in the section on Righteousness, God's work of grace in those who receive His Son is described under three headings:

1. Glorification: which will occur - body and soul - at the consumation, at which time, we will have fully put on Christ
2. Sanctification: becoming more like Christ in this life, which is worked in us by the Holy Spirit, using “means of grace” which Christ has given His church, including preaching and mutual encouragement
3. Justification: where God declares us righteous Children of God for Christ's sake, when we receive Him as our Savior

Confusion about these, and, in particular, the relationship between justification and the other two, will, in one way or another, rob the Christian life of its joy:

Churches that Avoid Sanctification

Controversy arose during Luther's lifetime when some taught that justification by faith would be undermined if there were any moral teaching in the church at all. Luther reacted against this and coined the name antinomian (“against the law”) for it. The name tends to take on different flavors at different times, and, if the church at large has an over-strict moral code, then it may be used on people who might better be regarded as heros.

Today, churches of this kind want little or nothing to do with sanctification. Their stance is pretty much what it was in Luther's time: that teaching God“s precepts - especially from the pulpit! - will always undermine the joy of salvation that justification by faith brings. They assume that encouraging sanctification will undermine assurance and is tantamount to teaching “works righteousness”.

Even casual reading will show that this view is impossible to reconcile with the New Testament (though adept teachers of it are capable of confusing many). This ought to be enough to convince a believer to avoid this view and churches which teach it. Moreover, there is an element of false-advertising in this view: They believe that encouraging sanctification will rob believers of assurance. But John's first letter makes it clear that the Holy Spirit uses our progress in sanctification to increase our assurance!

So a church which will not encourage its members in sanctification will tend to work against their peace of mind and joy of salvation.

Churches that Redefine Justification

Some churches are convinced that, if justification is taught as the New Testament presents it, then that will encourage Christians to be comfortable in their sins, and avoid sanctification altogether. These churches can be viewed as the opposite extreme from those that avoid sanctification. Churches with this view deal with the fact that justification is clearly taught in the New Testament by redefining it from a declaration by God when we believe to a process which culminates only with our glorification.

It is often said that this view “confuses justification with sanctification”.

Since Scripture clearly teaches that only the righteous will inherit eternal life, converting justification into a process that is only complete when we are glorified clearly makes assurance of salvation impossible. (Gregory the Great, a seventh century pope, not only denied assurance was possible, but taught that it was dangerous and not even desirable.)

“Legalistic” Churches

Many protestant churches can be fairly classified as “legalistic”: Instead of focusing on the gospel, their teaching can often be summarized as “be good and do good”.

This teaching can be low-keyed and polite, or it can be strident. Either way, it's enslaving. Often, it can be hard to know that this is the tone of such a church until one has been involved in it for a while. As a rule of thumb, however, if one sees a “holiness code”, one should stay away. That test is negative, and it's better to have, instead, a positive test: Does the church emphasize justification by faith? If not, keep away.

The Church of Rome

Hardly half a century had passed after Luther's 95 Theses, before the Church of Rome addressed many of the egregious abuses that had played a role in provoking them. This occurred at the Council of Trent, at which what is called The Counter Reformation was codified. Sadly, Rome also codified its hostility to Justification by Faith. The following is one of the Council's canons on the subject:

CANON 12: If any one shall say that justifying faith is nothing else than confidence in the divine mercy pardoning sins for Christ's sake, or that it is that confidence alone by which we are justified ... let him be accursed

It is Rome's view that the Council of Trent was an ecumenical conference. Moreover, it is Rome's view that such a conference cannot err. While it is certainly the case that Rome has managed to soften some strong teachings in its history, it is not easy for it to do so, and it has not really made the attempt where justification by faith is concerned: While they have taken pains to arrive at accomodations with some gullible Protestants, when pressed, their stance remains: If anyone preaches justification rightly, “let him be accursed”

The Eastern Church

There is no ecumenical conference recognized by the Eastern Church which even speaks to the matter of justification by faith, much less anathematizes it. Instead, it simply takes for granted the confusion of sanctification with justification that is at the heart of Rome's view, but under the name of divinization. Something of this confusion may be seen in the following two questions from “The Longer Catechism of the Eastern Church”, found in Philip Schaff's Creeds of Christendom:

• 197: How have we salvation by Christ's doctrine? When we receive it with all our heart, and walk according to it.
• 198: How have we salvation by Christ's life? When we imitate it.

What we see here is a notion of salvation that doesn't really recognize a sense in which we may have it, short of glory. So assurance of salvation before then is impossible in the view of the Eastern Church.

Conclusion

In the Westminster Confession of Faith, the fundamental teaching about Christ's church is threefold:

1. Gifts: He has given her “the ministry, oracles, and ordinances of God”
2. Purpose: She is to use these “for the gathering and perfecting of the saints”
3. Promise: He will “by His own presence and Spirit ... make His gifts effective toward that purpose”

When a particular church is faithful in this, she is a marvelous instrument of Christ for the benefit of her members: Her preaching and teaching, and the encouragement of her members, one to another, are used by Christ for our “perfecting” - that is, our sanctification. An important part of this is our growth in joy.

Sadly, there are particular churches of which it must be said that a believer may well be injured if he attends. In such a case, not only is he denied the gifts that Christ has given His church for the benefit of His little ones, but the congregation will be working to shipwreck at least his peace of mind, and perhaps even his faith.

So finding a faithful congregation is a matter of critical importance for a believer, and we ought to be as discerning as we can. Doing this cannot be reduced to a single doctrine or characteristic, but there are things which are “of first importance”. Among those is surely this matter of Justification by Faith.

Site Navigation:

• Preamble
• God & Man
• Righteousness
• Assurance
• Reformation
• Freedom?
• Conclusion

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