Justification by Faith - a survey

How does God grow the Church

Justification by Faith

message #3

{Intro}

Scripture reveals that mankind is separated from God as a result of sin. They are under judgment because of their sin which must be punished (Jn. 3:18). God provided the means of forgiveness through His Son the Lord Jesus Christ (Eph. 1:7-8). Jesus, who is the sinless Son of God, gave Himself as an offering for sin (Gal. 4:4-5; 1 Tim. 1:15; 2:3-6). He took our sin upon Himself and received the God the Father's wrath for our sin while He was on the cross (2 Cor. 5:17-21). Jesus' sacrifice satisfied the Father's righteous requirement (Rom. 3:21-26). R.A. Torrey stated the following in a message entitled, The Great Attraction: The Uplifted Christ,

First, Christ crucified draws all men unto Himself because Christ crucified meets the first, the deepest, the greatest and most fundamental need of man. What is man's first, greatest, deepest, most fundamental need? A Savior? A Savior from what? First of all, and underlying all else, a Savior from the guilt of sin. Every man of every race has sinned. As Paul put it "There is no difference, for all have sinned and come short of the glory of God." (Rom. 3:22-23) There is no difference between Jew and Gentile, at this point, nor is there any difference between English and German at this point, there is no difference between American and Japanese at this point, no difference between the European and Asian, no difference between the American and the African. "There is no difference; for all have sinned and come short of the glory of God."

Every man of every race is a sinner, "there is no difference" at this point. And every man shall have to answer for his sin to the infinitely holy God who rules this universe. Therefore, all men need an atoning Savior who can by His atoning death make propitiation for, and so cover up, our sins-thus reconciling us to this holy God, delivering us from His awful wrath, and bringing us out into the glorious sunlight of His favor. And Jesus lifted up is the only atoning Savior in the universe. He who alone was at the same time God and man, He alone can make atonement for sin. He has made it, has made a perfect atonement, and God has accepted His atonement and, testified to His acceptance of His atonement by raising Him from the dead. The Lord Jesus actually meets our need. He actually meets every man's first, greatest, deepest, most fundamental need, and He alone.

{Message}

Scripture teaches that through Christ's sacrifice, justification was made available (Col. 1:19-23). This justification is received by faith in Christ's sacrifice (Rom. 5:1-2; Tit. 3:4-7). When one trusts in Christ's sacrifice by faith he is declared righteous (justified) by God (Rom. 5:8-11). At that moment the individual receives Christ's righteousness (Rom. 3:21-16). Faith in Christ's sacrifice results in the individual being accepted by God and receiving forgiveness of sins (Col. 2:13-14; Tit. 2:11-14).

This means that for one to attempt to earn God's forgiveness (eternal salvation) is to reject God redemptive plan. Christ's sacrifice is the means of justification and restoration (redemption) (Heb. 9:12-28). Faith is the means of receiving this forgiveness and redemption (Gal. 2:16; Heb. 1:3). Faith in Christ's sacrifice results in receiving God's righteousness (Eph. 2:8-10; Rom. 3:21-26). A person receiving righteousness from God by faith is the only way for a person to be justified in the presence of God (1 Cor. 1:8-9; 1 Thess. 5:23-24; Rom. 8:28-39). When one believes in Christ's sacrifice he is justified and receives forgiveness of sins, which he can never forfeit (Heb. 7:24-27; 10:10-18).

Scripture teaches that no man is justified by good works (Rom. 3:19-20, 28). No man is made righteous by being a good person or doing good things (Gal. 2:16; 3:22). In fact, Scripture teaches that no one is righteous (Rom. 3:10-18). Man's good works are described as a “filthy garment” (Isa. 64:6). Therefore, man is in need of righteousness. Scripture teaches that righteousness is available through faith in Christ's sacrifice (Gal. 3:10-14). Righteousness is received by faith (Rom. 3:21-26).

God justifies men by grace, not because of merit. You and I had no merit. Everything was against us. Demerit was ours, and no merit did we have to plead. But now God says in grace, “I am ready to take up that man and save him, if he will but receive and confess my Son as his Lord.” It is so hard for people to understand this. Men always seem to get the idea that they must do something in order to merit God's favor. It would not be grace if it were merited. Grace is unmerited favor, and it is favor for those who have merited the very opposite. That is grace. ~ H.A. Ironside

This biblical teaching has been under attack from the very moment it was revealed (1 Cor. 1:18). Sinful man has set out to establish his own righteousness apart from faith in Christ's sacrifice (Rom. 9:30-32). This pride results in rejecting justification by faith (Rom. 1:18-23). The truth is that sinful man has no righteousness of his own and is incapable of reconciling himself to God. When one accepts Christ's sacrifice by faith for the forgiveness of sins, he receives Christ's righteousness (Gal. 2:16). Can you fathom that a born-again Christian possesses the righteousness of Christ and he received it by faith? Wow! A man is accepted by God and declared righteous through faith in Christ alone (1 Pet. 2:22, 24-25)! This is the only means of being justified with God (Heb. 1:1-4; 7:26-27).

The Lord Jesus Christ was absolutely without offense. He was the holy son of God, but He looked upon us poor sinners in our deep need and He took our place in judgment. He went to the cross and He bore what our sins deserved. He poured out His life in the shedding of His precious blood, and when we receive Him we can say that He has washed out our sins in His precious blood. He had no sins of His own for which to die. He was there for our sins.

~ H.A. Ironside

This subject is so vitally important that it bears summarizing: an individual receives forgiveness of sins through faith in Christ's sacrifice; as a result of faith in Christ's sacrifice God declares that person righteous, imparting to them Christ's righteousness.

{Conclusion}

So your acceptance with God is entirely based on faith in Christ's sacrifice (Eph. 2:1-10). Your approval with God is not based on how you live. God has accepted you through faith in Christ's sacrifice. You are incapable of earning God's approval. You are incapable of repaying God's grace. Rest in the fact that you are justified with God by faith in Christ's sacrifice. You are accepted by God in Christ. Do not fall into the performance trap! This is when you seek to earn God's approval through a laundry list of actions. Some seek to give a lot of money, time, study, evangelism, teaching, etc...all in an effort to earn God's approval. The reality is that justification by faith results in a personal being approved by God in Christ and it has nothing to do with your performance. Through faith in Christ you have as much of God's approval as you can ever possibly possess. Wow, that is something awesome. So get out of the performance trap! You can only be justified by faith in Christ.

There is another trap that is equally as dangerous, which is the debtor's ethic. The debtor's ethic is a subtle poison. The idea is one reported to be motivated by gratitude. It goes something like this, “Christ has done so much for me, so I am going to do...for Him.” If one is not careful, the Christian life becomes an unending process of attempting to repay God for His grace through Christ. A believer can never repay God for His grace through Christ. A believer can never repay God for His grace period, so stop trying! God never intended for us to repay Him! Salvation is by grace and we receive it through faith (Eph. 2:8-9). As believers we are forever indebted to God's grace. In fact, as we live and glorify God, that is a result of His grace, not our own efforts (Eph. 2:10; Phil. 2:12-13; Jn. 3:21). Our obedience to God, our love for Him, our spiritual growth, our spiritual fruit, they are all the result of God's grace in our lives! Some believers think that salvation is by grace through faith, but that spiritual maturity is entirely a personal effort (Gal. 3:2-3). All of the Christian life: positional sanctification, progressive sanctification, and final sanctification are all a result of God's grace at work in our lives (Rom. 8:28-30).

This subject is so vitally important that it bears summarizing: an individual receives forgiveness of sins through faith in Christ's sacrifice; as a result of faith in Christ's sacrifice God declares that person righteous, imparting to them Christ's righteousness.