Justification

Defined: The act of justifying, the condition of being justified.

Relevance: A correct understanding of this doctrine is crucial to ones understanding of Christianity as differentiated from all other religions. This is the essence of Christian salvation and is initiated and accomplished through the work of Christ.

Human longing for justification: I liked the sermon Mark preached the other day that mentioned how every human being longs to be justified. We want to be in the right, but self--justification never works. We can never talk or work our way out of our mistakes, we need someone else to intervene on our behalf.

Scripture Observed:

"However, to the man who does not work but trust God who justifies the wicked, his faith is credited as righteousness." Romans 4:5

Interesting how the condition for our justification is not our effort, in fact it seems as if not working is actually the right position to be in to receive justification. Also note that it is God who does the justifying and not us. Our part has to do with faith. The result of justification is going from a condition of wickedness to righteousness.

Scriptural definition:

The way this word is used in Scripture shows how justification is a legal declaration, it is the opposite of condemnation. So when God justifies us it means that we are not going to receive the due penalty for our sins. Not
only does Christ's justification declare us "not guilty" but it also goes a step further and makes us righteous before God. Christ's righteousness accomplished on the cross is given by us. So our standing before God is determined by what Christ did on our behalf. What justification doesn't mean though is that we are totally pure on the inside.

Our part: Being justified is something that occurs at the point of Salvation. When we put our Faith in the person of Christ and the work of the cross God declares us justified in his sight, righteous before him, able to be reconciled to God. The next step then is working out our Sanctification, becoming more like Christ. In a sense this is becoming more and more of who we really are in Christ, since God sees us as having the same righteousness of Christ. This is where verses such as working out our salvation with fear and trembling come in ( Phil 2:12). What we do or do not do in our daily lives can not change our standing as justified by God, but it certainly does change the level of maturity we have in growing up to be who God created us to be.

Scriptural confirmation:

" Therefore no one will be declared righteous in his sight by observing the law; rather, through the law we become conscious of sin." (Romans 3:20)

"He was delivered over to death for our sins and raised to life for our justification." (Romans 4:25)

" Consequently, just as the result of one trespass was condemnation for all men, so also the result of one act of righteousness was justification that brings life for all men." (Romans 5:18)

"And those who he predestined, he also called; those who he called he also justified; those who he justified, he also glorified." (Romans 8:30)

Theological stickiness: If justification is a one time thing that can't be reversed, not depending upon anything but faith, is there room for the idea that one can lose one's salvation? I think that one's justification can be lost only if one denies the faith that brought their original justification. It can not be lost simply by living a sinful lifestyle, but when that sin effects one's commitment of faith in Christ's work on the cross, securing our justification that is where the possibility for justification to be lost arises. Another side difficulty is the issue of whether God can see our sins since we are reckoned righteous through Christ. Perhaps the analogy of a parent and Child is helpful. Even though a Child may do bad things the parent can still see them as a good kid and their good kid for that matter.

Concluding thought: Knowing that one's commitment to faith in Christ brings a legal verdict of not guilty as well as the gift of the righteousness of Christ should be a source of confidence. WE are no longer under condemnation but are on the way to becoming who we truly are- just like Jesus.