Message
2 - By Keith Surface
Justified
by Faith Grace
Being JUSTIFIED freely BY HIS GRACE through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus:
Romans 3:24
In the sixteenth century the protestant reformation
charged forward carrying with it Martin Luther’s revelation of “Justification
by Faith.” What a wonderful and needed revelation it was. By it, generations of
believers were liberated from the crushing weight of a works based theology.
Yet, what was missed in all this was that “Justification by Faith,” though
true, was not the message Paul was presenting in his letter to the Roman
church. Rather, it was an underlying foundation for “the gospel he had received
by revelation of Jesus Christ.” This revelation, presented in his letter to the
Romans, is actually the message of “Justification by Grace.”
“Justification by Grace,”
is in fact, the prevailing theme of the book of Romans. Paul begins this
thought of “Justification by Grace” in Romans, chapter 3, when,
after first proving that “all
have sinned and come short of the glory of God,” he writes, “Being justified freely by His grace through the redemption
that is in Christ Jesus” (Romans 3:24). It is very important to see, know, and
understand that “Justification by Grace” is accomplished through the redemption
that is in Christ, whereas, “Justification by Faith” which he will speak
of later in his letter, claims no such connection to redemption and is most
definitely pre-atonement ([pre-reconciliation]; that is, how men were justified
before Christ made atonement [reconciliation] for sin). It is in the middle of
his writing on “justification through the redemption (grace)”
that Paul takes up the issue of “Justification by Faith.” In a correct understanding
of the gospel, the two issues are inseparable, but each has its own identity
and purpose distinct from the other. It is important that we take a fresh look
at the one, so we can rightly understand the other.
Justification by Faith
Romans 4:5
But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that
justifieth the ungodly, HIS FAITH IS COUNTED FOR RIGHTEOUSNESS.
Paul’s teaching on “Justification by Faith” is
primarily set forth to serve as spiritual precedent, in order to establish the
theme of receiving the promise of God by faith alone. Some would have us
believe, that anyone in any condition can receive the promises of God; but Paul
is very clear that the promises are received only through the righteousness of
faith. Let’s consider his words concerning Abraham, “For the promise, that he should be the heir of the
world, was not to Abraham, or to his seed, through the law, but through the
righteousness of faith” (Romans
4:13). Again ,we are often taught
that grace is freely given to all, but the apostle Peter makes it clear that
“God resisteth the proud and giveth grace to
the humble” (I Peter 5:5).
Just as the proud cannot receive grace, the promises of
God cannot be received without the righteousness of faith.
The works
of fallen man are in essence fallen also. Because of this, obedience to the
commandments and rituals of religious law are no more righteous than the works
of the atheist who seeks to be a doer of good.
Even before Christ, the only works acceptable to God were those born out
of faith. This is the reason Abel’s sacrifice was received and Cain’s sacrifice
was rejected. The entrance of sin had set God and man at enmity, and none of
man’s fallen works could bring peace with God. To offer the works of man’s righteousness,
was in fact, an offence to God, because all of man’s righteousness-es
([plural] “all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags;” Isaiah
64:6; and,) are a product of the
forbidden fruit. These works are the “good”
that issue out of “the
tree of the knowledge of good and evil.”
The offence in Eden occurred when God’s word was disbelieved and rejected.
Notice the Serpent’s words; “And the serpent said unto
the woman, Ye shall not surely die: For God doth know that in the day ye eat
thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good
and evil” (Genesis 3:4-5).
Eve believed the serpent, rather than God, Adam transgressed, and humanity fell
into sin. Because of this, no man would ever have peace
with God without first “believing God.” All the patriarchs of
old were justified by faith. Neither did the law justify anyone.
Faith became the only basis for any man’s relationship with the
Creator. Hence faith is the one (and only) virtue that God would accept as righteous. Abraham is set forth as the example of a man
whose faith justified him; “…he
believed in the LORD; and he counted it to him for righteousness”
(Genesis 15:6). It is an error to read anything more into
this statement than what is written. Some set forth that this means God viewed
Abraham as entirely righteous because of faith; which is not so. Others read into it that Abraham was credited
with Christ’s righteousness. Again, not so! Rather, this statement deals not with
Christ’s righteousness or with how God viewed the whole of Abraham; instead, it
deals with the singular virtue of his faith. “He counted IT to him for righteousness.”
Faith was the only righteous virtue that God acknowledged from fallen man. And though
Abraham’s faith affected every action and aspect of his life, it was his faith
alone that God credited as righteous. Paul writes in Ephesians 2:8-9 that this faith does not begin with man, but it is
a gift from God. This “gift” begins when God speaks to a person. It is only after, a person hears the voice of
the Lord, that they are able to respond in faith. As Paul would write,
“So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing
by the word of God” (Romans 10:17).
The faith that God accounts for righteousness is always a person’s response to
the voice of God. When God spoke, Abraham responded with faith. This
righteousness of faith brought peace between God and Abraham; and based upon
(because of) his faith (because he believed God), Abraham received access to
the promises of God.
Righteousness Without Works
Psalm 32
Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin
is covered. Blessed is the man unto whom the LORD imputeth not iniquity, and in
whose spirit there is no guile. When I kept silence, my bones waxed old through
my roaring all the day long. For day and night thy hand was heavy upon me: my
moisture is turned into the drought of summer. Selah. I acknowledged my sin
unto thee, and mine iniquity have I not hid. I said, I will confess my
transgressions unto the LORD; and thou forgavest the iniquity of my sin. Selah.
For this shall every one that is godly pray unto thee in a time when thou
mayest be found: surely in the floods of great waters they shall not come nigh
unto him. Thou art my hiding place; thou shalt preserve me from trouble; thou
shalt compass me about with songs of deliverance. Selah. I will instruct thee
and teach thee in the way which thou shalt go: I will guide thee with mine eye.
Be ye not as the horse, or as the mule, which have no understanding: whose
mouth must be held in with bit and bridle, lest they come near unto thee. Many
sorrows shall be to the wicked: but he that trusteth in the LORD, mercy shall
compass him about. Be glad in the LORD, and rejoice, ye righteous: and shout
for joy, all ye that are upright in heart.
Paul says that David was describing
“the blessedness of the man, unto whom God
imputeth righteousness without works” (Romans
4:6). In the Psalm above, David is speaking first of himself and his
sin. He had sought to hide his sin but found the enmity that it brought between
himself and God unbearable. He said, “When
I kept silence, my bones waxed old through my roaring all the day long. For day
and night thy hand was heavy upon me: my moisture is turned into the drought of
summer.” It
is safe to assume that David made prayer and sacrifice to God during this
period, however it was not in faith,
but in hypocrisy and guile. Not until he honestly and openly put himself in the
hands of God did David rediscover the blessings of the man who trusts in the
Lord. God forgave him and put his sins away (“Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose
sin is covered.”). God no longer dealt with David on the basis of
his past sin (Blessed is the man unto
whom the LORD imputeth not iniquity.), but on the basis of
faith by which David now approached God. Although David came as a sinner,
guilty of grievous sin and iniquity, when he put himself in God’s hands (he that trusteth in the LORD, mercy shall compass him
about”), God accounted this to
him as righteousness, even though there had been no works of righteousness.
David could now describe “the blessedness of the
man, unto whom God imputeth righteousness without works.” Through the righteousness
of faith, David found peace with God and access to His promises. Jesus confirms
this in His parable of the two men in the temple.
Luke 18:10-14
Two men went up into the temple to pray; the one a
Pharisee, and the other a publican. The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with
himself, God, I thank thee, that I am not as other men are, extortioners,
unjust, adulterers, or even as this publican. I fast twice in the week, I give
tithes of all that I possess. And the publican, standing afar off, would not
lift up so much as his eyes unto heaven, but smote upon his breast, saying, God
be merciful to me a sinner. I tell you, this man went down to his house
justified rather than the other.
It was not the man who approached God with works
that was justified; but the sinner, who in faith cast himself upon the mercy of
God. When a sinner humbles himself before God in true repentance, he is
entrusting his very life, future, and eternal destiny into the hands of God.
Whatever God does in judgment, recompense, or redemption, the sinner openly
accepts because he has entrusted himself into God’s hands. I have often
expressed the fallacy of the one who claims to trust Jesus for their eternal
soul, but cannot put their life in His hands today. That is exactly what the
sinner in the Temple did. In sincere repentance, he surrendered himself to God.
In this manner he was approaching God with faith. It is always foolish to
approach God with merit. Faith alone
brings access to the promises.
Heirs of Promise
These accounts of Abraham and David establish
that faith alone is the basis for peace with God. Paul takes this a step
further by pointing out that the “righteousness of
faith” which Abraham had, was prior to his circumcision. He
uses this to establish that a man can receive the promises of God, without the
law; but, he will never receive them without the righteousness of faith. He writes, “For
the promise, that he should be the heir of the world, was not to Abraham, or to
his seed, through the law, but through the righteousness
of faith. For if they which are of the law be heirs, faith is made void,
and the promise made of none effect” (Romans
4:13-14). The promises of God will never be given to those
whose only merit is works. If those of the circumcision would not believe, they
would not receive the promises of God. Finally Paul concludes that all men,
whether Jew or Gentile, can have the righteousness of faith if they believe
God. He says it this way: “Now it was not written for his (Abraham’s)
sake alone, that it was imputed to him; But for us also, to whom
it shall be imputed, if we believe
on him… (God, the Father, who) raised
up Jesus our Lord from the dead” (Romans
4:23-24). In his letter to the Galatians, Paul reveals that it
is those who believe God that are
the true children of Abraham. Again he writes, “Know
ye therefore that they which are of faith, the same are the children of
Abraham” (Galatians 3:7).
This is what qualified them to be heirs of the promise of Christ, that had
been given to Abraham. And again he writes, “…if
ye be Christ’s, then are ye
Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise”
(Galatians 3:29).
Peace
and Restoration
As the cold war ended and the Berlin wall was
taken down, East Germany and West Germany were two nations at peace. Having
been divided one from another at the conclusion of the Second World War, they
had been enemies for decades, but now, peace was a welcomed state of existence.
What was yet missing was reconciliation and restoration. This was accomplished
when the two were once again united to be one nation. In like manner, peace
with God, which was brought to the saints of old through the righteousness of
faith, was a welcome state of existence. Abraham and David had this peace with
God; yet they longed for the promise of reconciliation and restoration (which
Adam had before sin entered)
that would only be accomplished through the Lord Jesus Christ.
Access into Grace
Romans 5:1
Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ: By whom
also we have access by
faith into this grace wherein
we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God.
Having established in chapter four, the precedent of “Justification by Faith”,
Paul now returns to his original subject of “Justification by Grace”.
“Being justified by faith” is
presented as something that happens before a person enters into grace. This is
not to say that these are separate in relation to time, but in divine order.
The righteousness of faith, which is now through faith in Jesus Christ, gives
man peace with God so that he may be
brought into the grace of God. Paul
explains this to the church at Ephesus saying, “For
by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves:
it is the gift of God” (Ephesians
2:8). Access to the promise of God by faith is the
overriding theme of Paul’s teaching on “Justification by Faith.” He writes in Romans
4:16, “Therefore it is of faith, that it might be by
grace; to the end the promise might be sure to all the seed.” Paul repeats this theme to the Galatians
saying, “That the blessing of Abraham might come on the
Gentiles through Jesus Christ; that we might receive the promise of the
Spirit through faith” (Galatians 3:14).
Justification BY FAITH is NOT the
redemption. It brings us INTO the redemption!
Through the Redemption
It is important to remember that “Justification BY Faith” is a pre-atonement, pre-reconciliation term [which
simply means, before Christ came and
suffered for us]). On the other hand, “Justification BY Grace”
is only available through the “redemption” (i.e., post-, or after-atonement). Romans 3:24 confirms this: “Being
JUSTIFIED freely BY His GRACE
through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.”
Whereas
“justification by Faith” speaks of the virtue of faith itself (i.e., simply believing).
On the other hand, “Justification by
Grace” speaks of the grace we have received in the “redemption,” and the
righteousness it works in us. Paul identifies this as the work of the shed blood of Jesus (the Christ), saying, “Much more then, being now justified by
his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him”
(Romans 5:9). The phrase “much more then”
takes us beyond the “righteousness of faith” into the
“righteousness of redemption (which
is grace).” Grace is “much
more” than the justification Abraham received.
In verse 18, Paul describes new covenant justification as a life giving
work, calling it the “justification of
life,” and explicitly tells us in verse 19, what
it accomplishes:
Restoration
Romans 5:19
For as by one man’s (Adam’s)
disobedience
many were made sinners, so by
the obedience of one
(the man, Jesus, the Christ) shall many be made righteous.
This verse sums up the result of “Justification
by Grace.” Through Adam’s disobedience, all of humanity was brought
under the dominion of sin.
All were (and are, born) sinners;
all came short of the glory of God, and all possessed nothing that God
considered righteous; with the exception of those who had received the
“righteousness of faith.”
But now, because of the “redemption” accomplished on the cross, the
“grace” of God overcomes sin’s dominion and restores the believer to true
righteousness. Many contend that this verse speaks of Christ’s
righteousness being accounted to us in a “positional” sense. It is important,
however, to note that nowhere do the scriptures state that either
Adam’s sin or Christ’s righteousness was ever accounted to anyone else.
Original sin was not accounted to all humanity, but rather, original sin polluted
all humanity with sin. Likewise, Jesus’ obedience to the cross is not accounted
to the believer as righteousness,
but in fact, redeems the believer unto
righteousness; thus, “made righteous”
in verse 19 is the work of “grace.”
It is the restoration of what man lost through Adam’s transgression. The
following verses (20 & 21) explain how “Justification by Grace” is accomplished.
Justified by the Cross
Romans 6:6-7
Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him,
that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve
sin. For he that is dead is freed
from sin.
The cross of Christ accomplished the new covenant
justification of the believer. There the “old
man” of sin was put to death and its power nullified.
The believer no longer lives under the
dominion of sin because its power and presence have been destroyed. It is as
stated in Romans 6:14,
“For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under
the law, but under grace.” The
word translated as “freed”
in this phrase, “he that is dead is freed
from sin,” is the Greek word dikaioo
(dik-ah-yo'-o); which, with
the exception of this one instance, is always translated,
“justified.” Paul was saying that the
one who is “crucified with Christ”
is “justified from sin.”
The believer who is “justified by
grace” is not (as many teach) righteous in “position only” or in “one
virtue only” (as God accounted to Abraham), but is indeed righteous. They
not only have peace with God, but
they also have reconciliation and restoration (they are reconciled and
restored).
Although “Justification by Faith” and “Justification
by Grace” are distinctly different in identity and purpose, it is important
to understand that they are so connected in the gospel that neither can be
possessed without the other. The case was not so with those who were justified
by faith before Christ (i.e., before Calvary). By faith they received the
promise that was set before them, but could only look forward to the promise of
redemption to come. Now, after that “redemption” has come, the righteousness of
faith brings us into this “redemption.” There is no such place as “being
(now) justified by faith,”
without having entered into “justifying grace.” If
your “faith” does not bring you into “grace,” then it is “not justifying faith.” Again, if your faith has not brought you into the liberating power of the cross,
neither has it brought you into
peace with God. And if a man has not been “made
righteous,
” which is the “work of grace,” he has also not
been “justified by faith.”
How This Affects the Church
In the centuries since the reformation, Martin
Luther’s revelation of “justification by faith” has been one of the
foundational doctrines of most protestant churches. As stated in the
introduction, it was a wonderful and greatly needed revelation, which served to
free generations of believers from the bondage of a works based theology. But
Luther and many others who came after him, failed to clearly see the difference
between “Justification by Faith” and “Justifying Grace.” For all time men have been “justified by
faith” alone, but only since, and through, the redemption was “Justifying
Grace” made available. If this difference is not understood, and the two
are viewed as one, the glorious work of grace is often lost sight of in an
attempt to make “full justification” fit the experience of Abraham. Many revivals (real moves of God) have been
birthed through the ministry of those who looked further into the grace of God;
only to have the movements which were established out of those revivals
degenerate into something that has no resemblance of a true work of grace, by
others who have no comprehension of the true work of grace. The real
righteousness that the father’s possessed, has become only an accounted righteousness
for the children. The salvation that
transforms lives, degrades into something that only transforms how God views
the life. It is as though the
generations that follow are dragged out of “justifying grace” and end up with
only a profession of a “right standing” with God. The truth is, they are simply following a
doctrinal mistake to its logical conclusion. Consider this! If you believe “Justification by Faith” to
be salvation, and Abraham’s experience to be the explanation of this justification,
then you have established a “pre-atonement
(pre-reconciliation) salvation.” To you, redemption has become a promise that is
yet in the future (as it was for Abraham). The “old
man” is not “crucified
with Christ,”
sin still has “dominion” over
you, and you are not “made righteous.”
You, even as Abraham, do not receive the true promise, but rather, as
the scripture says of all the great men and women of faith (Hebrews 11);
“These all died in faith, not having received the promises,
but having seen them afar off…” (Hebrews
11:13), and again, “…these all, having
obtained a good report through faith, received NOT the promise: God having
provided some better thing for us, that they without us, should not
be made perfect” (Hebrews 11:39-40).
If, on the other hand, you
believe that “what the believer receives in salvation goes beyond that which
Abraham possessed,” then you have caught a glimpse of “Justifying Grace.” “Justification by Grace” is the true
blessing of Abraham, although He died in faith without ever receiving
it; but God has provided something better for you and me. Peter says the prophets inquired and searched
diligently, and even the angels desire to look into the grace that has come
unto us. If, then, this grace has come unto us, how can it be that we would not
enter into it?
Message
2 - By Keith Surface - Justified by Faith Grace
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