CAHPTER III - The letters of the Apostles teach justification by faith
Step 11
Paul's letters teach that the gospel is the power of
God
to salvation
for everyone who believes
Paul's letters, as well as Peter's and John's, and the letter to Hebrews, all of them teach, unanimously, that justification is by faith, without the works of the law. Let us see what Paul writes.
I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, "The just shall live by faith." (Romans 1:16-17).
Commentary and explanation. These two verses are some of the most important of the whole New Testament. In them are mentioned the main truths revealed in the Scriptures: the gospel, faith, salvation, justification.
In this Step we are going to make a short explanation of these four words. This explanation will be, of course, incomplete, and it will be developed further in the following Steps.
The message of these two verses could be summed up as follows: the gospel has the power to save everyone who believes, and, the just shall live by faith. These are, then, the themes that we are going to explain:
a) What is the gospel
b) What is faith
c) What is salvation
d) What is justification
e) The believer is saved by faith in the gospel: the just shall live by faith
in the gospel
of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation
a) What is the gospel? Paul says: the gospel of Christ is the power of God to salvation. About which gospel is he talking?
Paul's gospel could be summed up, saying: Jesus Christ has saved us by his death and resurrection; believe in Him and you will be saved. That is, therefore, the good news; the word gospel means: good news.
It is called gospel or good news, because it is a very good news. This was a message completely different from the message that the Jews used to hear before. For them, salvation was something that had to be attained by the fulfilment of the law. Now, Paul tells them: a man is not justified by the works of the law but by faith in Jesus Christ; even we have believed in Christ Jesus, that we might be justified by faith in Christ and not by the works of the law, for by the works of the law no flesh shall be justified (Galatians 2:16).
The gospel that Paul is talking about is that salvation is attained only by faith in Jesus Christ, and not by any good works a person can do. The only mean to be accepted as being just before God, is faith in Jesus Christ, not the fulfilment of the law. For by the works of the law no flesh shall be justified.
There were some Jews at Paul's times (and now too), that wanted to pervert the gospel of Christ, teaching that it was necessary, to be justified, to believe in Jesus Christ and at the same time to submit to the law of Moses. Paul strongly reprehended them, saying: You have become estranged from Christ, you who attempt to be justified by law; you have fallen from grace (Galatians 5:4). There is not another (gospel)... but even if we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel to you... let him be accursed (Galatians 1:7,8).
In few words, the gospel is this: In Jesus Chris is salvation; believe on
Him, and you will be saved (Acts
b) What is faith? We are going to give just an idea about what Christian faith is; we must speak a lot about faith through these Steps.
The answer to this question is one of the most important. Christian faith is more than an intellectual acquiescence to a set of truths. Christian faith is, essentially, dynamic, active. Christian faith is conversion, repentance, change of life, commitment, total surrender to Jesus Christ.
Christian faith is not only to believe what God has revealed to us in the Scripture, but also to act in accordance with that belief. If I believe that Jesus is Lord, then I submit to Him and obey Him in all; if I believe that He is the Son of God, then I will give my life without reservation; if I believe that He is my Savior, then I will follow Him and I will entrust all my confidence in Him; if I believe that He will be my Judge, I would be afraid of displeasing Him; if I believe that He is my Teacher, I will follow all His teachings.
Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not
seen (Hebrews 11:1). Substance of things of which
we are certain, evidence of things of which we are convinced; assent of
mind and action in life. Balance must be between what we believe and
what we do. If this balance is missing, there is not true faith, no
justification; as Paul says: not the hearers of the law are just in the
sight of God, but doers of the law will be justified (Romans
True faith is, therefore, unconditional surrender and submission to Jesus
Christ; it is obedience to the Lord's doctrine and commandments; is a
change of life which makes the believer a new creation (2 Corinthians
c) What is salvation? Christian salvation is, in essence, to be approved by God. We say that, whoever has the approval of God and the acquiescence of God, is saved.
In common language salvation means to be free of evil, danger, damage or threat. So we can say that somebody was saved from a fire, from a shipwreck, from sickness, etc. To be saved means to have passed from a situation of danger, damage or threat, to a status of security without danger.
We can apply this to Christian salvation, because part of the concept of salvation is to be free of an evil that we call sin, and of its punishments and consequences. But this is only the negative aspect of salvation, and it does not say much about all the positive consequences of being approved by God.
Christian salvation is more than we can say or explain. Salvation is the word used in the Scriptures that includes the process, as well as the grace and gifts which the one who is approved by God receives. Salvation is therefore: justification, grace, redemption, propitiation, forgiveness, imputation, reconciliation, sanctification, glorification. We will explain each of these subjects later.
Christian salvation is then the whole process and acts through which humanity becomes approved by God and men are recognized as children of God. Part of this process is already accomplished and part is still in a process of realization.
d) What is justification? The justice of God or justification is the fact by which God declares or makes just the sinner who repents.
Justification is a legal term, that is, it is a word used in court to declare that somebody is not guilty or that he is innocent. When somebody, accused of a crime, is declared not guilty, we say then that he has been justified or declared just.
If we apply this to the believer, justified means that the believer is at ease with God and there is no charge against him before God. How can a human being be justified? We will see next.
e) The believer is saved by faith in the gospel: the just shall live by faith. We have already an idea of the four elements mentioned in the text of the Scripture, that we are studying now: gospel, faith, salvation, justification. Let us try to see how these four elements integrate and coordinate themselves. All four are intimately bound together, and there is none without the other.
We can make some statements, based on the Scripture:
1. The gospel has a divine power to
save the believer.
2. The justice of God is revealed through faith in the gospel, that is, whoever
" believes in the gospel, is
declared just or is justified.
3. The just shall live by faith.
1. The gospel has a divine power to save the believer. The good news that salvation is not acquired by works but by faith in Jesus Christ, has a divine power to save the believer. In other words, whoever believes in Jesus Christ, and accepts Him as his/her Savior, is saved. The power of God is always present to save whoever believes the good news of the gospel.
2. He who believes in the gospel is justified. As we explained already, justification is only one aspect, certainly very important, of the whole process of salvation. When the believer is justified, he is declared innocent before God.
There is no great difference between saying that the gospel has the power to save, or has the power to justify. When we say that it has the power to save, we are referring to the whole plan of salvation; when we say that it has the power to justify, we are talking about a fundamental issue, when the believer is declared innocent, he is at ease with God and he is accepted by God.
3. The just shall live by faith. These words were written for the
first time by the prophet Habacuc (2:4), and are
repeated several times in the New Testament (Romans
These are very important words, and they teach us that it is through faith in the gospel, through faith in Jesus Christ, which is the same, that the justice of God is attained. The only mean for a human being to reach the justice of God or be declared just, is faith in Jesus Christ.
Far be it from us, therefore, to look at our own works, as good as they might be, to be justified. There is no other way to get the justice of God than to believe and to accept the gospel, that is, believe and accept Jesus Christ. Whoever wants to be found just before God, has only one option: faith in Jesus Christ. He has been chosen to save everyone who believes and approaches Him, with faith.
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For what does the Scripture say? "Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness." Now to him who works, the wages are not counted as grace but as debt. But to him who does not work but believes on Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is accounted for righteousness (Romans 4:3-5).
Commentary and explanation. This verse gives us one of the main teachings of the whole Old and New Testament: God gives his justice to anyone who believes. In other words, the justice of God is received by faith; whoever believes is saved.
We found this quotation for the first time in Genesis 15:6. We read there
that God had said to Abraham: I will make your descendants as the dust of
the earth (Genesis
The Scripture clearly teaches that faith is the means for justification, that is, to be declared righteous, clean and forgiven. According to the Scripture there is no other means to be justified, much less is there anything that a person can do, to deserve righteousness by his or her own good deeds or works. It is by faith, and it is by grace.
1. By faith means that the first thing that God expects from us to be justified is our unconditional faith and trust in Him, like Abraham. He believed God when He told him that he would have many children; he believed God when he told him to leave his own land and go to an unknown place, and he went; he believed and trusted in God when He told him: Take your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I shall tell you (Genesis 22:2); and he would have sacrified his son, if the Angel of the Lord hadn't called to him and said: Do not lay your hand on the lad, or do anything to him (Genesis 22:12).
This faith is the one which brings the justice of God to mankind: a firm and
confident faith; a faith without doubts; a faith that does what God asks and
wants, like Abraham. That is why Abrahman is called the
father of the believers (Romans
2. But the justice of God is not only by faith, but also by grace, because —as verse 4 states,— to him who works, the wages are not counted as grace but as debt, that is, it is not gift, but debt, obligation. This is the difference; when somebody gets something because he or she has earned it, that is merit, it is owed; when somebody gets something free, as a gift, then that is grace. The justice of God is always grace, gift of God.
The next verse says the same a litle clearer: But to him who does not work but believes on Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is accounted for righteousness. When the ungodly (one who is evil, wicked) repents and turns back to God, with trust and confidence in His power, His kindness and His mercy, then his faith is accounted for rightousness, that is, he or she is justified and cleaned, by the merits of Jesus Christ who died and paid our debts for us.
The whole New Testament teaches that the wicked does not get his pardon and the justice of God, because he earns it or he deserves it by his good works, but because he believes in God and in Jesus Christ. God makes righteous the ungodly who returns to Him with faith; good works can not "buy" the justice of God; this is always grace, that is, a present, a gift, because we have been justified freely by His grace, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God set forth to be propitiation by His blood, through faith (Romans 3:24,25), as we will see in the next Step.
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The righteousness of God... is revealed... through faith in Jesus Christ
to all and on all who believe. For there is no difference;
for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. Being justified
freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God
set forth to be propitiation by His blood, through faith... Therefore we
conclude that a man is justified by faith apart from the deed of the law
(Romans
Commentary and explanation. These are some of the most beautiful verses of the New Testament, and through them we can learn, most clearly, God's plan of salvation; they are worthy of being repeated often and learned by heart.
Several things are taught here; and, if you have followed the previous Steps, you are prepared to understand this one; that is why we have come step by step, to better understand it. These verses teach mainly this:
a) the justice of God has come to
humankind;
b) everyone who believes in Jesus Christ can attain this justice;
c) there are no distinctions, because we all have sinned;
d) all the above has happened through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus,
e) because God set Him forth to be propitiation, through faith.
g) conclusion: the human being is justified by faith,
apart from the deeds of the law
a) The righteousness of God is revealed. This is what we read
in verses 21 and 22. The justice of God has come to mankind; the justice of God
is with us; the forgiveness and justice of God —already announced by the Law
and Prophets,— have come to us. The prophecies have
been accomplished; another manifestation of God shouldn't be expected, for
the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men (Titus
b) The justice of God is obtained through faith in Jesus Christ, for everyone who believes in Him. These words of verse 22 do not need explanation, and they mean that the justice of God has come to us, and that we can attain it, if we have faith. He who has faith and believes (this is a repetition that gives more emphasis), attains the justice of God. There is no way to say that more clear or firmly. It is incomprehensible that there have been Christians who dared to deny that the justice of God is attained by faith, since the Apostle emphatically says that the justice of God is for everyone who believes in Him.
c) There is no difference, since all sinned. This is what verse 23 says, and it means that this salvation is for all, through faith, without distinction, because we all have sinned. There is no one who could be saved by himself/herself, by good deeds, but we all are sinners. The fact that we are sinners, and that human beings are not able to justify themselves by themselves, gives a chance to the grace of God to act. We do not have other means of salvation but faith in Jesus Christ. (See The Sin, Steps 48 to 50).
d) Being justified freely by His grace, we read in verse 24. In order that any doubt is excluded, Paul teaches that forgiveness and grace of God are a free gift, by the goodness of God only, with no chance for anybody to say: "I deserved it, I got it by my own works." Not at all, it is a gift. Any time that we find the word grace, in the New Testament, we can change it for gift, or present, because everything that is grace, is gift of God.
God justifies us and declares us just and clean, as if we hadn't sinned ever; although we all have sinned (verse 23). And this has no other explanation but Christ, who took on Himself the guilt and the penalty deserved by our sins; and in return He gave us His justice, to be credited to us, attributed to us; that is justification. (See Justification, Steps 42 to 45).
e) Through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, verse 24. Paul has insisted, plenty, so far, that by faith we are counted as righteous, and that is by grace, that is, free. Now he wants that we understand the cause for which the justice of God is credited to us; that cause is the redemption of Jesus Christ. That was the cost, "the payment."
The word redemption, that we read here and in many other places of the New Testament, means simply "deliverance upon payment of a ransom." When we say that we are saved freely, by faith, through the redemption of Jesus Christ, what the Apostle is telling us is that, while we were in sin, we were slaves of sin (cfr John 8:34); but Jesus came for that, to give us deliverance from our slavery, and pay the ransom for our freedom. (See Redemption, Step 46).
f) God set forth Jesus to be propitiation by His blood, through faith (verse 25). Jesus Christ is not only redemption, but also propitiation, which means that He, and in particular his blood shed for us, calms and appeases the wrath of God upon us. God appeases and there is not punishment, because He accepts Jesus as propitiation for our sins. And how does Jesus become propitiation for us? Through faith in His blood. When we have faith in the blood of Christ, he automatically becomes propitiation for us; there is no wrath of God! (See Propitiation, Step 52).
g) We conclude that a man is justified by faith apart from the deed of
the law (verse 28). Paul himself makes the summary of all that he
is teaching and reduces it to one sentence: We conclude that a man is
justified by faith apart from the deed of the law. When Paul was writing,
he was addressing mainly Jews, or Gentiles (non Jews) that had been evangelized
by other Jews. For these, the law given by God to Moses at Mont Sinai, was very important. To be justified —according to the
Jews,— you must accomplish the whole law. Now Paul
comes and says: no one is justified by the law in the sight of God
(Galatians
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There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit (Romans 8:1).
Commentary and explanation. Once again Paul
teaches, in a clear and decisive way, that there is no condemnation for those
who keep fast to Christ, through faith. Whoever is in Christ Jesus is not
condemned. Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a
curse for us (Galatians
It is important to notice that Paul clearly teaches that this applies only to those who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit. He is not talking, therefore, about a false faith, which is not accompanied with a change of life. It must be for those whose life is according to the Spirit and not according to the flesh. A false faith wouldn't bring this blessing with it.
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What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be
against us? He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all,
how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things? Who shall bring a
charge against God's elect? It is God who justifies. Who is he who condemns? It
is Christ who died, and furthermore is also risen, who is even at the right
hand of God, who also makes intercession for us (Romans
Commentary and explanation. Paul wants once again that we don't have any doubt regarding the efficacy of the redemption which is in Jesus Christ. Let us remember that redemption is deliverance by the payment of ransom. Once we were redeemed by Christ, we were declared free, and that is permanent, forever. There is no room any more to be counted as slaves and guilty.
From God's side we will not be condemned, because if He did not spare His own Son, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things, forgiveness included? Will God condemn us, since He delivered His Son to death for us? Not at all! There is no reason to think that. Beside that, we are His chosen ones; if we are His chosen, how is He going to condemn us?
From Christ's side, neither will we be condemned, because He was the One who died for us; and He not only died and was risen, but He is also at the right hand of God and He intercedes for us. No one then condemns us, because there is no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus (Romans 8:1).
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Therefore, there is also contained in the Scripture, "Behold, I lay in Zion a chief cornerstone, elect, precious; and he who believes on Him will by no means be put to shame" (1 Peter 2:6).
Commentary and explanation. Jesus is the stone about which Peter is talking here, the true rock, as he has said in verse 4: Coming to Him, Jesus Christ, as to a living stone. What he teaches now is that, whoever believes and trusts in Him, by no means will be put to shame.
Here once again we find the fundamental truth of the New Testament, that we are saved through faith in Jesus Christ, since, if we believe in Him, we will not be put to shame. And this salvation is firm and definitive, as long as we hold fast to this faith. That salvation is founded on a rock. As the rock is firm, our salvation as well is firm, when we stay fixed on Christ through faith: whoever believes on Him will by no means be put to shame.
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If we walk in the light as He is the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin... If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness (1 John 1:7,9).
Commentary and explanation. To walk in the light is the opposite of walking in darkness; whoever walks enlightened by Christ, that is, he who has found Jesus Christ and has accepted Him, will be enlightened by Him and walks in the light, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin. No more anxiety for our sins; if we walk in the light, by faith, we are cleansed of sin.
And, if we confess our sins, those sins in which we fell every day because of our weakness, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. As long as we are mortal beings, we always fall in to sin, but God has given us the remedy: let us confess our sins, and they will be forgiven; let us confess our weakness, and we will be cleansed.
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"Behold, I have come to do Your will, O God" —Christ has said to His Father. By that will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all... For by one offering He has perfected forever those who are being sanctified (Hebrews 10:9,10,14).
Commentary and explanation. We already saw in Step 13, letter "e", that the real cause why the justice of God is attributed to us, is the redemption of Jesus Christ. The above text to Hebrews is referring to this. The Son of God enters this world, and says: "Father, Sacrifice and offering You did not desire, but a body You have prepared for Me... Sacrifices for sin You had no pleasure... Behold, I have come to do Your will, O God" (Hebrews 10:5,6,9).
There was, therefore, a payment for our sins, a ransom paid for our freedom and redemption; the payment was the will of Christ to deliver Himself to death for us. This voluntary offering was made once for all, and by this one offering, He has perfected forever those who are being sanctified, that is, us. And why does it say that made us perfected? Because, as Paul says, we come short of no gift (1 Corinthians 1:7).
The message is repeated once again: we are not justified or saved by our own works but only by grace, as a gift, by the offering or redemption of Jesus Christ made once for all. And the justice of God is applied to us through faith.
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