Introduction
I will begin this short review of the Biblical doctrine of justification with two quotes from contemporary Christian ministry. Sadly, they represent the commonly held view on the subject. The first quote states: What Christ received from us—guilt—brought Him death. What we receive from Him—goodness—brings us life. The goodness we get comes from the merit Jesus earned, and Jesus’ goodness permeated every detail of His life.i And the second: Though your obedience to God’s law is defiled and imperfect, Christ’s obedience is perfect and complete. And God has not only forgiven you your sins (both the subtle and the not-so-subtle) but has also credited to you that spotless obedience of Christ.ii The books quoted are not unique; one falls within the genre of apologetics, the other is a book of practical ministry. Similar expressions may be found in a wide range of past and present Christian ministry. These books do not reflect extreme teaching, nor are their sentiments confined to one theological bent. I can assure you that these quotes are not taken out of context; rather, they capture quite concisely the way many Christians view justification. This teaching permeates Christian thinking. Unfortunately, it is unscriptural.
The doctrine expressed is called the imputed righteousness of Christ. It states that, although Christ died for the forgiveness of our sins, we stand before God in the imputed righteousness of Christ. It is said that the righteous life Christ lived out on earth has been credited to us, and, because the merits of Christ have been put to our account, this enables us to be justified. Despite this being a popular understanding (or variants thereof), it is not supported by the Word of God. Naturally, this raises the question: If this is an unscriptural view of justification, what does Scripture have to say on the subject?
The Reformation
Before we begin our investigation, I wish to go back in time and consider an important event in the history of Christianity—the Reformation. Martin Luther (1483-1546), a key figure of the Reformation, began his career as a Roman Catholic priest. Although a priest, Luther became increasingly opposed to certain teachings and practices of the Church. He came to understand that salvation was not based on works but was by faith alone. One practice that especially angered Luther was the sale of indulgences. An indulgence could be purchased to reduce the amount of punishment one received for certain sins. How the Roman Catholic Church arrived at this notion—that the purchase of a certificate could reduce the consequence (even if only temporally) of one’s sin—is remarkable. That system teaches that there is a treasury, a storehouse as it were, of the merits of Jesus Christ and the Saints. These may (or so they teach) be accessed for our benefit.
I acknowledge that I have simplified things, but the nuances of this teaching do not affect the overall principle in question. No matter how one looks at it, there is this notion that the merits of one may be transferred to another. This is completely without Scriptural foundation. And to teach that one may tap into these merits through the transfer of money—the purchase of an indulgence—is gross wickedness (Acts 8:20). The sale of indulgences was nothing more than a tax on the sinner to the monetary benefit of the Catholic Church—Pope Leo X needed money to rebuild Saint Peter’s Basilica. Martin Luther had every right to be outraged. The refusal of Luther to accept indulgences was one of those sparks that ultimately grew into the flames of the Protestant Reformation. The Reformation brought remarkable light after the darkness of the middle ages. It is astonishing to me, therefore, that the common teaching concerning justification (which came out of the Reformation) still involves the transfer of merit. Certainly, Christ, as compared to the Catholic Saints, has merit beyond compare, but that His righteous life (in particular, His obedience to the law) can be transferred to me, is entirely without Scriptural support. All such schemes attempt to fix man in the flesh; to fill up that which is lacking by attributing to him the righteousness of Christ’s life. The implications of this teaching as to the righteousness of God, the work of Christ, the nature of man, and the law are far reaching.
What Is Justification?
What is justification? What does the word mean? “How should man be just with God?” (Job 9:2). Justification stands in contrast to condemnation—the two are antonyms. Also, the words just, justified, and justification clearly stand together, as do right, righteous, and righteousness. It is not, however, immediately obvious to the English speaker that these word families are related. In Greek (the original language of the New Testament) the near relationship is quite apparent. One who is just is righteous—the word is the same in the Greek (dikaios). One who is justified (dikaioo), has been declared righteous (dikaios). Simply put, justification means to declare righteous.
We now have a rather abstract definition of justification—to declare righteous—but one would like a deeper understanding. Whereas forgiveness addresses itself to the penalty of our sins, justification takes away our guilt. A thief may be forgiven (in which case he pays no penalty; he doesn’t restore that which he took away) nevertheless he is still a thief, albeit, a forgiven one. One would certainly not say, “There goes a righteous man.” It is important to recognize that forgiveness does not change me—it takes away the obligation connected with my guilt. Justification, on the other hand, does just that—by it we are declared to be righteous in God’s sight. How can this be? How can God be righteous (consistent with His own character) in justifying the ungodly (Rom. 4:5)? Before answering this question, a few other misconceptions must be addressed.
Some may have heard justification (or at least the outcome of it) defined as just-as-if-I-had-never-sinned. This falls woefully short of its true character. The point is we have sinned, and, worse than that, we are sinners by nature. God created man in relationship with Himself; Adam’s sin has consequences both as to our present position and as to our nature. We are born far from God and we possess a nature that is willfully independent of God. That relationship in innocence which Adam had with God has been irrevocably lost, and, as a result, all born to Adam’s race find themselves in the same position. To say that my condition is just-as-if-I-had-never-sinned takes me back to a state of naïve innocence. Adam was innocent in Eden; he did not know good or evil. There is no return to that—and for that matter, we wouldn’t want it. Furthermore, justification takes us beyond being merely a sinner saved by grace. This common expression may sound humble, but it falls short of our true position. God does not view us this way, and neither should we; it isn’t helpful to spiritual growth.
What Scripture Teaches as to Justification
Let us now see what the Scripture has to say on justification. The blood of Christ is the ground of it: “Having been now justified in the power of His blood, we shall be saved by Him from wrath” (Rom. 5:9 JND). Blood is of the greatest significance throughout the Word of God and is the ground and title to all Christian blessing. It has a significance that transcends the law of Moses. Blood was shed to clothe Adam and Eve (Gen. 3:21); we see it again in Abel’s offering (Gen. 4:4). Blood, without question, featured prominently in the law (Heb. 9:18-22). “The life of the flesh is in the blood: and I have given it to you upon the altar to make an atonement for your souls: for it is the blood that maketh an atonement for the soul” (Lev. 17:11). The shedding of blood goes beyond life giving; Christ’s shed blood was more than the evidence of His death. “This is He that came by water and blood, even Jesus Christ; not by water only, but by water and blood” (1 John 5:6). The Old Testament sacrifices were a shadow of good things to come, and, as such, they give us insight into many New Testament truths (Heb. 10:1). In water we have moral cleansing; blood, on the other hand, deals with the judicial requirements of man’s condition. In reading the first few chapters of Paul’s epistle to the Romans, where the guilt of man, the righteousness of God, and the subject of justification are addressed, one has a sense that they are in a court of law—God’s court. “The wrath of God is revealed from heaven” (Rom. 1:18). It is not human justice, or justice of an earthly sort. In these chapters we find how God, in perfect righteousness, justifies the ungodly—and it is in the shed blood of Christ that God’s judicial requirements are met.
Christ’s resurrection is the proof of justification. “Jesus our Lord ... was delivered for our offences, and was raised again for our justification” (Rom. 4:24-25). Christ’s resurrection is the witness that every claim that God had upon us has been fully satisfied. Furthermore, Christ’s death and resurrection are applied to our own condition: in chapter five of Romans as to our justification, in chapter six as to the new life of the believer, and in chapter seven as to the law. The first three verses of the eighth chapter give us a summary: (1) “There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus” (Rom. 8:1)—answering to the justification of life (more on that shortly) found in the fifth chapter. (2) “The law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death” (Rom. 8:2)—answering to the sixth chapter where Christ’s death and resurrection are applied to the life of the believer: “He that has died is justified from sin ... reckon yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus” (Rom. 6:7, 11 JnD). (3) “What the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh” (Rom. 8:3)—which has its counterpart in Romans seven; we are dead to the law and are married to another in principle, Christ in resurrection: “Ye also are become dead to the law by the body of Christ; that ye should be married to another, even to Him who is raised from the dead” (Rom. 7:4).
We are justified through grace; it must all be of God. There is nothing we can do to merit justification. “Being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus” (Rom. 3:24). It is all grace on God’s part. This is contrary to man’s natural inclination, in which he seeks to justify himself before God. Justification, however, is on the principle of faith and not works, and it is by faith that we come into the good of it. God is the “justifier of him which believeth in Jesus” (Rom. 3:26). “A man is justified by faith, without works of law” (Rom. 3:28 JND). “Being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ” (Rom. 5:1). “David also declares the blessedness of the man to whom God reckons righteousness without works” (Rom. 4:6 JND).
Although I distinguished forgiveness from justification, we do not separate them. Whether justification is viewed as encompassing forgiveness, or whether one sees it working in conjunction with forgiveness, forgiveness cannot be separated from justification. The point is that justification goes beyond forgiveness. There are two sides to justification. On the negative side we have been cleared of every charge brought against us; on the positive, God now views us in an entirely new position in Christ. I stand before God in Christ, in all the blessedness of that position knowing that my sins have been forgiven, my guilt has been put away, and I have been judicially cleared from all the consequences connected with my former life; I am “justified in Christ” (Gal. 2:17 JND).
Made the Righteousness of God in Him
It is striking to note that the expression the righteousness of Christ never appears in the Word of God. The imputed righteousness of Christ is a doctrine searching for a Scripture. That Christ was righteous is without question. But we ask, is Christ’s obedience the grounds for our righteousness before God? In that His obedience took Him to death, and only in this, is it true. “He ... became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross” (Phil. 2:8). “By one man's disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous” (Rom. 5:19). Christ’s righteous and holy walk here on earth was an essential part of His being; He was truly the perfect man and the “lamb without blemish and without spot” (1 Pet. 1:19). But it is in His death, and not His life upon earth, that my salvation rests. “Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the Just for the unjust, that He might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit” (1 Pet. 3:18). It is through Christ’s death, and His death alone, that we are brought to God. Scripture knows no other ground. It wasn’t until the corn of wheat fell into the ground and died that it brought forth much fruit—we are now the fruit of an altogether different seed.
It will be asked, are we not “made the righteousness of God in Him” (2 Cor. 5:21)? Let us look at the context: “He hath made Him to be sin for us, who knew no sin” (2 Cor. 5:21). It was then and only then—when He was made sin for us as that propitiatory victim—that we find the grounds for our justification. Indeed, it is on this ground that God, in perfect consistency with His holy and righteous nature, justifies the sinner. In fact, it is in this that the righteousness of God is revealed. “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation ... For therein is the righteousness of God revealed” (Rom. 1:16-17). “To declare, I say, at this time His righteousness: that He might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus” (Rom. 3:26). The expression, the righteousness of God, means just that—God’s inherent righteousness. This verse is not referring to our being righteous before Him. Righteousness in God is that attribute which maintains what is consistent with His own character, and necessarily judges what is opposed to it.iii Under law God looked for righteousness in man, but He found none. Now, through the gospel, God acts in grace and we see a positive righteousness displayed on His part. We are “made the righteousness of God in Him” (2 Cor. 5:21). Nothing here speaks of Christ’s personal righteousness; it is not the righteous life of Christ imputed. Contrariwise, we are now the evident tokens of the righteousness of God, and we have been made partakers of that divine righteousness in Christ.
Is Justification on the Principle of Law?
Many agree that Christ bore the penalty for our sins on the cross, the just for the unjust (1 Pet. 3:18). Nevertheless, it will be said, we now stand before God in the righteousness of Christ’s perfect obedience to the law, and it is on this basis that God justifies the believer. Citing a well-known Bible teacher: We have failed to keep God’s law perfectly, and so we should die; but Jesus did not fail—He alone has kept God’s law perfectlyiv—and so He should not have died. Yet in His mercy God has provided in Christ a great substitution—a blessed exchange—according to which Jesus can stand in for us with God, offering His perfect righteousness in place of our failure and His own life’s blood in place of ours. ... When we receive the mercy God offers us in Christ by faith, His perfection is imputed—or credited or reckoned—to us and our sinful failure is imputed—or credited or reckoned—to Him.iv
We ask the question: does our justification rest upon Christ’s obedience to the law? “If righteousness is by law, then Christ has died for nothing.” (Gal. 2:21 JnD). This verse alone settles it; the believer’s righteousness does not come through Christ’s obedience to the law, but rather by His death. It will, however, be insisted that this verse speaks of our keeping the law and that Christ’s legal obedience is an altogether different thing. And yet, Jesus was truly man and it was as man that He learned obedience (Heb. 5:8). If Christ’s obedience to the law is imputed to me, I am justified by law—that is the principle upon which I am justified. This contradicts Paul’s whole argument: “Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified” (Gal. 2:16). The expression “by the faith of Jesus Christ” might be seized upon, but it simply means faith which has Christ as its object, as the next phrase confirms, “even we have believed in Jesus Christ.” Modern translations render this expression “faith in Jesus Christ” which correctly gives the sense. The expression should not be taken to mean Christ’s faith.
In the fourth chapter of Romans, the Apostle makes it very clear that the righteousness reckoned to Abraham was on account of faith—the righteousness of faith—and not law. It could not have been otherwise; the law came many years after Abraham. “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” (Rom. 4:13). The righteousness of faith is vastly different to the righteousness of law (Rom. 10:3-10). The latter is based on works—righteous conduct in man acceptable to God. The former rests upon God and His word—in our case, what God has to say concerning the work of His beloved Son on the cross.
The law was introduced as a measure, a child-minder, until Christ came: “The law has been our tutor up to Christ, that we might be justified on the principle of faith” (Gal. 3:24 JND). Rather than producing righteousness in Israel, the law exposed their sinful nature, and this continues to be its proper use today (1 Tim. 1:8-9). “By the law is the knowledge of sin” (Rom. 3:20). “That sin by the commandment might become exceeding sinful” (Rom. 7:13). It is true that the prospect of life was held out to the obedient Israelite, but it was life on earth. Never do we find heaven opened before them, nor was there any change in their essential position before God. As for the Christian, Paul makes it quite clear that we are not under law: “Ye are not under the law, but under grace” (Rom. 6:14). If I am not under law, why must it have been fulfilled on my behalf?
Let us suppose for a moment that our righteousness were based on law; where would that leave us? It would very much be a legal righteousness based on works. The law given to Israel suited their relationship with Jehovah God; it represented righteous behavior in an earthly people. As a measure, however, it falls short of God’s glory. “The law made nothing perfect” (Heb. 7:19). To stand before God—not the veiled God of the Old Testament—our righteousness must answer to the absolute perfectness of God: His righteousness, holiness, truth, majesty, and love—nothing can be discordant. The teaching, therefore, that I can stand before God in the righteousness of a fulfilled law, represents a gross failure to understand both the character of God and the nature and purpose of the law. Our righteousness in Christ rests upon His completed work on the cross and the acceptance of both His person and work before God. “By Him all that believe are justified from all things, from which ye could not be justified by the law of Moses” (Acts 13:39).
The righteousness of God is manifested in the gospel quite apart from the law. “But now the righteousness of God without the law is manifested, being witnessed by the law and the prophets; even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe: for there is no difference” (Rom. 3:21-22). God is most righteous, gloriously righteous, if I may so say, in extending mercy to man (unto all) and justifying the ungodly (upon all them that believe) because of the matchless and complete work of Jesus Christ at Calvary. Everything in Paul’s writings demands that we keep the law entirely out of justification.
A further comment must be made relative to the earlier citation. It was said: We have failed to keep God’s law perfectly, and so we should die ... Jesus did not fail and so He should not have died. Is death merely the result of violating the law? The answer is no. “Death reigned from Adam to Moses” (Rom. 5:12-14). Adam was given a command, “thou shalt not” (Gen. 2:17), as was Moses (Exod. 20:7-17). Those between Adam and Moses never had an explicit command; nevertheless they, too, died. All since Adam have possessed a nature characterized by death—even when there was no law to put sin to their charge. The man Jesus did not have an Adam nature. He stands as the head of a new creation (1 Cor. 15:22). “In Him is no sin” (1 John 3:5). Christ’s fulfillment of the law (Matt. 5:17) was not the reason He should have escaped death; He did not possess a fallen nature. On the other hand, Jesus had a human body which could die. “Being found in fashion as a man, He humbled Himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross” (Phil. 2:8), and He did so, by the grace of God, for our sakes. “No man taketh it from Me, but I lay it down of Myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again” (John 10:1818No man taketh it from me, but I lay it down of myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This commandment have I received of my Father. (John 10:18)).
Reckoned as Righteous
There is something imputed to us, but it is not Christ’s merit, nor is it credited to our account. The word used throughout the fourth chapter of Romans translated variously as imputed, reckoned, counted, means just that, to count it so. “Abraham believed God, and it was reckoned [counted] to him as righteousness” (Rom. 4:3 JnD). There is no thought here of God’s transferring righteousness to Abraham. God counted Abraham righteous because of faith—Abraham accepted God at His word. It was not faith itself. Rather, it is what faith laid hold upon. At that time, it was the promises of God; it is now the full and completed work of Christ. “If we believe on Him that raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead; who was delivered for our offences, and was raised again for our justification” (Rom. 4:24-25). It is because of Christ’s death and resurrection that God can now count us righteous on the principle of faith.
It is important to recognize that it is God who does the reckoning, not man. It is God’s court and He, as judge, is the one who pronounces the verdict. It is not until we get to the sixth chapter of Romans that we find something for us to reckon: “Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord” (Rom. 6:11). The likewise tells us that our reckoning comes as a result of something else, something entirely outside of ourselves, Christ’s death and resurrection (vs. 10).
A different word also translated imputed, which does mean put to the account, appears just twice in the New Testament: once in Romans 5:1313(For until the law sin was in the world: but sin is not imputed when there is no law. (Romans 5:13) (where it speaks of sin) and the other in Philemon. Paul’s letter to Philemon concerns a runaway slave who probably stole from his master. Paul says: “If he ... owe anything to thee, put this to my account ... I will repay it” (Philemon 18-19 JND). We never, however, read of righteousness being put to another’s account.
Justification of Life
Up until the twelfth verse of Romans five the Apostle addresses justification from offences. It was Christ “Who was delivered for our offences” (Rom. 4:25). From the twelfth verse, however, he takes up a new subject: “By one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin” (Rom. 5:12). The Apostle now considers what we are by nature as children of Adam. He brings before us two heads, Adam and Christ. Sin entered this world through Adam’s fall, and we have all inherited his nature—a fallen nature. One may object and ask: What has Adam’s sin got to do with me? A simple question yields the answer: Do you sin? If so, then you are a child of Adam—the fruit establishes the root; we cannot escape our heritage. There is more, however, than just a common nature. Adam’s sin set him at a distance from God—the call in the garden was: “Where art thou?” (Gen. 3:9). Adam’s descendants are likewise at a distance from God—it could not be otherwise; we come into the world in Adam’s place.
How does God address the fallen nature? “For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh” (Rom. 8:3). In the cross God condemned sin in the flesh; it is done with. The law was not faulty, but the flesh was incapable of keeping it. God now views the believer as dead and buried with Christ. If one took my place at the gallows, justice would accept the death of the substitute as my death. I would be viewed as having died with my substitute. Likewise, in the mind of God, we are crucified with Christ. There can be no more condemnation for a sentence carried out and borne by another. Furthermore, I have been brought into a new position of life in Christ whom God raised from among the dead. Justice is satisfied and God now views me in Christ as justified. He is now my righteousness in the presence of God (1 Cor. 1:30; 2 Cor. 5:21)—not because of His life on earth, but because of His death and resurrection.
The offence of one, Adam, brought about a reign of death (Rom. 5:14). The free gift of God in Christ, on the other hand, has brought about a reign of life for those who receive it: “Much rather shall those who receive the abundance of grace, and of the free gift of righteousness, reign in life by the one Jesus Christ” (Rom. 5:17 JND). This is what Scripture calls the justification of life. “So then as it was by one offence towards all men to condemnation, so by one righteousness towards all men for justification of life” (Rom. 5:18 JND). What is the condemnation that hangs over the head of every man? Death! With justification, on the other hand, we have life extended towards all, a life to which sin can never attach—this is the justification of life. Its efficacy is limited, however, to those who have received that gift in Christ. In the latter part of Romans five we see these contrasts: Adam’s life brought death; Christ’s death has brought life. In the one we have condemnation, in the other justification.
The Old and New Man
God does not cover over, as it were, the characteristics of what I am in Adam with righteousness. To clothe what I am by nature in righteousness—whether it be Christ’s or otherwise—would not be just or holy on God’s part.
It should be noted that the Hebrew word for atonement in the Old Testament means a covering. Significantly, we do not find the word atonement in the New Testament. Sometimes we use the word to mean the expiatory sufferings of Christ. Providing we understand that a full satisfaction and not a covering is meant, this is acceptable. The blood of the sacrifices provided a covering but could never purge the conscience or address the nature of the one who offered; the offerings were accepted in God’s sight because they anticipated the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ. The offeror, however, never had the assurance of sins forgiven. He or she stood in the hope of forbearance on God’s part. We, however, stand in the revealed righteousness of God.
The Apostle Paul uses the expressions “old” and “new man” to describe the corrupt state of fallen man in contrast to the characteristics of a new life in Christ (Rom. 6:6; Eph. 4:22-24; Col. 3:9-10). The old man has no good in him—in God’s sight he is altogether done with: “Our old man is crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be destroyed” (Rom. 6:6). All that I am in my Adam nature has been set aside in the cross. There is no amelioration of fallen man—the remedy for what I am is death. Contrariwise, the new man has no defects. “The new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness” (Eph. 4:24). Once we grasp that we have an altogether new life in a risen Christ, a life which has no possibility of sin attaching to it, the necessity of imputing Christ’s merits to the believer for justification become manifestly absurd.
Until we depart this scene, we have the flesh in us—God may be done with it, but we still live with it. It should no longer be the force which governs us, for we also have a new life, a life powered by the Spirit of God (Rom. 8:9-12). When it comes to practical righteousness, however, we often fail. Thankfully, the believer stands in a perfect righteousness quite apart from him or herself. It is in Christ who is now our life. To be in Christ is to stand before God in Christ’s place of acceptance. “Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption” (1 Cor. 1:30).
Justification Before Man
The confusion as to the epistle of James has been so great that some have felt that it contradicts Paul. (Martin Luther struggled with the book.) Nothing could be further from the truth. The key to James is found in this verse: “Yea, a man may say, Thou hast faith, and I have works: shew me thy faith without thy works, and I will shew thee my faith by my works” (James 2:18). The Epistle of James asks: Where is the evidence of your faith? I cannot show someone my faith except through the fruit it produces. Faith, like the wind, cannot be seen; the effects, however, are very visible. “For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also.” (James 2:26). Faith without works is dead—as lifeless as the body without the spirit. Dead faith is no faith at all; it is dead, not dying or having died—it is dead. The devils also believe and tremble (James 2:19). No amount of works will produce faith or impart life to one who is not saved.
When James speaks of Abraham being justified by works, to what is he referring? It is the incident found in Genesis 22: “Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he had offered Isaac his son upon the altar?” (James 2:21). On the other hand, when Paul writes of Abraham, to what does he refer? “Abraham believed God, and it was counted unto him for righteousness. ... To him that worketh not, but believeth on Him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness.” (Rom. 4:3, 5). This we find in Genesis 15: “He believed in the Lord; and He counted it to him for righteousness” (Gen. 15:6). James and Paul bring in two different events from the life of Abraham. Paul’s comes first and is separated from the incident mentioned by James by as much as thirty years. Each writer uses that which is consistent with his message. Paul speaks of that which is Godward; it is justification before God. James presents the proof of Abraham’s faith; it is justification before man. Abraham’s faith was corroborated by his obedience to God.
Does It Matter?
The teaching of this booklet is often met with open hostility. It is seen as an attack upon centuries of Christian teaching—which, in some respects, is a fair assessment. The longevity of a doctrine is not overlooked, but that, in itself, doesn’t establish correctness. Charles Spurgeon, a gifted preacher and evangelist of the late 1800s, wrote concerning justification: See what Christ has done in His living and His dying, His acts becoming our acts and His righteousness being imputed to us.v He preached vehemently against those who rejected the imputed righteousness of Christ: There is the equally unreserved rejection of another doctrine (among Plymouth Brethren) which the great bulk of believers regard as one of vital importance. I allude to the doctrine of the imputed righteousness of Christ.vi I’ll spare the reader the remainder of his article, but he certainly didn’t hold back! Bad doctrine is an unstable foundation that leads to further error. Spurgeon references (in this same article) another of the deadly heresies of the brethren: The doctrine that the moral law is a thing with which believers in Christ have nothing to do, not even as a rule of life. It should little surprise us that one who bases justification on obedience to the law will be confused as to the proper use of the law.
The imputed righteousness of Christ is a teaching without Scriptural foundation—a theory proposed by man, but one which finds no answer in the Word of God. As such it must be rejected. Whenever we add or take away from God’s word, the result will never be benign. This teaching cheapens righteousness. It becomes a commodity that may be transferred from one individual to another thereby making them righteous—despite what they are by nature. It confounds God’s righteousness with righteous conduct in man, and the law becomes the measure of Christ’s righteousness. Furthermore, if we do not understand that God views us in Christ—dead, buried, and raised together with Him in newness of life—our spiritual life must necessarily be frustrating and hindered. Death has taken me off the ground of legal responsibility I had in Adam and, in Christ’s resurrection, has put me in an altogether new place of acceptance in Christ before God.
In none of this is there any suggestion that we should have a diminished view of the Son’s life of perfect obedience here on earth. Far be the thought! What we must reject is that Christ’s righteous life and fulfillment of the law has been transferred to us. This would not be just on God’s part and could not make fallen man righteous. God justifies the ungodly (one without righteousness, not one to whom has been imputed the righteous life of Christ) because He views the believer in the full result of the death and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Conclusion
Knowing that Christ “was delivered for our offences, and was raised again for our justification” (Rom. 4:25) allows us to say: “Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ” (Rom. 5:1). All our sins have been dealt with at the cross, and they will never again come up for review. God has in perfect righteousness addressed them. Our peace now rests upon His assessment and acceptance of that work. It is by faith we come into the good of it.
All thy sins were laid upon Him,
Jesus bore them on the tree;
God, who knew them, laid them on Him,
And, believing, thou art free.vii
When we come to the eighth chapter of Romans, however, it is no longer a question of putting away sins, but of a new position entirely beyond the reach of everything to which the judgment of God applies. “There is then now no condemnation to those in Christ Jesus” (Rom. 1:1 JnD). Christ was indeed under the effect of the condemnation in our place; but when risen, where does He appear? No less than in the presence of God! Could there be a question there of sin, or of wrath, or of condemnation? Impossible! It was settled before He ascended in glory. Christ is in the presence of God because it was settled, and that is now the wonderful position of every Christian in Christ.viii
The eighth of Romans gives us our place in Christ before God. We stand in the Son’s place. Indeed, we have the Spirit of God within us bearing witness that we are the children of God, leading us to cry, “Abba, Father” (Rom. 8:15-16). Wonderful beyond measure! We may doubt, and Satan certainly accuses (Rev. 12:10), but there is no assurance found by looking inwards. Self-judgment must not be neglected, but occupation with self should begin and end with self-judgment. As to our standing before God in Christ, we must look to the Word and see what God has to say—that is where our confidence lies. “Who shall lay any thing to the charge of God's elect? It is God that justifieth” (Rom. 8:33). It is God who justifies! When Satan lays an accusing charge at our feet, who must he answer to? God!
The teaching I have sought to express in this booklet is succinctly outlined in the following hymn. In four simple verses it lays out the truth of justification—both our deliverance from the penalty of our sins and our new life before God in Christ the risen Lord!
"No condemnation!" Precious word!
Consider it, my soul!
Thy sins were all on Jesus laid;
His stripes have made thee whole.
In heaven the blood forever speaks
In God's omniscient ear;
The saints, as jewels on His heart,
Jesus doth ever bear.
"No condemnation!" O my soul,
'Tis God that speaks the word,
Perfect in comeliness art thou
In Christ, the risen Lord.
Teach me, O God, to fix mine eyes
On Christ, the spotless Lamb,
So shall I love Thy precious will,
And glorify His name.ix