Now to him that works is the reward not reckoned of grace, but of debt. But to him that works not, but believes on him that justifies the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness. (Romans 4:4-5 KJ2000)

This passage tells the common truth that if one works for another, then the pay he receives for that work is owed to him. Before it is paid the one for whom he worked owes him a debt. In other words, if you come to my house and work on my plumbing, my payment to you is not a gift; it is the payment of a debt that I owe you. Applying this spiritually, none of us can work hard enough to earn the passport* to the promised land, the Kingdom of God. The reason is that the work required to enter that Kingdom is perfect obedience to God’s Law. All history shows us, as briefly summarized in the past few posts, that man cannot perfectly obey this law and meet God’s demands of perfection. Not even Moses the Lawgiver!

This means that nothing you or I can do, no work that we can perform, can ever create the debt on God’s side whereby he owes us salvation, owes us the passport* for entry into His Kingdom. Works, therefore, can never justify man before God. The passage above states that justification comes only by faith.

The term “justification” is a legal term which states that “based upon Christ’s work and his gift of faith to you concerning that work, then you have been declared “righteous” before God.” It is this legal transaction, one that I can’t even begin to understand, that reconciles us to God. Justification establishes our relationship with God and thus allows us to communicate with him and get to know him. Justification, however, does not literally make anyone righteous. When we first believe in Jesus we usually remain as bound to certain sins as before. Yes, I know that sometimes Jesus casts out demons and delivers people from addictive bondages when they come into “saving” faith, but this is not the norm. It’s usually not that easy. Justification by faith deals with our spirit and its eternal abode. It does not deal with our soul, the place “where we live,” so to speak. Our soul is our mind, our will, and our emotions. Our soul is what we think of as “you” or “me.” I can’t really know your spirit, but I can know your soul. Justification deals with our spirit; the Biblical term “sanctification” deals with our souls.

This legal justification gives Christians what some call an “imputed righteousness.” This means that righteousness has been “attributed to” or “reckoned, i.e. accounted” to a believer. This is a legal term, but based upon erroneous teaching concerning this many say that we Christians already have “the righteousness of Christ.” But, is this true? Isn’t it really true that each of us actually only possesses our own righteousness? In other words, each one of us has a totally different idea of what it means to be a Christian or to be righteous. We each raise our children differently. Some send them to public school, some to private, and some teach them at home. We each dress differently and we dress our kids differently. Some believe Christians can eat pork or drink wine; others don’t. Some of us have “grace” to watch “R” or even “X” movies. Some don’t. Some believe practicing homosexuals can pastor churches or be members in good standing in churches; others don’t. Some believe women can pastor churches; others don’t. Clearly, then, we do not each possess Christ’s righteousness; we possess our own. For if we possessed Christ’s righteousness we would be in agreement on every one of these issues which carries eternal implications and has a simple “yes or no” answer. Personally, for example, I don’t believe that either eating pork or not, or drinking wine or not (so long as you are not a drunkard) carries eternal implications.

Justification, thus, does not deal with our actual way of life, whether or not we walk in sin today or not. It effects our reconciliation with God and gives us the power to walk on with him, whereas we could never do so before. Before you believed in Jesus you simply were not yet walking in the same direction as he is. Jesus said that his way entailed a “narrow path.” He said wide was the way, or road, to destruction. So, begin to think of Jesus’ righteousness like this. He shows you a little bit of it ahead of you on that narrow path. Now you have a choice. Do you come into agreement with Jesus that his way is righteous and therefore desire that way for yourself? Do you repent of your own failures in that one thing he has shown you? Then do you walk toward him on that narrow path? Or, do you say, “That way is too hard. I’ll go my own way,” and thus remain on the broad road to destruction even though you name yourself a Christian and have indeed been justified by faith? If you have left that narrow way then “your ears shall hear a word behind you, saying, “This is the way, walk you in it, when you turn to the right hand, and when you turn to the left.” (Isaiah 30:21 KJ2000) Don’t ignore that still, small voice, for if you do you shall lose your way upon the broad path.

* Justification really is only “a passport” to the Kingdom of God because faith in Jesus provides you with the right or the power “to become” a son of God; it doesn’t automatically make you one. See John 1:12.

Part 7

Part 1