0321. Justification

Justification

"Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ" (Rom_5:1).

Justification is the result of the substitutionary work of Christ. He died for us. He bore our sins in His own body on the tree. In this substitutionary work, Christ was made sin for us that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him. Our sins were placed upon Christ and His righteousness was imputed to us.

Justification expresses no moral change,–that is, justification does not mean that a sinner is, in his daily walk, any better than he was before he was justified. Justification is our standing "in Christ." Balak desired Balaam to curse Israel, but Balaam was forced to say: "God hath not beheld iniquity in Jacob, neither hath He seen perverseness in Israel." When God looks at us, under the Blood, He sees no sin upon us.

To one who is justified by faith, apart from the deeds of the Law, God does not impute sin. No one can lay anything to the charge of God’s elect, for "it is God Who justifieth."

Illustration: A young man once arose in our church and said: "Pastor, a lot of your members went to the circus yesterday, and they are all going to hell." We replied, "It is certainly wrong to go to the circus; but, why do you say they are going to hell?" His answer was, "Because the Bible says, ‘Without holiness no man shall see the Lord.’"

The young man was right, and he was also wrong. It is true that "without holiness no man shall see the Lord." It is also true that "all have sinned and come short of the glory of God." We asked the young man, who had said that circus goers were bound for hell, to repeat these words after me: "I take oath that I am as holy as God." He quickly replied, "But, I am not." This young man did not understand the Bible doctrine of justification.

Justification is not my righteousness, but His. The one who seeks entrance to Heaven through the righteous deeds of the flesh has not submitted himself to the righteousness of God. Could such an one enter into the presence of the Holy God, he would soon discover that the robes of his own righteousness were but filthy rags.

Justification imputes to the believing sinner the righteousness of God. In justification we stand before God, robed in unsullied white. Our sins are all gone because they were placed upon Christ. Our righteousness is assured, because we bear the transferred righteousness of Christ.

When John saw a great multitude who had come up out of the great tribulation and who stood before the throne, robed in white, the angels said unto him: "These are they who washed their robes and made them white in the Blood of the Lamb, therefore are they before the throne of God." Emphasize the word, "THEREFORE." They are Blood-washed and made white, therefore do they stand before the throne of God.

Autor: R.E. NEIGHBOUR