Justification through Faith Alone Passage: Galatians 2:15-21

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1 Justification through Faith Alone Passage: Galatians 2:15-21 Overview This doctrine [justification by faith] is the head and the cornerstone. It alone begets, nourishes, builds, preserves, and defends the church of God; and without it the church of God cannot exist for one hour. For no one who does not hold this article or, to use Paul's expression, this 'sound doctrine' (Titus 2:1) is able to teach aright in the church or successfully to resist any adversary... this is the heel of the Seed that opposes the old serpent and crushes its head. That is why Satan, in turn, cannot but persecute it. God s righteousness or our own God demands positive righteousness You are not only lacking positive righteousness, you are also completely unrighteous Christ, His death on our behalf and righteous life lived for us, is the sinner s only hope We need Christ s righteousness to become our own Consider this "The article of justification and of grace is the most delightful, and it alone makes a person a theologian and makes of a theologian a judge of the earth and of all affairs. Few there are, however, who have thought it through well and who teach it aright." Application Justification is the greatest need of EVERY HUMAN Justification by grace through faith alone is not just for children or new Christians Our victory in Christ and stability in the Gospel is directly related to our understanding of this truth Justification through faith alone If the [truth] of justification is lost, all Christian doctrine is lost at the same time. [T]here is no middle ground between these two righteousness: the active one of the Law and the passive one which comes from Christ. Therefore the man who strays from Christian righteousness must relapse into the active one, that is, since he has lost Christ, he must put his confidence in his own works. -Martin Luther Justification through Faith Alone 1

2 Galatians 2:15-21 Intro: The book of Galatians may rightly be labeled the broken record of Paul s exhortation to believe Christ as an effective Savior. Sinners are sinful, and God is holy. This is not a complicated idea to grasp, but man seems incessantly persistent in his effort to right himself before God. Man is either supremely confident that he can and will justify himself before God, or he suffers ultimate despair in the pit of his own depravity as he comes to grips with the reality that he cannot justify himself at all. God offers perfect justification through Christ, and the doctrine of justification how God justifies sinners is the crux of Christianity. 15 We ourselves are Jews by birth and not Gentile sinners; Paul continues his rebuke (schooling / scolding) of Peter, but it is hard to see where he stops recounting this personal rebuke and starts commenting generally on the issue at hand. The Jews were privileged to have received God s Law and multiple prophetic oracles from God. o God gives His divine Law recorded in Exodus 19 and 20 o All of the Old Testament is a story of God s voice and intervention in the history of His chosen people Gentiles (all non-jews) were excluded from this gracious condescension o Gentiles were utterly abandoned by God in the sense that they were left to grope around in the dark without the benefit of God s word or voice. In debauchery and comprehensive pagan decadence the Gentiles were left under the curse of God with only the knowledge that would condemn them before God (see Romans 1:18-20). 16a yet we know that a person is not justified by works of the law but through faith in Jesus Christ YET Paul says, the blessing that the Jew had received did not make him/her any less sinful in God s sight. o First mention in the passage The Law does not justify anyone. Justification through Faith Alone 2

3 What does it mean to be Justified? or What is Justification? o FBC Diana s Confession of Faith Justification is God s gracious and full acquittal upon principles of His righteousness of all sinners who repent and believe in Christ. Justification brings the believer into a relationship of peace and favor with God. 1 o Keach s Catechism (aka The Baptist Catechism) Justification is an act of God s free grace, wherein He pardons all our sins, and accepts us as righteous in His sight, only for the righteousness of Christ imputed to us, and received by faith alone. 2 o The suggested resource for this series Justification is the gracious act of God by which God declares a sinner righteous solely through faith in Jesus Christ. 3 The concept of Justification before God and man s total depravity (or radical corruption) is not new or only found in the NT. o Romans 3: What then? Are we Jews any better off? No, not at all. For we have already charged that all, both Jews and Greeks, are under sin, 10 as it is written: None is righteous, no, not one; 11 no one understands; no one seeks for God. 12 All have turned aside; together they have become worthless; no one does good, not even one. 13 Their throat is an open grave; they use their tongues to deceive. The venom of asps is under their lips. 14 Their mouth is full of curses and bitterness. 15 Their feet are swift to shed blood; 16 in their paths are ruin and misery, 17 and the way of peace they have not known. 18 There is no fear of God before their eyes. In this passage Paul quotes several Psalms (14:1-3, 53:1-3, 5:9, 140:3, 10:7) and other OT passages (Prov. 1:16, 3:15-17; Isa. 59:7-8; Gen. 15:6, 17:5) that overtly condemn every human under the law of God. Justification does not come through a sinner s obedience, but by the grace of God and through simply trust or faith in Christ o But HOW is a sinner justified?! Romans 3: But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, although the Law and the Prophets bear witness to it 22 the righteousness of God through faith in 1 See explanation under Salvation at 2 See question and answer #37 at 3 Platt, 45 Justification through Faith Alone 3

4 Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction: 23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 24 and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, 25 whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God s righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins. 26 It was to show his righteousness at the present time, so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus. Martin Luther On Justification And this is the truth of the Gospel. It is also the principal article of all Christian doctrine, wherein the knowledge of all godliness consisteth. Most necessary it is, therefore, that we should know this article well, teach it unto others, and beat it into their heads continually. 4 16b so we also have believed in Christ Jesus, in order to be justified by faith in Christ and not by works of the law, WE Paul, Peter, and all Jewish Christians have also believed in Christ Jesus in order to be justified. o Repetition 1 Neither Jew nor Gentile are justified by works doing right things. 16c because by works of the law no one will be justified. Paul makes an universal and absolute statement. o Repetition 2 NO ONE will be justified by works. Paul also offers only two options: (1) Justification by works or (2) Justification by Grace through Faith o The repetition of these options, and the extensive argumentation Paul offers in his letter to the Galatian Christian should cause us serious consideration. How inclined they were to look for Justification by works! How inclined I must be to look for the same! 4 Platt, 45 Justification through Faith Alone 4

5 17a But if, in our endeavor to be justified in Christ, we too were found to be sinners, is Christ then a servant of sin? Paul asks the rhetorical question, anticipating the objection, by saying If we Jews stop striving for our own righteousness before God through works of the Law, has Jesus Christ then encouraged sinfulness? 17b Certainly not! o Is Christ then a servant, minister, instigator of sin? Martin Luther Christ is not the minister (or servant) of sin, but the Dispenser of righteousness and the Giver of life. Christ is Lord over the law, sin and death. All who believe in Him are delivered from law, sin and death. 5 o Of course Jesus Christ is no the servant, minister, or instigator of sin! The obvious explanation for the existence of sin in any human is that he/she is by nature sinful and unrighteous. 18 For if I rebuild what I tore down, I prove myself to be a transgressor. It is as though Paul says, If I reestablish the Law as the scaffolding I must climb in order to reach God, then I not only prove myself to be an inept climber, I also erect a monument of condemnation to all who see it. o This is not to say that Christians may not or will not obey the law of God. Martin Luther Once a person has been justified by Christ, he will not be unproductive of good, but as a good tree he will bring forth good fruit. A believer has the Holy Spirit, and the Holy Spirit will not permit a person to remain idle, but will put him to work and stir him up to the love of God, to patient suffering in affliction, to prayer, thanksgiving, to the habit of charity towards all men. 6 Christ is neither the first of many steps towards righteousness, nor the rebellious libertarian. o It is to say that Law and Grace are two distinct subjects, and when we talk of Grace, we should leave Law completely aside. Martin Luther We know that good works ought to be done, but we will talk about that when the proper time comes. Now we are dealing with justification, and here good works should not be so much as mentioned. 7 5 Luther, Comment on verse 17 6 Luther, Comment on verse 18 7 Luther, Comment on verse 17 Justification through Faith Alone 5

6 19 For through the law I died to the law, so that I might live to God. The Law of God slaughters sinful people. o Romans 7: What then shall we say? That the law is sin? By no means! Yet if it had not been for the law, I would not have known sin. For I would not have known what it is to covet if the law had not said, You shall not covet. 8 But sin, seizing an opportunity through the commandment, produced in me all kinds of covetousness. For apart from the law, sin lies dead. 9 I was once alive apart from the law, but when the commandment came, sin came alive and I died. 10 The very commandment that promised life proved to be death to me. 11 For sin, seizing an opportunity through the commandment, deceived me and through it killed me. The 3 Purposes of the Law of God 8 The first purpose of the law is to be a mirror. On the one hand, the law of God reflects and mirrors the perfect righteousness of God. The law tells us much about who God is. Perhaps more important, the law illumines human sinfulness. Augustine wrote, The law orders, that we, after attempting to do what is ordered, and so feeling our weakness under the law, may learn to implore the help of grace. (Calvin, Institutes, bk. II, 1:306) The law highlights our weakness so that we might seek the strength found in Christ. Here the law acts as a severe schoolmaster who drives us to Christ. A second purpose for the law is the restraint of evil. The law, in and of itself, cannot change human hearts. It can, however, serve to protect the righteous from the unjust. Calvin says this purpose is by means of its fearful denunciations and the consequent dread of punishment, to curb those who, unless forced, have no regard for rectitude and justice. (Calvin, Institutes, bk. II, 1:307) The law allows for a limited measure of justice on this earth, until the last judgment is realized. The third purpose of the law is to reveal what is pleasing to God. As born-again children of God, the law enlightens us as to what is pleasing to our Father, whom we seek to serve. The Christian delights in the law as God Himself delights in 8 Sproul, 267 Justification through Faith Alone 6

7 it. Jesus said, If you love Me, keep My commandments (John 14:15). This is the highest function of the law, to serve as an instrument for the people of God to give Him honor and glory. 20a I have been crucified with Christ. 20b It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God Notice the cadence Paul uses here: o I died to the law (v19), I have been crucified with Christ, and I no longer live (v20). The Law of God killed him, Christ has died under the Law of God in his place; therefore, he is no longer his own, but he is owned by Christ and lives only in Him. o I live to God (v19), Christ lives in me, and I live by faith in the Son of God (v20). He lives now unto God, Christ Himself is his life and his righteousness, and he lives out the life he now enjoys by continually believing and trusting in the promise of grace made visible in the Son of God. who loved me and gave himself for me. WOW! This is the knockout punch of Paul s argument. o How may the Christian know that he is justified before God? Christ, the God-man, has loved sinners and given Himself for them. This is true, not in an abstract and indefinite way, but true in a personal and profound way. CHRIST LOVED ME and GAVE HIMSELF FOR ME! 21 I do not nullify the grace of God, for if righteousness were through the law, then Christ died for no purpose. Just after dropping the bombshell, reminding them of Christ s intimate love and personal sacrifice, he now utterly disarms any works-based-righteousness proponents. o To the Judaizers Paul says, You, who want to add to the Gospel You nullify the grace of God and cast the sacrifice of Christ aside as though it were yesterday s garbage. The argument is helpful for our day as well. Either Christ has done it all, or what He has done is nothing. Justification through Faith Alone 7

8 o If we could save ourselves, Christ s death is pointless, and means nothing. If we realize we cannot save ourselves, Christ s death will mean everything to us. And we will spend the life that He has given us in joyful service of Him, bringing our whole lives in line with the gospel. 9 My Prayers 1) May God help us to understand and deeply believe the doctrine of Justification through faith alone. 2) May God grant us the humility to set aside our pride as we learn to see all things through the lenses of God gracious grace. 3) May God enable and motivate us to herald this message courageously, compassionately, and consistently. 9 Keller, Justification through Faith Alone 8

9 Bibliography Carson, D. A., and Douglas J. Moo. An Introduction to the New Testament. Second ed. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, Chrysostom, John. Commentary on Galatians. San Bernardino, CA: Beloved Publishing, Clements, Don K., comp. New Geneva Introduction to the New Testament. Edited by R. C. Sproul. Narrows, VA: Metokos Press, Cole, R. A. Galatians: An Introduction and Commentary. Edited by Leon Morris. Nottingham, England: Inter-Varsity Press, Fung, Ronald Y. K. NICNT: The Epistle to the Galatians. Edited by Gordon D. Fee. Grand Rapids, MI: W.B. Eerdmans Pub., Hendriksen, William. New Testament Commentary: Exposition of Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, and Philemon. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books, Holy Bible: English Standard Version. Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, Keller, Timothy J. Galatians for You. [Purcellville, VA]: Good Book Company, Lightfoot, Joseph Barber. Saint Paul's Epistle to the Galatians. A Revised Text with Introduction, Notes and Dissertations. London: Macmillan and, Luther, Martin. Commentary on Galatians. Kindle ed. Acheron Press. Platt, David, Daniel L. Akin, and Tony Merida. Exalting Jesus in Galatians. Christ- Centered Exposition. Nashville, TN: B&H Pub. Group, Sproul, R. C. Essential Truths of the Christian Faith. Wheaton, IL: Tyndale House, Tucker, Brian J. "Galatians and Ephesians." Galatians and Ephesians. Justification through Faith Alone 9

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