| Subject: THE JUST SHALL LIVE BY FAITH |
Author:
John Wilson
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Date Posted: 12:34:04 05/01/03 Thu
THE JUST SHALL LIVE BY FAITH
By John Wilson
"But that no man is justified by the law in the sight of God, it is evident, for, the just shall live by faith" (Gal. 3:11).
This verse was written by the apostle Paul as he was rebuking the Galatians for turning away from the gospel of grace and observing certain ordinances of the Law of Moses. It is important to note that in this one verse there are two quotes from the Old Testament. These were written by two men who lived under the law, David and Habakkuk.
The first part of the verse is from Psalms 143:2. David prays, "And enter not into judgment with thy servant, for in thy sight shall no man living be justified." David knew that he would be condemned if he entered into the judgment of the law, therefore he often mentions God's mercy, compassion, and forgiveness (especially in many of his Psalms).
In Romans 3:20, Paul refers again to David's prayer saying, "Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight. . ." In defending salvation by faith, Paul states that the law was given "that all the world may become guilty before God," and "by the law is the knowledge of sin" (Rom. 3:19,20). Then in Romans 3:24 the principle of God's grace is emphasized: "Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus." In the following verse we learn the very important truth that this redemption through Christ's sacrifice was not just for our sins, but "for remission of sins that are past." That is, for the sins of those in the Old Testament. According to this verse and verse 26, God is declaring himself righteous and just in forgiving sins in the past because Christ's death was for their sins also.
Hebrews 9:15 also brings out this truth: "And for this cause he is the mediator of the New Testament, that by means of death, for the redemption of the transgressions that were under the first testament, they which are called might receive the promise of eternal inheritance."
In Romans 4, we have an important passage showing that those in past ages were saved by faith without works. Verse 3 states, "Abraham believed God and it was counted unto him for righteousness" (Quoted from Genesis 15:6). But we read that Abraham offered sacrifices, paid tithes, and received circumcision. Yes, but Paul says that he was not justified by works, and adds in the following verses (Rom. 4:5-8) that David was not justified by works either. "But to him that works not, but believes on him that justified the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness. Even as David also described the blessedness of the man unto whom God imputes righteousness without works, Saying, Blessed are they whose iniquities are forgiven, and whose sins are covered. Blessed is the man to whom the Lord will not impute sin" (taken from Psa. 32:1,2). So God declared Abraham and David righteous without works.
Another example from the Old Testament is Abel. Hebrews 11:4 says, "By faith Abel offered unto God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, by which he obtained witness that he was righteous." This verse states that he obtained witness that he was righteous, that is, he was justified by faith before he brought the sacrifice for the forgiveness of sins?' several times in Leviticus 4, we read, ". . . and the priest shall make an atonement (sacrifice) for him concerning his sin and it shall be forgiven him." The key word here is atonement, which is a translation of the Hebrew KAPHAR, meaning "to cover." The sacrifice covered the sin, but did not take it away, for Hebrews 10:4 says, "It is not possible that the blood of bulls and goat should take away sins." God commanded an offering because, in His mind, it signified the future perfect sacrifice of the Lord Jesus. Therefore righteousness could not be by the sacrifices of the law, even as we read in Galatians 2:21, ". . . for if righteousness come by law, then Christ is dead in vain." Paul told the Jews in Acts 13:39, "And by Him all that believe are justified from all things, from which ye could not be justified by the Law of Moses."
Galatians 3:11 was mentioned at the beginning of this study as containing two references from the Old Testament. The second part of this verse is from Habakkuk 4:2 which reads, ". . . the just shall live by faith." This reference is so important that it is also quoted in Romans 1:17 and Hebrews 10:38. It is interesting to note that in Galatians 3:6-13 we have seven quotes from the Old Testament. They all illustrate the truth that the just are blessed through faith. Otherwise, they are under the curse of the law.
Some believe that salvation was by faith plus works because of Mark 16:16. This Kingdom ordinance states, "He that believes and is baptized shall be saved." However, Hebrews 9:10 says that the law "stood in meats and drinks, and divers washings (baptisms), carnal ordinances. . . ." But carnal ordinances cannot save; they were a type of the spiritual reality.
Therefore water baptism was a type, even as were the sacrifices and offerings. There is no such thing as baptismal regeneration. Sins cannot be cleansed by washing. That water baptism was a type of cleansing from sin can clearly be seen in Acts 22:17, ". . . arise, and be baptized, and wash away thy sins.. .." This is similar to various washings of the law which were cleansing and purifying ceremonies (See Leviticus 14 and 15). We now understand why there is no command for water baptism in Paul's epistles, and why Paul says. "For Christ sent me not to baptize, but to preach the gospel. ..." (I Cor. 1:17).
Although it is obvious that today we are saved by grace through faith without works, we must also understand that this was also God's principle in every dispensation. This gives God all the glory and praise in salvation, as often declared in both the Old and New Testaments. "For thou, 0 Lord, art a God full of compassion and gracious, longsuffering, and plenteous in mercy and truth" (Psa. 86:15).
"Have mercy on me, 0 God, according to thy loving kindness; according to the multitude of thy tender mercies blot out my transgressions" (Psa. 51:1). Also in Psalm 51, "For thou desirest not sacrifice, else would I give it, thou delightest not in burnt offering. The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: a broken and contrite heart, 0 God, thou wilt not despise" (Vs 16,17).
Paul's writings likewise give glory and praise to God, saying, "To the praise of the glory of His grace, whereby He has made us accepted in the beloved. In whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace" (Eph. 1:6,7).
This study would not be complete without considering the passage in James 2:14-26, where we read, "Ye see then how that by works a man is justified, and not by faith only" (V. 24). This seems to contradict Romans 3:28 which says, "... a man is justified by faith without the deeds of the law." The key to understanding the passage in James is to first understand that the word justify (to declare righteous) is used two different ways in the Bible.
The most general use of the word means "to be declared righteous in God's sight." As defined in Unger's Bible Dictionary, "Justification is a divine act whereby an infinitely Holy God judicially declares a believing sinner to be righteous and accepted before Him. .. ."
The other use of the word justify, as defined in Webster's Dictionary, is "to show to be just, right, or in accord with reason: vindicate." This meaning could be clarified by its use in the following verses:
Matthew 11:19: ". .. wisdom is justified of her children."
Job 9:20: "If I justify myself, mine own mouth would condemn me...."
Psalms 51:4: ". . . that thou (God) mightest be justified when thou speakest...."
I Corinthians 4:4: "For I know nothing against myself, yet am I not hereby justified. ..."
It should be evident that James is using the word ./us -tify, meaning "to show to be just, right: vindicate." He is saying that you must have good works to be justified before men. Nowhere in James 2 does it say that God justified a person by his works. Therefore the passage must be interpreted with the idea of being justified in men's eyes, or in other words, justified as far as man is concerned. This can be demonstrated by the following phrases from James 2:14-24:
Verse 14: What does it profit...?
Verse 18: ... shew me thy faith without thy works, and I will shew thee my faith by my works.
verses 21-22: Was not Abraham our father justified by works, when he offered Isaac. . .? Seest thou how faith wrought with his works...?
Verse 24: Ye see then how that by works a man is justified...
We know that Abraham was declared righteous or justified before God in Genesis 15:6, many years before Isaac was offered. So he was justified forever in God's sight by faith alone, but he was justified in man's sight when by faith he offered Isaac.
James also emphasized a fundamental principle demonstrated throughout God's Word; that is, that a true and living faith produces obedience and works. So in James 2 it is stated three times that "faith without works is dead." A good illustration of this principle is found in Hebrews 11, where we read of many whose obedience and works were the result of their faith. So it is evident that living faith will produce good works. Even Paul's epistles emphasize works as a result of faith (See Titus 2 and 3). Notice Titus 3:8 where we read ". . . that they which have believed in God might be careful to maintain good works."
These observations concerning James 2 are not an exposition, but are meant to be helpful in interpreting the verses and reconciling them with the great truth that justification before God is by faith alone, and this because of HIS grace. "Being justified freely by his grace through redemption that is in Christ Jesus" (Rom. 3:24).
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