Day 10 – Justified by Faith

Justified by faith

Yesterday, we looked at one of the foundational truths of the Gospel:

“It is by grace you have been saved, through faith.”

Today, we go deeper into what happens when a sinner places their faith in Jesus Christ.

The Bible uses a powerful word:

Justified.

Paul tells us:

“A person is justified by faith apart from the works of the law.”

This is one of the truths that makes the Gospel so different from every attempt of humanity to reach God through its own effort.

We are not made right with God because we have performed enough religious duties.

We are not accepted because we have accumulated enough good works.

We are not justified because we belong to a particular Christian tradition.

We are justified by faith. And our faith is placed in Jesus Christ.

What Does “Justified” Mean?

To be justified means to be declared righteous before God.

It is a legal declaration.

We have sinned.

We are guilty.

We have fallen short of God’s righteousness.

Yet God provides a way for sinners to be declared righteous not because their sin was insignificant, but because Christ dealt with their sin.

Justification does not mean that God pretends we never sinned.

Our sin is real, and our guilt is real.

But Christ has dealt with sin through His death and resurrection.

When we place our faith in Him, we are no longer standing before God on the basis of our own righteousness.

We are accepted because of Christ.

God declares the believer righteous because of what Jesus Christ has accomplished.

Our standing before God is therefore not based upon our performance.

We are justified because of Christ and His finished work, and we receive that justification through faith.

We All Need Justification

Paul has already established the problem in Romans.

“For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.”

No one can stand before God claiming perfect righteousness.

It does not matter how respectable we appear.

It does not matter how religious we may be.

It does not matter how many good things we have done.

God’s standard is holiness.

And we have all fallen short.

Therefore, every person needs justification.

The religious person needs it.

The irreligious person needs it.

The respectable person needs it.

The broken person needs it.

Every one of us needs Christ.

The Law Cannot Justify Us

Paul says:

“Justified by faith apart from the works of the law.”

The law is good because it reveals God’s righteousness.

It teaches us what God requires.

But the law cannot make a sinful person righteous.

It can reveal our sin, but it cannot remove our guilt.

Think of a mirror.

A mirror can show you that your face is dirty.

But the mirror cannot wash your face.

In the same way, God’s law reveals our sin.

But our obedience to the law cannot become the basis of our salvation.

We need something greater.

We need Christ.

Abraham Was Justified by Faith

Paul points us back to Abraham.

Genesis 15:6 says:

“Abram believed the Lord, and He credited it to him as righteousness.”

Notice the order.

Abraham believed God.

And God credited righteousness to him.

Abraham’s righteousness was not something he earned through religious achievement.

He trusted God’s promise.

This happened before the Mosaic law was given.

Paul uses Abraham to demonstrate that God’s way of justification has always involved faith.

The Gospel did not suddenly invent a new method of salvation.

God’s redemptive plan has always rested upon His grace and His promise, and that promise ultimately finds its fulfilment in Jesus Christ.

Christ Is the Basis of Our Justification

Here is where we must be very clear.

Faith itself is not what earns salvation.

Christ is the foundation of salvation.

We are justified through faith because faith looks away from ourselves and toward Jesus.

Jesus lived the righteous life we could never live.

He remained without sin.

He willingly went to the cross.

He bore our sins.

He died in our place.

He rose again.

Therefore, when we trust Christ, we are no longer depending upon our own righteousness.

We are depending upon His righteousness.

Christ is the basis of our justification.

The Great Exchange

Paul gives us a beautiful picture in 2 Corinthians 5:21:

“God made Him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God.”

This is the heart of the Gospel.

Jesus takes what belongs to us:

our sin.

And we receive what belongs to Him:

His righteousness.

We do not earn this exchange.

We receive God’s gracious gift through faith.

This is grace.

Why Faith?

Why does God save through faith rather than human achievement?

Because faith removes boasting.

Paul says in Romans 3:27:

“Where, then, is boasting? It is excluded.”

If salvation depended upon our works, we could boast.

But if salvation is God’s gift through Christ, there is nothing for us to boast about.

The greatest Christian cannot say:

“I saved myself.”

The newest believer cannot say:

“I earned my place.”

We all stand at the foot of the cross saying:

“Christ saved me.”

Therefore, all glory belongs to God.

Faith does not give us something to boast about.

It gives us someone to trust.

Justification Gives Us Peace

Romans 5:1 tells us what follows:

“Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.”

This is one of the great blessings of justification.

Before Christ, sin separates us from God.

But through Christ, we are reconciled to Him.

We can approach God.

We can pray.

We can call Him Father.

We can live with confidence not confidence in ourselves, but confidence in Christ.

Our peace with God does not depend upon how good we feel today.

It depends upon what Christ has accomplished.

Justification Does Not Mean We Can Continue in Sin

Someone may ask:

“If I am justified by faith apart from works, does that mean I can live however I want?”

No.

The Gospel never teaches that grace gives us permission to remain enslaved to sin.

When God’s grace truly reaches the heart, it begins to transform the person.

We are justified by faith.

Then we begin a lifelong journey of sanctification a process in which God continues to make us more like Christ.

Good works do not purchase salvation.

Good works flow from salvation.

We obey God because we love Him.

We pursue holiness because Christ has saved us.

We serve because grace has changed us.

The Difference Between Root and Fruit

Think about a tree.

The fruit does not give life to the tree.

The life of the tree produces the fruit.

In the same way:

Christ is the root.

Faith receives Christ.

Salvation produces transformation.

Good works are the fruit.

We do not perform good works so that God will finally accept us.

We obey because, through Christ, we have already received His grace.

This distinction protects the Gospel from becoming a system of human achievement.

A Message for the People of the East

This truth is especially important wherever Christian faith has been closely connected with inherited identity and religious tradition.

Perhaps you were born into a Christian family.

Perhaps your parents and grandparents taught you Christian traditions.

Perhaps you have attended church throughout your life.

Perhaps you have participated faithfully in religious practices.

But the Gospel asks a deeper question:

Where is your confidence for salvation?

Is it in your family?

Is it in your religious identity?

Is it in your traditions?

Is it in your good works?

Or is your confidence in Jesus Christ?

The Gospel does not call us merely to inherit Christianity.

It calls us to faith in Christ.

Your heritage may tell you where you came from.

But only Christ can determine where you stand before God.

Faith Produces a New Way of Living

True faith is never merely intellectual.

When we trust Christ, our lives begin to change.

We begin to see sin differently.

We begin to love God’s Word.

We begin to desire holiness.

We begin to forgive.

We begin to serve.

We begin to love others.

We begin to obey Christ.

We still stumble.

We still struggle.

But our direction changes.

We are no longer living for ourselves.

We belong to Christ.

The Christian life is therefore not sinless perfection.

It is a new direction under the lordship of Christ.

What Does This Mean for You?

Perhaps you have spent years trying to prove yourself to God.

Today, stop and listen to the Gospel.

You cannot earn what God offers as a gift.

Perhaps you have been carrying guilt.

Look to Christ.

Perhaps you have trusted your religious background.

Look to Christ.

Perhaps you have thought you were too sinful for God.

Look to Christ.

Perhaps you have tried to become righteous through your own strength.

Look to Christ.

The Gospel continually directs our eyes away from ourselves and toward Jesus.

Trust Him.

The Invitation

Romans 3:28 gives us a clear and powerful statement:

“A person is justified by faith apart from the works of the law.”

This is not a minor teaching.

It is central to the Gospel.

We are sinners.

We cannot make ourselves righteous.

We cannot earn God’s acceptance.

We cannot purchase salvation through religious performance.

But God has provided the answer.

Jesus Christ.

He lived for us.

He died for us.

He rose again.

And when we trust Him, God justifies us because of Christ.

Therefore, our confidence is not:

“I have done enough.”

Our confidence is:

“Christ has done enough.”