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| Even so, Lord God Almighty, true and righteous are thy judgments |
https://www.facebook.com/notes/sing-f-lau/the-doctrine-of-justification-as-summarized-in-1689-cof/10150452191328484
So
many love to repeat the words of Luther who called the doctrine of
justification as "the article of a standing or falling church." By
that standard very many churches have already fallen because of their grievous
errors in justification. The popular “justification before God by faith
alone" commonly understood is a very erroneous doctrine. It is a horrid
lie - let me show it.
Brief Outlines on the Chapter on Justification, 1689 CoF, Chapter 11
Para
1. Justification by free grace stated and defined
"Those
whom God effectually calleth, He also freely justifieth,(1) not by infusing
righteousness into them, but by pardoning their sins, and by accounting and
accepting their persons as righteous;(2) not for anything wrought in them, or
done by them, but for Christ's sake alone;(3) not by imputing faith itself, the
act of believing, or any other evangelical obedience to them, as their
righteousness; but by imputing Christ's active obedience unto the whole law,
and passive obedience in His death for their whole and sole righteousness,(4)
they receiving and resting on Him and His righteousness by faith, which faith
they have not of themselves; it is the gift of God.(5)
1. Ro 3:24; 8:30. 2. Ro 4:5-8; Eph 1:7. 3. 1Co 1:30-31; Ro 5:17-19. 4. Php 3:8-9; Eph 2:8-10. 5. Jn 1:12; Ro 5:17.
a.
The context of justification
-
Effectual call to grace and salvation: ‘those whom God effectually called, He
ALSO…’
-
Therefore they are never separated! Effectual call to grace and salvation
involves justification, regeneration and adoption. These divine activities are
necessary to bring a man out of his native state of condemnation, death and
alienation to that of grace and salvation.
-
The divine activities of justification, regeneration and adoption UNDO condemnation,
death and alienation respectively, bringing a man into s STATE of grace and
salvation.
b.
The active agent of justification
-
God the Father: ‘He also…’ Whom He effectually calls, He ALSO justifies.
-
So the distinct aspect of justification here is the applied/vital justification
at effectual calling by God the Father.
c.
The manner of justification
-
Freely by God’s grace: ‘He also freely justifieth.’
-
Freely means without man meeting any condition… for an unjustified man can’t
meet any!
-
Freely means just that... without any condition on man's part.
-
The fiction of justification by faith alone is repudiated! Do you notice it?
d..
The essence of justification
i. Errors
negated:
-
‘not by infusing righteousness into them…’
ii. Truth
affirmed:
- ‘but by pardoning their sins
- and accounting (a legal transaction)
- and accepting their persons as righteous…’
e.
The ground of justification:
i. Errors
negated:
- ‘not for anything wrought in them, or done by them…’
-
Faith is something wrought in them. Faith, (their act of believing) is
something done by them. Both are excluded! Sola fidei is repudiated. Do you
read it? Is that too hard to understand, or is it of wilful unbelief???
- ‘not by imputing faith itself, the act of believing…’
-
Therefore in Gen 15:6, where faith is imputed is NOT NOT NOT talking about the
justification of Abraham BEFORE God.
- ‘or by any other evangelical obedience to them, as their righteousness…”
-
The "justification before God by faith alone (man's act of
believing)" is fiction and a fable plainly repudiated! Do you read it? Is
that too hard to understand, or is it of wilful unbelief???
ii. Truth
affirmed:
- ‘but by imputing Christ's active obedience unto the whole law …’
- ‘and passive obedience in His death …’
- ‘for their whole and sole righteousness.’
f.
The evidence of justification
-
The pronoun "they receiving and resting..." speaks of those whom God
has ALREADY freely justified.
-
Faith in this context is defined as ‘receiving and resting on Him [Christ] and
His righteousness.’
-
The application of righteousness by free grace precedes the reception of the
same by faith in Christ.
-
Justification by free grace is completed before believing its truth is
possible!
-
Both the Calvinists, as well as the Arminians, fail to recognize this BASIC
fact, and end up conditioning their justification before God upon their
faith! What a gross and grievous error!
-
Faith is the work of grace by the Spirit of Christ in the heart… not a native
ability in an unjustified condemned man, exercised by the unjustified in order
to be justified!
Some
questions for discussion
Q.
What is at the heart of justification?
Q.
What was the state of those that are justified by God?
Q.
Why does justification have to be by God’s free grace?
Q.
How do we know that faith (a man’s act of believing) is excluded in his
justification by God?
Q.
How do we know that faith is evangelical obedience ( a fruit/effect of
salvation)?
Q.
What does ‘whole and sole’ mean?
Q.
What does Christ’s active obedience secure, and His passive obedience in his
death?
Q.
What do the acts of receiving and resting presuppose?
Para
2. Justification and its relation to man's faith
Faith
thus receiving and resting on Christ and His righteousness, is the alone
instrument of justification;(6) yet it is not alone in the person justified,
but ever accompanied with all other saving graces, and is no dead faith, but
worketh by love.(7)
6. Ro 3:28. 7. Gal 5:6; Jas 2:17,22,26.
a.
The essence of faith is defined:
-
‘Faith, thus receiving and resting on Christ and His righteousness.’
Justification before God is based on Christ and His righteousness alone, and
thus evidences itself in the same, i.e. receiving and resting on Christ and His
righteousness.
-
This is the faith the Holy Spirit worked within those whom God has effectually
called to grace and salvation, SPECIFICALLY, worked within the heart of a
justified elect by the indwelling Spirit of God, the Spirit of adoption who
works all the saving graces in an effectually called elect.
b.
The function of faith as ‘the alone instrument of justification’:
i. Error negated
- it is not the function of an instrument to secure/obtain justification. This is
the fiction believed by many!
ii. Truth affirmed
- the function of an instrument is to manifest/evidence/demonstrate/attest to the
justified state by God’s free grace.
- faith is the instrument to experience the blessedness of the justified state by
God’s free grace.
c.
Faith is a saving grace in the justified person
-
‘Yet it is not alone in the person justified.’
-
The grace of faith can only be found in a justified man. Faith is an EFFECT, FRUIT, and RESULT of justification by grace.
- But it is NOT the only
saving grace produced by the Holy Spirit. It is one of the many saving graces
worked by the Spirit!
-
The grace of faith ‘is ever accompanied with all other saving graces.’
-
All saving graces are worked WITHIN the child of God by the ONE SAME indwelling
Spirit of adoption.
d.
The liveliness of justifying faith (i.e. faith produced by God’s act of justifying
condemned sinners)
-
Faith ‘is no dead faith, but worketh by love.’
- Dead faith is faith that is not
active; dead faith is NOT false faith; it is barren faith. God’s children can
sin into a state of dead faith, being fruitless.
- A
lively faith loves God, His words, His righteousness, His ordinances, His
people,
Some
questions for discussion:
Q.
How do we know that faith is a saving grace, i.e. a fruit of salvation bestowed
freely at effectual call?
Q.
Why is faith ever accompanied by all other saving graces?
Q.
How can one know whether his faith is saving faith?
Q.
Why is faith the sole instrument to manifest the justification by God’s free
grace?
Para
3. The Perfect Substitute Necessary for Justification
Christ,
by His obedience and death, did fully discharge the debt of all those that are
justified; and did, by the sacrifice of Himself in the blood of His cross,
undergoing in their stead the penalty due unto them, make a proper, real, and
full satisfaction to God's justice in their behalf,(8); yet inasmuch as He was
given by the Father for them, and His obedience and satisfaction accepted in
their stead, and both freely, not for anything in them,(9) their justification
is only of free grace, that both the exact justice and rich grace of God might
be glorified in the justification of sinners.(10) 8. Heb 10:14; 1Pe 1:18-19; Isa 53:5-6. 9. Ro 8:32; 2Co 5:21. 10. Ro 3:26; Eph 1:6-7; 2:7.
a.
Christ is the substitute:
- “by His obedience and death, did fully discharged…”
He did everything.
-
Justification before God requires perfect righteousness through the obedience
and death of Christ.
-
The righteousness needed for justification is by the active and passive
obedience of Christ alone.
-
“fully discharged… undergoing in their stead the penalty due unto them….” Debt
completely cleared.
-
“… in their stead… in their behalf… in their stead…”
b.
Christ’s made full satisfaction to God’s justice for all the elect:
-
Christ “made a proper, real, and full satisfaction to God’s justice in their
behalf.”
-
Only the obedience and death of Christ can render a proper, real, and full
satisfaction to God’s justice.
c.
God Himself provided this Substitute for the justification of His people.
-
“He was given by the Father for them…” The substitute is God’s provision.
-
God accepts the substitutionary work (obedience and satisfaction) of Christ on
behalf of His people.
-
This acceptance is only by God’s free grace alone, everything in the justified
being wholly excluded.
d.
Justification of sinners magnifies both the exact justice and the rich grace of
God
-
Any departure from the precise way stated detracts and diminishes both.
- It
dishonours the Triune God.
Para
4. The Multi-faceted Jewel of Justification God did from all eternity decree to justify
all the elect, (11) and Christ did in the fullness of time die for their sins,
and rise again for their justification;(12) nevertheless, they are not
justified personally, until the Holy Spirit doth in time due actually apply
Christ unto them.(13) [the word "personally" is unique to the 1689.]
11. Gal 3:8; 1Pe
1:2; 1Ti 2:6. 12. Ro 4:25. 13. Col 1:21-22; Tit 3:4-7.
a.
Justification decreed
-
by God for all the elect
-
from all eternity.
b. Justification secured/accomplished legally:
(stated plainly in para. 3)
-
by Christ for all the elect
-
at the cross.
-
LEGAL justification took place at the cross.
c. Justification applied personally (stated in para. 1)
- by the Holy Spirit to each individual elect.
-
at effectual calling to grace and salvation.
-
What was LEGAL is now made personal, VITAL
-
What was IMPUTED is now APPLIED personally.
d.
Justification experienced /evidenced subjectively (stated para. 2)
-
by the faith of the individual elect.
-
at initial conversion and throughout life.
-
Faith is the instrument appointed for the justified (freely by God's grace) to
experience the blessedness of their justified state.
e.
Justification vindicated finally
-
by God before the judgment throne
-
on the great judgment day
Conclusion: These are the distinct aspects of justification taught in the Scriptures:
- Justification decreed by God in eternity (before time) for His elect;
- Justification accomplished by Christ at the cross for the same elect;
- Justification applied to each elect personally, freely by God's grace, at effectual calling;
- Justification experienced/evidenced/manifested by faith in Jesus Christ beginning at initial conversion
- Justification consummated: finally vindicated on the great judgment day.
Some
questions for discussion
Q.
Why is it so necessary to distinguish the various facets of justification?
Q. How does ignorance in this injure God’s glory
and honour?
Q.
How does due recognition of the different facets of justification comfort God’s
children?
Q.
How is ignorance in this detrimental to God’s children?
5.
The Working of Subjective Justification
God
doth continue to forgive the sins of those that are justified,(14) and although
they can never fall from the state of justification,(15) yet they may, by their
sins, fall under God's fatherly displeasure;(16) and in that condition they
have not usually the light of His countenance restored unto them, until they
humble themselves, confess their sins, beg pardon, and renew their faith and
repentance.(17)
14.
Mt 6:12; 1Jn 1:7,9. 15. Jn 10:28. 16. Ps 89:31-33. 17. Ps 32:5; Ps 51:1-19; Mt 26:75.
a.
In justification God acts in the capacity of a Judge.
- In sanctification, God
deals as a Father!
-
God the Father’s displeasure with the waywardness of His children…
-
He continues to forgive the sins of His children.
b.
Once justified by God’s free grace, an elect immutably remains in that
justified state forever, despite all the actual sins.
-
All the penalties of sin have been fully dealt with by the redemptive work of
Jesus Christ.
c.
Sins of God’s children will forfeit them of communion and fellowship with God.
-
Faith and repentance alone will restore that fellowship and communion with the
Father.
- Faith and repentance are possible ONLY after the justification by the grace of God.
6.
The Unity of Application in Justification
The
justification of believers under the Old Testament was, in all these respects,
one and the same with the justification of believers under the New Testament.
(18)
18. Gal 3:9; Ro 4:22-24.
a.
The justification of all the elect is in all THESE RESPECTS one and the same…
in all ages.
-
“… in all these respects” is the plain proof that the framers knew and
understood that there are various distinct facets of justification.
-
Many are ignorant of this simple fact. They know only of justification by their
faith!
-
There are God’s children who do not experience justification by their faith…
Why???
-
Why, do you know??? If sola fidei is true indeed, then how do God's elect who
are incapable of believing going to be justified? Are such justified in another
way?
-
Then you have just blasted your beloved "sola" into "also,"
i.e. in addition to "sola", there is also this way of justification!
