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| Knowing the truth is necessarily logically and chronologically PRIOR to believing in that truth. |
A
Brother quoted the Scripture above to defend the popular notion of justification by faith in
Christ. I left these notes for him. May the Lord grant him understanding.
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You think the text should read "... by the faith IN Jesus Christ... by the faith IN Christ..."; and you said - KJV's English is old which probably explains why it was written as "faith of Christ".
The
KJ translators knew exactly when to translate "believe/faith IN Jesus
Christ" and when to translate "the faith OF Christ Jesus" -
therefore it cannot be an issue of old English BUT precise translation and
exact English, just and "thou" and "you" are precise
translation and exact English.
Concerning
Gal 2:16, let me draw your attention to these:
1.
Knowing that: knowing what? Knowing the truth that
a.
Negatively: a man is not justified by the works of the law, i.e. a man is not
justified by his own works of obeying the law of God. Read Rom 3:21.
-
Do you know this?
b.
Positively: a man is justified by the faith of Christ, i.e. a man is justified
by Christ’s faithfulness of obeying the laws of God; Christ’s obeying the laws
of God secured the righteousness needed for the justification of His people,
those given to Him by God.
-
Do you know this?
c.
In the justification of the condemned, perfect righteousness is an absolute
PREREQUISITE; sin (transgression of the law) brought condemnation;
righteousness (obedience to the law) is
necessary for justification, the reversal of condemnation.
-
This necessary righteousness is either your own righteousness through your own
perfect obedience to the laws of God or the righteousness through Christ's
perfect obedience to all the laws of God.
-
No righteousness, no justification. Period.
-
Justification is God’s free and sovereign act of declaring a condemned guilty
sinner not guilty but righteous by accounting to him the righteousness secured
by Jesus Christ through His faithful obedience to all the laws of God.
- Do you
know this?
d. A
man’s faith does not come into the equation of his justification before God.
Do
you know this?
- It's "the just shall live by faith," - it's the just, those already freely justified by God, who are capable of exercising faith in Jesus Christ; such shall live by faith in Christ, not by observing the ceremonial laws, in order the experience the blessedness of their justified state freely by the grace of God.
2.
Knowing the truth, EVEN we have believed the truth
a.
It is basic and elementary that knowing the truth is necessarily logically and
chronologically PRIOR to believing in that truth. You believe something that is
already true; you don't believe to make something come true. This is common
sense.
-
Romans 3:24 KJT — Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption
that is in Christ Jesus:
-
Since we KNOW that our justification is freely by the grace of God through the
redemption that is in Jesus Christ, i.e. His faithfulness in His redemptive
work of securing the necessary righteousness on our behalf, EVEN we have
believed in Jesus Christ since by His faith we have been freely justified by
God while in our native state of sin, condemnation, and death.
-
Do you know the truth, and have you believe it?
3.
That we AFFIRM the truth of our
justification by the faith OF Christ
-
“that we might be justified by the faith of Christ”, that is, our justification
before God is indeed by the faith of Jesus Christ, even Christ’s faithfulness
in His redemptive work of securing the necessary righteousness for His people
He came to save.
-
Do you know the truth, and have you affirmed the same?
4.
That we REPUDIATE the lies of justification by the works of the law
-
“that we might be justified… NOT by the works of the law."
-
Do you know the common and popular error, and have you repudiated it?
5.
Here's why - “For by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified.”
a.
Do you know why by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified?
"Therefore by the deeds of the law, there shall no flesh be justified in
his sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin."
b.
Moreover, faith, man's act of believing in Jesus Christ is a WORK of the law,
an act of obedience to God's law.
-
Jesus Christ Himself said that faith in Him is a work that God requires of His
people TO DO.
-
John 6:28 ¶Then said they unto him, What shall we do, that we might work the
works of God? 29
¶Jesus answered and said unto them, This is the work of God, that ye believe on
him whom he hath sent.
-
Believing in Jesus Christ is a work God requires of His children because Christ
is their Saviour. It is the duty and responsibility of God's children to
believe in the truth of their justification FREELY by the grace of God, not by
their faith IN Jesus Christ.
c.
Believing in Jesus Christ is obedience to a commandment/law of God.
-
1John 3:23 "And this is his commandment, That we should believe on the
name of his Son Jesus Christ, and love one another, as he gave us
commandment."
You
are free to choose to be justified by your faith in Christ, i.e by the works of
the law.
May
the Lord grant you understanding.
