Date: Mon, 06 Nov 2006 16:17:14 +0800
Subject: Faith and Works justify EVIDENTIALLY
Reformed Brethren,
I have some thoughts.
Feel free to comment once you understand what
is said... keep your missiles in the bunker for a while.
Consider this biblical statement in James
2:24, "You see then that a man is justified by works and not by faith
alone."
I am in perfect agreement with this biblical
statement. Let's consider the implications of this grand statement. This
statement, in its context, is declaring at least two truths:
ONE:
The works as well as the faith of a
person justify him. Scriptures say, 'NOT BY FAITH ONLY'!
TWO:
The way works justify a man is the same
way his faith justifies him. The same verb 'is justified' is applied in exactly
the same manner to both 'works' as well as 'faith.'
The new school Reformed folks will recoil
from and reject this simple truth. This highlights the deficiency and
inconsistency of the new school's view of justification.
Now the questions we want to ask, and
consider are these:
Q1. How do a man's works justify him?
Q2. How does a man's faith justify him?
Q3. In what sense do works and faith justify
a man in exactly the same manner?
Old school Baptists declared that 'Faith is
not alone in the person justified.' This means, among other things, that apart
from the grace of faith in the person justified, there are other graces. In a
man justified freely by God, you will find among other saving graces, faith and
good works.
Faith justifies a man in that his faith
declares, demonstrates, evidences, proves, and vindicates that the righteousness of Christ has been freely applied to him, i.e. justified by God’s free grace.
Faith does not justify in that it does not
secure the imputation of Christ's righteousness. Faith is not the instrumental
means to secure the imputation of Christ's righteousness. Faith is not the
instrumental means to secure our justification by God. Faith is the instrument
to declare, demonstrate, evidence, prove, or vindicate that the person is a
child of God, i.e. justified, regenerated and adopted, and indwelt with the
Spirit of adoption who works those saving graces like faith, works, repentance,
etc.
Even so, works of righteousness justify a man
in that his works of righteousness declare, demonstrate, evidence, prove,
vindicate that the person with works of righteousness IS already a child of
God, i.e. imputed with the righteousness of life, regenerated with life,
adopted, and have the Spirit of adoption dwelling within to work those graces of
works and faith. The justified man has both good works and faith. Both declare
his justified state by free grace.
Works do not justify in that they do not
secure the imputation of Christ's righteousness. Works are not the instrumental
means to SECURE the imputation of Christ's righteousness. Works are not the
instrumental means to SECURE our justification. [RCC would anathematize this].
Works, like faith, are the instruments to
declare, demonstrate, evidence, prove, or vindicate the justified state of a person.
But in the purpose of God, it is 'faith is accounted to him for righteousness,'
and not 'works is accounted to him for righteousness.' Please take careful note
that 'faith is accounted to him for righteousness' IS NOT - IS NOT - IS NOT the
same as 'the righteousness of Christ is accounted to him for justification.'
Accounting of your faith for righteousness
and the accounting of Christ’s righteousness for justification are two totally
different matters. It is a massive theological blunder to confound the two.
There is SIMPLY NO ACCOUNTING OF CHRIST'S RIGHTEOUSNESS to a believer when he
believes. The Scriptures state in the plainest way possible that there is an
imputation of the believer's faith unto him for righteousness.
God imputing a believer's faith to the
believer for righteousness is God blessing the faith to the believer to
experience the blessedness of his righteousness personally as a result of the
imputed righteousness of Christ
The meaning of the word 'justify' must be
determined by its context. It does not always mean the divine act of declaring
a guilty, condemned sinner righteous by the imputation of Christ's
righteousness.
The biblical position is, "The just
shall live by faith." The new school reformed position seems to be,
"By faith, a condemned man shall be justified and receive life to
live".]
Legal/personal justification is neither by
works nor by faith. Justification is by grace through the blood of Christ,
evidenced not only by faith alone but also by works of faith.
God justified us while we were still ungodly
and were still enemies, still in rebellion against Him, incapable of believing.
The common error is that God justifies (legally) us when we believe.
Experiential or evidential justification is
by faith as well as good works. Abraham is the classic example. Abraham was
already a justified man by grace in Gen 12-14, prior to Gen 15:1-6. All his
works of righteousness prove that. His faith in Gen 15:1-6 proves,
demonstrates, evidences and vindicates his justified state. 'The just shall
live by faith.' By faith, he experienced personally the blessedness of his
righteous standing before God in Christ. His works, before and after Gen
15:1-6, prove, demonstrates, evidences and vindicate the SAME justified state.
But faith was accounted to him for righteousness. Faith secures for him the
experience of the blessedness of being righteous in Christ.
Both faith and works demonstrate and evidence
the justified state of a man by grace. The saving grace of faith as a result of
justification is a saving grace that is never alone, i.e. always accompanied by
good works.
A believer's works and faith are EFFECTS and
EVIDENCE of his justified state by God's free grace. They justify him EVIDENTIALLY.
Papists say: legal justification is by faith
in Christ AND works.
New school reformed folks say: legal
justification is by faith in Christ ALONE.
Scriptures say, and the old school folks
believed rightly: legal justification is by free grace alone through the faith
OF Christ alone, and this free grace legal justification is evidenced by works
and faith in Christ.
When the new school men turned the old school
men's 'justification by the faith OF Christ alone' into 'justification by the
faith IN Christ alone' they have perverted the gospel; they have attributed to
the faith of believers what the Bible DOES NOT. They have confused and
confounded the VITAL/PERSONAL justification by the faith OF Christ with the
EVIDENTIAL justification by the works and faith IN Christ.
"You see then that a man is justified by
works and not by faith alone"?????
sing
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Message 2:
Date: Mon Nov 6, 2006 5:25 am
Brother Sing,
In other words, we are justified by faith
alone, but our faith is justified by works alone. Based entirely on what God
has done for us in Jesus Christ, we are declared righteous by means of faith
alone. But genuine faith is never alone, it is always declared genuine by a
changed life.
We are declared right by faith alone, but
genuine faith is declared right by works. Saint Paul puts this succinctly in
Ephesians 2:8-10: "For it is by grace you have been saved, through
faith--and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God -- not by works, so
that no one can boast. For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to
do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do."
Bob [a REFORMED PRESBY man, the owner and a
moderator of the Reformed discussion list.]
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Message 3:
Date: Tue, 07 Nov 2006 10:34:25 +0800
Brother Bob,
You failed to interact with what I have said
in James 2:24, "You see then that a man is justified by works and not by
faith alone."
Compare this with what you say. I get the
feeling that no matter what the Scriptures say, you just say what you want to
say.
You insisted, "In other words, we are
justified by faith alone" EVEN THOUGH the Scriptures say, "You see
then that a man is justified by works and not by faith alone." You
insisted BY FAITH ALONE, even though Scriptures plainly says NOT BY FAITH
ALONE. Please tell me who is right.
You insisted 'our faith is justified by works
alone' EVEN THOUGH the Scriptures say that the SAME MAN is justified by works
and not by faith alone. James 2:24 plainly says that BOTH works and faith serve
the SAME PURPOSE of justifying the ONE SAME man. Do you believe James 2:24, or
don't you?
You also said, 'genuine faith is declared
right by works.' What does it mean for genuine faith to be declared right?
Those who framed WCF (i.e. old school men)
said faith and works are graces found in a justified person, they are effects
of free grace justification. Faith, the effect of free grace justification, is
the instrument to MANIFEST that free grace justification; the effect of free
grace justification CANNOT IN ANY WAY be the instrument to obtain
justification. The effect of a cause CANNOT be the means to bring about the
cause. The idea is just nonsensical.
The WCF men say faith is always ACCOMPANIED
by works – Why? Because they are BOTH effects of free grace justification. BOTH
of them justify EVIDENTIALLY. They don't justify forensically - 'declared
just'! They are evidence of a man freely justified, declared right, by God's
free grace while ungodly and dead in sin and in enmity against God at effectual
calling.
I draw two principles from James 2:24.
ONE: The works as well as the faith of a
person justify him. Scriptures say, 'NOT BY FAITH ONLY'!
TWO: The way works justify a man is the same
way his faith justifies him. The same verb 'is justified' is applied in exactly
the same manner to both 'works' as well as 'faith.' They justify EVIDENTIALLY.
If you don't agree with them, please give
your interpretation.
sing
