We conclude our lecture (#3) By comparing all these teachings with HOLY SCRIPTURE, God’s infallible, unchanging Word. God's Word is what truly matters. We have to put everything through the grid of Scripture. Thus, we must ask answer a few important questions. Have either of these camps accurately understood the gospel of grace?
The gospel answers three of life’s most important questions:
1. How can unjust sinners become just in the sight of a holy God?
2. How can I be made right with this God?
3. How can God save anyone w/o violating His very character (holiness, justice, and wrath)?
Let’s look at 4 important truths from the Biblical witness.
#1. The Bible clearly teaches us that the Judaism of Jesus’ day (and Paul’s) represented Legalism, pride, and human self-effort.
On this point, Tom Wright could not be any more wrong. Paul anathematizes the Judaizers because they were preaching a “false gospel” (see Gal. 1).One pastor has observed that, “There are really only 2 religions in the world today:
(1) The false religions of human achievement
(2) (&) The true religion of Divine accomplishment.”
Stephen Charnock adds, “It is the disease of the human nature, since its corruption, to hope for eternal life by the tenor of the covenant of works.” Salvation by works is not inherently a Jewish problem. It's been a problem for all us. We simply do not understand how holy God truly is (see Dr. Sproul's book on "the Holiness of God"). The religion of the Pharisees and most of the first-century Jews had corrupted the Old Testament teachings on grace & faith. They turned salvation into faith by "human achievement". There are many Scripture that support this understanding...Check out: Luke 18:9-14; Acts 13:38-39; Romans 4:3-6; Romans 9:30-32; Romans 10:3; or Romans 11:6.
Listen to how Paul summarizes the religion of Judaism in Romans 10:3, "For not knowing about God's righteousness, and seeking to establish their own, they did not subject themselves to the righteousness of God."
Paul’s personal testimony in Philippians 3:8-10 proves my point; If anyone where to be admitted into God's heaven through religious works, Paul would be the ideal candidate (see the first part of Phil. 3). He was so zealous over his beliefs that he killed those who parted from his understanding of the Law.
He wrote, "More than that, I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish (literally, “dung”) in order that I may gain Christ, 9 and may be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own derived from the Law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which comes from God on the basis of faith, 10 that I may know Him, and the power of His resurrection."
The righteousness Paul gained was “alien righteousness” and the way Paul obtained this perfect righteousness was through faith in Christ (Phil 3:9, Rom 10:4).
The Judaizers tried to establish merit through their religiosity. They desperately wanted to contribute something to their salvation...The Bible clearly teaches us that the Judaism of Jesus’ day (and Paul’s) represented Legalism, pride, and human self-effort.
Which leads us to #2:
The New Perspective's interpretation of the phrase “works of the law” is inconsistent with the entire context of Galatians 2 and Romans 3.
Time does not allow me to do an in-depth exposition of either Galatians 2 or Romans 3.
For now, just take note of the following general observations from Galatians 1 & 2:
a) In Gal. those who were abusing the Law were the problem (the Judaizers). As one Greek scholar notes, “It is not an issue of admitting Gentiles into the faith, but of the Judaizers themselves not being in the faith.” They were misusing or abusing the Law of God.
b) The Judaizers in Galatians were clearly teaching a false gospel (see Ch 1).
c) The context of Galatians 2 is about justification not sanctification.
d) In Galatians the “works of the law” are placed in opposition to saving “faith” in this text. Galatians 2:16 says, “Yet we know that a person is not justified by works of the law but through faith in Jesus Christ, so we also have believed in Christ Jesus, in order to be justified by faith in Christ and not by works of the law, because by works of the law no one will be justified”.
e) This passage is all about how one gets saved by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone! Dr. Bill Barrick summarizes my observations well, “Indeed, ‘(the) works of the law’ can neither save nor sanctify (Romans 6:12-14). For the believer, faith produces good works, not the reverse (Eph. 2:8-10).”
#3. Justification by faith alone was taught well before Calvin & Luther by Augustine, the apostle Paul, the Lord Jesus Christ, and Moses.
The Reformers did not invent "Sola Fide;" They simply rediscovered it during a very dark period in church history.
If you don’t agree with me on point #3, then please read the book of Genesis, the Gospels, the epistle of Romans and Galatians. -->The gospel msg. has always been consistent: We’re saved by grace through faith alone.
Iain Murray adds this insightful thought, “The gospel is not, ‘Do this and live,’ but, ‘Receive Christ and His righteousness.’ It is salvation for believers, not workers; for the ungodly, not the righteous, and by Christ’s obedience not our own.” (Read Titus 3:5-7).
Notice what Moses taught in Genesis 15 (Abraham believed God and what?)
Check out what Jesus taught in Luke 18:9-14
Observe what Paul taught in Romans 1-10
This is what A.W. Tozer meant when he wrote, “Nothing is new that matters and nothing that matters can be modernized, the old way is the true way and there is no new way.” Justification by faith alone was taught well before Calvin & Luther; by Augustine, the apostle Paul, the Lord Jesus Christ, and Moses.
Δ We come now to our final point, #4 which deals with the Biblical teaching on justification. Δ
The R.C. Council of Trent views justification as a process! Catholics and NP proponents wrongly merge justification and sanctification together. The Council of Trent issued this explicit denial of sola fide: “If anyone says that by faith alone the sinner is justified, so as to mean that nothing else is required to cooperate in order to obtain the grace of justification…let him be anathema.” NP advocates believe justification is more about ecclesiology than soteriology (see my previous notes for more detailed comments on this issue).
But the Bible teaches us that Justification is:
I. A judicial act of God (note: Luke 18:14; Romans 4:3-9; Genesis 15:6).
R.C. Sproul says we first have to answer the question, “Are we justified by a process by which we become actually just or are we justified by a declarative act by which we are counted or reckoned to be just by God?” The great Sovereign Judge of the universe declares sinners righteous (that’s biblical justification). MacArthur adds, “Sanctification is (thus) a result, not a prerequisite.” Jesus promised immediate salvation to believers (John 5:24). When God opens our eyes to embrace the gospel, in that moment, we are declared righteous before (a) Holy God! This is some amazing truth. In Luke 18:14, Jesus said the repentant tax-collector “went down to his house justified.” Salvation was instantaneous. Jesus told the repentant thief of the cross, “Today, you will be w/me in Paradise.” That one word must have been heavenly, "TODAY, Today, Today, you shall be with me in Paradise."
The Scriptures teach that justification is a judicial act of God! It is a declarative act by which we are reckoned to be just by God. Luther put it this way, "At the same time just and sinner."
II. The Bible also teaches that justification is by faith alone (Hab. 2:4; Romans 4:4-9, Eph 2:8, Phil 3:8-9). Faith is the instrumental cause of our justification.
The old acrostic sums this up, Forsaking All I Trust Him (F.A.I.T.H.). Ephesians 2:8-9 clearly teaches, “For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, that no one should boast.” Justification is by faith alone and faith itself is a gracious gift from God!
III. The Bible also declares that justification is made possible only through the life and death of Jesus.
A) Christ died for us while we were yet sinners (Romans 5:8). "But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us."
B) The Son poured out his holy wrath on the sinless substitute (the 2nd Adam, Jesus [note Rom 5]). -->Thus Christ is our propitiation (our sin offering). 1 John 4:9-10, By this the love of God was manifested in us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world so that we might live through Him. In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. We are saved from the wrath of God by the love of God. Jesus Christ became our sin offering before GOd!
C) And then God declares us righteous through imputation.
2 Corinthians 5:21, He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him. This verse describes “The Divine Transaction.” Jesus bore the sins of all those who ever would believe and we recieve the perfect righteousness of Christ through imputation. The grounds of our justification remain solely the imputed righteousness of Jesus Christ. Christ and Christ alone is our righteousness (Jer. 23:6)! We do not stand before GOD, naked and ashamed; for we are clothed in the righteous robes of Christ.
Conclusion
In theology, everything that glitters isn’t always genuine gold. On the surface “The New Perspective” looks pretty attractive. At first glance, N.T. Wright’s exegesis appears valuable and his conclusions seem to be extremely well researched. He is a top notch academic scholar. But after closer examination (when we compare what the Bible teaches w/what N.T Wright supposes), the “New Perspective” is exposed for what it truly is. In my opinion, the New Perspective on Paul is “fools gold.”
Personally, I can not recommend any "New Perspective" authors, in part because they’ve messed around w/the heart of the Biblical gospel. Again nothing is more important to Christ's Church then God's gospel (see 1 and 2 Corinthians).
Instead of spending countless hours reading “new perspectives” on old truth; Dedicate yourself to understanding the Fundamentals of the Christian Faith. Read through the Old and New Testament as often as you can. My bibliography would be a good starting point if you want to really understand the doctrine of justification.
Some of you may be thinking that sometimes it must take an M. Div or a Ph.D to mess up a really straightforward truth like justification by faith alone...In this case, i believe you're right.
No comments:
Post a Comment