Declared Righteous
June 30th, 2007
(By Nathan Williams)
Last week I introduced us to what I believe is one of the most important questions mankind must face. How does a mere man gain a right standing with God? It’s not just that a man must have a right standing with God, but a sinful man must have a right standing with God. Last week we specifically saw how we do not start with a clean slate. We are afflicted with sin from the very moment we are born and sin is our greatest enemy. It keeps us from a right relationship with God and only earns his wrath (Rom. 1:18).
This week I would like to examine a little more closely exactly what we mean when we use the word justification. Everyone does not always have the same meaning in mind when they mention this very significant word. It will be helpful to understand the Biblical perspective on justification and then next week to look at a couple of influential theological systems which have departed from the Biblical meaning of justification.
The standard dictionary definition of the word justification is “a reason, fact, circumstance, or explanation that justifies or defends.” The basic idea inherent in the concept of justification is that some piece of information defends one before an accuser. This is certainly part of the Biblical notion, but Biblically the concept is more specific. Biblically, we understand the accuser to be God and our sin to have placed us in the guilty position.
It is quite important that we understand the proper meaning of justification. One definition that people often give of justification is “God looking at me just as if I’d never sinned.” While this is certainly true, there is much more to it than that and it misses a very important aspect which is that justification is a forensic declaration of righteousness. The shorter catechism declares that justification is “an act of God’s grace, wherein he pardoneth all our sins, and accepteth us as righteous in his sight, only for the righteousness of Christ, imputed to us, and received by faith alone.”
It is so vital to understand that justification is an act of God and that he does not actually make us righteous. When we make justification to mean that at that moment God makes us inherently righteous and that our righteousness is part of the reason for his acceptance of us, we destroy the Biblical doctrine. John Murray explains, “In a word, justification is simply a declaration or pronouncement respecting the relation of the person to the law which he, the judge, is required to administer.”
Murray then goes on to give three Biblical reasons for why this is the only way we can understand justification. First, there are many passages in Scripture where “justify” cannot mean anything but to declare righteous. Proverbs 17:15 says, “Acquitting the guilty and condemning the innocent; the LORD detests them both.” Clearly in this passage when it speaks of acquitting the guilty it does not mean that the guilty are actually made righteous. The guilty remain sinful, but they are acquitted from their guilt.
Second, in Scripture justification is often contrasted with condemnation. Condemn never has the meaning of making one guilty, so it makes no sense to assume that justification means to make one righteous. You can see this in passages such as Deut. 25:1 and Romans 8:33,34. Finally, passages such as Romans 8:33,34 make it clear that justification does not indicate God doing something in the elect. What Paul is talking about is an accusation which someone would bring against God’s elect. Paul is saying that no one can even bring a charge against God’s elect because God is the one who justifies. He is the one who brings the judgment and thus the one who justifies.
Thus we see that justification is Biblically a declaration of righteousness. As I’ll explain next week, there are several other theological systems that do not teach that justification is a declaration of righteousness, but that it is a process. Justification is the heart of the gospel and a doctrine that it is vitally important to get correct. As Luther said, this truly is the doctrine on which the church rises and falls.
We are imputed righteousness, and not righteous in and of ourselves. Is this what you are saying?
If so I agree wholeheartedly. 2 Cor. 5:21 says clearly this is the case.
Is it methodologically sound to start an argument based on an English dictionary as opposed to the Greek word in it’s context?
“Methodologically sound”? We’re making this too complicated. I think Nathan is using the english word Justification” and saying that we all don’t have the same definition in mind when we use it. He then goes on to clarify what he believes the Biblical definition is.
Thank you for a clear article on justification. A defense of Christ’s imputed righteousness to the repentant sinner is significant because in doing so one is fundamentally defending the Gospel. It seems that any argument that denies the historic Protestant teaching of justification leans toward a Roman Catholic belief in infused righteousness. I will look forward to next week’s post.