5 Biblical Truths About Justification
Dr. Stephen Yuille has been married to Alison for thirty-three years. They have two daughters and one grandson. Dr. Yuille is a Content Director/Editor at Reformation Heritage Books, while also serving as a Professor of Church History and Spiritual Formation at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth, Texas. He has over thirty years of ministry experience and is currently the preaching pastor at Fairview Covenant Church in Granbury, Texas. He has published an extensive list of academic articles and books in Puritan studies. He has also published several popular works in biblical studies.
The following article is adapted from Week 3 of Gospel Realities: Lessons from Galatians, “Justified in Christ.”
Gospel Realities: Lessons from Galatians is an 8-week multimedia Bible study by Dr. Stephen Yuille that guides us through the book of Galatians to help us grasp the sole sufficiency of Christ, applied by the Holy Spirit, to justify us before God and give us all we need to live lives of obedience.
When we consider the doctrine of justification, it is helpful to think in terms of five key biblical truths.
1. We must obey God’s law.
Whether we realize it or not, God placed a debt upon us at creation—simply put, we owe perfect obedience to Him. According to what Paul says in Romans 2:12–15, the Jews possess God’s law written on stones (special revelation), while the Gentiles possess God’s law written on their hearts (natural revelation). It makes no difference, in other words. Everyone possesses God’s law; everyone is under obligation to obey it, and failure to do so results in condemnation.
This is the necessary starting point for understanding the doctrine of justification. In simple terms, we owe a debt of perfect obedience to God.
2. We cannot obey God’s law.
In Galatians 2:16, Paul echoes Psalm 143:2, “Enter not into judgment with your servant, for no one living is righteous before you.” Here, David pleads for mercy because he realizes he cannot stand before God based on his own effort. No one can. Elsewhere, Paul declares, “Those who are in the flesh cannot please God” (Rom. 8:8). Our sin (self-centeredness) alienates us from God. It enslaves us, darkening our minds, hardening our hearts, and binding our wills. This condition is called “the flesh.” It is at war with God; it is unable to obey God, and it is unable to please God.
3. We must obey God’s law in the person of a Mediator.
Because of our inability to obey God’s law, we need someone to do what we cannot do. We need someone to keep God’s law on our behalf. This “someone” is Christ.
When John objects to Christ’s request for baptism, Christ responds, “Let it be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness” (Matt. 3:15). He does not need to be baptized by John, so why does He insist on it? He is about to embark on His public ministry—the salvation of His people. At the outset, He must identify with them in their sin. He was indeed “born under the Law, so that He might redeem those who were under the Law” (Gal. 4:4–5, NASB95). From His birth to His death, Christ lived “under the Law,” obeying every command, meeting every requirement, and fulfilling every detail. Having done so, He paid the penalty we had incurred for breaking it.
According to John Owen, there are four essential components to atonement.
i. There is an offense that must be taken away: sin.
ii. There is an offended person who must be pacified: God.
iii. There is an offending person who is guilty of the offense: man.
iv. There is a sacrifice by which atonement must be made for the offense: Christ.
Through Christ’s atoning work, God redeems His people. Based on Christ’s redeeming work, God justifies His people.
This is the Mediator we need!
4. We become one with the Mediator through faith.
Faith is the instrument by which we embrace Christ. It consists of two components.
i. The knowledge of Christ and His benefits. “And this is eternal life, that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent” (John 17:3).
ii. The application of Christ and His benefits. We must personally receive what God offers us (John 1:12; 6:35). He offers Christ and all His benefits to us in the Word and sacraments (or ordinances). Therefore, we must believe that truth and apply those benefits to ourselves.
Believing in Christ is not a mere decision to believe a series of propositional statements. Rather, it is coming to Him, as to a spring in the desert, and drinking our fill.
5. God accepts the Mediator’s obedience as if it were ours.
We owe a double debt to God: we must obey His law, and we must pay the penalty for having broken His law. We cannot pay either debt, but our Mediator has paid both on our behalf. Because we are one with Christ, God treats us as if we were Christ. Our sins are no longer ours; they are Christ’s. Christ’s righteousness now belongs not only to Him; it belongs to us. “For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God” (2 Cor. 5:21).
This is a heart-warming truth. Christ offered Himself upon Calvary’s cross to make atonement for those who have broken God’s law, for those who are unrighteous, for those who have no right to enter God’s presence, and for those who have no claim to God’s mercy. God now offers Christ to sinners. “Whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved” (Rom. 10:13, NKJV).
We are not required to fulfill any conditions, nor are we required to produce our own righteousness. We are commanded to receive Christ through faith. Upon doing so, we are implanted into Him. We take possession of all the benefits and blessings found in Him. Chief among these is the wonderful reality that we become the righteousness of God in Christ.