We Don’t Need to Justify Being Justified
“If, in fact, Abraham was justified by works, he had something to boast about – but not before God. What does the Scripture say? ‘Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness.’” – Romans 4:2-3
Read Romans 4:1-8, 5:1
We Don’t Need to Justify Being Justified
Years ago, I was starting to serve as a spiritual mentor for a new believer, a man holding a doctorate in chemistry. Each week this very intelligent man would raise some challenging questions. One of them arose as we read Romans 5:1, which says, “Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.”
“What does ‘justified’ mean?” he asked, not trying to be sarcastic. He pointed out that as a chemist he often would have to justify his conclusions based on data he had collected. In another sense, he noted that on occasion he would try justifying his behavior to his wife.
“Is that what this verse is talking about?” he inquired.
I started by explaining that one of the marvels of the English language is that it often has a variety of meanings for a single word. Yes, we can say a scientific or mathematical conclusion is ‘justified’ by data. And in attempting to explain actions by providing a rationale for them, one might conclude what he’s done is ‘justified.’
But in this case, “justified” carries a legal connotation. It comes from the Greek word for “righteous,” and carries the meaning “to declare righteous,” a legal declaration. In the context of Romans 5:1 and other Scripture passages, it means being pardoned from the guilt and penalty of sin, and having Christ’s righteousness credited to our account.
There’s another sense of the word ‘justified’ that I’m especially familiar with, having spent my entire career working on newspapers, magazines, and books. It’s a printing term: Type is considered “justified” if it is perfectly aligned on both the left and right sides of the column. Type is presented that way in most books of the Bible, with both sides lined up perfectly all the way down the page.
Applying this to Romans 5:1, it means that through faith in what Jesus has done on our behalf – taking on the penalty for our sins on the cross – we gain His righteousness in exchange. Theologians would say His righteousness is “imputed” to us. In terms a printer would understand, we are “justified” – put in perfect alignment with God the Father, based solely on Jesus’ sacrifice for us.
As the apostle Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians 5:21, “God made Him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God.” Frankly, this is a declaration that’s difficult for us to comprehend: Jesus ‘became sin for us’ that we might become the righteousness of God. Looking at our lives from day to day, even moment by moment, we’re inclined to say, “That’s impossible. How could Jesus take on the penalty for every sin I’ve ever done?”
An excellent question, one that’s been pondered and debated in seminaries and by theologians through the centuries. As difficult as it is to comprehend, it’s true based on the Word of God. How can we accept this? Only through faith – which is what trusting in Christ, striving to walk with Him and serve Him every day, is all about.
In Matthew 12:36-37, Jesus told the accusatory religious leaders, “But I tell you that men will have to give account on the day of judgment for every careless word they have spoken. For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned.”
Yes, there will be a day of judgment for each of us. But having been justified by faith, we won’t have to offer excuses or try to rationalize our sins – the wrong things we’ve done, the wrong things we’ve said, or the wrong things we thought. We will be acquitted – by words as simple as, “Jesus Christ is my Savior and Lord. By His mercy and grace, my sins are forgiven and I’m a child of God.”
According to the Bible, we’re completely justified in believing and saying that! “That if you confess with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved” (Romans 10:9-10). It’s as simple as that.