Justification by Faith Alone

Today we celebrate Reformation Day. October 31, 1517 stands forever in the hearts and minds of a Protestant. Martin Luther's Ninety-five Theses served not as the beginning of the Reformation, for there were many that preceded him in laying the groundwork, but as the signal that this man, and many others who he had no clue were with him, would never turn back to the apostasy of the church as it existed in 1517. The great hallmark of the Reformation is the doctrine of justification by faith alone, which Luther stated was the doctrine on which the church stands or falls.

If this be the case (and I certainly believe it to be true), then the church today in some places is crumbling. Luther's understanding from Scripture was that justification by faith alone ("The just shall live by faith") consisted of a double imputation grounded in Christ's work of atonement on the cross: (1) Christ's righteousness was imputed those who by faith receive Him and (2) the sins of those who trust in His saving work on their behalf were put on Him. Both aspects of this double imputation are found in Paul's words to the Corinthians, "He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him" (2 Corinthians 5:21 ). Luther also taught that man's works had nothing to do with justification. Man's salvation is based solely on the merits of Christ and His finished work on behalf of the elect. In other words, it is by His works that we are saved.

The simplicity of this doctrine is under attack today by those who adhere to the New Perspective on Paul. They contest a number of things that we will unpack as we work our way through the next few blogs. At the heart of their contention is that all that I wrote above concerning justification by faith alone, double imputation, and faith not works as the basis for salvation are products of Reformation teaching and not the Scripture. They claim that the Reformers formulated the doctrine of justification by faith alone and then pigeonholed Paul's teachings on the doctrine to suit their interpretation. They contend that Paul's views on works, Judaism, and justification are at fault.

How much at fault? More later.

Justification, the Reformation, and New Perspective on Paul

We are approaching the day that the world celebrates as Halloween and the church celebrates as Reformation Day. The celebrations could not be further apart in their allegiances. Those that celebrate Halloween do so with witches, ghosts, bats and goblins, with things from the dark side. Some would say it is the devil's holiday. On the other hand, those that celebrate Reformation Day remember October 31, 1517, that infamous day when Martin Luther challenged the establishment in nailing Ninety-five Theses to the door of the Castle Church in Wittenberg which led to a theological and biblical preciseness concerning justification: it is according to Scripture alone by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone for the glory of God alone.

Some will read the opening paragraph and disagree with my assessment of Halloween, saying I have gone overboard in relegating to the underworld. While they might agree to its secularness, they will say to lighten up and let the children have their fun. After all, candy won't hurt them.

But it is not the danger associated with Halloween that concerns me today. It is more the reinterpretation of those great teachings that flowed out of the Reformation on justification. It is my hope to address some of these things over the next few days, particularly as it relates to Paul and his writings concerning justification now muddied by the teachings of New Perspective. If allowed to sink its tentacles any deeper into the foundation laid by the Apostles, this teaching could be far more damaging to the church than any Halloween celebration.

Stay tuned.

Building Bridges Conference

I want to remind everyone that it is not too late to participate in the upcoming conference, Building Bridges: Southern Baptists and Calvinism, Nov. 26-28 at LifeWay Ridgecrest Conference Center. The conference is hosted by Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary, Lifeway, and Founders Ministries.

For more information and/or to register, go to LifeWay's website.

See you at Ridgecrest!