Sermon Tone Analysis

Justification

So, we’ve been working through this “Order of Salvation” starting three weeks ago with “Election” (God choosing some to be saved).

Then we had a week off for Father’s Day.

Last week we talked about what it meant to become a Christian.

Starting with “The gospel call,” (in which God is calling us to salvation by trusting in Christ).

This calling was broken down into 2 parts.

The first one was a general call (this is proclaiming the gospel message – some can reject this outward calling).

The second segment was a type of summons that through that gospel message God calls his elect to himself, by what we called as an “effective call” (this cannot be rejected).

And through this summons, God imparts (or infuses) new spiritual life within us causing us to be “Regenerated,” or “born again.”

Now, this regeneration made it possible for us to respond in faith and repentance to that gospel summons which is what is called “Conversion.”

Those are numbers 1-4 of “The order of salvation.”

Last week I told you that numbers 2-6 and maybe the first part of 7 (which is “Sanctification) happen rather quickly and sometimes instantaneous.

This week we are going to focus on 5 and 6 “Justification and Adoption.”

So, what we are going to do today is unpack what you may have heard as a child, if you trust in Jesus he will forgive your sins.

Well, he’ll forgive your sins has a rich and full meaning.

And then we’re going to look at what I think might be the biggest blessing ever, even more, fabulous than having our sin’s forgiven, that would be “Adoption” into God’s family.

As I was studying this Doctrine, I could not help but realize that this teaching is not something that I could ever believe if the Bible didn’t say so.

It is just not something that could be made up by man.

Because It has absolutely nothing to do on my part is exactly why many other religions reject it, even some denominations within Christianity reject it – which we are going to briefly talk about later.

You are going to see that some speak of “Justification” as an instantaneous act of God, while others describe it as a process.

However, I am going to tell you, the “Doctrine of Justification” is at the heart of Christianity.

So, we’ve been working through this “Order of Salvation” starting three weeks ago with “Election” (God choosing some to be saved).

Then we had a week off for Father’s Day.

Last week we talked about what it meant to become a Christian.

Starting with “The gospel call,” (in which God is calling us to salvation by trusting in Christ).

This calling was broken down into 2 parts.

The first one was a general call (this is proclaiming the gospel message – some can reject this outward calling).

The second segment was a type of summons that through that gospel message God calls his elect to himself, by what we called as an “effective call” (this cannot be rejected).

And through this summons, God imparts (or infuses) new spiritual life within us causing us to be “Regenerated,” or “born again.”

Now, this regeneration made it possible for us to respond in faith and repentance to that gospel summons which is what is called “Conversion.”

Those are numbers 1-4 of “The order of salvation.”

Last week I told you that numbers 2-6 and maybe the first part of 7 (which is “Sanctification) happen rather quickly and sometimes instantaneous.

This week we are going to focus on 5 and 6 “Justification and Adoption.”

What does it mean to be justified in the eyes of God?

So, what we are going to do today is unpack what you may have heard as a child, if you trust in Jesus he will forgive your sins.

Well, he’ll forgive your sins has a rich and full meaning.

And then we’re going to look at what I think might be the biggest blessing ever, even more, fabulous than having our sin’s forgiven, that would be “Adoption” into God’s family.

Justification is a close-handed doctrine; it is not one of these doctrines that we can say “well, I don’t agree with you on this but we can still worship together.”

A right understanding of justification is absolutely crucial to the whole Christian faith.

I want you to understand that “Justification” is important because if a person seeks to be forgiven in a way in which he cannot be forgiven, then he won’t be forgiven!

This is the doctrine that was at the center of the Reformation when Martin Luther nailed his 95 theses to the door of the Wittenberg Castle church on October 31, 1517.

So, “Justification” and then “Adoption,” are you ready?

As I was studying this Doctrine, I could not help but realize that this teaching is not something that I could ever believe if the Bible didn’t say so.

It is just not something that could be made up by man.

Because It has absolutely nothing to do on my part is exactly why many other religions reject it, even some denominations within Christianity reject it – which we are going to briefly talk about later.

You are going to see that some speak of “Justification” as an instantaneous act of God, while others describe it as a process.

However, I am going to tell you, the “Doctrine of Justification” is at the heart of Christianity.

Justification is a close-handed doctrine; it is not one of these doctrines that we can say “well, I don’t agree with you on this but we can still worship together.”

A right understanding of justification is absolutely crucial to the whole Christian faith.

I want you to understand that “Justification” is important because if a person seeks to be forgiven in a way in which he cannot be forgiven, then he won’t be forgiven!

This is the doctrine that was at the center of the Reformation when Martin Luther nailed his 95 theses to the door of the Wittenberg Castle church on October 31, 1517.

The root text for the “Order of Salvation” is .

“And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.

For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers.

And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified.”

(, ESV)

So, “Justification” and then “Adoption,” are you ready?

So, we can see by this text that “Justification” is something that God himself does; furthermore, it after our faith as God’s response to our faith.

Paul says that God “justifies him who has faith in Jesus” ().

What is “Justification?”

The root text for the “Order of Salvation” is .

“And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.

For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers.

And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified.”

(, ESV)

Definition:

“An instantaneous legal act of God in which he (1) thinks of our sins as forgiven and Christ’s righteousness as belonging to us, and (2) declares us to be righteous in his sight.”

So, we can see by this text that “Justification” is something that God himself does; furthermore, “Justification” comes after our faith as God’s response to our faith.

Paul says that God “justifies him who has faith in Jesus” ().

What is “Justification?”

Definition:

A. Justification Includes a Legal Declaration By God

“An instantaneous legal act of God in which he (1) thinks of our sins as forgiven and Christ’s righteousness as belonging to us, and (2) declares us to be righteous in his sight.”

The word Justify has a range of meanings in the Bible.

The old saying that “context is king” should always apply rather you are interpreting a passage or a word.

The verb “dikaioo,” the word that is translated to “justify,” most commonly has the meaning sense of forensic – meaning it is a legal declaration.

For example, can someone read ?

“(When all the people heard this, and the tax collectors too, they declared God just, having been baptized with the baptism of John,” The KJ and the NKJ do this verse different they translate “they declared God just” to “[they] justified God.”

That is, they said that God is “just” or “righteous.”

So, the sense of the word is meaning to say or declare just.

Or how about can someone read that?

“And to the one who does not work but believes in him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is counted as righteousness,” (, ESV) Where it says that “[God] justifies the ungodly” it means that he declares the ungodly “just’ or ‘righteous.”

Furthermore, part B of this verse explicitly defines what it means to “justified” “his faith is counted as righteousness.”

Again, we see “Justification” as a declaration.

Justification Includes a Legal Declaration By God

The word Justify has a range of meanings in the Bible.

The old saying that “context is king” should always apply rather you are interpreting a passage or a word.

The verb “dikaioo,” the word that is translated to “justify,” most commonly has the meaning sense of forensic – meaning it is a legal declaration.

For example, can someone read ()? “(When all the people heard this, and the tax collectors too, they declared God just, having been baptized with the baptism of John,” The KJV and the NKJV do this verse differently.

They translate “they declared God just” to “[they] justified God.”

That is, they said that God is “just” or “righteous.”

So, the sense of the word is meaning to say or declare just.

The idea that justification is a legal act is more evident when contrasted with condemnation.

To condemn someone is to declare them guilty.

The opposite of condemnation would be justification.

The very last thing that we would ever want to hear at the judgment seat of God, when he has all the books open, (; ) would be GUILTY.

So, let’s look at a passage that contrast condemnation and “Justification” can someone read .

“Who shall bring any charge against God’s elect?

It is God who justifies.

Who is to condemn?