Special articles written by Primitive Baptist Elders

Words And Phrases

“Justification”

(By: Elder David Johnson)

In Romans 4:25, the Apostle Paul refers to our justification. He says of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, “Who was delivered for our offences, and was raised again for our justification.” Simply stated, justification means to “make just.” In this verse, we see how man is made acceptable to a holy God. Without it, we could never stand in the judgment, nor ever escape the wrath to come; because, God’s justice must be satisfied.

 Jesus came to save His people from their sins. (Mt 1:21) He didn’t try to save: He did it. And, some of the ways “His people” are described in the Bible are “those given to Him” and “His sheep.” (See John 6:37-39; 10:26-28) The suffering, death, and resurrection of Jesus was substitutionary. So, when He suffered, died, and rose again, He did it all for His people: no more, no less. (John 10:11) Therefore, His people are justified (i.e., made just) by what He did for them. 

The greatest evidence we have that Jesus accomplished this, is that he arose from the dead. Had He remained in the tomb, we would have no reason to believe John 14:19 where He said, “because I live, ye shall live also.” But because Christ is risen from the dead, never to die again, those in Him have every reason to rejoice in hope of the glory of God. Identify those for whom He died and you’ll know who are “justified” with no charges that can ever be laid against them. (Romans 8:33-34) 

If Jesus died for all men, then all men are justified; and, there is no reason for any to be in hell. But, the Bible doesn’t teach that. If God loves everybody, and yet, some go to hell, then there will be some in hell who God loved. But again, the Bible doesn’t teach that. All through the Bible, God distinguishes between His people and those of the world. 

Accordingly, Romans 8:28 speaks of “the called according to His purpose.” Then, in the next two verses the same people are embraced, saying, “For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren. Moreover whom he did predestinate, them he also called: and whom he called, them he also justified: and whom he justified, them he also glorified.” 

All the way through, God purposed to save a people by His Son. But, from what we just quoted, justification is only part of the package of God’s salvation of His people. Justification is the act of Christ dying for His people to make them acceptable to our holy God. Beyond redemption (the payment for sins), we are justified. In other words, the extent of His cleansing made me “just if I’d” never sinned. 

Paul said in 2 Corinthians 5:21, “For he (God) hath made him (Christ) to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.” We stand justified before Him having been made accepted in the Beloved. (Ephesians 1:6) In Isaiah 53:11 we read, “He (God) shall see of the travail of his (Christ’s) soul, and shall be satisfied.” So, the justice of God was forever satisfied by what Jesus did for those He came to save. 

The Lord willing, we will address some other aspects of Justification that relate to man’s response to God’s work in a future article(s). Elder Clayton Nowell

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Last modified: 03/17/08