Justification by Faith

2003-08-21 10:25

What God says will be surely accomplished. God said, "Let light shine out of darkness", and there was light. The faith in the gospel that God justifies the wicked is about becoming righteous. If the faith is just about justification by God, not about truly becoming righteous, it is not the fully assured faith to the saving of the soul. Therefore, Justification by God is the believers' becoming righteous. It's like seeds and fruits are the same.

The goal of faith is the salvation of souls. This salvation is a precious gift of God which is given to those who fully believe in God who justifies the wicked. Christ is the end of the law so that there may be righteousness for us. The end of the law is the cross, the curse of the law. Without the body of sin being cursed, there can not be righteousness for us. The son of man must die because he is born of the flesh.

The faith that is not combined with Christ who fulfilled righteousness is not the fully assured. If we have not been united with him in his death, we will not be united with him in his resurrection. The fully assured faith is what is united with the Lord.

It is written, "but the message they heard was of no value to them, because those who heard did not combine it with faith." The gospel is what God has spoken to us by his Son. When this gospel is combined with the precious faith, the gift of God, The kingdom of the new life, yielding the fruit to holiness, will come.

Anyone who believes in the Son of God has this testimony in his heart. It is the testimony about the fact that the natural have been united with the Lord Jesus in his death, and the spiritual have been united with Christ in his resurrection. The Bible testifies, "Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day." Ony those who have this testimony are sealed with the Holy Spirit. It is written, "And you also were included in Christ when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation. Having believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit."

These things are the mystery of God that nobody who belongs to the world knows. It is written, "No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love him." It is shown only by the Holy Sprit.

The power of the new covenant that God has accomplished in his Son make those who believe in the gospel of justification yield the fruit to holiness by the Holy Spirit. The Bible calls it the fruit of the Spirit. We obtain the imperishable seed, righteousness by faith, and obtain the fruit to holiness, the fruit of the Spirit by faith. The Bible says, "For in the gospel a righteousness from God is revealed, a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: 'The righteous will live by faith.'"

The way for salvation is from the imperishable seed, righteousness, to the faith yeilding the fruit to holiness. The Bible says, "being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus." It also says to his people, "Therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed--not only in my presence, but now much more in my absence--continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling."

Without yielding the fruit, the seed is perishable. It is written, "For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God."

Those who merely listen to the word without receiving it don't have the fully assured faith. The Bible says about those who received him, and believed in his name. He who receives the Son has the Son, and fully believes in his name. It is written, "He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life."

Therefore, the beginning of fully assured precious faith is justification by God, and the goal of faith is becoming righteous. It is written, "What then shall we say? That the Gentiles, who did not pursue righteousness, have obtained it, a righteousness that is by faith." He who obtained Christ by faith in the gospel obtained righteousness. Thank you, Lord.

The least brother, Kim Yun-gu