In A Word - Justified

"For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus..." - Romans 3:23-24

Just like redemption, justification is another doctrine that too many Christians can't define. Even though it's one of the may benefits of salvation, it's simply not taught with any depth in a lot of churches. As a result, many believers don't know what it means to be justified. I would be willing to bet that, if they were pressed on the issue, they couldn't say if they really were justified with any certainty.

In its simplest terms, justification is another legal term. It is translated into English from the Greek word is dikaioo. This word refers to a person that has been accused of breaking the law, but are found innocent in a court of law. When this person leaves the courtroom, they leave justified of those charges. They have been proven in the right, and are legally unaccountable for what they were charged with.

Spiritually speaking, justification is having a right-standing with God.

It is to be proven just when you are accused of being unjust.

It is to be declared right when you are accused to doing wrong.

It is to have charges pressed against you - only to be completely cleared of them.

According to Scripture, there are two ways to be justified - and these two ways do not mix. It's up to you to choose which path to justification you want to take. But you have to make your decision now...before you find yourself in God's courtroom.

Justified By Obedience

The first way to be justified is by never breaking the law in the first place.

God is going to judge the world based on the Ten Commandments. So if we were to obey them, we would be righteous. An obedient person that is falsely accused of unrighteous behavior would be justified in God's eyes. Why? Because the accusations would be proven wrong.

As long as you obey the Ten Commandments, God will pronounce you righteous and "un-punishable". Leviticus 18:5 says as much: "You shall therefore obey My commands and My judgments, which if a man does, he shall live by them: I am the LORD."
You see? As long as you do what God says, you will always be justified when Satan tries to accuse you!

But before you try justification by obedience, you should know about three challenges you'll face.

Challenge #1 - God is just as interested with internal thoughts as He is with external actions.

According to 1 John 3:15, God judges hatred to be the same as murder.

According to Matthew 5:28, He convicts those with lustful thoughts as adulterers.

Remember that Sunday morning when you wished you could've just stayed in bed instead of going to church? That desire alone was enough to break God's first commandment (putting other gods before Him) and His fourth commandment (violating the Sabbath day) - even if you actually went to church anyway!

This may be the biggest challenge to being justified by obedience: You have to control your thoughts just as much as your actions!

Challenge #2 - Future obedience does not cancel out past disobedience.

This point can be illustrated in the plot of the movie Inside Man. In this movie, a wealthy philanthropist - a man who had done a lifetime of good - was found to be guilty of crimes against German Jews during the Holocaust. The point was well-made, despite all the good he tried to do...this man could never wash away the blood on his hands.

This is the same condition a lot of people will find themselves in on judgement day. A lot of people are aware of the sins they have committed in the past, but mistakenly believe that time and good behavior are enough to justify them of those sins. Unfortunately, this is not the case.

God is just, and He cannot leave any sin unpunished.

If you're going to try being justified by obedience - then you have to start the moment you're old enough to make your own decisions. Otherwise, any sin you have committed will still be charged against you in God's court.

Challenge #3 - Every one of God's laws are inter-connected and are all broken simultaneously.

"For whoever shall keep the whole law, and yet stumble in one point, he is guilty of all." - James 2:10

God's law - although many-sided - is singular. This means that there are many different ways to break it - but it's all broken once you do.

If you tell a lie, you're just as guilty as someone who's built an idol.

If you are found guilty of committing adultery, you'll be judged just as harshly as a murderer. 

In God's eyes, a child who chooses to dishonor his parents is the same as a thief and a blasphemer.

These are ten sides to the same Law - and breaking one is equal to breaking them all.

In light of these challenges, can anyone justify themselves by obedience?

No, they can't. Which is why everyone needs to understand the second way to be justified.

Justified By Faith

"Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ." - Romans 5:1

The only way anyone can be justified in God's sight is by faith in Jesus Christ. When you believe what Jesus did for you on the cross, when you trust that He took your punishment, when you agree that He paid for your righteousness - then you stand justified by faith.

This is all it takes to be justified when you're accused of sin! After you've put your faith in Jesus' death, burial, and resurrection on your behalf - the penalty of your sin has been paid. Think about that for a second - what would it mean for you to have your sin already punished? It would introduce the concept of double jeopardy in your case - i.e. God would be unjust to punish the same sin twice.

All that is required to be justified in the court of heaven is faith....faith that Jesus' blood is enough. Does this sound too simple? Does it seem to good to be true? Well, the Bible affirms the concept of being justified by faith over and over again. Here are just a handful of references:

(Don't let yourself skim over these verses....read them!)

"Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him." - Romans 5:9

"...and by Him everyone who believes is justified from all things from which you could not be justified by the law of Moses." - Acts 13:39

"But you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus and by the Spirit of our God." - 1 Corinthians 6:11

But the complete summary of our justification by faith is found in Galatians 2:16.
"Yet we know that a person justified by faith in Jesus Christ, not by obeying the law. And we have believed in Christ Jesus, so that we might be justified because of our faith in Christ, not because we have obeyed the law. For no one will ever be justified by obeying the law."

There it is - you can never obtain justification in God's courtroom by obedience. This is as impossible as a serial killer earning a "not guilty" verdict through community service.

BUT if you'll just believe that Jesus bore your punishment on the cross - your record will be wiped clean! You'll walk out of God's courtroom vindicated of all charges.