The Doctrine on Which the Church Stands or Falls: Justification in Biblical, Theological, Historical

JM

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Anyone in SR or even CF read this title?

The Doctrine on Which the Church Stands or Falls: Justification in Biblical, Theological, Historical, and Pastoral Perspective by Barrett?

I'm trying to get a modern perspective, I've spent most of my time reading 17th century theologians and thought I should invest a little in a more modern expression.

Thanks in advance.

jm
 

JM

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I haven't read it. I've recently enjoyed reading several books by Charles Finney. There is a lot of light we can gain from reading about those who trailblazed the paths we walk on today.

I agree that we can gain from reading those who have come before us including what not to do and what not to teach.

Yours in the Lord

jm
 
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joshua 1 9

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Justification
God is a God of absolute and perfect Justice. We see this precision in all of creation when we look at how fine tuned the universe is. God is the Judge and He determines if we are approved or not. To be justified means to be right or good before God. If you get into a doctrine that says we are divinely pardoned then that is not really what Justice is all about. We need to define the meaning of the word: Just and we need to look to see the first time this word is used in the Bible. "Will not the Judge of all the earth do right?" (Genesis 18:25) The first letter here is Hay, that means to announce or proclaim. The second letter has to do with fire. We see that fire or cleaning is a part of this. The next letter has to do with the mouth and we see that it is God that proclaims that we are just or justified. The last letter means to surround.

Zech13:9
This third I will put into the fire; I will refine them like silver and test them like gold. They will call on my name and I will answer them; I will say, 'They are my people,' and they will say, 'The LORD is our God.'"
 
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com7fy8

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Hi, everyone :) I am not officially Semper Reformanda, but JM has invited me to share what I understand about justification.

My basic explanation of justification is > it means being made right, or just. But there can be different things involved in being made right with God.

When one first gets saved, one is justified . . . made right with God. I think when a person first trusts in Jesus > Ephesians 1:12 > the person is justified by faith. This justification includes how the person is made right with God because of turning from one's sin and giving oneself to Jesus. One's status of being a child of Satan is changed to being a child of God; so have been made right in our standing. It is like how a football player can be a free agent and has no status, at all. But if the player joins a championship team, right away the person becomes a champion player.

But, in being justified, a person also is changed by God in one's heart, when a person gets started with Jesus. I believe this is included > justification, then, is not only a change of status so someone has a clear record in Heaven and the standing of being God's child, but also a person's nature is changed to be right in God's sight. But this is only getting started, in how to be right or just.

We do not become perfectly God's way, right away. There needs to be correction and transformation with maturing so we are more and more like Jesus. And this is making us right, also, more and more maturely right like how Jesus . . . and therefore we are being justified by becoming more and more maturely God's way. And, of course, the process of this is called sanctification or being made holy. I think the two terms can be talking about the same thing, then > because becoming right like His love is becoming holy like His love > 1 John 4:17-18.

What matters more than what labels to use is if and how we are becoming in God's love so we are pleasing to God like Jesus is and we are loving the way Jesus has loved, on the cross, even > Ephesians 5:2. God's love is holy and right, so becoming like Him in His love is both justification and sanctification . . . the way possibly the Bible means these terms.

But most of all is how our character becomes, being cured by God's love.
 
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