Thomas Watson quotes on justification by faith:
* "God does not justify us because we are worthy, but by justifying us make us worthy."
* "It is absurd to imagine that God should justify a people and not sanctify them, He should justify a people whom He could not glorify."
* "Justification is not an act of making us righteous, but of declaring us righteous."
* "Justification is the work of God, not the work of man."
* "We are justified by faith alone, not by faith plus works."
* "Justification is the foundation of our salvation, and it is the ground of our assurance."
* "Justification is the beginning of our sanctification, and it is the source of our hope."
These quotes highlight the importance of justification by faith in the Christian faith. They emphasize that justification is not something that we earn by our own works, but is something that is given to us by God through faith in Christ. This justification is the foundation of our salvation and the source of our assurance.
Here are some A. W. Pink quotes on justification by faith:
* "Justification is not a process, but an instantaneous act of God whereby He declares the ungodly righteous in His sight, not for anything wrought in them, or done by them, but only for the perfect obedience and full satisfaction of Christ, by God imputed to them, and received by faith alone."
* "Justification is not the making of us righteous, but the declaring us righteous. It is not the imparting of a new nature, but the reception of a perfect righteousness into our account."
* "Justification is not a matter of degree, but of absolute perfection. We are either justified or not justified; there is no middle ground."
* "Justification is the ground of our acceptance with God. It is the basis upon which we stand before Him as His children."
* "Justification is the foundation of our hope of eternal life. It is the assurance that we have been forgiven our sins and will one day be with God in heaven."
These quotes emphasize the importance of justification by faith in the Christian life. They teach that justification is an act of God's grace, not something that we can earn or achieve. It is the basis of our acceptance with God and our hope of eternal life.
Some quotes on justification by faith:
* **John Calvin:** "We are justified, not by works, but by faith in Jesus Christ, who suffered and died for our sins, and rose again for our justification."
* **John Owen:** "Justification is God's act of declaring us righteous, not on the basis of our own works, but on the basis of the perfect righteousness of Jesus Christ imputed to us by faith."
* **Thomas Watson:** "Justification is not the making of us righteous, but the accounting of us righteous; not the infusion of righteousness into us, but the imputation of the righteousness of Christ to us."
* **William Gurnall:** "We are justified, not by giving anything to God, but by receiving from God what Christ has done for us."
* **Richard Sibbes:** "Justification is the greatest act of God's grace, whereby He makes us righteous in His sight, not for anything in us, but for the sake of Jesus Christ."
These are just a few examples of the many quotes on justification by faith. These quotes emphasize the importance of faith in Christ as the only means of justification before God. They also stress that justification is a gift of God's grace, not something that we can earn by our own works.
Some quotes on justification by faith from John Owen:
* "Justification is an act of God's free grace, wherein he pardoneth all our sins, and accepts us as righteous in his sight, only for the righteousness of Christ imputed to us, and received by faith." (The Doctrine of Justification by Faith)
* "We are justified by faith alone, but not by that faith which can be alone. Alone respects its influence unto our justification, not its nature and existence." (The Doctrine of Justification by Faith)
* "Justification is not only the forgiveness of sins, but also the communication of Christ's righteousness unto us, so that we are reputed righteous in God's sight, as if we had never sinned." (The Doctrine of Justification by Faith)
* "Justification is not a work of man, but a work of God; it is not something that we earn or deserve, but something that is freely given to us by grace through faith." (The Doctrine of Justification by Faith)
* "Justification is the foundation of all Christian life and experience. It is the basis of our assurance of salvation, and it is the source of our strength to live a holy life." (The Doctrine of Justification by Faith)
These quotes highlight the importance of justification by faith in Owen's theology.
Spurgeon quotes on justification by faith in a professional tone:
* "Justification by faith is the grand central artery of the Christian system. It is the mainspring of all our hopes, the foundation of all our joy, and the root of all our comfort."
* "Justification by faith is the most glorious truth that ever shone upon a darkened world. It is the sun of righteousness, which brings light and life to the soul."
* "Justification by faith is not a mere legal fiction, but a real and substantial change in the condition of the sinner. It is a change from guilt to innocence, from condemnation to acquittal, from death to life."
* "Justification by faith is not a work of our own, but a free gift of God's grace. It is not something that we earn, but something that we receive by faith."
* "Justification by faith is the only way to be saved. There is no other way to be reconciled to God and to obtain eternal life."
These quotes highlight the importance of justification by faith in the Christian faith. Spurgeon emphasizes that justification is not a work of our own, but a free gift of God's grace. It is the only way to be saved and to obtain eternal life.
Concise Meaning of Justification
Justification is not something that occurs in man, nor is it a process. It refers to the legal, judicial and forensic declaration of God. “It is to declare forensically that the demands of the law as a condition of life are fully satisfied with regard to a person, Acts 13:39; Rom. 5:1, 9; 8:30-33; I Cor. 6:11; Gal. 2:16; 3:11.”2 The ground of justification is Christ’s sacrificial death and perfect obedience to the law (i.e., “the righteousness of God,” Rom. 3:21).
When a man by faith lays hold of Jesus Christ and His merits, God imputes that person’s guilt for sins past, present and future upon Christ on the cross. God also imputes Christ’s perfect righteousness to that sinner. The Father then declares that man righteous or just in the heavenly court. Because Christ has removed the guilt of that man’s sins past, present, and future legally before God, it is as though that man never committed sin. He is white as snow (Isa. 1:18). His record is perfect. Judicially, he is just as righteous and perfect as Jesus Christ. Since Christ’s perfect obedience is imputed to him, he has eternal life because Christ merited it for him."
Here is the explanation of our justification by faith alone: faith is the instrument which receives Jesus Christ and, consequently, which receives His righteousness, that is to say, all perfection. When therefore, after St. Paul (Rom 1: 17 ; 3:21-27 ; 4:3 ; 5:1 ; 9:30-33 ; 11:6 ; Gal 2:16-21 ; 3:9 ,10 ,18 ; Phil 3:9 ; 2 Tim 1:9 ; Titus 3:5 ; Heb. 11:7 we say that we are justified by faith alone, or freely, or by faith without works (for all these ways of speaking give the same sense), we do not say that faith is a virtue which makes us righteous, in ourselves, before God. For this would be to put faith in the place of Jesus Christ who is, alone, our perfect and entire righteousness.
But we speak thus with the Apostle, and we say that by faith alone we are justified, insomuch as it embraces Him who justifies us, Jesus Christ, to whom it unites and joins us. We are then made partakers of Him and the benefits which He possesses. These, being imputed and gifted to us, are more than sufficient to make us acquitted and accounted righteous before God.
Theodore Beza (1519-1605)
FAITH---------------------------------------------------------------
FAITH...the "Hand that Receives"...
...Faith is essential as it alone unites a sinner to Christ, but faith is not conditional in any meritorious sense.. is it proper to regard faith as the "hand" that receives Christ? Isn't the natural man being attributed some ability by this metaphor? since faith is always both God's gift (Ephesians 2:8) and God's work ("This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath seen" [John 6:29]), how can faith be designated as a "hand"?
The natural man indeed has no ability to reach out to accept the salvation of God in Christ. The natural man is dead in trespasses and sins (Ephesians 2:1). He will never "accept Christ" of his own free will (Matthew 23:37; John 5:40). Scripture teaches that a sinner does not first move toward God, but God first moves toward a sinner to unite him with Christ by faith, for a sinner would never of his own will or desire turn to Christ in faith (Romans 9:16). Even when tormented with the terrors of divine judgment, the natural man cannot be persuaded to flee to God by saving faith for salvation ((Proverbs 1:24-27).
But in regeneration the Holy Spirit grants the gift of a living, empty hand that can turn nowhere else than to Jesus. "But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name: which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God" (John 1:12-13; cf. Psalm 110:3).
Faith is not called a hand because it works or merits justification in any way, but because it receives, embraces, appropriates Christ upon divine imputation. Faith is not a creative hand, but a receptive hand. As Abraham Booth notes, "Hence,in justification we read of the precious faith in the righteousness of our God and Saviour Jesus Christ (2 Peter 1) and of 'faith in His blood' (Romans 3:25), and believers are described as 'receiving the atonement' and receiving 'the gift of righteousness' (Romans 5:11, 17)...