The teaching of justification by faith is what separates biblical Christianity from all other belief systems. In every religion, and in some branches of what is called “Christianity,” man is working his way to God. Only in true, biblical Christianity is man saved as a result of grace through faith. Only when we get back to the Bible do we see that justification is by faith, apart from works.
The word justified means “pronounced or treated as righteous.” For a Christian, justification is the act of God not only forgiving the believer’s sins but imputing to him the righteousness of Christ. The Bible states in several places that justification only comes through faith alone (e.g., Romans 5:1; Galatians 3:24). Justification is not earned through our own works; rather, we are covered by the righteousness of Jesus Christ (Ephesians 2:8; Titus 3:5). The Christian, being declared righteous, is thus freed from the guilt of sin.
Justification is a completed work of God, and it is instantaneous, as opposed to sanctification, which is an ongoing process of growth by which we become more Christlike (the act of “being saved,” cf. 1 Corinthians 1:18; 1 Thessalonians 5:23). Sanctification occurs after justification.
Understanding the doctrine of justification is important for a Christian. First, it is the very knowledge of justification and of grace that motivates good works and spiritual growth; thus, justification leads to sanctification. Also, the fact that justification is a finished work of God means that Christians have assurance of their salvation. In God’s eyes, believers have the righteousness necessary to gain eternal life.
Once a person is justified, there is nothing else he needs in order to gain entrance into heaven. Since justification comes by faith in Christ, based on His work on our behalf, our own works are disqualified as a means of salvation (Romans 3:28). There exist vast religious systems with complex theologies that teach the false doctrine of justification by works. But they are teaching “a different gospel—which is really no gospel at all” (Galatians 1:6–7).
Without an understanding of justification by faith alone, we cannot truly perceive the glorious gift of grace—God’s “unmerited favor” becomes “merited” in our minds, and we begin to think we deserve salvation. The doctrine of justification by faith helps us maintain “pure devotion to Christ” (2 Corinthians 11:3). Holding to justification by faith keeps us from falling for the lie that we can earn heaven. There is no ritual, no sacrament, no deed that can make us worthy of the righteousness of Christ. It is only by His grace, in response to our faith, that God has credited to us the holiness of His Son. Both Old and New Testaments say, “The just shall live by faith” (Habakkuk 2:4; Romans 1:17; Galatians 3:11; Hebrews 10:38).
altruistico 
Altruistico
” The teaching of justification by faith is what separates biblical Christianity from all other belief systems.”
No all Christians that I know believe we are justified by faith. The protestants split from Orthodox and Catholic views when they started claiming it was “faith alone.”
Altruistico says:
“The Bible states in several places that justification only comes through faith alone (e.g., Romans 5:1; Galatians 3:24). Justification is not earned through our own works; rather, we are covered by the righteousness of Jesus Christ (Ephesians 2:8; Titus 3:5). The Christian, being declared righteous, is thus freed from the guilt of sin.”
Actually the bible says “You see that a person is considered righteous by what they do and NOT BY FAITH ALONE.” (emphasis added) James 2:24 http://biblehub.com/james/2-24.htm
Certain protestants including Martin Luther read this as contradicting other scripture. they therefore tried to develop hierarchies of Gods word where books that supported his view were more a higher order. But this is not the traditional way Christians read scripture. Catholics and Orthodox Christians treat it all as inspired by God.
None of the passages you quote contradicts this by saying faith alone. Unless you are reading a translation by Luther where he was criticized for altering scripture and adding the word “alone.”
The faith must be a living faith one that would produce good works. At least that is what the bible says.
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Yes, that is correct (James 2:24. However, it is referring to “AFTER one is saved”. That is why “faith without works is dead.” Works are the result of our being saved and not the cause of us being saved.”
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We are, for the most part, saying the very same thing, only differently…. You say, “The faith must be a living faith one that would produce good works.”
It has nothing to do with Luther or anyone else. It’s from within the bible……
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Please read: http://wp.me/p26QNa-2i0
It’s title is: “Is salvation by faith alone, or by faith plus works?”
Perhaps it will help clarify what it is I am saying. Even though we are, for the most part, saying the same.
Thanks
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” What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith obut does not have works?Can that faith save him? f a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, qand one of you says to them, “Go in peace, be warmed and filled,” without giving them the things needed for the body, what good2 is that? So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.” James 2:14-17
I think James explains that faith without works will not save you. Martin Luther thought our works had nothing to do with our being saved.
Catholics are allowed quite a bit of latitude in their interpretations of these scriptures. They are allowed to interpret these scriptures in a way many protestants would agree with. But Martin Luther’s view that James contradicts Paul on this goes a bit far afield. Catholics and Orthodox believe all scripture is inspired so its unlikely that there is a real contradiction on such an important issue as Martin Luther interpreted things.
Here a few ways that I think people can understand this without conflict:
1) Paul’s letters tended to address specific concerns in his community. One of the big concerns at the time was whether people needed to become Jewish to be Christian. So the “works” he was talking about usually meant things like circumcision and kosher laws etc. He seemed to be referring these sorts of ceremonial works as no longer being important. I don’t think he thought committing murder or adultery and lying etc., was unimportant to our salvation. So one can understand that what he means by “works” isn’t really moral laws so much as ceremonial laws. For example he says faith hope and love are all important and the greatest of these is love. I don’t think Paul would ever say we don’t need love.
But if you don’t like that view there is another view:
2) Like we are already hinting at there is a causal link between our beliefs (faith) and our actions. When we say we “believe in Jesus” we do not just mean that we believe he existed and died for us. Again even the demons would believe that. We also must believe in his message of love and believe his command to love. If someone says they believe people who don’t go to church every Sunday will go to hell when they die, yet they never go to church, we have grounds to question whether they really believe what they claim. In a very real sense my sins are evidence that my faith is not as strong as it should be.
Consider Isaiah 64:7
“No one calls on your name
or strives to lay hold of you;
for you have hidden your face from us
and have given us over to[b] our sins.”
If God stood over us we would of course believe in him and not sin so much. Our lack of belief allows us to think we can sin.
I think that is true for everyone. So yes true faith is a living faith that produces good works. Most Catholics would say if you have that and you are baptized you are in a very good place. I think protestants agree (although the importance of baptism might vary).
It is true that at the time of the reformation that Catholic Church was starting to lean too much on works. The reformation both within the Catholic Church and the Christians which broke away helped redirect it. I enjoy reading your views on scripture and hope our churches both continue to grow in understanding how to direct people to Christ.
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In your view labeled # 1 I believe Paul was very much aware that “we were no longer under the law” and therefore had little to say by way of what we eat, drink or circumcision.
In his epistle, James makes the statement “For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also” (James 2:26). Faith without works is dead faith because the lack of works reveals an unchanged life or a spiritually dead heart. There are many Scriptures that make it very clear that true saving faith will result in a transformed life, which is demonstrated by the “works” we do. How we live reveals what we believe and whether the faith we profess to have is a living faith.
James 2:14–26 is sometimes taken out of context in an attempt to create a works-based system of righteousness, but that is contrary to many other Scriptures. James is not saying that our works make us righteous before God, but he is making it clear that real saving faith is demonstrated by good works. Works are not the cause of salvation; works are the evidence of salvation. The person who claims to be a Christian but lives in willful disobedience to Christ with a life that shows no works has a false or dead faith and is not saved. James is clearly making a contrast between two different types of faith—truth faith that saves and false faith that is dead.
Many profess to be Christians, but their lives and their priorities indicate otherwise. Jesus put it this way: “By their fruits you will know them. Do people pick grapes from thorn bushes, or figs from thistles? Just so, every good tree bears good fruit, and a rotten tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a rotten tree bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire. So by their fruits you will know them. Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name? Did we not drive out demons in your name? Did we not do mighty deeds in your name?’ Then I will declare to them solemnly, ‘I never knew you. Depart from me, you evildoers’” (Matthew 7:16–23).
Notice that the message of Jesus is the same as the message of James. Obedience to God is the mark of true saving faith. James uses the examples of Abraham and Rahab to show the type of works that demonstrate salvation, and both of those examples are of people who obeyed God in faith. Saying we believe in Jesus does not save us, nor does religious service. What saves us is the Holy Spirit’s regeneration of our hearts, and that regeneration will be seen in a life of faith demonstrated by ongoing obedience to God.
Misunderstanding the relationship of faith and works comes from a misunderstanding of what the Bible teaches about salvation. There are really two errors in regards to the relationship between works and faith. The first error is the gospel of “easy believism.” This error is the belief that one can “make a decision for Christ” or “pray a prayer of salvation,” and based upon that profession of faith salvation occurs. This is also called “decisional regeneration” and is dangerous and deceptive. Often those who advocate this view of salvation say that once a person has prayed the sinners’ prayer or made a profession of faith he is saved regardless of how he lives afterwards. This leads to the creation of a new category of person called the “carnal Christian” in order to excuse the ungodly lifestyles of many who have made a one-time profession of faith in Christ. Yet, as we can see in James and other verses of Scripture, this type of profession of faith that does not result in a life of obedience to Christ is in reality a dead faith that does not save.
The other error in regards to the relationship between works and faith is to make works part of what justifies us before God. The mixture of works and faith together creates a works-based system of righteousness which is totally contrary to what Scripture teaches. There is no conflict between Romans 4:5, “But to him who does not work but believes on Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is accounted for righteousness,” and what James wrote when he said, “Faith without works is dead.” Works come from true faith and a heart that has been justified by God by faith alone. The works that follow salvation do not make us righteous before God; they simply flow from a heart that has been regenerated by the Holy Spirit as naturally as water flows downhill.
Understanding the relationship between faith and works is important because it helps us avoid the errors mentioned above. Saying we believe in Christ does not save us, nor does praying a prayer of salvation or making a “decision” for Christ. Salvation is a sovereign act of God whereby unregenerate sinners have the “washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit” poured out on them (Titus 3:5), thereby causing them to be born again (John 3:3). When this happens, God gives them new hearts and puts a new spirit within them (Ezekiel 36:26). God removes their sin-hardened hearts of stone and replaces them with hearts of flesh and fills them with the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit who causes them to walk in obedience to His statues and judgments (Ezekiel 36:26–27).
Faith without works is dead because it reveals a heart that has not been transformed by God. When we have been regenerated by the Holy Spirit, our lives will demonstrate that by the way we live and our works of obedience to God. It will be evident by the fruit of the Spirit in our lives (Galatians 5:22) and a desire to obey God and live a life that glorifies Him. Christians belong to Christ, and as His sheep they hear His voice and follow Him (John 10:26–30).
True saving faith is always manifested by good works and a life that desires to live in obedience to God. Ephesians 2:8–10 makes it clear that works do not save us but that we are saved “for good works which God prepared beforehand that we would walk in them.” When we are truly born again we will have hearts that are transformed by the power of the Holy Spirit. God’s law is written in our hearts so that we might walk in His statutes and judgments. As Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians 5:17, “If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.”
Faith without works is dead because it comes from a heart that has not been regenerated by God. It is an empty profession of faith from someone to whom Christ will say, “I never knew you. Depart from me, you evildoers.”
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