I don't know about you but sometimes I struggle with the weight of my own sin. The longer I walk in Christ, and the more I understand His holiness, the more sin I notice in my fallen nature. I am not yet entirely sanctified (Phil. 3:12). I thought that I would be much farther along in sanctification by now--some 30 years later. I thought, when I was first saved and born again, that I would actually become so much like Christ that sin would barely be an issue some 30 years later. The truth of the matter, that I still see so much lingering sin and so much growth toward Christlikeness left to experience, is that my reality discourages me. "My dear children," writes John, "I write this to you so that you will not sin" (1 John 2:1 NIV). So that I will not sin? Had John come to the place in his walk in Christ that he no longer sins? Why, then, do I still sin?
Sometimes the deceitful nature of sin (Heb. 3:13) clouds my judgment and I begin to focus more on my failures in achieving "the measure of the stature which belongs to the fullness of Christ" (Eph. 4:13 NASB); or "until we measure up to Christ, who is the standard" (GW); or "until we become like Christ and have all His perfection" (ERV, ICB, NCV, WE); or "fully formed in the likeness of the Anointed, our Liberating King" (VOICE). But where in Scripture are we taught to focus upon ourselves? Test ourselves to see if we are in the faith, yes (2 Cor. 13:5; 2 Pet. 1:1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11), but we are never taught to fix our spiritual gaze upon ourselves. Does not Paul teach us to "keep seeking the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God," fixing our "mind on things above, not on the things that are on earth" (Col. 3:1, 2)?
CHRIST-GAZING
Does not the author of Hebrews command us to "lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the Author and Perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God" (Heb. 12:1, 2)? If we "fix our eyes" on ourselves and our failures then we will never run toward a proper goal: conformity to Christ. We need far less introspection and to become by nature way more Christocentric--to fix our spiritual gaze upon the Victor, Jesus Christ, and to see ourselves as God Himself sees us in Christ Jesus His Son: "holy and blameless" (Eph. 1:4; 5:25, 26, 27; Col. 1:22; Jude 1:25). That is what He sees when He looks at us because of our union with Jesus Christ. He loves us just as much as He loves Jesus (John 17:23) and He views us just as righteous and holy as is Jesus (Eph. 1:3; Phil. 3:9; 1 John 4:17).
If we fix our gaze upon Jesus, the One who has purchased / bought us with His blood (Acts 20:28; 1 Cor. 6:19, 20; 7:23; 1 Pet. 1:19; Rev. 5:9) and conquered sin, death and Hell (2 Tim. 1:10; Heb. 2:14; 1 Pet. 2:24; 1 John 5:4), then we have before us an Object to focus upon so that we run toward Him and not constantly look backwards at our countless failures. "No one," says Jesus, "who puts a hand to the plow and looks back [present active participle: looking and keeps on looking back] is fit for service in the Kingdom of God" (Luke 9:62). Have you ever tried to mow your lawn in a straight row while looking behind you? It is impossible. You must look ahead, with a pinpoint goal in front of you, to walk in a straight line. Jesus and conformity to the likeness of Jesus (Rom. 8:29; 1 Cor. 15:49; 2 Cor. 3:18) must be our goal and not constant introspection. Looking at me will never help me grow in likeness to Jesus. There is nothing good that dwells in me (Rom. 7:18) except Jesus Christ (Gal. 2:20).
CHRIST-SPHERE
"Who will bring a charge against God's elect? God is the one who justifies" (Rom. 8:33). "Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus" (Rom. 8:1). "Who is the one who condemns? Christ Jesus is He who died, yes, rather who was raised, who is at the right hand of God, who also intercedes for us" (Rom. 8:34). "What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who [of any worth] is against us?" (Rom. 8:31). (I spent years worrying about what others thought of me. None of them matter. What matters is what God thinks of me.) If God receives us sinners by His own grace, transforming us from degenerate to regenerate (John 3:3, 5, 6, 7, 8; 2 Cor. 5:17, 21; Eph. 2:1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 9, 10; Titus 3:5; 1 Pet. 1:3), justifying us by His grace (Rom. 3:21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 28; 5:1; 8:29, 30), then we cannot allow the accusations of the enemy (or others) whispered to our souls (Eph. 6:16; Rev. 12:10) to condemn us. God already knows what we are apart from Him: evil (Matt. 7:11; Rom. 3:10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18). But we, by grace, are in Christ Jesus (Eph. 1:4) and not in ourselves--not in our sin.
CHRIST-ABSORBED
God has spent His anger for my sin upon my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. He is not angry at me. He is not disappointed in me. As a pastor once rightly said: "I don't let God down because I don't hold God up." He knew all about me and decided to save me anyway. Jesus absorbed God's anger in full. There is no anger left for the believer. That anger was baptized in the blood of Jesus and is no more. But that anger and wrath remain for those who reject Christ and God's grace (John 3:36 NKJV). Why? Because the unbeliever defiantly says to God the Father that the pure and holy sacrifice of His Son was ridiculous, unnecessary, and irrelevant. Can you imagine an ignorant sinner defying a holy God in such a manner? But that is what we all have done prior to God saving us by His grace (Isa. 59:2; 1 Cor. 1:18, 23, 24; 2:7, 8, 14; Eph. 1:1, 2, 3).
CHRIST-RIGHTEOUSNESS
So does this mean that God isn't looking at all my failures and shaking His divine head? Yes, that is exactly what this means, because He is not looking at me, as I am in my sin, but looking at me in and through my union with Jesus Christ. Jesus is the pure, holy and righteous, divine stained-glass window through which / through whom God the Father views me. This is what Paul means when he writes: "He rescued us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the Kingdom of His beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins" (Col. 1:13-14). Peter says that God "called you out of darkness into His marvelous light" (1 Pet. 2:9). When God saves a sinner by His grace (Titus 3:5; 1 Pet. 1:3), inbirthing faith within them (2 Pet. 1:1), He imputes the righteousness of Jesus Christ to their spiritual account (Rom. 3:21-28): meaning that, by justifying them in Christ, He views them entirely in Christ and not in themselves. Even though we fail? Even though we fail. For the righteousness that God gives the believer is a foreign righteousness--not originating from any fallen mortal (Phil. 3:7, 8, 9, 10):
What is needed in order to approach and to live in the presence of God? Sinlessness / Holiness / Righteousness--one possessing a character and nature that is not only entirely absent of sin (a negative attribute) but also a nature that is entirely pure (a positive attribute). "Who may ascend the mountain of the LORD? Who may stand in His holy place? The one who has clean hands and a pure heart" (Ps. 24:3-4 NIV). "Your eyes are too pure to look upon evil; You cannot tolerate wrongdoing" (Hab. 1:13 NIV). "For You are not a God who is pleased with wickedness; with You, evil people are not welcome. The arrogant cannot stand in Your presence. You hate all who do wrong; You destroy those who tell lies. The bloodthirsty and deceitful You, LORD, detest" (Ps. 5:4-6 NIV). "God is a righteous Judge, a God who displays His wrath every day" (Ps. 7:11 NIV; cf. CSB, EHV, HCSB, NASB '20, NIRV, NLV, NLT); or "He always condemns evil" (ERV; cf. ICB, NCV); or "a God who feels indignation every day" (ESV); or "a God who is angered by injustice every day" (GW); or "a God who has indignation every day" (LSB; cf. LEB, MEV, NASB '95, NRSV, RSV, WEB); or "God is a just judge, powerful and patient, not exercising anger every day" (Ps. 7:12 NABre, based on LXX; cf. YLT); or "He is angry throughout the day" (NET; cf. DARBY); or "He is angry with the wicked every day" (NKJV; cf. CEB, ISV, KJV, LB); or "God judges the righteous, and he who denounces God, every day" (RGT). "The LORD examines the righteous, but the wicked, those who love violence, He hates with a passion. On the wicked He will rain firey coals and burning sulfur; a scorching wind will be their lot" (Ps. 11:5-6 NIV).
Jesus once remarked: "For I tell you that, unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the Teachers of the Law, you will certainly not enter the Kingdom of Heaven" (Matt. 5:20 NIV). What kind of "righteousness" did the Pharisees and Rabbis possess? In His great denouncement of the religious leaders of His day, Jesus said, "The Teachers of the Law and the Pharisees sit in Moses' seat [the raised seat where the Rabbi would sit and deliver his message]. So you must be careful to do everything they tell you. But do not do what they do, for they do not practice what they preach" (Matt. 23:1-3 NIV). Their so-called righteousness is merely outward--not affecting the inward heart. "Be careful not to practice your righteousness in front of others to be seen by them," said Jesus early in His ministry, for if "you do, you will have no reward from your Father in Heaven" (Matt. 6:1; cf. Matt. 6:2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18). How do we obtain this?
How does one acquire this Christ-righteousness? God must do the work! God is the One who is Just and, so, He must be the One who justifies (Rom. 3:26). He is the One who must justify a believer (Rom. 3:24)--i.e. consider the believer as if he or she never sinned, for that is what justification is, a pronouncement that the unjust is now declared to be just (1 Pet. 3:18)--and then God imputes to the believer Christ-righteousness. We cannot conflate (consider synonymous) justification and the imputation of righteousness. God, by His mercy toward us in Jesus Christ, justifies the believer: He considers the believer to have never sinned. God does this by His grace through faith in Jesus Christ--faith itself being an inward work of our Triune God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, as He produces faith within the elect (Acts 3:16; 13:48; Rom. 1:16, 17; 1 Cor. 1:30; 2:14; Eph. 2:5, 8, 9; Phil. 1:29; 1 Thess. 1:5; 2 Thess. 2:13, 14; Titus 3:4, 5, 6, 7; Heb. 12:2; James 1:18; 2 Pet. 1:1). He then reckons the justified believer to be as holy, pure, and sinless as Jesus Himself (Rom. 3:21-28). Even though we fail? Even though we fail.
Elsewhere Paul writes that God made Jesus "who knew no sin to be sin [or "to become a sin offering on our behalf," TLV; or "be the offer of our sin," NLT] on our behalf so that we [who believe in Him] might become the righteousness of God in Him" (2 Cor. 5:21 NASB); or "Christ never sinned but God put our sin on Him" (NLV) "so that God's righteousness would be produced in us" (ISV); or "God had Christ, who was sinless, take our sin so that we might receive God's approval through Him" (GW); or "Christ was without sin, but for our sake God made him share our sin in order that in union with Him we might share the righteousness of God" (GNT); or "Christ did no wrong thing. But for our sake God put the blame for our wrong ways on Christ. So now God sees us as good [or as good and sinless as Jesus] because we are in Christ" (WE).
I am going to use some strong language here in order to shake some of you to your core--those of you within Roman Catholic walls. This is the biblical doctrine hated by Rome: the imputation of the righteousness of Jesus Christ to those who by the grace of God believe / trust / exercise faith in Him. Rome hates this doctrine because this eternal and divine truth robs Rome of its corrupt power over people and hands it to Jesus Himself--the Shepherd of God's sheep (John 10:1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18; Acts 20:28; 1 Pet. 5:4). Rome holds a sacramental sway over the people under her heretical wing, feeding the people lies, convincing people that ultimate salvation is found solely at the suckle of her dried-up breast. Because Rome rejects God's divine truth of imputed righteousness she invents fictions like Purgatory, alms-giving to appease God and receive forgiveness, confession and chants of "Hail, Mary, full of grace" for penance. But there "is one God, and one Mediator [Go-betweener] also between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave Himself as a ransom for all" (1 Tim. 2:5 NASB).
Be careful with that "all" passage: "For if, by the trespass of the one man [Adam], death reigned through that one man [Adam], how much more will those who receive [λαμβάνοντες] God's abundant provision of grace and of the gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man, Jesus Christ!" (Rom. 5:17 NIV). Only those who receive God's grace will be thusly blessed. That Greek word for "receive," λαμβάνοντες, is a present active participle, "receiving," so that the recipient of God's grace and gift of imputed righteousness receives and keeps on receiving throughout one's entire life that grace and gift of imputed righteousness. The word, in its religiously Jewish context, refers to receiving divine blessing. In other words, this grace and gift of imputed righteousness is not a regard that can be earned, but must originate from the Giver.
CONCLUSION
Sadly, Rome isn't the only religious institution that rejects the imputation of Christ's righteousness to the believer for justification, as I have encountered Wesleyan-holiness pastors and disciples of Charles Finney who believe, like Rome, that we are to practically become so righteous that God will, on that basis, justify the believer. English Reformer Thomas Cranmer rightly argues: Consider diligently these words: without
Sinners are not "just," not "righteous," but unjust and unrighteous (1 Pet. 3:18; Rom. 3:5). We have to be declared "just" and "righteous" by One who is just and righteous by nature. Even when we are regenerated we will never attain to perfect righteousness and sinlessness in this life (Phil. 3:12, 13, 14; cf. Phil. 3:7, 8, 9, 10), for, if a person sins once, he is a sinner and fails the righteousness of God (James 2:10), and now needs to be justified. If Paul never achieved sinless perfection, what makes us think that we can, that we will? Either God judiciously declares us to be righteous by imputing the righteousness of Jesus Christ to us or we will never be declared justified and righteous. This is what God does for us who trust / believe / exercise faith in Christ Jesus. He declares us to be just and righteous. Even though we fail? Even though we fail.
Sometimes the deceitful nature of sin (Heb. 3:13) clouds my judgment and I begin to focus more on my failures in achieving "the measure of the stature which belongs to the fullness of Christ" (Eph. 4:13 NASB); or "until we measure up to Christ, who is the standard" (GW); or "until we become like Christ and have all His perfection" (ERV, ICB, NCV, WE); or "fully formed in the likeness of the Anointed, our Liberating King" (VOICE). But where in Scripture are we taught to focus upon ourselves? Test ourselves to see if we are in the faith, yes (2 Cor. 13:5; 2 Pet. 1:1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11), but we are never taught to fix our spiritual gaze upon ourselves. Does not Paul teach us to "keep seeking the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God," fixing our "mind on things above, not on the things that are on earth" (Col. 3:1, 2)?
CHRIST-GAZING
Does not the author of Hebrews command us to "lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the Author and Perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God" (Heb. 12:1, 2)? If we "fix our eyes" on ourselves and our failures then we will never run toward a proper goal: conformity to Christ. We need far less introspection and to become by nature way more Christocentric--to fix our spiritual gaze upon the Victor, Jesus Christ, and to see ourselves as God Himself sees us in Christ Jesus His Son: "holy and blameless" (Eph. 1:4; 5:25, 26, 27; Col. 1:22; Jude 1:25). That is what He sees when He looks at us because of our union with Jesus Christ. He loves us just as much as He loves Jesus (John 17:23) and He views us just as righteous and holy as is Jesus (Eph. 1:3; Phil. 3:9; 1 John 4:17).
If we fix our gaze upon Jesus, the One who has purchased / bought us with His blood (Acts 20:28; 1 Cor. 6:19, 20; 7:23; 1 Pet. 1:19; Rev. 5:9) and conquered sin, death and Hell (2 Tim. 1:10; Heb. 2:14; 1 Pet. 2:24; 1 John 5:4), then we have before us an Object to focus upon so that we run toward Him and not constantly look backwards at our countless failures. "No one," says Jesus, "who puts a hand to the plow and looks back [present active participle: looking and keeps on looking back] is fit for service in the Kingdom of God" (Luke 9:62). Have you ever tried to mow your lawn in a straight row while looking behind you? It is impossible. You must look ahead, with a pinpoint goal in front of you, to walk in a straight line. Jesus and conformity to the likeness of Jesus (Rom. 8:29; 1 Cor. 15:49; 2 Cor. 3:18) must be our goal and not constant introspection. Looking at me will never help me grow in likeness to Jesus. There is nothing good that dwells in me (Rom. 7:18) except Jesus Christ (Gal. 2:20).
CHRIST-SPHERE
"Who will bring a charge against God's elect? God is the one who justifies" (Rom. 8:33). "Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus" (Rom. 8:1). "Who is the one who condemns? Christ Jesus is He who died, yes, rather who was raised, who is at the right hand of God, who also intercedes for us" (Rom. 8:34). "What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who [of any worth] is against us?" (Rom. 8:31). (I spent years worrying about what others thought of me. None of them matter. What matters is what God thinks of me.) If God receives us sinners by His own grace, transforming us from degenerate to regenerate (John 3:3, 5, 6, 7, 8; 2 Cor. 5:17, 21; Eph. 2:1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 9, 10; Titus 3:5; 1 Pet. 1:3), justifying us by His grace (Rom. 3:21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 28; 5:1; 8:29, 30), then we cannot allow the accusations of the enemy (or others) whispered to our souls (Eph. 6:16; Rev. 12:10) to condemn us. God already knows what we are apart from Him: evil (Matt. 7:11; Rom. 3:10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18). But we, by grace, are in Christ Jesus (Eph. 1:4) and not in ourselves--not in our sin.
CHRIST-ABSORBED
God has spent His anger for my sin upon my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. He is not angry at me. He is not disappointed in me. As a pastor once rightly said: "I don't let God down because I don't hold God up." He knew all about me and decided to save me anyway. Jesus absorbed God's anger in full. There is no anger left for the believer. That anger was baptized in the blood of Jesus and is no more. But that anger and wrath remain for those who reject Christ and God's grace (John 3:36 NKJV). Why? Because the unbeliever defiantly says to God the Father that the pure and holy sacrifice of His Son was ridiculous, unnecessary, and irrelevant. Can you imagine an ignorant sinner defying a holy God in such a manner? But that is what we all have done prior to God saving us by His grace (Isa. 59:2; 1 Cor. 1:18, 23, 24; 2:7, 8, 14; Eph. 1:1, 2, 3).
CHRIST-RIGHTEOUSNESS
So does this mean that God isn't looking at all my failures and shaking His divine head? Yes, that is exactly what this means, because He is not looking at me, as I am in my sin, but looking at me in and through my union with Jesus Christ. Jesus is the pure, holy and righteous, divine stained-glass window through which / through whom God the Father views me. This is what Paul means when he writes: "He rescued us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the Kingdom of His beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins" (Col. 1:13-14). Peter says that God "called you out of darkness into His marvelous light" (1 Pet. 2:9). When God saves a sinner by His grace (Titus 3:5; 1 Pet. 1:3), inbirthing faith within them (2 Pet. 1:1), He imputes the righteousness of Jesus Christ to their spiritual account (Rom. 3:21-28): meaning that, by justifying them in Christ, He views them entirely in Christ and not in themselves. Even though we fail? Even though we fail. For the righteousness that God gives the believer is a foreign righteousness--not originating from any fallen mortal (Phil. 3:7, 8, 9, 10):
- But now apart from the Law the righteousness [or the justification, the justice, the justness (meaning that God's nature is defined as being just / justice / righteous or rightness or right and, by implication, true, truth, holy and sinless), or of absolute ethical and moral conduct belonging to one's character and nature--this rightness] of God has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify (Rom. 3:21 NIV).
- This righteousness [absolute holiness and sinlessness] is given [imputed to one's account] through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. [God gives righteousness, or reckons righteousness, or imputes righteousness to the spiritual account of the one who will trust in Christ Jesus--not only to the Jewish person but also to the Gentile. The reason why is because there] is no difference between Jew and Gentile (Rom. 3:22 NIV),
- for all [all Jewish persons and all Gentile persons] have sinned and fall [and still continue to fall] short of the glory of God (Rom. 3:23 NIV),
- and all [all Jewish and all Gentile believers] are justified freely by His grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus (Rom. 3:24 NIV).
- God presented Christ as a sacrifice of atonement, through the shedding of His blood--to be received [atonement] by faith. He did this to demonstrate His righteousness, because in His forbearance He had left the sins committed beforehand unpunished (Rom. 3:25 NIV)--
- He did it to demonstrate His righteousness at the present time, so as to be just [righteous, fair, holy and sinless] and the One who justifies [considers / imputes / reckons to be holy and sinless by His own legal declaration for] those who have faith in Jesus (Rom. 3:26 NIV). ...
- For we maintain that a person is justified [reckoned to be sinless by nature] by faith apart from the works of the Law (Rom. 3:28 NIV).
What is needed in order to approach and to live in the presence of God? Sinlessness / Holiness / Righteousness--one possessing a character and nature that is not only entirely absent of sin (a negative attribute) but also a nature that is entirely pure (a positive attribute). "Who may ascend the mountain of the LORD? Who may stand in His holy place? The one who has clean hands and a pure heart" (Ps. 24:3-4 NIV). "Your eyes are too pure to look upon evil; You cannot tolerate wrongdoing" (Hab. 1:13 NIV). "For You are not a God who is pleased with wickedness; with You, evil people are not welcome. The arrogant cannot stand in Your presence. You hate all who do wrong; You destroy those who tell lies. The bloodthirsty and deceitful You, LORD, detest" (Ps. 5:4-6 NIV). "God is a righteous Judge, a God who displays His wrath every day" (Ps. 7:11 NIV; cf. CSB, EHV, HCSB, NASB '20, NIRV, NLV, NLT); or "He always condemns evil" (ERV; cf. ICB, NCV); or "a God who feels indignation every day" (ESV); or "a God who is angered by injustice every day" (GW); or "a God who has indignation every day" (LSB; cf. LEB, MEV, NASB '95, NRSV, RSV, WEB); or "God is a just judge, powerful and patient, not exercising anger every day" (Ps. 7:12 NABre, based on LXX; cf. YLT); or "He is angry throughout the day" (NET; cf. DARBY); or "He is angry with the wicked every day" (NKJV; cf. CEB, ISV, KJV, LB); or "God judges the righteous, and he who denounces God, every day" (RGT). "The LORD examines the righteous, but the wicked, those who love violence, He hates with a passion. On the wicked He will rain firey coals and burning sulfur; a scorching wind will be their lot" (Ps. 11:5-6 NIV).
Jesus once remarked: "For I tell you that, unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the Teachers of the Law, you will certainly not enter the Kingdom of Heaven" (Matt. 5:20 NIV). What kind of "righteousness" did the Pharisees and Rabbis possess? In His great denouncement of the religious leaders of His day, Jesus said, "The Teachers of the Law and the Pharisees sit in Moses' seat [the raised seat where the Rabbi would sit and deliver his message]. So you must be careful to do everything they tell you. But do not do what they do, for they do not practice what they preach" (Matt. 23:1-3 NIV). Their so-called righteousness is merely outward--not affecting the inward heart. "Be careful not to practice your righteousness in front of others to be seen by them," said Jesus early in His ministry, for if "you do, you will have no reward from your Father in Heaven" (Matt. 6:1; cf. Matt. 6:2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18). How do we obtain this?
How does one acquire this Christ-righteousness? God must do the work! God is the One who is Just and, so, He must be the One who justifies (Rom. 3:26). He is the One who must justify a believer (Rom. 3:24)--i.e. consider the believer as if he or she never sinned, for that is what justification is, a pronouncement that the unjust is now declared to be just (1 Pet. 3:18)--and then God imputes to the believer Christ-righteousness. We cannot conflate (consider synonymous) justification and the imputation of righteousness. God, by His mercy toward us in Jesus Christ, justifies the believer: He considers the believer to have never sinned. God does this by His grace through faith in Jesus Christ--faith itself being an inward work of our Triune God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, as He produces faith within the elect (Acts 3:16; 13:48; Rom. 1:16, 17; 1 Cor. 1:30; 2:14; Eph. 2:5, 8, 9; Phil. 1:29; 1 Thess. 1:5; 2 Thess. 2:13, 14; Titus 3:4, 5, 6, 7; Heb. 12:2; James 1:18; 2 Pet. 1:1). He then reckons the justified believer to be as holy, pure, and sinless as Jesus Himself (Rom. 3:21-28). Even though we fail? Even though we fail.
Elsewhere Paul writes that God made Jesus "who knew no sin to be sin [or "to become a sin offering on our behalf," TLV; or "be the offer of our sin," NLT] on our behalf so that we [who believe in Him] might become the righteousness of God in Him" (2 Cor. 5:21 NASB); or "Christ never sinned but God put our sin on Him" (NLV) "so that God's righteousness would be produced in us" (ISV); or "God had Christ, who was sinless, take our sin so that we might receive God's approval through Him" (GW); or "Christ was without sin, but for our sake God made him share our sin in order that in union with Him we might share the righteousness of God" (GNT); or "Christ did no wrong thing. But for our sake God put the blame for our wrong ways on Christ. So now God sees us as good [or as good and sinless as Jesus] because we are in Christ" (WE).
I am going to use some strong language here in order to shake some of you to your core--those of you within Roman Catholic walls. This is the biblical doctrine hated by Rome: the imputation of the righteousness of Jesus Christ to those who by the grace of God believe / trust / exercise faith in Him. Rome hates this doctrine because this eternal and divine truth robs Rome of its corrupt power over people and hands it to Jesus Himself--the Shepherd of God's sheep (John 10:1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18; Acts 20:28; 1 Pet. 5:4). Rome holds a sacramental sway over the people under her heretical wing, feeding the people lies, convincing people that ultimate salvation is found solely at the suckle of her dried-up breast. Because Rome rejects God's divine truth of imputed righteousness she invents fictions like Purgatory, alms-giving to appease God and receive forgiveness, confession and chants of "Hail, Mary, full of grace" for penance. But there "is one God, and one Mediator [Go-betweener] also between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave Himself as a ransom for all" (1 Tim. 2:5 NASB).
Be careful with that "all" passage: "For if, by the trespass of the one man [Adam], death reigned through that one man [Adam], how much more will those who receive [λαμβάνοντες] God's abundant provision of grace and of the gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man, Jesus Christ!" (Rom. 5:17 NIV). Only those who receive God's grace will be thusly blessed. That Greek word for "receive," λαμβάνοντες, is a present active participle, "receiving," so that the recipient of God's grace and gift of imputed righteousness receives and keeps on receiving throughout one's entire life that grace and gift of imputed righteousness. The word, in its religiously Jewish context, refers to receiving divine blessing. In other words, this grace and gift of imputed righteousness is not a regard that can be earned, but must originate from the Giver.
CONCLUSION
Sadly, Rome isn't the only religious institution that rejects the imputation of Christ's righteousness to the believer for justification, as I have encountered Wesleyan-holiness pastors and disciples of Charles Finney who believe, like Rome, that we are to practically become so righteous that God will, on that basis, justify the believer. English Reformer Thomas Cranmer rightly argues: Consider diligently these words: without
works, by faith only, freely we receive remission of our sins. Because all are sinners and offenders against God, and breakers of His Law and Commandments, therefore can no one by his own acts, works, and deeds ... be justified and made righteous before God: But everyone of necessity is constrained to seek for another righteousness, or justification, to be received at God's own hands, that is to say, the forgiveness of one's sins and trespasses in such things as he has offended; and this justification, or righteousness, which we so receive of God's mercy and of Christ's merits, embraced by faith, is taken, accepted, and allowed of God for our perfect and full justification.In the Gospel, the Good News of Jesus Christ, the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith (Rom. 1:17 NASB). In the Gospel we are shown how God makes people righteous in His sight [cf. Eph. 1:4, 5]--and from beginning to end it is through faith, as it is written, But the person who is declared righteous by God will live his new life in Christ by faith (Rom. 1:17). This particular translation is inspired by the version known as the Complete Jewish Bible. Other translations follow, e.g., "The Good News shows how God makes people right with Himself. God's way of making people right begins and ends with faith. As the Scriptures say, 'The one who is right with God by faith will live forever'" (ERV).
Sinners are not "just," not "righteous," but unjust and unrighteous (1 Pet. 3:18; Rom. 3:5). We have to be declared "just" and "righteous" by One who is just and righteous by nature. Even when we are regenerated we will never attain to perfect righteousness and sinlessness in this life (Phil. 3:12, 13, 14; cf. Phil. 3:7, 8, 9, 10), for, if a person sins once, he is a sinner and fails the righteousness of God (James 2:10), and now needs to be justified. If Paul never achieved sinless perfection, what makes us think that we can, that we will? Either God judiciously declares us to be righteous by imputing the righteousness of Jesus Christ to us or we will never be declared justified and righteous. This is what God does for us who trust / believe / exercise faith in Christ Jesus. He declares us to be just and righteous. Even though we fail? Even though we fail.
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