In Paul's letter to the Galatians, we are told that when the apostle Peter came to Syrian Antioch, he ate with the Gentiles, as God had taught him in Acts 10. But when men of the circumcision party in Jerusalem came to Antioch, Peter drew back and separated himself from the Gentiles through fear of them. Other Jewish believers, even Barnabas, followed Peter’s example.
Paul saw correctly that this was hypocrisy, since Peter was not acting on his beliefs but was acting through fear of these visitors. Paul also saw the dangerous impact of this action on the Gentiles converts, since by withdrawing, Peter was compelling the Gentiles to live like Jews, to be circumcised and return to the laws of ritual purity. And so Paul opposed Peter and told him publicly, “If you, though a Jew, live like a Gentile and not like a Jew, how can you force the Gentiles to live like Jews?”
It is a little unclear where the quotation of what Paul said to Peter stops. The ESV ends the quotation at the end of verse 14, and that might be correct. But Paul goes on to explain his basic point in Galatians 2:15-16.
Paul saw correctly that this was hypocrisy, since Peter was not acting on his beliefs but was acting through fear of these visitors. Paul also saw the dangerous impact of this action on the Gentiles converts, since by withdrawing, Peter was compelling the Gentiles to live like Jews, to be circumcised and return to the laws of ritual purity. And so Paul opposed Peter and told him publicly, “If you, though a Jew, live like a Gentile and not like a Jew, how can you force the Gentiles to live like Jews?”
It is a little unclear where the quotation of what Paul said to Peter stops. The ESV ends the quotation at the end of verse 14, and that might be correct. But Paul goes on to explain his basic point in Galatians 2:15-16.
"We ourselves are Jews by birth and not Gentile sinners; yet we know that a person is not justified by works of the law but through faith in Jesus Christ, so we also have believed in Christ Jesus, in order to be justified by faith in Christ and not by works of the law, because by works of the law no one will be justified." (Galatians 2:15–16)
“We ourselves” is speaking of Jewish believers like Peter and Paul. They were Jews by birth and not Gentile sinners, and yet even they had sought their justification through faith in Jesus Christ, not through works of the law. They put no confidence in the flesh and did not rely on works of the law, but relied on Jesus Christ. Both Jews and Gentiles were condemned by the law and were justified by God through faith in Jesus Christ.
To insist on the observance of the old covenant ceremonies was to count the Gentile believers as unclean, despite their faith in Christ and possession of the Spirit. Those who insisted on circumcision were teaching people to rely on works of the law, to put confidence in the flesh.
Paul goes on to show that these “Judaizers” were misusing the old covenant, which was meant to lead us to Christ, and which had become obsolete with the coming of Christ. But the point of our passage is that no person is justified by works of the law; a person is justified through faith in Jesus Christ. This is why both Jews and Gentiles have believed in Christ Jesus, in order to be justified by faith in Christ and not by works of the law. It is not that we have believed in Christ in order to receive the ability to keep God's commands and thereby be justified. In that case Paul could have said we are justified by the works of the law through faith in Jesus Christ. But no, Paul contrasts two different ways of seeking justification, by works or by faith.
1. The Doctrine of Justification
A person is not justified by works of the law but through faith in Jesus Christ.
What is “justification”?
It is a declaration of a person’s righteousness. It is the opposite of condemnation. In the Bible, it is a judicial word, a pronouncement and sentence, not the work of making someone righteous. For example, in Romans 3:4, God is said to be “justified” in his words and to prevail when he is judged. And in Romans 8:33-34, to justify is set against to condemn, "It is God who justifies. Who is to condemn?”
What are the “works of the law”? Are they only the observance of the ceremonial law?
They are not only the ceremonial law. Paul's point is that justification is not by our obedience to the law of God, whether ceremonial or moral. Those who rely on old covenant ceremonies in themselves for justification (not putting them aside and looking to the Christ they fore-signified) are relying on their perfect obedience to the whole law for their righteousness (Gal. 3:10-14). Paul goes on in Galatians 3:10-14 to speak of how Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us. Paul also writes about this in his letter to the Romans, "For we hold that one is justified by faith apart from works of the law" (Romans 3:28), and there it is especially clear that the “law” in question is one that is convicts all of us of sin and demands perfect obedience. Romans 3:20, “For by works of the law no human being will be justified in his sight, since through the law comes knowledge of sin.”
To insist on the observance of the old covenant ceremonies was to count the Gentile believers as unclean, despite their faith in Christ and possession of the Spirit. Those who insisted on circumcision were teaching people to rely on works of the law, to put confidence in the flesh.
Paul goes on to show that these “Judaizers” were misusing the old covenant, which was meant to lead us to Christ, and which had become obsolete with the coming of Christ. But the point of our passage is that no person is justified by works of the law; a person is justified through faith in Jesus Christ. This is why both Jews and Gentiles have believed in Christ Jesus, in order to be justified by faith in Christ and not by works of the law. It is not that we have believed in Christ in order to receive the ability to keep God's commands and thereby be justified. In that case Paul could have said we are justified by the works of the law through faith in Jesus Christ. But no, Paul contrasts two different ways of seeking justification, by works or by faith.
1. The Doctrine of Justification
A person is not justified by works of the law but through faith in Jesus Christ.
What is “justification”?
It is a declaration of a person’s righteousness. It is the opposite of condemnation. In the Bible, it is a judicial word, a pronouncement and sentence, not the work of making someone righteous. For example, in Romans 3:4, God is said to be “justified” in his words and to prevail when he is judged. And in Romans 8:33-34, to justify is set against to condemn, "It is God who justifies. Who is to condemn?”
What are the “works of the law”? Are they only the observance of the ceremonial law?
They are not only the ceremonial law. Paul's point is that justification is not by our obedience to the law of God, whether ceremonial or moral. Those who rely on old covenant ceremonies in themselves for justification (not putting them aside and looking to the Christ they fore-signified) are relying on their perfect obedience to the whole law for their righteousness (Gal. 3:10-14). Paul goes on in Galatians 3:10-14 to speak of how Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us. Paul also writes about this in his letter to the Romans, "For we hold that one is justified by faith apart from works of the law" (Romans 3:28), and there it is especially clear that the “law” in question is one that is convicts all of us of sin and demands perfect obedience. Romans 3:20, “For by works of the law no human being will be justified in his sight, since through the law comes knowledge of sin.”
By what kind of faith are we justified?
We are not justified by any faith, but "by faith in Jesus Christ" (Gal. 2:16). The object of faith is important. And it is not a mere knowledge of the gospel or an assent to its truth, but a reliance upon Jesus Christ, a receiving and resting upon him for salvation.
What function does faith serve?
Faith is unique among all the virtues in that it receives Christ. The function of faith is to receive Christ, that we might be united to him. Faith is not the food, but the way we eat the food; not the treasure, but the way we receive the treasure; not the glorious robe, but the way we put it on.
On what basis are we justified?
Believers are justified on the basis of Christ’s righteousness, imputed to us. We are justified “by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith” (Rom. 3:24-25). 2 Corinthians 5:21, “For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” The satisfaction and obedience of Jesus Christ is imputed to us. That is the only perfect righteousness that will satisfy the demands of God’s law and gain for us a righteous verdict.
This doctrine is not only biblical and Protestant, but also finds a precedent in the early and medieval church, although it was not always well formulated or clearly taught.
On justification by the imputation of Christ’s righteousness:
John Chrysostom (Homily 11 on 2 Corinthians, on 2 Corinthians 5:21, AD c. 400) - “For he said not ‘made’ [Christ] a sinner, but ‘sin;’ … that we’ also ‘might become,’ he did not say ‘righteous,’ but, ‘righteousness,’ and, ‘the righteousness of God.’ For this is [the righteousness] ‘of God’ when we are justified not by works, (in which case it were necessary that not a spot even should be found,) but by grace, in which case all sin is done away.”
Bernard of Clarivaux (Letter LX, AD 1140) - “For what could man, the slave of sin, fast bound by the devil, do of himself to recover that righteousness which he had formerly lost? Therefore he who lacked righteousness had another’s imputed to him … Why should not righteousness come to me from another when guilt came upon me from another? … It is not fitting for the son to bear the iniquity of the father, and yet to have no share in the righteousness of his brother. … I attain to one and to the other in the same way: to the one by the flesh, to the other by faith.”
On justification by faith alone:
Clement of Rome (1 Clement 32.4, AD 95) - “And so we, having been called through his will in Christ Jesus, are not justified through ourselves or through our own wisdom or understanding or piety, or works that we have done in holiness of heart, but through faith, by which the Almighty God has justified all who have existed from the beginning; to whom be the glory for ever and ever. Amen.”
Chrysostom (Homily 5 on Colossians, AD c. 400) - “For, all of a sudden, to have brought men more senseless than stones to the dignity of Angels, simply through bare words, and faith alone, without any laboriousness, is indeed glory and riches of mystery…”
The right use of this true doctrine?
As Paul teaches in Galatians 2:19-20, being justified by faith in Christ, we now live in Christ and for Christ, for the one who loved us and gave himself for us. We give ourselves back to him in gratitude. Being set free from the condemnation of the law, we now live our new life to God. Being justified because we are in Christ, we are also sanctified because Christ is in us. “I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.”
2. Roman Errors that Obscure the Doctrine
Peter once obscured the truth by his actions, and Paul rebuked him. So those who claim to succeed Peter obscure the truth, not only by their actions, but by their teachings. The Roman church will say some things we can agree with, but they teach various errors that obscure the truth and lead people astray.
1. Their doctrine of justification.
For example, they accept the satisfaction of Christ for their satisfaction, but not their righteousness before God. They include sanctification as part of justification, teaching that justification is by the forgiveness of sins and by the renewal of the inner man, on which basis a person is declared to be righteous. They reject justification by the imputed righteousness of Christ alone. The Council of Trent proclaimed:
“If any one saith, that men are justified, either by the sole imputation of the justice of Christ, or by the sole remission of sins, to the exclusion of the grace and the charity which is poured forth in their hearts by the Holy Ghost, and is inherent in them; or even that the grace, whereby we are justified, is only the favor of God; let him be anathema.” (Session 6, Canon 11)
The Council of Trent still asserted the necessity of grace and faith for justification. They asserted that we were unjust in Adam and only justified by being “born again in Christ” (Session 6, Chapter 3). Yet, they denied that justification is only the remission of sins, but argued that it is “also the sanctification and renewal of the inward man, through the voluntary reception of the grace, and of the gifts…” (Chapter 7). The council taught that God does not merely reckon us to be just, but properly calls us just because we are just, each according to our measure. It taught that our justification is not dependent upon the imputation of Christ’s righteousness to us, but rather upon our righteousness which we are enabled to exercise because of the grace of Christ given to us. Thus they give faith a different function, to prepare a person for justification and by working love in them, on account of which they are justified.
By making our righteousness before God depended upon our virtue and deeds, it diverts the Christian from looking to Christ toward looking at his own character and works. We agree that Christ does work righteousness and love in us, but we deny that these graces serve as the basis of our justification. The law of God demands perfection, and it is Christ’s own perfect righteousness that covers believers and is reckoned to them by grace.
2. Their doctrine of concupiscence.
They deny concupiscence to be sin. This view of sin makes it easier for people to believe that they are righteous before God in their own right. But we believe that this original corruption is sin and is still present in the believer, so that if we were judged by the law on the basis of our virtue and works, we would be condemned. Even Paul found sin at work in him; seeing the desire for sin as sin, something to be confessed and mortified (Rom. 7-8). Thus, Christians need the imputed righteousness of Christ to be declared righteous before God.
3. Their doctrine of penance.
Their doctrine of penance is wrong and misleading. They distinguish between venial and mortal sins in the life of the believer. They teach that mortal sins cause a person to lose his justification and utterly fall from the state of grace. But justification may be renewed. While they affirm that “only God forgives sins” and that “Christ alone expiated our sins once for all,” they also teach that justification may only be renewed by the sacrament of penance. This not only requires contrition and a confession of the sins to a priest, who absolves the sinner, but in their definition of repentance they include the making of satisfaction to God by your deeds to expiate the sin, a satisfaction accepted by God through Christ (CCC, p. 407-408). Again, this redirects people from faith in Christ’s work to their own works.
It is true that we must repent. Repentance is primarily an internal turning from sin to God. With grief and hatred toward sin, we turn from it to God, with full purpose of and endeavor after new obedience. True repentance will include a new resolve to obey God, resulting in deeds in keeping with our repentance (Acts 26:20). But this new obedience is not a satisfaction made to God. We rest on the satisfaction made by Christ, who is the propitiation for our sins and the one who intercedes for us. A true turning from sin to God will include the making of restitution to our fellow man for sins against him and a faith in Christ and his redemptive work for the satisfying of divine justice.
4. Their doctrine of temporal penalties for sin.
Their doctrine of temporal penalties for sin is also wrong and misleading. They will say that even when the guilt and punishment of sin is forgiven, that temporal penalties due for that sin remain. From this doctrine come belief in indulgences, purgatory, and the use of the merits and intercessions of the saints. They teach that if a believer dies before suffering all the temporal punishments for their sins, they must be further purified by suffering in purgatory. They no longer sell indulgences, but still affirm their use to relieve a person of these temporal punishments. As the Catechism of the Catholic Church says, “An indulgence is a remission before God of the temporal punishment due to sins whose guilt has already been forgiven, which the faithful Christian who is duly disposed gains under certain prescribed conditions through the action of the Church which, as the minister of redemption, dispenses and applies with authority the treasury of the satisfactions of Christ and the saints. … The faithful can gain indulgences for themselves or apply them to the dead.”
Again, this redirects attention away from Christ’s work, neglects the fullness of his work, and substitutes beliefs and practices of man’s invention.
When we are forgiven, both guilt and punishment is removed. We are not liable for a debt that has been canceled (Col. 2:14). We no longer need to make satisfaction for sin. Christ has satisfied divine justice by his single sacrifice, offered once for all, and he is the propitiation for our sins (Rom. 3:24-25, Heb. 9:14, 25-28, 10:10-14). It is true that believers are sanctified through trials, sometimes sent as consequences for our sins, but this suffering is not a satisfaction for sin, but a fatherly discipline for our training in this mortal world. Those who die in the Lord are blessed and rest from their labors (Rev. 14:13). As Jesus told the believing criminal on the cross, “Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in paradise” (Luke 23:43). When believers die, their souls are made perfect in holiness and immediately pass into glory, being blessed in Christ for his sake. There they await the resurrection from the dead on the last day.
5. The sacrifice of the Eucharist.
They also teach that the sacrifice of the Eucharist is a reparation for the sins of the living and the dead that obtains spiritual or temporal benefits from God. They teach that the love inspired by this communion wipes away venial sins. They teach it can be offered for the dead, to relieve them of some of their temporal penalties.
The word “Eucharist” is not bad. It comes from the Greek word for “thanksgiving.” A sacrifice of thanksgiving is made in this sacrament, but not a propitiatory sacrifice for the forgiveness of sins. Christ offered himself once as a sacrifice for sins on the cross (Heb. 9-10), and now the benefits of that sacrifice are given to believers. The Eucharist is a sacrament that represents, seals, and applies the benefits of Christ’s sacrifice to us, to be received with faith, thanksgiving, and renewed consecration; not a sacrifice that man offers to God to obtain benefits from him. The letter to the Hebrews could not be more clear on the contrast between the repeated offering of sacrifices in the old covenant and the single sacrifice of Christ once offered to God by Christ, our priest.
What are to we to make of the Roman church and its members?
On the one hand, it is a huge institution with more diversity than they like to admit. The beliefs of its members are supposed to be whatever the church teaches, but this is often not the case. Their beliefs can be worse than the official dogma, but sometimes they are better, especially when they have been influenced by Protestants. If you are interacting with individuals in the Roman church, it is important to not jump to conclusions. See what they themselves actually believe. Not only will that make your conversations more productive, but it can also open a door to share what you believe and to clear up misconceptions they may have about Protestants.
As for the Roman church in general, a good analogy that was used by the Reformers was that of the northern kingdom of Israel. The northern kingdom professed the true God and its members were marked by the sign of the covenant and there was a remnant of faithful believers in it; yet that kingdom had departed from ordinances God had appointed in Jerusalem, they had substituted for them the idolatrous and corrupt worship of the true God using golden calves, and was led by kings that made the people to sin in unfaithfulness to their covenant God. Calls were given to the northern kingdom and its members to turn to their Lord and to worship him in Jerusalem (2 Chron. 30:1-12).
We should continue to seek the purity and unity of the visible church, encouraging members of the Roman church to be true to their baptism by resting upon Christ alone for their salvation if they don’t already, and by forsaking the false teaching and corrupt worship of the Roman church. Even though it is possible to be saved in it, it is a spiritually dangerous place to be, all the more because of the weight that is given in that church to the authority of the church hierarchy and tradition.
May we call the hierarchy of that church to repent and reform. In the meantime, may we have compassion on our Roman neighbors and share the truth of the gospel that is obscured by the doctrines and practices of their church. Encourage them to come out to the refreshing waters and green pastures of historic Protestantism. 27% of St. Charles County belongs to the Roman church, and 21% of the St. Louis metro area, so this is a very practical issue.
Let them know that to leave the Roman church is not to leave the one holy catholic and apostolic church that Christ founded. The Reformers did not found a new church during the Protestant Reformation. They worked to reform the church of Jesus Christ, which already existed. They worked to reform it according to Scripture, upon which his church is founded (the word of the prophets and apostles). The work of reform is not yet done - may all the baptized be taught the joyful tidings of the gospel and organized in local and regional churches that faithfully proclaim the word of God and rightly administer the sacraments.
Justification by faith alone for Christ’s sake alone is good news, to be spread abroad and joyfully received. May you receive it yourself and live now by faith in the Son of God, who loved you and gave himself for you. May we not abuse this doctrine and bring it into disgrace, but confess it faithfully along with the whole counsel of God, adorning the faith with good works of grateful love.
We have joyful tidings of salvation in Christ. We who have believed in Jesus Christ, to be justified by faith in him, can take comfort and rejoice that there is “now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus” (Rom. 8:1). We can rejoice that, “since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of, the glory of God” (Rom. 5:1–2). You can come with confidence to the throne of grace, seeking help in times of need, resting upon the meditation and perfect sacrifice of your merciful high priest.
“Who shall bring any charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies. Who is to condemn? Christ Jesus is the one who died—more than that, who was raised—who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us.” (Romans 8:33–34)
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