Justification

"Justification" is a theological term that many people do not understand, thinking that it is a complex point of biblical doctrine. However, it is not as difficult as it may seem on the surface. Martin Collins explains what justification is and how it work. . .

The subject of justification confuses a great many people. In fact, much of nominal Christianity, even theologians, do not understand the Bible's teaching on it.

God's plan of salvation has past, present, and future aspects, and each has its own rewards. The Bible uses 'salvation' and its related words just over 600 times.

The brain is unquestionably the most complex organ of the human body. It is also the most important ...

Protestantism is based on Luther's insistance that Christians are saved by faith alone. But is the really true? Earl Henn explains that the Bible says this of justification, not salvation.

Some in Antioch believed the preaching of the persecuted Christians, and they not only agreed with the teaching but also changed or transformed their lives.

'Grace' is a term that represents God's awesome generosity toward us, His continuously flowing blessings and saving acts. It goes beyond just forgiveness.

Are you saved already or are you being saved? What is salvation anyway? What part do we play? Here is a study of God's Word on salvation.

The yoke of bondage Paul refers to in Galatians was a combination of the code of regulations added by the Pharisees and Gnostic ritualism, not God's Law.

Many use Colossians 2:14 to 'prove' God's law is done away, but is this really what Paul means? Examining the whole counsel of God reveals Paul's intent.

Acts 5:32 declares that God gives His Spirit to those who obey Him, yet some argue that keeping God's law is not necessary. What is the truth?

We have been called, not just to believe in Christ, but also to overcome sin, an action that takes a great deal of effort. John Ritenbaugh takes pains to explain God's act of justification and what we are required to do in response.

A summary of the Covenants, Grace, and Law series, reiterating the differences in the Covenants and the respective places of grace and law in God's purpose.

The Bible makes it very plain that salvation is by grace, but it is also clear that we are 'created in Christ Jesus for good works' (Ephesians 2:10). Having explained justification, John Ritenbaugh tackles the process of sanctification, showing that the fa. . .

Some think Galatians 3:19 means that God's law has been done away. Earl Henn explains how certain misunderstandings have led people astray on this verse.

In Galatians, Paul took issue with the Halakhah, not God's word. Halakhah was a massive collection of human opinion that placed a yoke on its followers.

God and humankind are very different. God is spiritual, immortal, righteous, holy, and pure. Human beings, on the other hand, have the opposite attributes: physical, mortal, sinful, profane, and corrupt. Martin Collins begins a short series on the subject . . .

The two men who go to the Temple to pray contrast in character, belief, and self-examination. The contrast shows how to be justified before God.

John Ritenbaugh explains that justification is not the end of the salvation process, but merely the doorway to a more involved process of sanctification, symbolized by the long journey through the wilderness toward the promised land, a lengthy purifying pr. . .

Because we are all sinners, we have earned only death; justification is not earned, but must come through faith and believing God as did our father Abraham.

Justification does not 'do away' with the law; it brings us into alignment with it, imputing the righteousness of Christ and giving access to God for sanctification.

Do you realize not one in a hundred knows what salvation is—how to get it—when you will receive it? Don't be too sure you do! Here, once for all, is the truth made so plain you will really understand it!

God inspired the book of Hebrews to answer the difficult questions church members were struggling with during the tumultuous first decades of the church.

Under both the Old and New Covenants, refusal to keep to keep God's Law severs the relationship. God's law protects us and brings us quality life.

Richard Ritenbaugh, challenging the Protestant assumption that "getting our lives straight" (morality) distracts from the Gospel message of grace, suggests that this emphasis on "hyper-grace" is wrong-headed, denying any need for repent. . .

It is a given that works cannot earn us salvation. However, they play many vital roles in our Christian walk toward the Kingdom of God. In this concluding article, John Ritenbaugh gives specific reasons for doing good works, showing their close relationshi. . .

Romans 7:4 says we are 'dead to the law through ... Christ.' What does this mean? The context shows that it refers to the 'old man' that perished at baptism.

Those who advocate doctrinal change portray God as a confused and false minister who lacks the power to instruct his chosen leaders to 'get it right.'

Richard Ritenbaugh, using the metaphor of "balancing" a checkbook, wherein two totally distinct documents, the user's register and the bank's statement are squared, or brought into agreement, explains Christ's work of "squaring" us&mdas. . .

Why must we put leaven out, yet we do not have to circumcise our boys? Earl Henn explains this apparent contradiction.

John Ritenbaugh reiterates that faith is God's gift to those whom He has called. Everything that we go through has been engineered by God. We are His workmanship, created for good works, a response to the faith He has given us. Good works follow faith. Our. . .

Paul's writings, because of their complexity, are frequently twisted to say that he was anti-law. By denigrating God's law, the unconverted set their own standards.

Christ will empower us, but will not live our lives for us. The marching orders for our pilgrimage derive from God's Word, containing His holy law.

Can a Christian commit a sin, and still be a Christian? Or would this be 'the unpardonable sin'? Or would it prove he never was a Christian?

John Ritenbaugh asserts that after justification, for grace to be made dominant, its influence must extend beyond justification, into the sanctification stage where the believer must yield himself to righteousness, keeping God's commandments making himself. . .

In this Unleavened Bread sermon, Richard Ritenbaugh asserts that learning God's way (and unlearning Satan's way) takes a lifetime- spiritually speaking, perhaps the most difficult and arduous task on the entire earth. Over a lifetime, with our cooperation,. . .

While we must express some of our own faith as we come to salvation, the great bulk of "saving faith" is a gift of God, given graciously and miraculously as part of God's creative process in us. In particular, John Ritenbaugh uses the examples of Abel and . . .

The old song speaks of "Amazing Grace" but do we really understand just how amazing it is? John Ritenbaugh fills in some details on this vital topic.

Forgiveness is only the beginning of the grace process, enabling us to grow to the stature of Christ. Paradoxically, grace puts us under obligation to obey.

Where can we find the true religion, the true church, in all this confusion? Only the church Christ founded and heads today has the answers to eternal life.

John Ritenbaugh focuses upon the intent or purpose of the scripture in Deuteronomy 23:2 prohibiting offspring from illegitimate unions (often carrying psychological baggage and irreversible physical damage) from holding offices of responsibility in physica. . .

Millions who say they believe in Jesus Christ have no salvation at all because they trust in the wrong kind of faith. Saving faith is largely misunderstood.

Martin Collins warns that we limit the Holy One of Israel by failing to faithfully follow His instructions. We limit God through our willful sin and disobedience, pride and self confidence, ignorance and blindness, and our fear of following God. Fear and l. . .

John Reid stresses that in this time of confusion and rapid change, we have a desperate need for something solid upon which to grasp or embrace. Some of the most secure and solid things we could ever attain would be the myriad promises of God, found enumer. . .

The days, months, and times of Galatians 4:10 do not refer to God's Holy Days (which are not weak or beggarly), but to pagan rites the Galatians came out of.

The only possibility of attaining peace is a relationship with God—peace with God through our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, which must continually be refined.

John Ritenbaugh, focusing upon the seemingly innocent but subtle and pernicious doctrine of Dispensationalism, attacks the assumed yet unbiblical adversarial relationship between law and grace. Modern "Christianity" totally rejects the Bible in i. . .

John Ritenbaugh uses an analogy of a 1910 automobile as opposed to a modern one. Obsolete doesn't mean, as Protestant understanding would have it, "done away." The fault of the Old Covenant was with the hearts of the people. Christ took it upon H. . .

John Ritenbaugh reiterates that the subtle changes made by the Worldwide Church of God have contaminated and corrupted virtually every doctrine we have lived by. Alterations in 'the package' affect the whole of what is produced. Proponents of these doctrin. . .

Repentance is something we must do with our God-given free moral agency. Reconciliation is an ongoing process that enables us to draw closer to what God is.

John Ritenbaugh asserts that the Old Covenant in no way annulled the promises of the Abrahamic Covenant, but was added because of Israel's sins, with the intent of pointing to the need of a Savior. Because the primary focus of Galatians is justification ra. . .