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How does a man become accepted by God? How does he obtain
God's approval?
- By perfectly obeying God's Commandments?
- By perfectly obeying Church Traditions?
- By perfectly believing the doctrine that (1) and (2) are both wrong?
Martin Luther discovered that (1) is wrong. Nobody meets God's standard. Only Jesus
Christ did. And substituting a human-invented religion was tried by the Pharisees, and
Jesus denounced them, so (2) is also wrong.
The Protestant answer has been a variation of Number Three: "We are Justified by
Faith Alone." John Robbins speaks of "justification
by belief alone." I would like to challenge that paradigm.
The Paradigm: A Necessity
The Bible seems to contradict itself. It says there is only one God, but it also
teaches that the Father is God, the Son is God, and the Holy Spirit is God. The doctrine
of "the Trinity" is an attempt to harmonize these apparently contradictory
statements, a slogan which has been accepted as "orthodoxy," even though the
word "Trinity" is not found in the Bible.
Consider also this apparent contradiction:
James 2:24 Ye see then how that by works a man is
justified, and not by faith only.
Romans 3:28 Therefore we conclude that a man is justified
by faith without the deeds of the law.
A New Paradigm
We need a doctrine like "the Trinity" to harmonize these two
verses. Since the Reformation, only one side of this two-sided coin has been emphasized. I
would like to suggest that we view the Gospel through a new pair of glasses. I would like
to suggest "Justification by Allegiance." Like the word
"Trinity," it is not explicitly found in the Bible, but works to harmonize two
apparently contradictory teachings of Scripture, both of which must be believed.
Instead of thinking in terms of "Justification by Faith Alone,"
we should think in terms of "Justification by Allegiance."
- We are saved when we submit ourselves entirely to the God of
the Bible -- a God of Righteousness and a God of Mercy.
- We are saved when we put to death our allegiance to our own agenda, the State's agenda,
Hollywood's agenda, and become new people, willing to conform every area of our lives
totally to God's Commandments.
- We cannot be saved if we refuse to obey God's Commandments.
This paradigm harmonizes
- the command to obey God's Law (only God's Law [not human
traditions] and all of God's Law [not just the parts that secure
us a public reputation],
- as well as the statements that we are not justified by "works," whether
obedience to Jewish traditions or partial obedience to God's Commandments.
This paradigm is implicit in the great Reformed Catechisms and
Confessions. True Faith is Allegiance,
not mere belief. In the Chapter on "Saving Faith" in the Westminster
Confession of Faith (14:2), we are told that when we have saving faith, we "believe
to be true whatsoever is revealed in the Word, for the authority of God Himself speaking
therein; and act differently upon that which each particular passage thereof contains;
yielding obedience to the commands, trembling at the threatenings, and embracing the
promises of God for this life, and that which is to come."
The fundamental issue in the Bible is Authority.
"There is no alternative but that of theonomy and autonomy."
Cornelius Van Til
The issue . . . is between theonomy (God's Law) and autonomy (self law).
Modern autonomous man is aided and abetted in his apostasy from God by the antinomianism of the church,
which, by denying God's law, has, in theology, politics, education, industry, and all
things else, surrendered the field to the law of the fallen and godless self, to autonomy.
R.J. Rushdoony
Salvation comes to the one who admits he is not God, and trusts in God,
not only for "salvation" in the next life, but for God's blessing upon obedience in this life.
If you want to be right with God, to be accepted by God, live your life like Micah is
true:
He hath showed thee, O man, what is good; and what
doth the LORD require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to humble thyself
to walk with thy God?
Micah 6:8
O man
|
Romans 9:20 But indeed, O man, who are you to reply
against God? Will the thing formed say to him who formed it, "Why have you made me
like this?"
James 2:20 But do you want to know, O foolish man, that faith without works is dead?Psalm
8:4 What is man, that Thou art mindful of him? and the son of man, that Thou visitest him? |
Man is no mere animal, but is wonderfully created in the
Image of God (Psalm 139:14;
Genesis
1:26-28). But he has rebelled against his Creator, something even animals do not do
(Isaiah 1:3;
Jeremiah 8:7).
The First Step to healing is to
admit our depravity. |
what is good
|
1 Samuel 12:23 "Moreover, as for me,
far be it from me that I should sin against the LORD in ceasing to pray for you; but I
will teach you the good and the right way.
Nehemiah 9:13 "You came down also on Mount Sinai, And spoke with them from heaven,
And gave them just ordinances and true laws, Good statutes and commandments.
Psalm 73:28 But it is good for me to draw near to God; I have put my
trust in the Lord GOD, That I may declare all Your works.
Lamentations 3:26 It is good that one should hope and wait quietly For
the salvation of the LORD.
Luke 10:42 "But one thing is needed, and Mary has chosen that good part,
which will not be taken away from her."
Romans 7:16 If, then, I do what I will not to do, I agree with the law that
it is good. |
and what doth the LORD require of thee
|
Deuteronomy 10:12-13 "And now, Israel,
what does the LORD your God require of you, but to fear the LORD your God, to walk in all
His ways and to love Him, to serve the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your
soul, {13} "and to keep the commandments of the LORD and His statutes which I command
you today for your good? |
to do justly
|
Genesis 18:19 "For I have known him, in order that he may command his children and his household after
him, that they keep the way of the LORD, to do righteousness and justice, that the LORD
may bring to Abraham what He has spoken to him."
1 Samuel 15:22 Then Samuel said: "Has the LORD as great delight in burnt offerings
and sacrifices, As in obeying the voice of the LORD? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, And to heed than the
fat of rams.
Proverbs 21:3 To do righteousness and justice Is more acceptable to the LORD than
sacrifice.
| Allegiance is the fear of God and commitment to
His Commandments: Theonomy |
Ecclesiastes 12:13 Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God and
keep His commandments, For this is man's all.
Isaiah 1:16-19 "Wash yourselves, make yourselves clean; Put away the evil of your
doings from before My eyes. Cease to do evil, {17} Learn to do good; Seek justice, Rebuke
the oppressor; Defend the fatherless, Plead for the widow. {18} "Come now, and let us
reason together," Says the LORD, "Though your sins are like scarlet, They shall
be as white as snow; Though they are red like crimson, They shall be as wool. {19} If you
are willing and obedient, You shall eat the good of the land;
Isaiah 58:6-11 "Is this not the fast that I have chosen: To loose the bonds
of wickedness, To undo the heavy burdens, To let the oppressed go free, And that you break
every yoke? {7} Is it not to share your bread with the hungry, And that you bring to your
house the poor who are cast out; When you see the naked, that you cover him, And not hide
yourself from your own flesh? {8} Then your light shall break forth like the morning, Your
healing shall spring forth speedily, And your righteousness shall go before you; The glory
of the LORD shall be your rear guard. {9} Then you shall call, and the LORD will answer;
You shall cry, and He will say, 'Here I am.' "If you take away the yoke from your
midst, The pointing of the finger, and speaking wickedness, {10} If you extend your soul
to the hungry And satisfy the afflicted soul, Then your light shall dawn in the darkness,
And your darkness shall be as the noonday. {11} The LORD will guide you continually, And
satisfy your soul in drought, And strengthen your bones; You shall be like a watered
garden, And like a spring of water, whose waters do not fail.
Jeremiah 7:3-6 Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: "Amend your ways and
your doings, and I will cause you to dwell in this place. {4} "Do not trust in these
lying words, saying, 'The temple of the LORD, the temple of the LORD, the temple of the
LORD are these.' {5} "For if you thoroughly amend your ways and your doings, if you
thoroughly execute judgment between a man and his neighbor, {6} "if you do not
oppress the stranger, the fatherless, and the widow, and do not shed innocent blood in
this place, or walk after other gods to your hurt,
Hosea 6:6 For I desire mercy and not sacrifice, And the knowledge of God more than burnt
offerings.
Hosea 12:6 So you, by the help of your God, return; Observe mercy and justice, And wait on
your God continually.
Amos 5:24 But let justice run down like water, And righteousness like a mighty stream.
Zephaniah 2:3 Seek the LORD, all you meek of the earth, Who have upheld His justice. Seek
righteousness, seek humility. It may be that you will be hidden In the day of the Lord's
anger.
Matthew 3:8-10 "Therefore bear fruits worthy of repentance, {9} "and do not
think to say to yourselves, 'We have Abraham as our father.' For I say to you that God is
able to raise up children to Abraham from these stones. {10} "And even now the ax is
laid to the root of the trees. Therefore every tree which does not bear good fruit is cut
down and thrown into the fire.
Mark 12:30-34 'And you shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your
soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.' This is the first commandment. {31}
"And the second, like it, is this: 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.' There
is no other commandment greater than these." {32} So the scribe said to Him,
"Well said, Teacher. You have spoken the truth, for there is one God, and there is no
other but He. {33} "And to love Him with all the heart, with all the understanding,
with all the soul, and with all the strength, and to love one's neighbor as oneself, is
more than all the whole burnt offerings and sacrifices." {34} Now when Jesus saw that
he answered wisely, He said to him, "You are not far from the kingdom of God."
But after that no one dared question Him.
Luke 11:42 "But woe to you Pharisees! For you tithe mint and rue and all manner of
herbs, and pass by justice and the love of God. These you ought to have
done, without leaving the others undone.
Titus 2:11-12 For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men, {12}
teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly,
righteously, and godly in the present age,
2 Peter 1:5-8 But also for this very reason, giving all diligence, add to your faith
virtue, to virtue knowledge, {6} to knowledge self-control, to self-control perseverance,
to perseverance godliness, {7} to godliness brotherly kindness, and to brotherly kindness
love. {8} For if these things are yours and abound, you will be neither barren nor
unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. |
love mercy
|
Psalms 37:26 He is ever merciful, and lends;
And his descendants are blessed.
Psalms 112:4 Unto the upright there arises light in the darkness; He is gracious, and full
of compassion, and righteous.
Psalms 112:9 He has dispersed abroad, He has given to the poor; His righteousness endures
forever; His horn will be exalted with honor.
Isaiah 57:1-2 The righteous perishes, And no man takes it to heart; Merciful men are taken
away, While no one considers That the righteous is taken away from evil. {2} He shall
enter into peace; They shall rest in their beds, Each one walking in his uprightness.
Matthew 5:7 Blessed are the merciful, For they shall obtain mercy.
Matthew 18:32-35 "Then his master, after he had called him, said to him, 'You wicked
servant! I forgave you all that debt because you begged me. {33} 'Should you not also have
had compassion on your fellow servant, just as I had pity on you?' {34} "And his
master was angry, and delivered him to the torturers until he should pay all that was due
to him. {35} "So My heavenly Father also will do to you if each of you, from his
heart, does not forgive his brother his trespasses."
Matthew 23:23 "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you pay tithe of
mint and anise and cummin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law:
justice and mercy and faith. These you ought to have done, without leaving the
others undone.
Luke 6:36 "Therefore be merciful, just as your Father also is merciful.
Ephesians 4:32 And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as
God in Christ forgave you.
Colossians 3:12 Therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, put on tender mercies,
kindness, humility, meekness, longsuffering;
1 Peter 3:8 Finally, all of you be of one mind, having compassion for one another; love as
brothers, be tenderhearted, be courteous; |
walk humbly
|
Genesis 5:22 After he begot Methuselah, Enoch
walked with God three hundred years, and had sons and daughters.
2 Chronicles 32:26 Then Hezekiah humbled himself for the pride of his
heart, he and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, so that the wrath of the LORD did not come
upon them in the days of Hezekiah.
2 Chronicles 33:12-13 Now when he was in affliction, he implored the LORD his God, and humbled
himself greatly before the God of his fathers, {13} and prayed to Him; and He
received his entreaty, heard his supplication, and brought him back to Jerusalem into his
kingdom. Then Manasseh knew that the LORD was God.
2 Chronicles 34:27 "because your heart was tender, and you humbled yourself
before God when you heard His words against this place and against its
inhabitants, and you humbled yourself before Me, and you tore your clothes and wept before
Me, I also have heard you," says the LORD.
Isaiah 57:15 For thus says the High and Lofty One Who inhabits eternity, whose name is
Holy: "I dwell in the high and holy place, With him who has a contrite and humble
spirit, To revive the spirit of the humble, And to revive the heart of the contrite ones.
Isaiah 66:2 For all those things My hand has made, And all those things exist," Says
the LORD. "But on this one will I look: On him who is poor and of a contrite
spirit, And who trembles at My word.
Daniel 4:37 Now I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise and extol and honor the King of heaven, all of
whose works are truth, and His ways justice. And those who walk in pride He is able to put
down.
Luke 18:13-17 "And the tax collector, standing afar off, would not so much as raise
his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, 'God, be merciful to me a sinner!' {14}
"I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other; for
everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be
exalted." {15} Then they also brought infants to Him that He might touch them; but
when the disciples saw it, they rebuked them. {16} But Jesus called them to Him and said,
"Let the little children come to Me, and do not forbid them; for of such is the
kingdom of God. {17} "Assuredly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom
of God as a little child will by no means enter it."
Romans 10:1-3 Brethren, my heart's desire and prayer to God for Israel is that they may be
saved. {2} For I bear them witness that they have a zeal for God, but not according to
knowledge. {3} For they being ignorant of God's righteousness, and seeking to establish
their own righteousness, have not submitted to the righteousness of God.
James 4:6-10 But He gives more grace. Therefore He says: "God resists the proud, But
gives grace to the humble." {7} Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will
flee from you. {8} Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you
sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded. {9} Lament and mourn and weep! Let
your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom. {10} Humble yourselves in the
sight of the Lord, and He will lift you up.
1 Peter 5:5-6 Likewise you younger people, submit yourselves to your elders. Yes, all of
you be submissive to one another, and be clothed with humility, for "God resists the
proud, But gives grace to the humble." {6} Therefore humble yourselves under the
mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time, |
For Further Study:
We have discussed Luther's idea of "justification by faith" here:
The Origin of Greasy Grace
On that page we suggested that the Protestant Reformation missed most of
the themes in Micah's prophecy, and
that as a slogan, "Justification by Works" is a more Biblical slogan than
"Justification by Faith." (Neither are as good as "Justification by
Allegiance.")
Our contention is that "Law" in Micah's prophecy does not refer
to liturgical ceremonies, but the covenantal relationship God has with His People. Our God
is not a silent and impersonal force. God speaks to us through His Word. We should
understand that every Word He speaks is Law to us, because that is how a vassal rightly
responds to a sovereign.
The "Law-Word" of
God
To be rightly related to God's Law is to be rightly related to God.
Why We Should Worship God's
Law
A far greater part of the Scriptures consists of exhortations to obey
rather than [merely] to believe. Those verses that seem to say we are justified without
respect to our allegiance to God's Law have been misinterpreted.
- Why did Paul quote Leviticus 18:5 in
Galatians 3:12?
- Will a person who seeks to
obey God's Law -- faithfully, sincerely, without hypocrisy, intelligently, and spiritually
-- ever conclude that he could be saved by his own works without Christ?
- Isn't obedience also a gift of God?
- Can a person who truly obeys God's
Law even be thinking about saving himself by doing so?
- Are we saved by perfect faith,
or is it OK to be "in the ballpark?"
- Do we receive any blessings or
please God by our obedience?
- Can a person who rebels
against the authority of God (Law) have any assurance of salvation?
- If Theonomic works strengthen our
assurance, shouldn't the one committed to autonomy be told to obey God's Law?
The perfect righteousness of Christ is imputed -- credited -- to those who
say "Amen" to God. Admit that God is God, and humbly declare your allegiance to
Him and His Commandments.
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