Read Romans 4:16–25
[Jesus our Lord] was delivered over to death for our sins and was
raised to life for our justification.
Romans 4:25
Justification is the act of God whereby He declares believing sinners
righteous in Christ on the basis of the finished work of Christ on the
cross. Each part of this definition is important, so we must consider
it carefully.
Justification is an act, not a process. There are no degrees of justification;
each of us believers has the same right standing before God.
Also, justification is something done by God, not by us. We cannot
justify ourselves before God. Most important, justification does not
mean that God makes us righteous, but that He declares us righteous.
Justification is a legal matter. God puts the righteousness of Christ
on our records in the place of our own sinfulness. And nobody can
change these records.
We must not confuse justification and sanctification. Sanctification
is the process whereby God makes believers more and more like
Christ. Sanctification may change from day to day. Justification never
changes. When we trust Christ, God declares us righteous, and that
declaration will never be repealed. God looks upon us and deals with
us as though we had never sinned at all!
Something to Ponder
What does it mean to you that God has justified you? How is God’s
justification revealed in your life?