NOT BY FAITH ALONE ? An old objection , revisited

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St. James and St. Paul Battling it Out on Justification

 In October of 2010, I wrote a blog post answering an atheist friend who claimed that the Bible contradicted itself by teaching in one place (Romans 3 & 4) that Justification is by faith apart from works, and in another place (James 2) that "...by works a man is justified, and not by faith only." 

Recently, on the Reformed Forum Facebook page, someone posted the following:

"Not By Faith Alone"

I believed and taught "justification by faith alone" for over 20 years as an elder in the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) and as the adult Bible class teacher in my church. But on September 30th 2011, I was looking for the verse in the Bible that said justification is by faith alone. So, I typed "faith alone" in an online Bible search engine. That search has opened my eyes and brought me closer to God. My hope is that searching to find what the Bible actually says about "faith alone" will do the same for you. Here is the link that started my search: http://biblez.com/search.php?q=%22faith+alone%22 May God Bless You

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This seasoned Presbyterian elder & bible class teacher apparently had never seen a copy of the Westminster Confession & Catechisms, nor was he aware of the classic Roman Catholic objection to the doctrine of "Justification by Faith Alone" that he had taught for over 20 years. While he approaches the Justification issue from a different direction than my atheist friend (he is not arguing a contradiction between Paul and James), the ground of his supposed refutation is the teaching found in in the epistle of James. So my answer below still applies.

Here is an edited version of the post I wrote two and a half years ago in answer to the atheist's objection.


The question is: Does the Bible teach that we are saved by Faith Alone, or a combination of Faith and Works? It gets complicated when it appears that two authors of New Testament epistles have different views on the matter.

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There are two keys to understanding what some claim is a "contradiction" between Paul's and James' teaching on "justification," and they are easily discerned by reading their respective arguments.
 
1. The first key is the different senses in which each is using the word JUSTIFICATION (and it's variants: "justify" and "justified") Paul is talking about being declared legally righteous in God's sight, while James is talking about a person's actions backing up, or justifying, his verbal profession of faith.
 
2. The second key is this: What errors are each refuting? Paul is arguing (Romans 1:16-5:2) against the notion that there is something we can do that contributes meritoriously to our being declared legally righteous before God. James is arguing (James 1:22-2:26) against antinomianism. That is the notion that the life of someone who posesses true faith in Christ will not necessarily exhibit works as evidence of (justification of) that faith. "Show me your faith without your works, and I will show you my faith by my works."
 
Notice also how Paul (in Romans 4) and James (in James 2:21-24) each use different incidents in Abraham's life to illustrate their respective points. See how these two narratives from Genesis 15 & 22, as cited by Paul and James, complement and support each other.
 
The law of (non-)contradiction is:
 
"A" can not be "non-A" at the same time and in the same sense.
 
I have shown that Paul and James were each using the word "justification" in a different sense. Therefore, there is no contradiction.
 
The debate is still a live issue today however. The slogan of the Reformers, "Salvation by Grace Alone, through Faith Alone, because of Christ Alone, for the Glory of God Alone" is challenged  not only by Roman Catholics, but various sects such as Jehovah's Witnesses and Mormons and even segments of Evangelicalism. Skeptics see the issue as a contradiction in the Bible, nullifying it's authority.
 
Reformed churches have consistently believed and taught that God graciously saves us solely through faith in Christ and His perfect life and His death on the cross on behalf of sinners. We believe that this faith is a gift from God and is a faith that produces works necessarily.
 
For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them. __Ephesians 2:8-10 NKJV
 
 
Cartoon by Richard Gunther

The Believer's Union With Christ

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As this is Friday, the eve of the weekend that begins Holy Week, I thought it appropriate to post C.H. Spurgeon's morning devotional for today, the 30th of March, from the devotional, "Morning and Evening."

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"He was numbered with the transgressors."-Isaiah 53:12
    
    Why did Jesus suffer Himself to be enrolled amongst sinners? This wonderful condescension was justified by many powerful reasons. In such a character He could the better become their advocate. In some trials there is an identification of the counsellor with the client, nor can they be looked upon in the eye of the law as apart from one another. Now, when the sinner is brought to the bar, Jesus appears there Himself. He stands to answer the accusation. He points to His side, His hands, His feet, and challenges Justice to bring anything against the sinners whom He represents; He pleads His blood, and pleads so triumphantly, being numbered with them and having a part with them, that the Judge proclaims, "Let them go their way; deliver them from going down into the pit, for He hath found a ransom."

Our Lord Jesus was numbered with the transgressors in order that they might feel their hearts drawn towards Him. Who can be afraid of one who is written in the same list with us? Surely we may come boldly to Him, and confess our guilt. He who is numbered with us cannot condemn us. Was He not put down in the transgressor's list that we might be written in the red roll of the saints? He was holy, and written among the holy; we were guilty, and numbered among the guilty; He transfers His name from yonder list to this black indictment, and our names are taken from the indictment and written in the roll of acceptance, for there is a complete transfer made between Jesus and His people. All our estate of misery and sin Jesus has taken; and all that Jesus has comes to us. His righteousness, His blood, and everything that He hath He gives us as our dowry.

Rejoice, believer, in your union to Him who was numbered among the transgressors; and prove that you are truly saved by being manifestly numbered with those who are new creatures in Him.

James versus Paul: Competing Theologies?

St. Paul and St. James Battle it out.

The question is: Does the Bible teach that we are saved by Faith Alone, or a combination of Faith and Works? It gets complicated when it appears that two authors of New Testament epistles have different views on the matter.

A friend (blogger name "Captain Howdy") tells me that his take is that this is an example of a contradiction in the Bible. Here is an excerpt of the exchange of comments on Ray Comfort's blog:


Captain Howdy:
Ray tells us--"Salvation is by grace alone, through faith alone, without any works."

Everyone turn in your Bibles to James chapter 2--

17 Even so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone.
18 Yea, a man may say, Thou hast faith, and I have works: shew me thy faith without thy works, and I will shew thee my faith by my works.
19 Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well: the devils also believe, and tremble.
20 But wilt thou know, O vain man, that faith without works is dead?

So Ray just told us that salvation is by faith alone, but James tells us that salvation is by both faith AND works!

Hmmm..who to believe...who to believe...?

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Craig:
There are two keys to understanding what some claim is a "contradiction" between Paul's and James' teaching on "justification," and they are easily discerned by reading their respective arguments.
 
1. The first key is is the different senses in which each is using the word JUSTIFICATION (and it's variants: "justify" and "justified") Paul is talking about being declared legally righteous in God's sight, while James is talking about a person's actions backing up, or justifying, his verbal profession of faith.
 
2. The second key is this: What errors are each refuting? Paul is arguing (Romans 1:16-5:2) against the notion that there is something we can do that contributes meritoriously to our being declared legally righteous before God. James is arguing (James 1:22-2:26) against antinomianism. That is the notion that the life of someone who prosesses true faith in Christ will not necessarily exhibit works as evidence of (justification of) that faith. "Show me your faith without your works, and I will show you my faith by my works."
 
Notice also how Paul (in Romans 4) and James (in James 2:21-24) each use different incidents in Abraham's life to illustrate their respective points. See how these two narratives from Genesis 15 & 22, as cited by Paul and James, complement and support each other.
 
The law of (non-)contradiction is:
 
"A" can not be "non-A" at the same time and in the same sense.
 
I have shown that Paul and James were each using the word "justification" in a different sense. Therefore, there is no contradiction.
 
The debate is still a live issue today however. The slogan of the Reformers, "Salvation by Grace Alone, through Faith Alone, because of Christ Alone, for the Glory of God Alone" is challenged  not only by Roman Catholics, but various sects such as Jehovah's Witnesses and Mormons and even segments of Evangelicalism. Skeptics see the issue as a contradiction in the Bible, nullifying it's authority.
 
Reformed churches have consistently believed and taught that God graciously saves us solely through faith in Christ and His perfect life and His death on the cross on behalf of sinners. We believe that this faith is a gift from God and is a faith that produces works necessarily.
 
For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them. __Ephesians 2:8-10 NKJV
 
 
Cartoon by Richard Gunther

God Justifies the Wicked

The righteousness of God is a command that condemns us all, but the righteousness from God is a gift that saves all who believe. This gospel announces that sinners "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). God imputes (credits) our sin to Christ and Christ's righteousness to us. "Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ" (Rom. 5:1). This is the simplest news to grasp and yet the most difficult news to accept. Paul considered this doctrine to be so central that he regarded its explicit denial as "anathema" --that is, an act of heresy that the Galatian church was on the verge of committing (Gal. 1:8-9). For Paul, a denial of justification was tantamount to a denial of grace and even to a denial of Christ, "for if justification were through the law, then Christ died for no purpose" (Gal. 2:21).

_Michael Horton__ from The Gospel-Driven Life
 
(Last October I posted a "paraphrased quote" from Michael Horton. I went back to revise the post and get his exact quote, and ended up expanding the entire post. So...here it is "not-really-again" in its new and improved version. _Craig)

OUR SALVATION

Our salvation is accomplished by the mediatorial work of the historical Christ alone. His sinless life and substitutionary atonement alone are sufficient for our justification and reconciliation to the father. In salvation we are rescued from God's wrath by His grace alone.

There is no gospel except that of Christ's substitution in our place, whereby God imputed to him our sin, and imputed to us his righteousness. The gospel declares what God has done for us in Christ. It is not about what we can do to reach Him.

Justification is by grace alone, through faith alone, because of Christ alone__ Christ's righteousness is imputed to us as the only possible satisfaction of God's perfect justice. It does not rest on any merit found in us.

Because salvation is of God and has been accomplished by God, it is for God's glory and we must glorify Him always.

___A few excerpts from the Cambridge Declaration on our salvation.