“ . . . 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 2:16 ESV)
The passage we will consider this Sunday is the heart of Paul’s letter to the Galatians. The entire argument of his letter is grounded on, and depends on, this timeless truth: that sinful human beings can only be justified before the holy God by grace through faith in Christ alone.
If you have been part of evangelical churches for a time, such an idea might be quite familiar. We sing about God’s amazing grace, we call people to faith in Christ, and we know that good works cannot save anyone. However, while we might confess these things as true, we are in need of constant reminders because 1) We are surrounded by a world that thinks being good will get them to heaven, 2) We fail to apply grace to our lives and the lives of others; and 3) We mistakenly believe that, though faith in Christ is the doorway to salvation, we must keep our own salvation through the works of our hands.
When they first heard the gospel, the Galatians understood God’s grace in Christ. But false teachers tried to steal them away from God’s grace and place them under the yoke of the law once again. Paul is heartbroken that this church gave the false teachers an audience, and such influence! They were so in danger that Paul equates their deception to being “bewitched” in chapter 3.
This text teaches us, then, that it’s no small matter to twice, neglect, or reject the doctrine of justification by grace through faith in Christ alone. Christians of all levels of maturity must return to this truth regularly.
What is justification? This beautiful term means that God declares us to be righteous. Why does this matter? Because the chasm between God’s holiness and our sinfulness is so great, that we would never be able to stand in his glorious presence. But, by his grace, God offers us his perfect Son, who takes on our sins, and he gives us his Son’s perfect righteousness. On the day of judgment, we who believe in Christ can stand before God, even though we are sinners, because we are forgiven, made clean, acquitted, justified by faith in Christ!