By Faith

For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written,  
The just shall live by faith. 

Romans 1:17 

‘By faith alone’ was one of the foundational pillars of the Reformation. It was the articulation of rediscovered truth. From the most ancient days, humanity’s natural inclination has been to look to works as the means of gaining acceptance with God. To that end people have resorted to some of the most extreme behavior to try to gain God’s favor. This has resulted in things like self-torture, mutilation, and human sacrifice. God wants none of these things. From the beginning of human failure and misery, He has always pointed us to Christ. The first formal articulation of the gospel occurs in Genesis, ‘and I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her Seed; He shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise His heel.’ Paul, who wrote the words of our text, spent the first portion of his life dedicated to works-righteousness. He sought to fulfill the demands of God’s law by self-righteousness performance. It was not until Christ revealed Himself to him that he began to understand free grace. By the time he wrote the book of Romans, he could articulate the truth of justification by faith clearly and in exact terms. Thus, he wrote Romans as the nearest thing we have to a systematic theology in Scripture. The foundation of that theology is justification by faith. It centers on the holiness of God and the righteousness of Christ. Apart from Christ, there is no justification. With Christ there is justification and all that follows it. Christ is all.  

Our Holy and Righteous God, 
we rejoice that You justify us by Christ. 
We praise You that You accept us apart from the deeds of the law. 

Tomm Tice
Where the Bush is Burning