The Doctrine of Justification | Introduction (11/02/2003)

The Doctrine of Justification in Luke 18

All right, we're gonna be in Luke chapter 18 starting with verse 9, but we're introducing a new topic today. We've been talking about the finished work of Jesus Christ and all that it accomplishes and We've been talking about the fact that it makes us acceptable in Christ today.

We're gonna turn to a new topic and it still deals with the finished work of Christ. But this is one of the greatest Topics in the Bible one of the greatest doctrines to study. And it is all wrapped up in the finished work of Jesus Christ, and it is the doctrine of justification.

Probably one of the most majestic doctrines in the whole Bible. It is the doctrine that Martin Luther took from. As he came out of the Roman Catholic Church the doctrine of grace. Justification by grace not by works and he went back to Augustine's works and his writings on justification by grace and brought that back to life and Ended up being separated from the Catholic Church because of this great doctrine there was a group of Protestants.

It's probably a misuse of the word by common usage, but it is the true usage of it. Because a Protestant is someone who protests the Roman Catholic Church and the Pope the authority of the Pope there was a group of those people that date back all the way to 300 AD that never were a part of the Catholic or the Protestant movement as we speak of the Protestant movement.

In other words, they did not come through Martin Luther. They were already there when he showed up on the scene. They were called Waldenses. They were called Anabaptists. They had different names throughout that time period but they were Bible believers and throughout the time period they believed in justification by grace and by faith.

Self-Righteous Religion and the Pharisee and the Publican

So this doctrine of justification we will just introduce it this morning. And we'll spend another Sunday or two talking about it, but to introduce this topic. I want to use just one passage rather than Jumping around into all the different verses that deal with justification because there are many in other words.

We could study it as a topical study, which is a good thing to do. We may look at it more topically next Sunday. But today I want to look at it in a passage and what's interesting to me is many times we do study topically.

It's a great way to study when you're first saved because you need to cover the great doctrines of the Bible. It's good to study them topically. But eventually as you mature in the Lord you more and more like to study passages and you may find your topic within that passage and study the whole passage and what happens when you take a passage like Luke chapter 18 and you study it with a view to Justification and you see many things that we usually read it as different parts of Luke a story here and a story here and a Parable in a in a point that Jesus makes in another parable and we don't read it as a whole.

Sometimes or sometimes we read it that way, but we don't study it that way. So we tend to study it in its parts and Today, I think you'll see as we study this great doctrine of justification starting with about verse 9 and you read the entire passage and you see Everything that it has to contribute To our understanding of this one doctrine even though there are many other things to study in the passage.

Look at it from the point of view of what it contributes to our understanding of justification so start with Luke chapter 18 in verse 9 and He spake this parable unto certain which trusted in themselves.

Underlined that it's a key to understanding the rest of the passage this morning. Certain which trusted in themselves that they were righteous and Despised others doesn't necessarily mean they hated them like we would use the word despised today.

But what it means is they didn't want to be around them. They they didn't believe in their system. They felt like they were all just lost sinners and they didn't really want anything to do with them at all.

And in that sense They despised them they separated themselves from these other people. Now what's amazing to me that first verse where it says they trusted in themselves describes most religion today 2 ,000 years almost after Jesus wrote that I guess we don't have to say almost anymore.

Give or take a few years because our calendar is different 2 ,000 years later. It still describes the religion of the day. All religion including the quote great religions of the world such as Muhammad ism or Islam and Buddhism and Hinduism and even Judaism and I would have to say unfortunately many forms of people who call themselves Christians and Then the cults that came out of the Christians such as Mormonism and the Jehovah's Witnesses and Armstrong ism.

All of them have one thing in common. They trust in themselves. That they are more righteous than others. It is a system a man-made system to try to reach God through doing things that please him. What's amazing is you if you go back to the Greek history and the gods of the Greeks.

You'll find that all of those gods and they are many that but they all have one thing in common. They have a natural propensity. To be angry with man. The Greek gods come angry and They have to be propitiated and it's interesting because the New Testament writers picked up this word Propitiation and taught it as a Christian doctrine, but they use the word in a different way than it's used in the pagan religion.

Because in the pagan religions you are presented with a god who is angry already at man. And you have to do things to please these gods such as do set human sacrifices sometimes they would sacrifice their own children to these gods and they would do it oftentimes around Halloween time to try to Keep these quote angry gods from destroying their crops and so forth.

So Halloween arose from the pagan attempt to propitiate angry gods and demons and so forth and they dressed up like demons to try to make the demons think that Demons were already there. So they'd leave their crops alone and it goes with a lot of history to Halloween.

But it comes back to the fact that these gods Had to be propitiated because they were angry with man. Wrathful, it doesn't take that meaning in the New Testament and and our Christianity a true biblical Christianity.

Because God did not move away from man man moved away from God in the garden if you remember and That is the way it happened. God did not have an angry stance with man. He loved man and said man is good and he placed him in the garden and said all is good and Then he rested on the seventh day.

But Somewhere after Adam taught taught his children what God had taught him after they fell and God Himself the Lord killed the first animal shed the first blood on the planet earth to provide an offering and clothes.

Adam and Eve if you remember in the Animal skins because the fig leaves were not enough. That was man's religion. You see that's man man always wants to figure out a way to do it his own way. So when you think of all these other great religions of the world think of fig leaves they don't cover anything up and God Shed blood which pointed to the coming Messiah the Savior of the world.

And clothed them with the skins of the sacrificial animal. Somewhere after that as Adam taught his children and their children and their children About the sacrifice and about the coming Messiah. Somewhere as Cain goes out into the world and you have the seed of Satan going out spiritual seed of Satan.

Cain is a physical picture of that and it goes out into the world man began to desire to worship God in his own way and Actually Cain was the first one he is the father of that. He did not want to worship God in a way that pleased God.

He wanted to worship God in a way that pleased himself and So religion became self-centered and humanistic in all religion except true biblical Christianity is still that way today and this is such a great picture of it and he spake this parable into certain which trusted in themselves that they were righteous and Despised others who what who didn't follow their system?

They set up the system. They follow it proving their righteous. Hopefully and others who won't follow that system they despise them because they don't have the same religious system the same way it is most of the wars of this world have been Fought over those religious systems and they're still being fought today over those systems.

Justification by Grace, Mercy, and Propitiation

Verse 10 two men went up into the temple to pray the one a Pharisee and the other Republican. Well, it was the Pharisee who was trusting in himself. The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself God I Thank thee hadn't it interesting we read that to mean he prayed with himself to mean he just prayed in his mind.

But you could read that to say that God wasn't there. He just prayed with himself. He prayed in such a way that he was by himself praying to himself. But the Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself God I thank thee that I am not as other men are.

The rest of them are extortioners and unjust and they're adulterers. Or even as this publican and he probably pointed at the public and that's interesting as we read through this passage. Towards the end of the passage.

We're going to have Jesus Giving the historical account of Zacchaeus and what was Zacchaeus? What was his way of making a living? He was a publican. Could he might have been the man that this Pharisee was pointing at?

I don't know. Maybe not. But certainly a similar man. If it wasn't Zacchaeus, it was a buddy of his. They knew each other both being publicans. It Quite likely could have been him. I don't know how many publicans were allowed in one little section of Roman territory.

I wouldn't think they would allow but one. Because he doesn't want to split his takings. But anyway, we won't belabor that point. It is interesting though that the Pharisee points to a publican and says I'm glad I'm not a sinner like him.

Verse 12 now he begins to list part of his religious system. He says I fast twice a week. Therefore if you don't do that, you're not right with God is his implication. I Give tithes of all that I possess therefore if you don't do that just like I do that you couldn't possibly be right with God because I Trust in myself and in my religious system and you're not doing it.

Therefore you can't possibly be right. All of this is just laced with this kind of philosophy verse 13 and the publicans standing afar off. Would not lift up so much as his eyes into heaven. But smote upon his breast saying God be merciful to me a sinner.

Now our eyes turn from this Pharisee Who the world would view as a religious and a righteous and a good man with his whole act together. Our eyes turn from him to a man that we would all hate. It would be greatly hated because he takes up the taxes and we know he's an extortion er because he takes more taxes than the Roman government requires and he keeps the rest for his own living and He lives to excess and our eyes look over and we focus on him.

And we notice that the man is over there and he will not look up to God as the Pharisee was looking up towards heaven praying probably, you know, probably. Everyone could see exactly what he was doing because he wanted people to see what he was doing.

The publican didn't dare look up to heaven. Because in his heart Which was under conviction of the Holy Spirit He smote his breast and knew that he required mercy. Now there's something hidden. There's a hidden gem in this that you won't see unless you go to the Greek language.

So let's look at this word merciful. God be merciful to me a sinner. The truth is God Cannot be merciful as men think of mercy. We've talked about that many times. God can't just say okay. I forgive you.

I'll look over that one and we'll move on do better next time. God's righteousness and justice Cannot allow that. But it's fascinating that this word does not really mean merciful. It's not even the Greek word that's used and translated into the word mercy mercy.

Elsewhere in the Bible. It's actually a very important Greek word and it is Helos come a he but it comes from a word Helos Starry on which we've talked about before a couple of years back when we were teaching through the sacrifices in the Old Testament.

Helos Starry on is the word if you look at the Septuagint, which is the Greek translation of the Old Testament Bible the word Helos Starry on is used to describe the lid or the covering of the mercy seat.

You remember the mercy seat? The mercy seat was a place of judgment. It had a covering over it and when when The Levites would sprinkle the blood on that place. It became a mercy seat rather than a judgment seat and The word for that is Helos Starry on it is the place where the blood propitiates.

God now remember out of all of the finished work of Christ that we've studied there's We look at most of them as pertaining to us to God's children. Such as reconciliation such as redemption and even justification.

But there is one that we've studied that is not pertaining to us but to God himself and which one is it propitiation. It is man who is reconciled but is God it is God who is propitiated so that when Jesus died on the cross and Finished his work of the cross and gave his blood.

He did not as the hymn we sang this morning. Do it just for us. All I need to know is that Jesus died for me or Howard how to say it Charlotte. Tell me sing that little part. It is enough that Jesus died for me is false.

Now I'm not knocking the song. In fact, I love that song because I know that whoever wrote it knew the rest of the story, too. But I'm just saying I'm trying to make a point. It really is not enough that Jesus died for me because if Jesus had not died for the father also We would still go to hell.

Because unless the blood had propitiated God We could not have been reconciled or redeemed to God. So propitiation is huge in the mind of God and in the mind of God that he's given us in the scriptures and the word circles around the very place of propitiation.

Which is that he lost Arion the seat of the mercy seat the covering where the blood is sprinkled. Now, this is the root word that this word for merciful comes from. It's a little bit longer word than he lost Arion.

It's He lost coma. Hey and it means to make Propitiation to make propitiation and there's only one who can do that and that's the Lord Man with his religious acts that Pharisee standing there trusting in himself looking up to God saying here's my system I've done it.

So in that wouldn't that be cool if you could do that you you define your own system and then you do it and then you're Right with God. That's what Joseph Smith did the father of Mormonism. He wanted to have I'll say because the children in the room intimate relations with women and their daughters and many of them He wanted to have an orgy all the time.

So he goes out and he gets out somewhere where no one can see him and he finds a book That he says came from God. Which says it's okay to do that. So, isn't it wonderful man can write his own rules and then step back and say God look I kept them And expect God to be pleased.

That's religion. That is the religion of the world. I don't care whether you call it Mormonism. It doesn't or is Islam. It doesn't matter what you call it or even some forms of Christianity today, unfortunately.

Because they set their own rules and they go about to keep them. And if you don't keep them, you're not in the in the sect. But it's interesting that when this man Beat his breast and would not so much as look up to heaven.

He simply said God Make propitiation unto me a sinner be propitiated With respect to me a sinner. He did not say be merciful. One might ask how did this man? Know to say that how did this man who was a Jew?

Well, this man was familiar with the Old Testament sacrifices since when we come into the early parts of the New Testament. They're still in the Old Testament economy. He knew well The sacrificial system he knew about the scapegoat.

And he knew that that goat did two things not one that it reconciled man and redeemed man. But it also propitiated God. God was satisfied With what that picture which was the death of the true lamb as the payment for sin so God's justice is Satisfied by that blood and that's what propitiation means in this poor sinner.

Would not even look up to God but he did know what to say. He said God May you be propitiated with regard to my sin now. He may not have known all about how that happened, but he knew that's what had to happen.

Which is more than 98 of everyone who calls himself a Christian today are religionist knows. So what a beautiful hidden gem we have there in the word merciful. The same word is found in Hebrews chapter 2.

Let me just read this to you it's translated into the word reconciliation in that verse and really If you wanted a true Translation in Luke 18 13 where he says God be merciful to me a sinner. It would say God be propitiated with regard to me a sinner.

In Hebrews 2 16 and 17 the word Reconciliation is used. It would be better translated propitiation because that's what the word is in the Greek. So but Hebrews 2 16 for barely he took not on him the nature of angels.

But he took on him the seed of Abraham. Jesus was not an angelic being. Katie. You were right. The Mormons are wrong. The Mormons teach that Jesus is an angelic being and I don't care what source you take any source you read about Mormons will tell you that's what they believe and therefore they are wrong because Hebrews chapter 2 verse 16 says Jesus took not on him the nature of angels.

But he took on him the seed of Abraham wherefore in all things it behooved him to be made like unto his brethren that he might be a merciful and faithful high priest and things pertaining to God to make Mark this in your Bible propitiation for the sins of the people.

In other words Because of the sins of the people it does not mean now we know he did do this. He did make reconciliation for the sins of the people, but this verse is not teaching that. This verse is not saying he made Reconciliation for the sins of the people.

It's saying he made Propitiation because of the sins of the people. The little word for in the New Testament Can mean because of and it means that more often than not He made Propitiation Because of the sins of the people for in that he himself hath suffered being tempted.

He is able to secure them that are tempted. The heel Osterion the lid or the covering of the mercy seat is what we're talking about in Luke chapter 18 same usage in Hebrews. Now I'm going to go back to Luke 18 and we're down to verse 14 now.

I Jesus is pointing out both men you have on the one hand a man who looks like he's got his act together. He's a respected man. He sits in the high seats he's respected in the great banquets and He trusts in himself that he is righteous and he despises everyone who uses any other system other than his own religious system, which he himself created and We have on the other hand a man who is not part of that system who's never been a part of it.

And he knows he's a sinner. Somehow he's been made aware That he's a sinner and he beats his breast and he doesn't even look up because he's humble. And he says God be propitiated because of my sins. Jesus looks at both those two men and look what he says in verse 14.

I tell you This man the man who beat his breast and refused to look up and said God be merciful To me a sinner that man went down to his house justified. So we have an introduction to the doctrine of justification right in this passage.

There's a lot to be learned about it by watching this example that Jesus gives. This man went down to his house justified. Rather than the other tells me the other is not justified. He didn't say along with the other or this man also went to his house justified.

He said this man went to the house justified rather than that man implying that man is still on his way to hell. And he's in the midst of a very rigorous Religious system where he does many things for God in his own mind, but in his own way.

God has rejected that man and never known that man, but this other man went to his house justified. Jesus adds a point to the end of this sentence and makes another Strong point. He says for everyone That exalted himself shall be embassed.

You see those who trust in themselves that they are righteous those people Exalt in themselves and in their own religious systems. Jesus said they'll be a based and he that humbleth himself Shall be exalted By the Lord.

Childlike Faith, the Rich Young Ruler, and the Cost of Following Christ

Now let's look at this word justification verse 14. The Greek word is Dika yo-ho. Which means to render just or innocent to render just or innocent. When Jesus said this man Went down to his house justified.

He is saying that someone else rendered him to be just or innocent. We see that in the definition of the word itself and the usage of the word, but we also see it in the grammar. This word justified is in the perfect tense in the passive voice and in the participle mood.

The perfect tense is the same in Greek as it is in English and it describes an action Which is viewed as having been completed in the past once and for all Never needing to be repeated again. Did you get to catch that definition?

You've heard it before but anything that's in the perfect tense in the Greek. It's an action that has been completed in the past. Never to be repeated again. Secondly the passive I'm sorry That's the perfect.

The passive voice means this is done to you by someone greater than yourself. You did not do the action. Someone did the action to you and the participle is in English akin to putting I and G after word.

It's like a continual. So you you understand the grammar and the word itself. Jesus said this man Goes to his house already justified. Already justified by someone greater than himself. This is not something he could do himself he was not trusting in himself as the Pharisee was and The I NG participle means it is an ongoing Effect, even though it's a once Completed event that never needs to be done again.

It has been done to him by God. But the effect of it goes on every day. So we have a past tense of our salvation, but we have a present tense. We have a past tense of our justification, but we have a continuing Justification.

In other words, there is one who is seated at the throne of God as your advocate right now today. It keeps on arguing the case that you are Justified and he cannot lose that case because it's based upon his own blood and his own perfect Sacrifice and upon this he less starry on this mercy seat that already has his blood his perfect blood sprinkled all over it.

The case is based upon the blood and The case cannot be defeated. So we see our first point in this passage. Self-exaltation and Justification don't reside in the same person. If a person is self-righteous and trust in themselves and their own religion for salvation.

They are not justified before God. Point number one. Now let's go to Luke 18 verse 15 as we move our way through the passage. And they brought unto him also infants. Now, you see we study these as separate stories.

You know, you know, we do as we read through you're gonna say Oh, yeah. I remember we had Sunday school lesson on that once when I was a kid and yeah. We had a little Sunday school lesson on this once when I was a kid.

Probably all came out of the quarterly because the quarry likes to take one little piece of it stick it in there. I don't. I just remember these stories. But it's not written as five stories. It's written as one whole truth about Justification.

Look at verse 15. They brought unto him also infants. Jesus is not through teaching about justification. He's just gonna use a different example. They brought unto him also infants that he would touch them.

But when his disciples saw it they rebuked him. They had to learn. But Jesus called them unto him. Did you little children hear that sitting there with Miss Charlotte today? Jesus called the little children and said come sit on my lap.

He loved little children and still does. So Jesus called them unto him and said allow the little children to come unto me forbid them not and then he pointed to these little children just like these seated right over here and he used them as A model and an example to teach about justification.

Now, look what he says. For such is the kingdom of God. Truly when Jesus uses that word in English King James barely when he uses that he's making a point. He says I tell you the truth. Truly I say to you Whosoever shall not receive the kingdom of God as a little child shall in no wise enter therein.

What is he teaching us about justification? Justification is not caused by knowledge or pride or strength. But by childlike faith. Now remember. What does justification mean the definition of it? To be rendered just to be rendered just it the whole thing.

Proves that it has to be done by another. You cannot render yourself just as. An adult would try to do a child would never do that. So they get maybe a little older. Start learning from mom and dad, but a child just has faith in their parents that what they say is in fact what's going to happen and That's the kind of faith Jesus describes that has to do with justification.

Justification is not caused by knowledge or pride or strength as an adult would have but by childlike faith. Verse 18. And A certain ruler asked him saying good master. What shall I do to inherit eternal life?

Now here's another little story we study. Can't you see these you sell them just read through and look at them all in the context of the discussion on justification? But it's another story. We're starting here.

The man says good master. What should I do and Jesus you remember the answer? Why do you call me good? Why did he put that in there? It doesn't make a lot of sense unless you understand he'd already been talking about justification for a long time he had already used the Example of the Pharisee and the publican and the Pharisee trusts in himself.

Jesus said now Jesus said here comes one to him and says good master. He said why you call me good. Can a man be good on his own is the point that he's making if all I am is a man can I be good. And he's probing the young man to see who the young man will say that he is is one thing.

But he's also pointing out the young man You call me good. Does that mean you think you're good? What shall I do to inherit eternal life. Jesus why you call me good. None is good. Whoa. None is good. Save one that is God.

Are you that good? He's asking the man because he's confronted here with another man just after telling the story about the Pharisee a Lawyer comes now a lawyer is someone who is studying the law the Judaistic law.

He is a legalist. He's a man who thinks if you keep this law, you're good and Jesus said why do you even call me good? There's only one good and that's God and he's saying can you get this? You're not good.

But the young man didn't get it. Did he? At least from what we can see so far, but we really don't know what's going on in his heart. But look what happens. Well, thou knowest the commandments. Do not commit adultery.

Do not kill. Do not steal. Do not bear false witness. Honor your father and mother. And the young man said all of these have I kept perfectly from my youth. He implied that and Jesus in his heart Is shaking his head it goes on and it says that Jesus said, you know He heard these things and he said yet you lack one thing.

You've done all your religious acts. Now go sell everything you have distributed to the poor and That will cause you to have treasure in heaven. He didn't say that's what caused you to be saved. He didn't say that would cause you to inherit eternal life.

He said that will cause you to have treasure in heaven but now he says come and follow me and that is the answer to what will give you eternal life and When the young man heard this he was very sorrowful or he was very rich.

Could this have been the man in whose grave Jesus was buried. Do we know for a fact this man never got saved just because he walked away from this event. You know Saul walked away from the stoning of Stephen unsaved still but was God working in his heart.

But the thing we learned from this story is that justification does not arise from keeping the law or being quote good. Because the best goodness we can have in God's view is as filthy rags. So let's read on verse 24 and when Jesus saw that he was very when he saw that he was very sorrowful he said How hardly how difficult it is for those that have riches to enter into the kingdom of God.

Well He says it's easier for a camel to go through the needle's eye than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of heaven. And those that heard it say well, then who can be saved? Because some of Jesus's followers like John owned his own business had servants.

He was he had some money. Probably some of the other ones did and He said the things which are impossible with men are possible with God. So was there hope for the rich young ruler who walked away from this event?

Well, there was hope but what does it teach us? You can't buy just you cannot buy it with money. In fact money can be a hindrance to true justification. Larger churches are filled with people Who are wealthy and think that if they buy things for the church and do things for the pastor and for the key leaders?

That they're buying their way to heaven. Makes them feel better makes them feel better about their wealth makes them feel better about their life of ease makes them feel better about the selfishness they have in their heart and that is the motivation behind why they give these types of people and and This rich young ruler at least he was honest enough to walk away.

So you can't buy justification. Verse 28 then Peter said lo We have all left all and followed thee and he said to them barely I say unto you there is no man that has left house or parents or brethren or wife or children for the kingdom of God's sake.

Who shall not receive Manifold more in this present time and in the world to come everlasting life. There's been a group of people For many years who have espoused from the pulpit and so it comes down into our thought life as as if it's a scripture.

Sometimes you know how that happens you hear little sayings that are preached in different big meetings and it's an area well, it's got to be true. I've heard so many preachers say it and Many have said many of the commentators will say that the New Testament Christianity is Spiritual whereas the Old Testament is physical.

There is a sense in which that's true because we're in a different dispensation. But the truth is the same people the Old Testament had to be at the heart also didn't. So it's not as cut and dry as scholars would have you believe.

To say that it's all physical in the old. It's all spiritual in the new. It's not that cut-and-dry because we can demonstrate that in the Old Testament There were people who had salvation of the heart such as David.

But we can also give demonstrations of New Testament people who were given wealth and success in the New Testament, which are physical and Use them or I should say God used that in the person to do his will in the world.

So sometimes I think theologians oversimplify. But I just wanted to point out that Jesus said if you give up things if you give up Physical things if you give up time with your loved ones that you would normally spend all of it with them and you use some Of that to go out and minister.

He said you will receive many more Things such as this in this present time. That's now. So that those are some physical things that can come your way now. But he also says and in the world to come life everlasting.

Now I will say this the joy in the heart of a born-again person Who has given something up for the Lord or for others, which is the same as for the Lord? Far Surpasses the joy of having those things, doesn't it?