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The Daily Word of Righteousness
The Just Shall Live by Faith, #7
For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith. (Romans 1:17)
What does Paul mean, in Romans 1:17?
Paul means, as the chapters that follow Chapter One of Romans will reveal, that God's righteousness comes to us, not on the basis of the works of the Law of Moses or any other set of religious works but on the basis of our faith in Christ's atonement. The faith in Christ's atonement always is in motion ("from faith to faith"). It is a living faith and it continually brings us to holy behavior. The end result of holy, righteous behavior is eternal life (Romans 6:22).
One can acknowledge the fact that God accepts the blood of Jesus as the propitiation (appeasement) for our sins. The believer can go even further by stating he desires that God apply the remission of sins to himself.
But there is much more to faith in the blood than this. We are to embrace the virtue of the blood of Jesus daily in such a manner that we wash our robes and make them white. It is the authority of the blood that makes it possible for us to overcome sin day after day until we stand perfect and complete in all the will of God.
The victorious saint makes many mistakes as he pursues the will of God. But as long as he is following after Jesus with all his strength, the blood of Jesus keeps on forgiving him. The blood keeps him in fellowship with God while he is growing in righteousness. The blood of Jesus is not to be used as a covering for careless, sinful, self-willed behavior.
True faith is living, always laying hold upon God and His Word so that our daily decisions are leading us into the Kingdom. It is not a theological position one is to adopt.
For example: there is no virtue in believing that Jesus was born of a virgin if we do nothing about it. There is merit in believing that Jesus was born of a virgin only if such belief leads to our realization that Jesus is the Divine Son of God, and as a result of our belief we do what He says, taking up our cross and following Him each day.
Paul is supportive of Habakkuk but not supportive of our tradition that belief in theology will bring us to eternal life in Heaven (itself an unscriptural concept in that Heaven and eternal life are not the same thing). True faith unites us with Christ such that godliness of behavior is forthcoming. Christ-filled, Christ-sponsored holiness is eternal life—life in the Presence of God.
Again:
But that no man is justified by the law in the sight of God, it is evident: for, The just shall live by faith. (Galatians 3:11)
What is Paul talking about? Is he contrasting godly behavior with faith in God? No, he is not. He is arguing against the Judaizers, against the necessity for circumcising Gentile Christians according to the Law of Moses.
To be continued.