LECTURE XII.

JUSTIFICATION; ITS IMMEDIATE AND ONLY GROUND,-THE IMPUTED RIGHTEOUSNESS OF CHRIST.

MAN

ANY have admitted that the Justification of sinners is connected with the Mediatorial work of Christ, as its meritorious cause; while they have denied that it rests on His righteousness as its immediate and only ground. They have not ventured to set aside His merits altogether, or to say that His redeeming work had no influence in procuring our pardon and acceptance with God; on the contrary, they have professed to do signal homage to the merits of Christ, by acknowledging both their indispensable necessity, and their certain efficacy, but only as a means of procuring for us those terms of salvation, and that measure of grace, which render it possible for us to be justified by our personal obedience; while they have utterly rejected the idea that His righteousness is, or can be, imputed to us. Others, again, have admitted a real and important, but partial and imperfect, imputation of His righteousness; and have restricted it to the merits of His passive, as distinguished from that of His active, obedience, thereby leaving our Justification to rest, partly on His atoning sacrifice, and partly on our personal holiness in heart and life. It is necessary, therefore, to show that His righteousness,―considered as the entire merit of His whole Mediatorial work,-is not only

the meritorious cause, but also the immediate ground, of our Justification; and for this end, to inquire-What that righteousness is by which alone we can be justified,-why it is said to be the righteousness of God, or the merit of Christ, and how it becomes ours, so as to be available for our Justification?

PROP. XVI. The righteousness, which is the ground of a sinner's Justification, is denoted or described by various terms in Scripture, so that its nature may be determined by simply comparing these terms with one another; and then ascertaining whether there be any righteousness to which they are all equally applicable, and in which they all coincide, in the fulness of their combined meaning.

That righteousness is called in Scripture,-'the righteousness of God,'-'the righteousness of Christ,'-the 'righteousness of One,'-'the obedience of One,'-the 'free gift unto justification of life,'' the righteousness which is of,' or 'by,' or 'through, faith,'-'the righteousness of God without the law,' and 'the righteousness which God imputes without works.'

It will be found that, while these various expressions are descriptive of its different aspects and relations, they are all employed with reference to the SAME RIGHTEOUSNESS, that there is one righteousness, in which they all find their common centre, as so many distinct rays converging towards the same focus, while each retains its distinctive meaning,-and that there is no other righteousness to which they can all be applied, or in which they can find their adequate explanation.

It is called, pre-eminently and emphatically, 'The righteousness of God.' By this name it is distinguished from the righteousness of man, and even contrasted with it, as a ground of Justification. It is brought in as a

divine righteousness, only when all human righteousness has been shut out. The Apostle first proves that 'by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in His sight, for by the law is the knowledge of sin;' and then introduces another righteousness altogether, 'But now the righteousness of God without the law is manifest,

even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ." He contrasts the two great revelations-the revelation of wrath, which is by the Law, and the revelation of righteousness, which is by the Gospel: For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men :' but 'the Gospel of Christ is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth,

. for therein is the righteousness of God revealed." And, in his own case, he renounces his own personal righteousness altogether, as the ground of his acceptance and hope: That I may win Christ, and be found in Him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith." The two righteousnesses are not only distinct, but different; and not only different, but directly opposed, and mutually exclusive, considered as grounds of Justification; insomuch that he who is justified by the one, cannot possibly be justified by the other. If the righteousness of man be sufficient, the righteousness of God is superfluous; if the righteousness of God be necessary, the righteousness of man can have no place. Nor can any conciliation or compromise be effected between them, so as to admit of their being combined in one complex ground of acceptance; for they represent two methods of Justification which are irreconcilably opposed,—the one by grace, the other by works: For to him that worketh is the reward not reckoned of grace, but of debt; but to 1 Rom. iii. 20, 22. 2 Rom. i. 16, 18.

3 Phil. iii. 8.

him that worketh not, but believeth on Him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness."

'And

if by grace, then is it no more of works, otherwise grace is no more grace: but if it be of works, then is it no more grace, otherwise work is no more work.'2

But why is it called 'the righteousness of God?' Some have interpreted the expression in a singularly vague and indefinite sense, which amounts to a virtual evasion of its true meaning. Instead of the clear and precise words of the Apostle- the righteousness of God,' they would substitute their own loose paraphrase,—' God's method of justifying sinners.' (1) His expression is much more specific; it defines the RIGHTEOUSNESS which is revealed for our Justification. 'God's method of justifying sinners' is described in the context, when it is said that we are justified fully by His grace, through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus, whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in His blood;' but the expression-'the righteousness of God'-stands connected with the reason which is assigned for the whole work of redemption,-viz., 'to declare His righteousness for the remission of sins, that He might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus.' It points specifically to the righteousness on which our Justification depends. The right way to test the explanation of any phrase, is to apply it to all the cases in which that phrase occurs. It may possibly be found applicable to some of these without any apparent straining; but if it cannot be applied to some others without manifest incongruity, we have reason to conclude that it is either not sufficiently comprehensive, or not sufficiently precise. Suppose that 'the righteousness of God' might mean 'God's method of justifying sinners' when it is said to be manifested,

1 Rom. iv. 4.

2 Rom. xi. 6.

being witnessed by the law and the prophets,' can it possibly be understood in that vague sense, when Christ is said to be 'made of God righteousness to us,' or when we are said to be made the righteousness of God in Him?' It means a righteousness by which, and not merely a method in which, we are justified.

If we would understand the reason why it is called 'the righteousness of God,' we must bear in mind that there was a twofold manifestation of righteousness in the Cross of Christ: there was first a manifestation of the righteousness of God the Father, in requiring a satisfaction to His justice, and inflicting the punishment that was due to sin; and to this the Apostle refers when he says, that God set forth Christ to be a propitiation''to declare His righteousness, that He might be just, and the Justifier of him that believeth in Jesus;' there was, secondly, a work of righteousness by God the Son,-His vicarious righteousness as the Redeemer of His people, when He became obedient unto death, even the death of the Cross,' and thus became 'the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth.' But these two-God's righteousness which was declared, and Christ's righteousness which was wrought out, on the Cross-although they may be distinguished, cannot be separated, from one another; for they were indissolubly united in one and the same propitiation; and while the righteousness which is revealed for our Justification may be called 'the righteousness of God' with some reference to both, it properly consists in the merit of Christ's atoning sacrifice and perfect obedience, for these were offered by Him as our substitute and representative.

The same righteousness which is called 'the righteousness of God,' is also called 'the righteousness of Christ.' We obtain 'precious faith through the righteousness of