Justification Means Far More Than Pardon
This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus Romans 3:22-24
Paul is adding two more truths to everything he has so far said about God’s righteousness. The first is that it comes ‘through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe’ and the second, that this righteousness is directly linked to our justification. Having touched on the first we now look into the second.
‘This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who … are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.’ (3:22,24). In context ‘the righteousness from God’ is a combination of His righteous character, His faithfulness to His character and covenant in salvation, and His generous gift of our right-standing before Him.
Justification is a legal term, belonging to the law courts. Its opposite is condemnation. Both are pronouncements of a judge. In a Christian context justification and condemnation are the only two possible verdicts God the judge can declare on judgement day. When God justifies the sinner today, He anticipates His own final judgement by bringing into the present what rightly belongs in the future to that judgement day.
Justification is not the same as pardon. Pardon is the remission of a penalty or a debt. By contrast, justification is the declaration of a righteous status. For someone to be condemned means they have been declared guilty and so worthy of punishment. Justification is more than just releasing someone from punishment; it means to declare that punishment cannot be justly given. So pardon is the remission of punishment but justification is the declaration that no grounds for the inflicting of punishment exist.
Paul has emphasised that God’s justifying work is available through faith. Now he adds two further points. We are justified by means of God’s grace and on the basis of His redemptive work in Christ. ‘There is no difference, for all … are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus’ (3:23,24). Fundamental to the gospel is the truth that the initiative to save, from beginning to end, belongs to God the Father. We are sinful, guilty and condemned, helpless and hopeless. The first move was God the Father’s. Our justification is ‘freely by his grace,’ His free and undeserved favour.
Paul now describes what God did through the cross, through the death of His Son. God justifies us ‘through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.’ Redemption is a commercial term borrowed from the marketplace. In the Old Testament it was used of slaves who were purchased, so they could be set free. It was also used metaphorically of the Israelites who were ‘redeemed’ from captivity, first in Egypt (Exodus 15:13), and then in Babylon (Isaiah 43:1) and restored to their own land. We were slaves, in bondage to our sin and guilt and unable to set ourselves free. Christ redeemed us, brought us out of captivity, pouring out His blood as He died for us. This was the ransom price for our release. He came ‘to give His life as a ransom for many’ (Mark 10:45). We now belong to Him.
We have been declared to be right with God through our faith in Christ. We live now in complete assurance that on judgement day we will not only not be condemned, and not just be pardoned, but will actually be declared righteous before our God. We live now in full assurance of that future declaration. Don’t let the devil take away anything of your glorious freedom in Christ. You are redeemed, released from sin and Satan and belong to the one who redeemed you, Jesus Christ Himself.