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Introduction on justification by faith alone
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INTRODUCTION
Justification by faith is viewed by Christians as one of the greatest gifts from God given to the sons of Adam's lost race. Nothing can compare to the God given gift. Since the beginning of the church however, the doctrine justification has been quite an issue. For many years, scholars have been researching justification, the basis, as well as the ways to attain it. Once the definition was defined, the problem that scholars faced was the outcomes that followed it. In order for one to understand justification, one must comprehend the writings of Paul in his epistle of Romans.
THE DEFINITION OF JUSTIFICATION
Scholars have faced difficulties trying to find the true meaning of justification. One reason why finding the meaning of the Greek work "justification" has been such a difficult task is because of the many different meaning the word has. Though justification has many different meanings the ordinary sense of it is "to declare righteous" 1. (Brooks) The Webster Comprehensive Dictionary states the theological definition of justification to be, "the forensic, juridical, or gracious act of God by which the sinner is declared righteous, or justly free from obligation to penalty, and fully restored to divine favor."2 (Calvin). Justification is a derivative of the noun dikaiosis. the word dikaiosis is found in two parts of the New Testament Romans 5:18 and Romans 4:25. When used, it referred to God declaring men free of guilt and also adequate to him.
According to Douglas Moo, justification is 'no legal fiction' but a rather significant legal reality that means to be acquitted of all charges that could be carried out by God because of sins committed by his followers. Identical to Paul's findings, Moo also puts emphasi...
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...: Logos Research Systems, Inc., 2009), 43.
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Dockery, David S., Butler, Trent C., Church, Christopher L. et al., Holman Bible Handbook (Nashville)
Kohlenberger III, John R. "Covenant" The NRSV Concordance. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1991. Print
Packer, J.I., Concise Theology : A Guide to Historic Christian Beliefs (Wheaton, Ill.: Tyndale House, 1995).
Pope, William Burt, vol. 2, A Compendium of Christian Theology: Being Analytical Outlines of a Course of Theological Study, Biblical, Dogmatic, Historical, Volumes 1-3 (London: Beveridge and Co., 1879).
Thompson, Henry O. "Jordan River." The Anchor Bible Dictionary. Ed. David N. Freedman. New York: Doubleday. 1992. Print.
Wiersbe, Warren W., The Bible Exposition Commentary (Wheaton, Ill.: Victor Books, 1996), Ro