E-Book, Englisch, 176 Seiten
Schreiner / Cole / Martin Justification
1. Auflage 2023
ISBN: 978-1-4335-7576-1
Verlag: Crossway
Format: EPUB
Kopierschutz: 0 - No protection
An Introduction
E-Book, Englisch, 176 Seiten
Reihe: Short Studies in Systematic Theology
ISBN: 978-1-4335-7576-1
Verlag: Crossway
Format: EPUB
Kopierschutz: 0 - No protection
Thomas R. Schreiner (PhD, Fuller Theological Seminary) is the James Buchanan Harrison Professor of New Testament Interpretation and associate dean of the School of Theology at the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary.
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Justification in Church History
The topic under consideration in this chapter—justification in church history—doesn’t include the Old Testament and New Testament. Certainly, the scriptural witness is the most important history relative to justification, and most of this book will be devoted to the scriptural portrait of the doctrine. But in this chapter—before considering the biblical understanding—we consider briefly justification in the history of the church. It has often been said that we stand on the shoulders of those who have gone before us, and it would indeed be foolish to dive into justification without exploring what Christians in the previous centuries have said.
Some (perhaps only a few) Protestants have had the strange idea that most of what was written before our time or before the Reformation is useless or even harmful. A moment’s reflection should shake us out of such a mistaken notion. Many godly and learned Christians have studied the Bible over the centuries, and their intent in studying wasn’t to distort the biblical teachings so as to advance their own prejudices. Of course, they made mistakes and had blind spots, but the same is true of us. We aren’t free of presuppositions and prejudices either. We don’t venerate our ancestors in the faith, as if they are infallible guides to the meaning of the Scriptures and of justification in particular. Neither do we ignore them, as if they had nothing to say, as if they were all captured by alien ideologies. The Scriptures are the final authority, but the many godly believers who have walked the road of discipleship before us are also honored as our teachers.
The Early Church
Some scholars have maintained that the early church writers didn’t understand Paul’s teaching on justification, and thus the truth was lost in the early history of the church.1 It seems that the situation was more complicated than this. When we actually look at the evidence, we have a number of affirmations of justification by faith and, in some cases, even of justification by faith alone.2 The epistle 1 Clement was probably written ca. AD 96, and he clearly affirms that justification does not come from piety or works but by faith (1 Clem. 32:3–4). Similarly, the letters of Ignatius were written early in the second century. He doesn’t feature the word “justification,” but the concept is present, as he emphasizes the grace of Christ in his death and resurrection, finding his hope in God’s mercy (Magn.8:1; Phld. 5:1–2; 8:2; 9:2; Smyrn.6:1–2; 11:1).
The most beautiful statement about justification stems from the Epistle to Diognetus 9:2–5, which was written in the second century. It is worth reproducing here in full.
But when our unrighteousness was fulfilled, and it had been made perfectly clear that its wages—punishment and death—were to be expected, then the season arrived during which God had decided to reveal at last his goodness and power (oh, the surpassing kindness and love of God!). He did not hate us, or reject us, or bear a grudge against us; instead he was patient and forbearing; in his mercy he took upon himself our sins; he himself gave up his own Son as a ransom for us, the holy one for the lawless, the guiltless for the guilty, the just for the unjust, the incorruptible for the corruptible, the immortal for the mortal. For what else but his righteousness could have covered our sins? In whom was it possible for us, the lawless and ungodly, to be justified, except in the Son of God alone? O the sweet exchange, O the incomprehensible work of God, O the unexpected blessings, that the sinfulness of many should be hidden in one righteous person, while the righteousness of one should justify many sinners!3
The majesty and beauty of this text are striking, and we can scarcely say that no one in the early church understood justification by faith! Sinners are justified by God’s grace as the Son of God took upon himself the guilt we deserved.
The Odes of Solomon were written in the second century and are relatively unknown, but they clearly teach that justification is rooted in God’s kindness and grace instead of human merit (Odes Sol. 25:4), emphasizing God’s gracious election (Odes Sol. 4:7; 8:13; 10:3; 12:3; 23:2–3; 41:9). It is also interesting to note that justification is understood to be forensic and not transformative (Odes Sol. 25:8, 10; 33:12), and in this respect the Odes anticipate the Reformed understanding.
Justin Martyr engaged in a famous debate with Trypho (see Dialogue with Trypho) who was a Jewish opponent, and the debate between them reminds us in many respects of Paul’s controversy with the Galatian false teachers. Trypho emphasized that one should be circumcised and keep the law to be saved, echoing Paul’s opponents in Galatia. Justin affirms that justification is by faith, insisting that circumcision is unnecessary for salvation (Dial. 23.3–4; 92.2). Any works-righteousness (Dial.137.1–2) is rejected since salvation comes through Jesus’s work on the cross instead of performing of the law (Dial. 11:4–5; 137.1). Believers are righteous through Jesus’s death since he died in the place of believers, taking on himself the curse believers deserve (Dial. 95:1–3).
Another great thinker in the early church, one who could even be described as the first to engage in biblical theology, was Irenaeus (ca. 130–202). Irenaeus doesn’t work out the meaning of justification specifically, but he is famous for teaching that Jesus recapitulated human experience and that he reconciled sinners to himself in his death so that victory over sin and death is achieved in the cross of Christ.
Origen (185–254) is a rather mixed figure theologically, but he rightly discerns in the story of the thief on the cross that we are justified by faith.4 Righteousness doesn’t come, says Origen, from works of the law but is founded on our faith. At the same time, Origen emphasizes that those who exercise faith will do good works, and in this he is thoroughly biblical. Origen wasn’t completely consistent, however, and also said some things that indicate a belief in merit. He anticipates the new perspective in identifying the works of the law as referring to Jewish practices. Also, Origen’s notion that justification secures forgiveness only for past sins is inadequate, and it seems that he sees justification as a process instead of a declaration. Nick Needham has argued, however, that most of the early fathers believed justification was forensic and declarative instead of being transformative and a process.5 Those who are Reformed recognize deficiencies in Origen, but it is also important to recognize that justification hadn’t been debated and worked out thoroughly in the early church, and thus we should not be surprised by lack of precision and even some missteps along the way.
Many other testimonies could be mentioned. The fourth-century writer Theodoret of Cyrhuss comments on Ephesians 2:8: “It is not of our own accord that we have believed, . . . and even when we had come to believe, He did not require of us purity of life, but approving mere faith, God bestowed on us forgiveness of sins.”6 We see here an early and faithful commentary on Ephesians 2:8, and it is fair to say that forgiveness of sins is another way of talking about justification. Chrysostom, known as one of the greatest preachers in the early church, interpreted Ephesians 2:8 similarly. He differed from some of the Reformers, however, in his understanding of free will.7 In any case, Chrysostom believed that one was required to obey the law perfectly to be justified, and thus human beings can’t be justified by their works. Chrysostom’s understanding of the works of the law matches what we see in the Reformers. Thus, justification isn’t through human merit but divine grace, and the good works human beings do are a result of God’s grace.
Marius Victorinus wrote in the mid-fourth century, teaching that we aren’t saved by our virtue nor our merits and that we can’t stand in the right before God by the works of the law.8 Salvation is by God’s grace, and the good works that follow are also enabled by his grace. Hilary of Poitiers also wrote in the fourth century, affirming that justification cannot come via the law since human beings are sinners.9 He repeatedly emphasizes that salvation is by faith. He remarks that Abraham, the thief on the cross, and the eleventh-hour workers in the vineyard (Matt. 20:1–16) are all justified by faith. Interestingly, Hilary says that justification is by faith alone: “Because faith alone justifies . . . publicans and prostitutes will be the first in the kingdom of heaven.” Ambrosiaster, the name given to an unknown writer in the early church, also taught that justification was by faith alone.10 The precision of the Reformed view is missing since he spoke about meriting a final reward. The word...
