Justification

The word for Justification is associated very closely to the word for righteousness. In fact the two are quite inseparable. One cannot be justified without being righteous and one cannot be righteous without being justified.

There several meanings attributed to the Greek words that are translated into our word, Justification.

DIKAIOSIS denotes the act of pronouncing righteousness or justification, or acquittal. It comes from the root word DIKAIOO (to justify). One (God) pronounces or justifies one (man) because man has met the conditions offered by God. Just like our lawyers would plea bargain and make a deal, so is justification an agreement reached where God would justify a man.

DIKAIOMA has three distint meanings, and seems best described comprehensively as "a concrete express of righteousness". It is a declaration that a person or thing is righteous, and hence, broadly speaking, it represents the expression and effect of DIKAIOSIS (above).

It signifies:
(a) and ordinace (i.e. what God declares to be right, referring to His decree of judgement. Ordinances of the Law is that which are requirements of the law whereby if followed, we should be considered as righteous or justified.
(b) a sentence of acquittal, by which God acquits men of their guilt, on the conditions of (1) His grace in Christ through the sacrifice (2) the acceptance of Christ by faith and obedience.
(c) a righteous act, as in an act of righteousness by what Christ did on the cross.

The verb in Greek is DIKAIOO. In the Bible it is exclusively reserved as an act that God or Christ or the Holy Spirit would declare upon a human subject. Now, man can declare God to be righteous and He is. But man cannot declare God to be in comparison to a past condition, for God has ever been just and righteous. Man on the other hand can change his condition before God. As the Bible declares, all have sinned and fallen short of the grace of God. But by a man's obedience and faith, God may declare that man to be righteous (because of his actions and response to God's gift).

Jesus is said to be the fulfillment of the Law (of Moses). Ideally, the fulfillment of the Law would produce a type of justification and would be a means of justification within itself. Mere human experience cannot produce any sort of justification except within the human relationships. The only way for justification to occur between God and man is for God to pronounce it upon the man, and no man will receive such pronouncement that does not deserve such.

Jesus is called the "justifier" in Romans 3. This is because Jesus provided the avenue whereby man could become righteous before God. Jesus is the door and the way and no man comes to the Father except through Jesus.

Some people seem to suggest that the idea of justification by works is denying the grace of God, yet these ideas compliment each other and offers the proof of our faith. True, that works do not save, but equally true is the fact that we cannot be saved without them either. Paul and James appear to contradict each other at times in this thought, but that appearance is weak. There are different elements associated with faith and works, and each writer is proceeding by viewing them from different perspectives. Paul is occupied with a right relationship with God, while James approaches the subjuct based upon right conduct. It is doubtful that either writer would argue against the other writers points. Paul testifies that the ungodly can be justified by faith, were James teaches that only the right-doer is justified. By reading and studying all of Pauls writings, you would get the idea that Paul would agree with James.

Read:
Exodus 23:7
Deuteronomy 25:1
1 Kings 8:32
2 Chronicles 6:23
Job 11:2
Job 13:18
Job 25:4
Job 32:2
Psalms 51:4
Psalms 143:2
Proverbs 17:15
Isaiah 5:23
Isaiah 43:9,23
Isaiah 45:25
Isaiah 50:8
Isaiah 53:11
Jeremiah 3:11
Ezekiel 16:51,52
Micah 6:8
NT
Matthew 11:19
Matthew 12:37
Luke 7:29,35
Luke 10:29
Luke 16:15
Luke 18:14
luke 23:41
Acts 13:39
Romans 2:13
Romans 3:4,20,24,26,28,30
Romans 4:2,5
Romans 5:1,9
Romans 8:30,33
1 Corinthians 4:4
1 Corinthians 6:11
Galatians 2:16
Galatians 3:8,11,24
Galatians 5:4
1 Thessalonians 2:10
1 Timothy 3:16
James 2:21,24,25

Return to the Bible Definitions page

Home / Bible studies / Bible Survey / Special Studies / General Articles / Non-Bible Articles / Sermons / Sermon Outlines / Links / Questions and Answers / What Saith The Scriptures /Daily Devotional / Correspondence Courses / What is the Church of Christ / Book: Christian Growth / Website Policy / E-mail / About Me /