Conscience, Part 5
30th June 2012
In matters of justification by faith, Abraham is our example:
Romans 4:3
What does the Scripture say? "Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness."
In Paul's discussion of Abraham's faith in God, he writes:
Romans 4:23-5:2a
The words "it was credited to him" were written not for him alone,
but also for us, to whom God will credit righteousness - for us who believe in him who raised
Jesus our Lord from the dead.
He was delivered over to death for our sins and was raised to life for our justification.
Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus
Christ,
through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we rejoice in the
hope of the glory of God.
Every Christian is a Christian because he or she has been justified by faith - as Abraham was. God credits us with righteousness because We believe in him who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead. We accept that Jesus was delivered over to death for our sins and was raised to life for our justification. That's what it means to be a Christian. We can be Christians because our sin is forgiven, and our sin is forgiven because we have faith in the substitutionary atonement of Jesus Christ, and God credits that faith to us a righteousness.
And, if you and I are Christians, then since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.
Let's just say that again and enjoy it: since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.
Peace with God and a clear conscience are not quite the same thing but they are closely related. You can't have a clear conscience if you don't have peace with God, and you can't have peace with God if you don't have a clear conscience.
Only Jesus, through his sacrifice on the cross, can give us peace with God and provide us with a clear conscience. He was delivered over to death for our sins and was raised to life for our justification. Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.
Jesus freely offers you these gifts. Accept them.