For a paperback book in outline form which addresses over 150 difficult verses that Arminians use against Sovereign Grace, check out: Problem Texts for Sovereign Grace: Rooting Arminianism Out of Every Verse.
For a master copy of the outline, click here:
Problem Texts for Sovereign Grace
C. Being shown to be righteous by our faith
i. Abraham is the eminent example of being justified in the sense of being shown to be just.
a. Abraham was not justified by his works (in the sense of being made righteous) (Rom 4:2).
b. Abraham was justified by his faith (Rom 4:3).
1. His faith was counted unto him for righteousness.
2. Counted righteous = accounted righteous = justified (see definitions above)
3. Faith is a token which is the evidence of (counted for) righteousness, just as poker chips are tokens which are the evidence of (counted for) the possession of real wealth.
4. Just as the poker chips are not real wealth, nor do they cause real wealth, so faith is not itself righteousness, nor does it cause righteousness.
5. Abraham's faith didn't make him righteous, it showed him to be righteous.
1. Abraham's faith was said to be counted for righteousness in Gen 15:6.
2. This happened after he left Ur by faith (Heb 11:8) in Gen 12:1-4.
3. Abraham was already righteous when his faith was counted unto him for righteousness in Genesis 15.
4. Furthermore, if the phrase "counted for righteousness" means "made righteous" or "given eternal life", then there is another means by which a person can become righteous and get eternal life (Num 25:7-8 c/w Psa 106:30-31).
c. Though faith is a work (Joh 6:29; 1Th 1:3) because it's something you do (Act 16:30-31); Abraham's faith was not considered to be work (Rom 4:4-5).
1. Abraham did not believe in order to make himself righteous.
2. Abraham believed in God Who justifies (makes righteous) the ungodly.
3. Abraham believed that God justified him.
4. Abraham didn't have faith (trust) in his faith to make him righteous.
5. This is how Abraham's faith was not a work.
6. Believing that God justified you is faith that is counted for righteousness (Rom 4:5).
7. Believing that your faith justified you is faith that is counted for works.
8. Most people ultimately have faith in their faith or in something else they did which they believe saved them.
9. If you don't believe, just ask them why they are going to heaven and they will tell you: "Because I..."
ii. We are shown to be justified and righteous by our faith which is the evidence (Heb 11:1), not the cause of our righteousness (Act 13:39).
iii. We are also shown to be justified by our works (Rom 2:13; Jam 2:22-25), which prove our faith (Jam 2:17-20).
10. Two forgivenesses of sins
A. Eternal forgiveness of sins
i. There is an eternal forgiveness of sins which is unconditional in nature which makes the elect acceptable with God and brings them into relationship as sons with Him.
ii. This forgiveness of sins happened to the elect when they were still dead in trespasses and sins and was therefore not dependent on anything they did (Col 2:13).
iii. This forgiveness of sins is our redemption by Christ's blood which was shed for us on the cross (Eph 1:7; Col 1:14).
iv. Our sins were purged by Jesus by himself (Heb 1:3).
v. This eternal forgiveness of sins was obtained by Christ when He entered into the holy place after his death (Heb 9:12).
vi. Redemption - 1. a. Deliverance from sin and its consequences by the atonement of Jesus Christ.
vii. The sins of God' children are forgiven (1Jo 2:12).
B. Temporal or fatherly forgiveness of sins
i. There is also another aspect of forgiveness of sins which is conditional in nature and brings the elect into fellowship with God.
ii. This is the type of forgiveness that a father would give to a wayward son who repents; it doesn't make one a son, but brings a son into fellowship with his father.
iii. This temporal forgiveness of sins is conditioned upon repentance and baptism (Act 2:38; Act 10:43), which is accompanied by confession of sins (Mar 1:5).
iv. This forgiveness of sins happens at conversion when a person turns to God (Act 26:18), which is accompanied by confession of sins (Act 19:18-19 c/w Mat 3:6-8).
v. This forgiveness is dependent on confessing our sins (1Jo 1:9).
a. The people this verse is written to are already children of God and all their sins are forgiven eternally (1Jo 2:12).
b. This is also obvious because the apostle John includes himself in it - "If we confess our sins....forgive us our sins...cleanse us..."
c. This is a continual process that must be done throughout our lives (1Jo 1:8; Ecc 7:20).
For a master copy of the outline, click here:
Problem Texts for Sovereign Grace
