Lessons on Faith: Part 7 of 14: To Those that Believe in God, Who Justifies the Ungodly, it is Credited to Them as Righteousness

By A. T. Jones

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"To HIM that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness." Rom. 4:5. 

This is the only way that anybody in this world can ever become righteous. First admit that he is ungodly, then believe that God justifies, counts righteous, the ungodly, and he is righteous with the very righteousness of God. 

Everybody in the world is ungodly. "Ungodly" means "unlike God." And it is written, "All have sinned and come short of the glory [the goodness, the character] of God." 

Anybody, therefore, who will admit that he ever came short of being like God in anything, in that confesses that he is ungodly. 

But the truth is that everybody, in everything, has come short of being like God. For "they are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one." Rom. 3:9-18. 

Then, as there is not one on earth who is not ungodly, and as God justifies the ungodly, this on God's part makes justification -- righteousness, salvation -- full, free, and sure to every soul on earth. 

And all that anybody needs to do to make it all sure to himself on his own part, is to accept it -- to believe that God does justify, personally and individually, him who is ungodly. 

Thus, strange as it may sound to many, the only qualification, and the only preparation, for justification is for a person to acknowledge that he is ungodly. 

Then, having such qualification, having made such preparation, all that is required of him to obtain justification, full, free, and sure, is to believe that God justifies him, the ungodly one. 

It is quite easy for many to believe that they are ungodly and even to acknowledge it, but for them to believe that God justifies them -- that is too much. 

And the sole reason why they cannot believe that God justifies them, is that they are ungodly, so ungodly. 

If only they could find some good in themselves or if only they could straighten up and do better, they might have some courage to hope that God would justify them. Yes, they would justify themselves by works and then profess to believe in justification by faith! 

But that would be only to take away all ground for justification, for if a man can find good in himself, he has it already, and does not need it from anywhere else. If he can straighten up and do better of himself, he does not need any justification from anywhere else. 

It is, therefore, a contradiction in terms to say that I am so ungodly that I do not see how the Lord can justify me. For if I am not ungodly, I do not need to be made righteous; I am righteous. There is no half-way ground between godliness and ungodliness. 

But when a person sees himself so ungodly as to find there no possible ground of hope for justification, it is just there that faith comes in; indeed, it is only there that faith can possibly come in. 

For faith is dependence on the word of God only. So long as there is any dependence on himself, so long as there is any conceivable ground of hope for any dependence upon anything in or about himself, there can be no faith, so long there is no place for faith, since faith is dependence on "the word only."

But when every conceivable ground of hope of any dependence on anything in or about himself is gone and is acknowledged to be gone; when everything that can be seen is against any hope of justification, then it is that, throwing himself on the promise of God, upon the word only, hoping against hope, faith enters and by faith he finds justification full and free, all ungodly though he be. 

For forever it stands written, "To him that worketh not but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness." "Even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ." "Whom God hath set forth . . . to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past."

 

This is what it is to exercise faith. Are you exercising faith? For "understanding how to exercise faith: this is the science of the gospel." 

RH Feb. 7, 1899    

By A. T. Jones in the Review and Herald periodical in 1899.

Blog Edited by John Foll.

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Lessons on Faith: Part 3 of 14: Cultivating Faith

By A. T. Jones

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"The knowledge of what the Scripture means when urging upon us the necessity of cultivating faith is more essential than any other knowledge that can be acquired." 

Notice that it is the knowledge of what the Scripture means as to the "necessity of cultivating faith" -- not particularly having faith but cultivating it. 

There is not much said in the Scriptures about any necessity of our having faith, while very, very much is said about our cultivating faith. 

The reason of this is that to all people there is given faith to begin with, and all they need to do is to cultivate faith. Nobody can have more faith than is already given him without cultivating the faith that is already given.  And there is nothing known to man that will grow so fast as faith, when it is cultivated --  "faith groweth exceedingly." 

Faith is the expecting that the word of God itself will accomplish what that word says, and the depending upon "the word only" to accomplish what the word says. To cultivate dependence on the word of God, "the word only," itself to do what the word says is to cultivate faith. 

Faith is "the gift of God" (Eph. 2:8), and that it is given to everybody is plainly stated in the Scriptures. "God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith." Rom. 12:3. This measure of faith which "God hath dealt to every man" is the capital with which God endows and starts "every man that cometh into the world," and every man is expected to trade upon this capital -- cultivate it -- to the salvation of his soul. 

There is no danger of ever lessening this capital when it is used; as certainly as it is used at all, it will increase. It will grow exceedingly. And as certainly as it grows, the righteousness, the peace, the joy, of the Lord, are assured to the full salvation of the soul.

 

Again, faith comes by the word of God. Therefore, it is written, "The word is nigh thee, even in thy mouth, and in thy heart: that is, the word of faith, which we preach." Rom. 10:8. Thus faith, the very word of faith, is in the mouth and in the heart of every man.  [Editors note: If they hear the word of God preached or if they read it.]

How is this? Thus: When the first pair sinned in the garden, they wholly believed Satan. They gave themselves wholly to Satan. They were taken completely captive by him. Then there was perfect agreement and peace between them and Satan. But God did not leave it so. He broke up this agreement; He spoiled this peace. And He did it by His word, saying to Satan, "I will put enmity between thee and the woman and between thy seed and her seed." Gen. 3:15. 

"It is God alone that can continually put enmity between the seed of the woman and the serpent's seed. After the transgression of man, his nature became evil. Then was peace between Satan and fallen man. Had there been no interference on the part of God, men would have formed an alliance against heaven, and in the place of warfare among themselves, carried on nothing but warfare against God. There is no native enmity between fallen angels and fallen men. Both are evil and that through apostasy, and evil, wherever it exists, will always league against good. Fallen angels and fallen men join in companionship. The wise general of fallen angels calculated that if he could induce men, as he had angels, to join in rebellion, they would stand as his agents of communication with men to league in rebellion against heaven. Just as soon as one separates from God, he has no power of enmity against Satan. The enmity on earth between man and Satan is supernaturally put there. Unless the converting power of God is brought daily to bear upon the human heart, there will be no inclination to be religiously inclined, but men will choose to be the captives of Satan rather than to be free men in Jesus Christ. I say God will put enmity. Man cannot put it. When the will is brought into subject to the will of God, it must be through man's inclining his heart and will to be on the Lord's side." Unpublished Testimony. 

This enmity against Satan, this hatred of evil, which God puts in every person by His word, causes each soul to long for deliverance, and the deliverance is found alone in Jesus Christ. Rom. 7:14-25. 

Thus this word of God, which plants in each soul enmity against Satan, this hatred of evil that calls for deliverance which is found alone in Jesus Christ, this is the gift of faith to men. This is "the measure of faith" which God has dealt to every man. This is the "word of faith," which is in the mouth and in the heart of every person in the world. 

This "is the word of faith, which we preach: That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation." Rom. 10:8-10. 

Therefore say not in thine heart, Who shall ascend into heaven, to bring faith to us? Neither say, Who shall descend into the deep, or, Who shall go far off to find faith and bring it to us? For "the word is nigh thee, even in thy mouth, and in thy heart; that is, the word of faith, which we preach." Deut. 30:11-14; Rom. 10:6-8.

Say that -- and exercise the faith which God has given to you, as to every other person in the world, for "understanding how to exercise faith, this is the science of the gospel." 

RH Jan. 10, 1899 

By A. T. Jones in the Review and Herald periodical in 1899.

Blog Edited by John Foll.

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