Originally posted by Chrawnus
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Originally posted by Hornet
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According to Luke 18, the tax collector went home justified even though he did not do anything good. He realized that he was a sinner and he begged God for mercy.
Romans 4:1-4 teaches that Abraham was not justified by works. He was justified by faith. This passage also teaches that God justifies the ungodly. Even though a person is ungodly, God can still declare him righteous.
Galatians 2:16 teaches that we are justified by faith, not by works of the law.
James 2:24 says, "You see that a person is justified by works and not by faith alone." This verse is not contradicting what I've been saying.
James is using the word "justified" in the sense "shown to be righteous." In other words, James is saying that our good works give evidence of whether we are saved. Our good works do not cause us to be saved. Salvation is not received by our good works. We are not saved on the basis of our good works. Our good works are the evidence that we have been saved.
A right standing before God is received as soon as we trust Christ for our salvation. When God saves us, He changes us so that we will do good works, but those good works are not the basis upon which we are declared righteous. Good works are the sign that we have been born again.
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