Have I been justified? How can I know?
In order for you to be accepted by God, you must be justified. This theological term describes people who have been declared righteous in God's sight. But there is an important distinction between objective justification and subjective justification. The former occurred when Jesus willingly gave His life on the cross for everyone in the world, whereas the latter occurs when the eternal benefits of Christ's sacrificial death are applied to you personally through faith in the Redeemer.
A beautiful example of objective justification is found in 2 Corinthians 5:19, where the Apostle Paul wrote, "God was reconciling the world to Himself in Christ, not counting men's sins against them." In an objective sense, every sinner has already been justified. That is to say, Christ's death on the cross paid for the sins of everyone. The Apostle Peter described objective justification this way: "Christ died for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God" (1 Peter 3:18). John the Baptist preached objective justification when he proclaimed, "Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!" (John 1:29) And the Apostle John wrote, "Jesus is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world" (1 John 2:2).
Paul wrote to Timothy, "Jesus gave Himself as a ransom for all men" (1 Timothy 2:6). What a beautiful description of objective justification! Paul also wrote, "Just as the result of one trespass was condemnation for all men, so also the result of one act of righteousness was justification that brings life for all men" (Romans 5:18).
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But why then isn't everyone saved? In order to answer this important question, we need to wrap our mind around subjective justification. You see, in order to be justified on a personal level, it is necessary to believe that Jesus died not only for others, but also specifically for me. Subjective justification takes place when I place my faith in the cross and in the Savior who shed His blood to pay for my sins and purchase my eternal salvation. Objective justification means that Jesus is the Savior of the world, whereas subjective justification means that Jesus is my Savior. Those who trust Christ for the forgiveness of their sins are able to use the pronoun, my.
Paul wrote that God "justifies the man who has faith in Jesus" (Romans 3:26). This is subjective justification. "For we maintain that a man is justified by faith apart from observing the law" (Romans 3:28). Paul also wrote, "We know that a man is not justified by observing the law, but by faith in Jesus Christ. So, we, too, have put our faith in Christ Jesus that we may be justified by faith in Christ and not by observing the law, because by observing the law no one will be justified" (Galatians 2:16). In addition, "All who rely on observing the law are under a curse ... clearly no one is justified before God by the law, because, 'The righteous will live by faith'" (Galatians 3:10-11).
Objective justification has already taken place by Jesus on the cross. Subjective justification, on the other hand, only takes place when someone personally believes in Jesus as their Savior. Every believer is converted on the front end of his or her relationship with God, and subjective justification takes place at the moment of conversion. The Bible uses various terms to describe a converted person, such as born again, forgiven, justified, saved and redeemed.
And of course, every person who is born again sincerely wants to live for Jesus Christ. This inner transformation is produced by God, (see 2 Cor. 5:17) who is also the author of faith itself. Therefore, "Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God" (Hebrews 12:2).
Everyone has been justified on an objective level, but have you been justified on a subjective level? Do you personally believe in Jesus Christ as your Savior? Are you relying upon the Gospel rather than the Law to be saved and forgiven? Can you honestly say, "Jesus is my Savior." If so, then the Holy Spirit brought you to faith in Christ, (see John 3:5-8; 1 Cor. 12:3) and "God works in you to will and to act according to His good purpose" (Philippians 2:13).
And so always remember this glorious fact: "Jesus was delivered over to death for our sins and was raised to life for our justification" (Romans 4:25). "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" (Romans 5:1-2).
Dan Delzell is the pastor of Redeemer Lutheran Church in Papillion, Nebraska.
