What do Saul of Tarsus, Martin Luther and three former Roman Catholic priests have in common? These devout religious leaders have all come to experience the justice of God.
There is a huge chasm between the justice of God and the justice of man. So which of these two things makes a person a child of God and an heir to eternal life in heaven? (Romans 8:17).
God’s justice is always perfect, while man’s justice is always imperfect. The righteousness of God can cover your sins and set you right with God. Man’s righteousness leaves a person separated from God forever.
Saul of Tarsus “advanced in Judaism beyond many Jews of his age and was exceedingly zealous for the traditions of his fathers” (Galatians 1:14). After his conversion, Saul became the apostle Paul who no longer relied on his own righteousness to be right with God. Zeal for religious traditions is very different from zeal for the gospel.
Before his conversion, Saul was “a Pharisee; as to zeal, to persecute the church; as to righteousness, blameless” (Philippians 3:5,6). He came to learn the huge difference between legalistic justice and God’s justice.
Martin Luther was an Augustinian monk who discovered the same thing 500 years ago. Luther was constantly striving to save his soul. He endured many self-inflicted punishments in his efforts to atone for his sins and be accepted by God. Luther felt he had to make his way to heaven by his own righteousness.
Fortunately, God spoke to Luther through the Gospel, and in particular this passage: “The just shall live by faith” (Romans 1:17). In other words, the justice of God applies to your soul when you trust Jesus as your Savior. The apostle Paul wrote, “This righteousness of God is through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe” (Romans 3:22).
Joseph Tremblay was born in Quebec, Canada in 1924. He was ordained a priest in Rome, Italy, and was sent to Bolivia, Chile, where he served for 13 years. He noted, “My theology taught me that salvation is by works and sacrifices. My theology gives me no assurance of salvation; the Bible gives me that assurance. I had tried to save myself on my work. I was moved to do good works to earn my salvation.
As a Catholic priest, Tremblay relied on human justice. But when he placed his faith in the gospel promises found in the scriptures, he discovered the righteousness of God. Human justice cannot save a single soul. Even if you combined the good works of a million religious people, it wouldn’t provide enough righteousness to keep a lost soul from going to hell.
Bartholomew F. Brewer was ordered to the Roman Catholic priesthood in Washington, DC He eventually served as a priest in San Diego, California, and entered the Navy as a Roman Catholic chaplain. He left the Catholic Church, got married, and learned about God’s justice through conversations with his wife and other Christians.
Brewer noted, “I finally realized that I was relying on my own righteousness and religious efforts and not on the complete and sufficient sacrifice of Jesus Christ. The Roman Catholic religion had never taught me that our own righteousness is carnal and not acceptable to God, nor that we should trust in the righteousness of Christ alone… during all those years of monastic life, I had relied on the sacraments of Rome to give me the grace to save me.
“The complete and sufficient sacrifice of Jesus Christ.” What a marvelous historical fact and what a beautiful spiritual absolute! When you place your faith in what Jesus accomplished on the cross, you are justified, redeemed, born again, saved, and forgiven. When Martin Luther finally placed his faith in Christ alone, he said, “I felt I was born again and the gates of Heaven were opened. The whole of Scripture has taken on a new meaning.
The gospel is the key that opens the Bible and brings a person into the kingdom of God. The Law tells us what to do. The Gospel tells us what Christ did on the cross to save us. “The Law was given by Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ” (John 1:17).
Alexander Carson was ordained in 1955 and was a priest in Alexandria, Louisiana. carson noted, “…the Holy Spirit has led me to judge Roman Catholic theology by the standard of the Bible. Previously, I had always judged the Bible by Roman Catholic doctrine and theology. In order to learn the truth about the justice of God, it was necessary for this priest to rely entirely on Scripture as the basis of true theology.
Do you rely completely on the scriptures, or is your religious organization more important to you than the gospel? Whether your religious affiliation is Protestant, Catholic or otherwise, the Gospel (John 3:16; 1 Cor. 15:1-8) stands head and shoulders above your particular religious organization.
Religious traditions do not cover a sinner with the righteousness of Christ. This covering for sin only takes place when a person places their faith in the sacrifice that Christ made on the cross 2,000 years ago. It was a unique sacrifice. Paul wrote, “We maintain that a man is justified by faith without keeping the law” (Romans 3:28). “All who rely on the keeping of the Law are under a curse” (Galatians 3:10). That is, those who rely on their own righteousness to enter paradise are under a curse and on the road to hell.
The “righteousness of God” (Romans 3:21) is the only righteousness that can justify a sinner. Christians are saved from the beginning of their relationship with Christ, even before they have done a single good work. The righteousness of Christ is what produces good works in the life of a believer. God only accepts good works from those who are already righteous in his eyes through faith in Jesus Christ.
Am I doing good works in a vain attempt to earn forgiveness and be saved, or am I doing good works because I have already been saved by the grace of God through faith in Christ alone ? I hope you recognize the great difference between the righteousness of man and the righteousness of God, and why only the righteousness of Christ can save your soul.
“Believe on the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved” (Acts 16:31).
(See my CP editorial, “A Proposal for Catholics and Protestants.”)
Dan Delzell is the pastor of Redeemer Lutheran Church in Papillion, Nebraska.
