A Christian’s Pocket Guide to Justification: Being made right with God?

by Guy Prentiss Waters

Could you explain Justification if asked to? For many of us, the whole concept of justification is as mystifying as a foreign language, but yet Christians down the ages have fought to defend it - seeing it quite rightly as a vital element of how we are saved. But justification is not a relic of the past - it has direct relevance to us as Christians today. We often struggle with the thought of justification because of human pride; "I can't be that bad" and so justification is often undermined, wrongly presented or just plain ignored. Scripture though, is brutally clear: we have a real problem - the prospect of our lives marred by wrong-doing being laid out before an almighty God who is pure and will not forever let wrong go unpunished. We can't earn our way out of our predicament - as this is just "rubbish" according to the apostle Paul. We need something else, someone who can take the hit we so richly deserve - leaving us to be declared innocent instead. This little book will help you grasp a truth that when understood correctly is explosive, transformational and utterly liberating.

96 pages, Paperback

First published November 8, 2010

About the author

Guy Prentiss Waters (PhD, Duke University) is James M. Baird Jr. Professor of New Testament and academic dean at Reformed Theological Seminary, Jackson. He is the author or editor of fifteen books and numerous chapters, articles, and reviews. He is a teaching elder in the Presbyterian Church in America (PCA).

Reviews

[Joseph Louthan · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book might be tiny but it packs a punch.

The author does a great job of clearly explaining not only justification but salvation, grace and peace of God. Not only does he do that well, but for the Christian who hasn't tackled the supposed contradiction between Romans 4:4-5 (justified by faith alone) versus James 2:14-26 (justified by works and not faith alone), he shows that Paul and James are not at odds with each other but along with John, simply expounding upon what Christ taught while he was here on earth.

The author lays out what justification is and is not, defined and applied. He ends the book with properly refuting NPP view on justiification and wraps it up with the call to unity and rest in the true peace, shalom, that only God can bring with his presence.

You got questions about justification? This is a great amuse-bouche to properly whet your appetite the entire feast that is the atonement of Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior. Praise be to God. Amen.

[Wade · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very solid, brief overview of Covenant Theology. This is a very difficult read and is very academic in the way that it is written.