Justification: Union by Imputation

Introduction

Although it is one of the lesser-known books of the Bible, the Book of Esther provides one of the most relatable scenes in the Bible when I consider my relationship with Christ. I read of Esther’s hesitation to go into the inner court of the King’s palace uninvited, because to do so was punishable by death (Esther 4:11), and I identify with her, because so often I feel as if I am barred from going in prayer to the throne of God to ask the King of Kings for more grace.

When I’ve sinned and feel the shame and regret that comes along with it, passages like Isaiah 59:2 echo in my mind, “Your iniquities have made a separation between you and your God, and your sins have hidden his face from you so that he does not hear.” I think of Jeremiah 3:8, when the weeping Prophet acknowledges that “though I call and cry for help, he shuts out my prayer.” The feeling of abandonment by God wreaks havoc in my life and effectively causes more distance to grow between myself and God, as I am afraid to go to Him due to a fear that He is disappointed in and ashamed of me because of the sin I have committed.

Thus, the process is self-perpetuating. I sin, and my sin makes me feel as if I have distanced myself from God. I am, consequently, afraid to go to God for forgiveness and refuge, sanctification and guidance, and find myself moving further and further away from Him as a result. This distance breeds more sin, and the system forms a complete spiral.

The Solution

Because it is the case—that our sin creates distance between ourselves and God—the Bible tells us that God has provided a solution to this problem for His people. Rather than allowing our sins to continue to separate us from Him, He has chosen to separate us from our sins.

God couldn’t be clearer about this, as He repeats the sentiment throughout the Old Testament. Most famously, He says in Psalm 103:12 that He removes our transgressions from us as far as the east is from the west. I enjoy other passages which teach this concept with different illustrations, such as Micah 7:9, which says God steps on our sins and throws them into the bottom of the ocean. One other favorite of mine is Isaiah 38:17, which says God “in love” throws all our sins behind His back.

To be clear, God is not simply ignoring our sins. The Bible teaches that if He is going to forgive our sins and cleanse us of them, He must do so in a manner that is “faithful and just” (1 John 1:9). He cannot do anything that is unjust or unfaithful. So, God has chosen to forgive our sins by the atoning blood of Christ, shed on our behalf (Hebrews 9:13-14). That was accomplished by God imputing our sins to Christ’s account on the cross, such that when He was on the cross, it was as though God looked at Him and saw us instead (Colossians 2:14). Jesus died for our sins. He was crushed by God the Father because of what we did (Isaiah 53:5). He took our punishment, alleviating us of any remaining guilt before God (Romans 8:1).

The Reconciliation

While being forgiven and alleviated of all the sins we ever committed is wonderfully glorious news, it might come as a surprise to many that this alone was not sufficient to reconcile us to God. The removal of our sin debt made us (in a sense) morally neutral. We had neither any good nor any evil to our credit. This might sound nice, but only the righteous can have communion with God (Matthew 5:8; Matthew 5:20). Jesus’ death on the cross removes all debt (negative relations) between us and God, but we still have no credit (positive relations) with God, because even our most righteous deeds are like filthy rags (Isaiah 64:6).

So, Christ went further, and beyond dying the perfect death to remove all guilt from our account, Christ also lived the perfect life to supply all the needed righteousness for us to be reconciled to God. The Bible says that in order for us to be reconciled to God, Christ became sin so that we could “become the righteousness of God” (2 Corinthians 5:20) through Him.

The former effort, wherein Christ took away our debt and guilt, is theologically referred to as the “Passive Obedience” of Christ. That is to say, Jesus passively permitted something to happen to Him—namely the imputation of our sin to His account—for the sake of paying our debt, and the reception of the punishment due to us in His body on the cross. His Passive Obedience on our behalf relieves us of any debt.

The latter effort, wherein Christ provides for us all the needed righteousness to be reconciled to God, is theologically referred to as the “Active Obedience” of Christ. That is to say, Jesus actively fulfilled all righteousness on our behalf (Matthew 3:15; Matthew 5:17) by keeping the Law perfectly, and He has permitted the rewards due to Him to be given also to us. His active obedience on our behalf gains us unimpeded access to the Father.

The Conclusion

Since Scripture says that there is now no condemnation from God for those who have been forgiven by the sacrificial atonement of Jesus Christ, and since God’s people have become reconciled to Him by the imputed active obedience of Christ, such that they become the righteousness of God, then believers should understand three necessary conclusions of these truths:

1. Because our acceptance and deservedness of rewards in the sight of God is predicated on the life and death of Jesus Christ and not our own performance, we can believe that from the moment of our salvation we are declared not only forgiven but just in the sight of God and can expect nothing but lovingkindness from His hand as we would expect Him to give to Jesus Christ. This is the concept of justification—to be made just before God.
2. Because this occurs irrevocably at the moment of our salvation (being predicated on the life and death of Jesus and not our own performance), we can believe that our justification is legally declared, rather than earned, as we are welded to the life and death of Jesus Christ. Some believe our poor performance will undermine the perfection of Christ, which God imputes to our account, but in Christ’s life, no one’s unholiness ever overwhelmed His holiness. In fact, when He touched the leper, He didn’t get leprosy, the leper got healed. The light came into the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it. In the same way, the imputation of Christ’s righteousness to our account, at the moment of salvation, results in our being declared just in the sight of God irrevocably and inalterably.
3. Because we are loved, forgiven, and justified in the sight of God, we can believe that we have every right, like Esther with her King, to approach the throne of God with boldness (Hebrews 4:16), confidence (Hebrews 10:19), and with full assurance (Hebrews 10:22), knowing that it is God Himself who invites us to “give him no rest” (Isaiah 62:7) by praying to Him without ceasing. (1 Thessalonians 5:17)

Let us affirm with our Brothers from almost 500 years ago (The Belgic Confession, Article 23, “The Justification of Sinners), “We should not plead that we are unworthy—for it is not a question of offering our prayers on the basis of our own dignity, but only on the basis of the excellence and dignity of Jesus Christ, whose righteousness is ours by faith.” 

If you are united to Christ by faith, you have received forgiveness of sins, the righteousness of God, and a promise of eternal reward because of the life and death of Jesus Christ, in whom you have trusted. Go like Esther to the throne of the King and pour your heart to Him who has declared you justified.