Because justification was the central concern of the Reformation, the focus of this post will be on justifying faith. Most generally, faith is the assent of the mind to something as true on the authority of the one declaring it to be so. The term “faith” comes from the Latin, Fides or Fidere, and has come to mean trust, confidence, and persuasion of the truth of God’s revelation. It also means trust and belief in that truth itself considered as the object or body of belief. For example, confessional Lutherans state agreement with the Apostle’s, Nicene, and Athanasian creeds, and the doctrines found in the Book of Concord because they are in agreement with Scripture. This is that which is called the Evangelical Lutheran faith. As such, those writings are expressions of what Lutherans believe, teach, and confess as a matter of faith.

The Lutheran scholastics (Martin Chemnitz, Mathias Haggenreffer, Leonhard Hutter among others) defined other aspects of faith as well. These may be considered along with their definitions. First, there is temporary faith, a faith which although once accepts the datum of revelation as true, but dissipates into unbelief. Second, historical faith, the kind of faith which accepts revelation as true, but apart from any spiritual effect such as the demons who believe Christ died to save the world from sin. Third, miraculous faith, which accepts the promises of supernatural intervention such as the faith which moves mountains. For the Lutheran scholastics, however, the central concern was saving faith (fides salvifica) or the faith which justifies (fides iustificans). Since justification has been stated as the central focus of the Reformation, the remainder of this essay will explore justifying faith.

As with the sixteenth century, Christians, today, are largely confused about the nature of justifying faith. Just a few examples are in order. I once heard a Lutheran Christian say that Lutherans have the same doctrine of justification as Roman Catholics (just a quick examination of the Book of Concord and the Canons and Decrees of the Council of Trent will demonstrate that this statement is false). Although I graduated from a Christian high school, I never once heard the foundational teaching of justifying faith (I did, however, hear a lot about what I was supposed to do. Christianity is not a system of ethics.)

Perhaps the saddest or most personal example I can think of that highlights the current confusion over the nature of justifying faith is when I worked for an evangelical broadcasting company as a scriptwriter. I once put the Roman Catholic formula for justification—“fides caritate formata,” (or sometimes just “fides formata”) that is, “faith informed by love,” (I used the English) into a radio program. None of my evangelical colleagues were concerned or seemed to care that I put a false, non-Biblical, law-bound definition of the Gospel into the program and out into the listening audience! One can find many other examples of the confusion regarding the nature of justifying faith. Today, if you were to ask a Baptist, Methodist, Anglican, Lutheran, Roman Catholic, or Presbyterian what the nature of justifying faith is, you are likely to get a variety of conflicting answers.

But why might the phrase “faith informed by love,” be considered problematic? As wonderful as it sounds, this formula is denied by orthodox Lutherans, insofar as it rests on a concept of a created grace (gratia creata) implanted or infused into the individual. For the medieval church, infused grace was an imparted gift (donum) which serves to make the sinner righteous. For it to operate, the sinner must cooperate with infused grace in order to be made righteous.

The Lutheran orthodox would remind us that faith justifies not because of itself, not due to infused grace, and not as a quality found in the individual. If faith were infused, it would be impossible to know how much, or whether or not, one has successfully cooperated with, or done enough, to merit divine forgiveness. As the Lutheran orthodox discovered, justification is a divine forensic act of being declared righteous on account of Christ alone. This is the meaning of imputation as Romans 4:11, 4:22-24, and James 2:23 teach. “God credits righteousness apart from works” – Romans 4:6. This divine declaration is why one can be at the same time sinful and justified—simul iustus et peccator.

The full and complete formula for justification is important to remember—justification is by grace alone, through faith alone, on account of Christ alone. Faith justifies on account of Christ alone, of whom faith lays hold. Christ’s righteousness is not infused into the believer but, rather, imputed to the sinner’s account through faith alone. Faith, apart from works, is that which apprehends the grace of Christ. Faith is that which connects the sinner to Christ and His righteousness.

The Lutheran scholastics used the term “per fides” or “by faith” with a precise meaning in mind. To them, “by” indicates that faith is the instrumental cause of justification or the means by which it is appropriated. Justifying faith is, then, God’s act of counting or reckoning the sinful individual righteous because of Christ’s atoning death. Christ’s righteousness is imputed to the believing sinner through faith alone. In other words, God forgives sinners and counts them as righteous on the basis of their faith in Christ, and accepts them as His own reconciled children. Christ alone provides the righteousness and faith.

Why does justifying faith matter? For one thing, it is the orthodox doctrine of the Gospel. Justification is the Gospel. This means that the Gospel is not a system of ethics or law-following. A law-bound gospel is no gospel at all and holds no hope for the sinner. Too many in the Christian tradition say that justification is by faith, but can not or will not present or defend the idea that justification is by faith alone. When explicating Romans 1:17, “the just shall live by faith,” Luther says, “For faith grounds us on the works of Christ, without our own works, and transfers us from the exile of our sins into the kingdom of his righteousness. This is faith; this is the Gospel; this is Christ”

(Martin Luther, What Luther Says: An Anthology, ed. Ewald M. Plass, 3 vols. 2:921).

Faith indeed grounds us on the works of Christ. Faith, Christ’s faith, given by Him to the believer through the hearing of the Good News, is the instrumental cause apart from, and without, any human merit or work.

The Biblical doctrine of justification by grace alone, through faith alone, on account of Christ alone is not an academic matter or a scholastic quibble over semantics. Justifying faith can be such a great source of comfort for those who have grown up under the law (or for anyone who has been convicted of their sin by the law). For those bound up in their fear of the law or conviction of sin, justifying faith brings reassurance, solace, and genuine relief. This Gospel brings freedom, joy, and love and is profoundly existentially meaningful. The Christian justified by Christ’s imputed righteousness can now draw near to the throne of grace confidently and find help in his or her time of need, knowing that every good gift comes from the loving hands of the heavenly Father.

Special thanks go to Dr. Michael Morehouse for reviewing an earlier draft of this essay and offering invaluable advice.