This evening
I read the following book:
Chris Bruno,
Paul vs James: What We've Been Missing in
the Faith and Works Debate (Chicago: Moody Publishers, 2019)
Notwithstanding
being endorsed by many of the modern “heavy-hitters” in Reformed theology
(e.g., Douglas Moo), it is one of the worst books on soteriology I have read.
Its treatment of justification, imputation, and other topics often is simply “preaching
to the [Calvinistic] choir.” For example, when discussing “imputation,” there
is no discussion of λογιζομαι/ חשׂב. On this, be sure to see my 7-part series examining λογιζομαι in texts contemporary with the Greek New Testament:
I will
reproduce some of the relevant quotations from the book followed by links
addressing the particular topic:
The Justification of Abraham and Gen 15:6 and
Related Texts
Whatever else he had thought about God’s
promises to this point, Abraham’s trust in God is evident in Genesis 15.
Whether this text is describing what had happened at some earlier point in
Genesis 12-14 or what happened in that very moment, the point is the same. (p.
69; note how, without realising it, Bruno opens himself up to the charge of
believing Abraham had “saving faith” prior
to Gen 15:6[!])
Genesis 15 describes Abraham’s justification,
when God declared him righteous. (p. 70)
As he continues to explain God’s great gif of
justification in Romans 4, Paul turns again to the example of Abraham . . .
Through his faith, Abraham received the status
“righteous,” as does everyone else who believes God’s promises through the
Messiah Jesus . . .(p. 96)
The moment he believed God’s promises,
Abraham’s status before God was “righteous”
. . . Paul, like James, was reading Genesis 15:6 faithfully. Abraham was declared righteous through faith . . .
We are declared righteous before God
through faith, not works. (pp. 105, 106)
Justification is God’s declaration in His “courtroom”
that we have the status “righteous” .
. . We are united to Christ by faith, so we receive the status that He has won: righteous before God. The implication of our
union with Christ is that His righteous status is counted as our own. This imputation
is the “already” of justification. (pp. 110, 111)
Justification is forensic as it denotes one’s status, not one’s moral state. (p.
114)
The best known justification passage outside
of Romans and Galatians is probably 2 Corinthians 5:21 . . . Christ takes our
sin, and we receive the very righteousness of God. He took the status “sinner”
to pay for our sins, and we are given the status “righteous” because we are
joined to Him by faith. (pp. 97-98)
Refutation: Response
to a Recent Attempt to Defend Imputed Righteousness (cf. An
Examination and Critique of the Theological Presuppositions Underlying Reformed
Theology)
The Justification vs. Vindication
Understanding of Jas 2
In verse 25, James says that Rahab was
justified the same way that Abraham was. By putting a prostitute alongside
Abraham, the father of Israel, James beautifully reminds us that any sinner who
repents and truly believes is justified. Any repentant sinner is able to
demonstrate her faith and righteous status with Spirit-empowered good works.
While there may be many reasons why James includes this example with Abraham.
Douglas Moo is right to see that these examples teach us “that anyone is
capable of acting on his or her faith—whether a patriarch or a prostitute”
(Douglas J. Moo, The Letter of James,
The Pillar New Testament Commentary [Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2000], 143). This is
far from a works-based righteousness.
When James asserts that “a person is
justified by works” in verse 24, he is looking forward to the same final
declaration or “vindication” in the days of judgment that we saw Jesus speaking
about in Matthew 7. (pp. 84-85)
If Reformed apologists want to be taken seriously on justification and related issues, they will have to do a much better job than this volume.
For a refutation of the other pillar of Protestantism, Sola Scriptura, see:
Not By Scripture Alone: A Latter-day Saint Refutation of Sola Scriptura