What is justification by faith?
"Justification by faith" should not be dividing the church, it should be bringing it together. It is, as N.T. Wright says, the great ecumenical doctrine. For we are not justified by believing in justification by faith. We are justified by believing in Jesus.
Thoughts?
4 comments:
HERESY!
:)
Isn't it funny how if you don't fit into a certain very small sandbox of doctrine, some Christians don't want to play with you anymore?
Berkhimer, this hit me like a load of bricks when I read it in What Saint Paul Really Said. I don't know why I never thought of it before other than being tied up in my baggage. It is a revolutionary idea for some of us. And it's so old.
Jamie, great metaphor. It's sadly true though. Some things that I've been struggling through lately have left me wondering what some of my family will think of me. na ja.
Wright's take on it is fascinating, too. He manages to put it in such a way that it means something more than Get Out of Jail Free. The great ecumenical doctrine indeed - it's what makes us all a part of the family, so to speak. Wright, probably more than anyone else I've read this year, has rearranged my thinking on so many levels. (Yoder is a close second - Politics of Jesus will mess with your head...)
Have you checked out any of the articles on ntwrightpage.com? Lots of shorter works that are good for when you need that little theological afternoon pick-me-up. ;)
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