Teaching Students About Justification

Salvation is one of the most beautiful elements of the Christian faith. There is a relationship with God that is possible because God has worked out a plan of redemption that we are invited to receive the benefits of as a gift. On top of this, we are saved from that which we rightfully deserved: separation from God forever. What this means is that salvation is a matter of eternal importance, and as faithful youth leaders, how we communicate the beginning of this relationship is vital. After all, if we cannot faithfully articulate how one enters into this relationship with God, then what ministry potential do we really have? 

The beginning of salvation is centers on the doctrine of justification, where God declares a sinner to be righteous. This is a legal term, where the judge declares the defendant innocent. Romans 8 is one of the loveliest passages in all of Scripture, and in it, Paul communicates the various stages of salvation for the Christian: how we are saved, what it means for us moving forward, and where it is leading to. He begins this chapter with a description of why justification matters for Christians. 

Paul cites three crucial ways to understand what it means for someone to be justified in God’s eyes. A proper knowledge of this important doctrine is not only foundational to becoming a Christian, it also cultivates a deeper love for God. These truths will help us in evangelism and discipleship as we call students to faith in Christ. 

Justification is Received, Not Earned

Leading up to chapter 8, Paul makes a long argument about the relationship between the Law and the gospel. What he concludes in the prior chapters is that the Law’s purpose was to show us how bad we were; how we could never live perfect lives (Rom. 7:7-13). God had given the people of Israel a comprehensive standard of holiness, which they were never able to meet. They could never earn God’s favor in their own strength. They would inevitably fail, and they would stand guilty before God for their failure. This wasn’t because the Law was inherently flawed (Rom. 7:15-20); it was because people were. Our sin keeps us from being able to fully keep the Law.  We need a way to be perfect like God, and for that, we need His help!

The beauty of the gospel is the proclamation that God set the Christian free from the burden their sin brought on them (Rom. 8:1). God did what the Law never could: permanently declared Christians not guilty (Rom. 8:3). Jesus’s sinless life did not get rid of God’s standard of perfection, but fulfilled it perfectly. Jesus’s twofold obedience becomes the way for humans to be eternally made right with God, and it is a gift. Christians don’t earn God’s favor by living good lives; they receive salvation as the gift of God.  

Justification is Not Modification, It is Transformation

Although the gospel is a gift of God’s grace, it is not merely about having sins forgiven. There is more needed than just a covering of the sins already committed; something had to be done about the root cause: a sinful heart. There is something deep within us that causes our minds to be set on “the things of the flesh” (Rom. 8:6-7). This means that what holiness calls for is more than just a change in how we act. We cannot “buckle down” and force ourselves to live a better life. 

For salvation to occur, there has to be a change that takes place within: something that both transforms our heart so that we are able to live for God and illuminates our mind to know how. That transformation is what the Holy Spirit accomplishes in the Christian when they are justified. He gives us a new heart, unites us with Christ’s finished work, and seals us for eternity, permanently connecting us to God, never to be cast out again. The Spirit of Christ dwells in us (Rom. 8:9). 

Justification is the Beginning, Not the End

Even though justification means that we are declared righteous before God in a moment, salvation does not stop there. Why? Because even though the eternal relationship with God has begun, there is a “now” element to the Christian life, where we learn to walk in obedience through the power of the Spirit. We learn to put away our old ways, and our behaviors are shaped to look more like Christ (Rom. 8:29). We learn to depend on the Spirit’s power as our bodies waste away (2 Cor. 4:12-17), and we move forward in the living hope we have in Christ: that we will be resurrected just as Jesus was (Rom. 8:11).

Ultimately, we are not looking for mere behavior change and help for this life only. Christians are placing their hope in the reality that God is working to make all things new. One day, our salvation will be made complete, where we will not only be raised to spiritual life, but we will be restored to our full humanity, free of the curse of sin or death. Our salvation is guaranteed in a moment, but completed in eternity, where our faith will be sight in the presence of God.  

How Not to Understand Justification

There are several unhelpful ways to communicate the nature and process of justification that we should probably avoid:

 Salvation as a mere choice. No one can have a relationship with God unless the Holy Spirit changes them. We don’t just sign up like another club or team; it is a radical transformation of who we are. We must make sure to not reduce salvation to a mere choice or decision like any other: it is a remarkable gift that God chooses us and calls us to himself. 

Repentance as an easy decision. Salvation is the gift of God, but it is not cheap. It is an exchange: God changes and saves us, and we offer Him ourselves as a living sacrifice. It means turning away from who we were and asking God to make us new. If we neglect the importance of what we are being saved from, we may not understand what we are saved to.

Acting right is the end goal. Although it is important to know what “living like a Christian” looks like, it is not our driving force. That’s a good thing! It means that if we don’t live perfect lives, we aren’t trapped under a burden we can’t get rid of. We need to be careful to not accidentally create a new Law where the Spirit has given us freedom. Once we have that change, our behavior is what we want to do because we love Christ, not what we need to do so He will love us. The gospel is freedom because it replaces the condemnation that our attempts at earning God’s favor earned us with Jesus. His life, death, resurrection, and the victory it all secured is offered to us so that we can be forever welcomed into the life of God because He has called us “not guilty.”  

It’s important for youth pastors to have a solid grasp on the doctrine of justification since it’s so closely tied to the Great Commission. How can we evangelize and disciple teenagers if we’re fuzzy on what it means to become a Christian? Although you may not teach everything in this article as a youth group message, understanding these truths will strengthen the theological foundation from which you make disciples.

Joseph Bradley

Joseph Bradley is the Student Pastor at Second Baptist Church, Arkadelphia, Arkansas. He has a Master of Theological Studies and a MA in Christian Apologetics from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. He is married to Ashley, has a dog named Tozer, and loves to play basketball in his spare time.

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