Covenant Reformed News – June 2020 • Volume XVIII, Issue 2
This article from Covenant Reformed News examines Romans 4:2-3 to defend the doctrine of justification by faith alone against various false teachings including Judaism, Roman Catholicism, the New Perspective on Paul, Islam, and liberal Protestantism. The author argues that all human works are defiled by sin and cannot merit righteousness before God, establishing that Abraham's justification—and by extension all Christian justification—depends entirely on faith rather than any human effort or goodness.
Faith Alone and Imputation In three previous issues of the News, we have been considering Romans 4:2: “For if Abraham were justified by works, he hath whereof to glory; but not before God.” Let us now see how the argument of this Scripture applies to various groups. Judaism teaches that obedience to the Torah merits before God. Roman Catholicism claims that man’s own good works, performed by cooperating with divine grace, are a crucial component in his righteousness before Jehovah. According...