Monday, July 16, 2007
Galatians 2:16 Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law but by faith in Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Christ Jesus, that we might be justified by faith in Christ and not by the works of the law; for by the works of the law no flesh shall be justified.
THE CENTRAL DOCTRINE OF THE BIBLE: JUSTIFICATION BY FAITH IN CHRIST
The teachings of the Bible have been compared to a bicycle wheel having a hub and spokes. The central teaching of the Bible is the teaching of justification by faith in Jesus; this is the "hub" of the wheel. All of the other teachings of the Bible are like the spokes that run toward the hub and support the hub.
Without an adequate hub, a bicycle wheel would collapse in upon itself and cease to be a bicycle wheel. Also, without the teaching of justification by faith in Jesus, there is no true Christian faith.
It can never be stressed enough that salvation and forgiveness comes to sinners through faith in Christ and His work, not by anything that we could ever do. In fact, the words of our text make it very clear that when a person attempts to be justified by his own works, he will not be justified in God's sight at all, "for by the works of the law no flesh shall be justified."
Although the teaching of justification by faith in Jesus is the central teaching of the Bible, it is connected to every other teaching of the Bible, and every other teaching of the Bible is connected to it. If the spokes of a bicycle wheel become broken, ultimately the integrity of the hub and the entire wheel can be substantially compromised. Who's to say just how many spokes can be broken before the hub and the wheel are irreparably damaged. And so, as we approach God's Word, we don't want any of its teachings to be compromised, in large part, because we don't want the all-important and saving truth of justification by faith in Jesus to be compromised in any way.
