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"This doctrine of general justification is the guarantee and
warranty that the central article of justification by faith is being kept pure.
Whoever holds firmly that God was reconciled to the world in Christ, and that
to sinners in general their sin was forgiven, to him the justification which
comes from faith remains a pure act of the grace of God. Whoever denies general
justification is justly under suspicion that he is mixing his own work and
merit into the grace of God. [George Stoeckhardt, Concordia Theological
Quarterly, April, 1978, p. 138.]
Pastor Vernon Harley
"Synergism--Its Logical Association with General Justification," 511
Tilden, Fairmont, Minnesota 56031, August, 1984, p. 1.
"The chief purpose, however, is to keep this article (general
justification) before the people for its own sake. It cannot be presented and
studied too often. Its vital relation to the subjective, personal justification
by faith, cannot be stressed too strongly. It forms the basis of the
justification by faith and keeps this article free from the leaven of
Pelagianism. Unless the sinner knows that his justification is already an
accomplished fact in the forum of God, he will imagine that it is his faith,
his good conduct, which moves God to forgive him his sins. And unless he knows
that God had him personally in mind in issuing the general pardon on Easter
morning, he will have no assurance of his justification." [Theodore
Engelder, Concordia Theological Monthly, July/August/September, 1933. Reissued
by the seminary printshop, Ft. Wayne, 1981.]
Pastor Vernon Harley,
"Synergism--Its Logical Association with General Justification," 511
Tilden, Fairmont, Minnesota 56031, August, 1984, p. 1f.
"The entire Pauline doctrine of justification stands and
falls with the special article of general justification. This establishes it
beyond peradventure that justification is entirely independent of the conduct
of man. And only in this way the individual can have the assurance of his
justification. For it is the incontrovertible conclusion: Since God has already
justified all men in Christ and forgiven them their sins, I, too, have a
gracious God in Christ and forgiveness of all my sins." [Quoted with
approval by Theodore Engelder, from George Stoeckhardt, Commentary on Romans,
p. 264.]
Pastor Vernon Harley,
"Synergism--Its Logical Association with General Justification," 511
Tilden, Fairmont, Minnesota 56031, August, 1984, p. 2.
"The resurrection is God's public absolution of the entire
world: 'Your sins are forgiven, all sins of all human beings; and there is no
exception.' This is the meaning of the technical term 'objective
justification.' The objective justification is central to the doctrine of
salvation and derives logically from the facts that God's reconciliation,
forgiveness, and declaration of 'not guilty' in no wise depend on the attitude
or behaviour of human beings. If objective justification is denied, then it
must follow that those who are declared righteous in some way have contributed
to God's change of heart; justification is then no longer solely the result of
God's grace." [Theodore Mueller, Concordia Theological Quarterly, January,
1982, p. 29.]
Pastor Vernon Harley,
"Synergism--Its Logical Association with General Justification," 511
Tilden, Fairmont, Minnesota 56031, August, 1984, p. 3.
"The starting point in presenting the doctrine of the means
of grace must be the universal objective reconciliation or justification. This
is the procedure of Scripture."
Francis Pieper, Christian
Dogmatics, 3 vols., trans., Walter W. F. Albrecht, St. Louis: Concordia
Publishing House, 1953, III, p. 105.
"Now, then, if the Father raised Christ from the dead, He, by
this glorious resurrection act, declared that the sins of the whole world are
fully expiated, or atoned for, and that all mankind is now regarded as
righteous before His divine tribunal. This gracious reconciliation and
justification is clearly taught in Romans 4:25: 'Who was delivered for our
offenses and was raised again for our justification.' The term dikaiosis
here means the act of divine justification executed through God's act of
raising Christ from the dead, and it is for this reason called the objective
justification of all mankind. This truth Dr. Walther stressed anew in
America. He taught that the resurrection of Christ from the dead is the actual
absolution pronounced upon all sinners. (Evangelienpostille, p.
160ff.)…Calov, following Gerhard, rightly points out the relation of Christ's
recurrection to our justification as follows: 'Christ's resurrection took place
as an actual absolution from sin (respectu actualis a peccato absolutionis).
As God punished our sins in Christ, upon whom He laid them and to whom He
imputed them, as our Bondsman, so He also, by the very act of raising Him from
the dead, absolved Him from our sins imputed to Him, and so He absolved also us
in Him.'" [Bibl. Illust., ad Rom. 4:25]
Francis Pieper, Christian
Dogmatics, 3 vols., St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1951, II, p.
321. Romans 4:25.
"Scripture teaches the objective reconciliation.
Nineteen hundred years ago Christ effected the reconciliation of all men with
God. God does not wait for men to reconcile Him with themselves by means of any
efforts of their own. He is already reconciled. The reconciliation is an
accomplished fact, just like the creation of the world. Romans 5:10: 'We were reconciled
to God by the death of His Son.' When Christ died, God became reconciled."
pt. 1 of paragraph
Francis Pieper, Christian
Dogmatics, 3 vols., St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1951, II, p.
347f. Romans 5:10.
"The resurrection of Christ is, as Holy Writ teaches, the
actual absolution of the whole world of sinners. Romans 4:25: 'Who was raised
again for our justification.' At that time we were objectively declared free
from sin."
Francis Pieper, Christian
Dogmatics, 3 vols., St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1951, II, p.
348. Romans 4:25.
"As Christ's death lies in the past, so also our
reconciliation is an accomplished fact. 2 Corinthians 5:19: 'God was in Christ,
reconciling' (namely, when Christ lived and died on earth) 'the world unto
Himself.' The katallassein of Romans 5:10 and 2 Corinthians 5:19 does not
refer--let this fact be noted--to any change that occurs in men, but describes
an occurrence in the heart of God. It was God who laid His anger by on account
of the ransom brought by Christ. It was God who at that time already had in His
heart forgiven the sins of the whole world, for the statement: 'God was in
Christ, reconciling the world unto Himself' means--and that is not our, but the
Apostle's own interpretation--that God did 'not impute their trespasses unto
them.' And 'not imputing trespasses' is, according to Scripture (Romans 4:6-8),
synonymous with 'forgiving sins,' 'justifying' the sinner." part 2 of
paragraph
Francis Pieper, Christian
Dogmatics, 3 vols., St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1951, II, p. p 348.
Romans 5:10; 2 Corinthians 5:19
"Christ's Glorious Resurrection from the Dead the Actual
Absolution of the Entire Sinful World Here I would point out two things: 1.
That This Is Certain And True, and 2. That Therefore Every Man Who Wants To Be
Saved Must By Faith Accept This General Absolution As Applying Also To
Him,"
C. F. W. Walther, The Word of His
Grace, Sermon Selections, "Christ's Resurrection--The World's
Absolution" Lake Mills: Graphic Publishing Company, 1978 J-5 p. 230. Mark
16:1-8.
"For God has already forgiven you your sins 1800 years ago
when He in Christ absolved all men by raising Him after He first had gone into
bitter death for them. Only one thing remains on your part so that you also
possess the gift. This one thing is--faith. And this brings me to the second
part of today's Easter message, in which I now would show you that every man
who wants to be saved must accept by faith the general absolution, pronounced
1800 years ago, as an absolution spoken individually to him."
C. F. W. Walther, The Word of
His Grace, Sermon Selections, "Christ's Resurrection--The World's
Absolution" Lake Mills: Graphic Publishing Company, 1978 J-5 p. 233. Mark
16:1-8.