Once upon a time, the label
evangelical identified those who
were committed not only to historic Christianity but to the doctrine of
justification by grace alone through faith alone because of Christ
alone. In our day, however, that can no longer be taken for granted.
Increasingly, evangelical scholarship is challenged by trends in
biblical studies (especially the New Perspective on Paul) to abandon the
Reformation's understanding of justification. Recent ecumenical
rapprochements (such as the Lutheran-Roman Catholic Joint Declaration on
Justification and "Evangelicals and Catholics Together") have revised
and relativized this key article.
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Remarkably,
in a new book with essays by mainline Protestants (Lutheran and
Reformed) and Roman Catholics on justification, the former reject the
Reformation doctrine (by appeal to the New Perspective on Paul) while
leading Roman Catholic New Testament scholar Joseph Fitzmeyer
demonstrates the technical accuracy of the Reformation's exegesis of the
relevant passages. In his book Is The Reformation Over?, leading evangelical scholar Mark Noll seems to be speaking for a lot of conservative Protestants in answering yes.
Outright
criticism of the doctrine of justification as it is defined in our
Reformed confessions and catechisms has become common even in
conservative churches. Although the church courts of these sister
denominations have exhibited a heartening solidarity in standing for the
confessional position and prosecuting ministers who oppose it, it is
tragic that controversies over this cardinal doctrine should arise in
our own circles.
Most people in the pew, however, are simply not
acquainted with the doctrine of justification. Often, it is not a part
of the diet of preaching and church life, much less a dominant theme in
the Christian subculture. With either stern rigor or happy tips for
better living, "fundamentalists" and "progressives" alike smother the
gospel in moralism, through constant exhortations to personal and/or
social transformation that keep the sheep looking to themselves rather
than looking outside of themselves to Christ. Even in many churches
formally committed to Reformation teaching, people may find the doctrine
of justification in the back of their hymnal (in the confessions
section), but is it really taken seriously in the teaching, preaching,
worship, and life of the congregation? The average feature article in Christianity Today
or Christian best-seller is concerned with "good works"-trends in
spirituality, social activism, church growth, and discipleship.
However, it's pretty clear that justification is simply not on the
radar. Even where it is not outright rejected, it is often ignored.
Perhaps the forgiveness of sins and justification are appropriate for
"getting saved," but then comes the real business of Christian living-as
if there could be any genuine holiness of life that did not arise out
of a perpetual confidence that "there is therefore now no condemnation
to those who are in Christ Jesus" (Rom. 8:1).
Of course, it's
impossible to track down all the reasons for the attitude toward this
doctrine that lies at the heart of the gospel itself. However, in this
article I will point out a couple of the dominant sources. Continue at
Michael Horton
crucial things to consider here--the meaning of "the least" and the meaning of "brothers." On "the least," elachistos, it's not quite true that it's not used of disciples anywhere else. Jesus uses it in 
