Answer to the 1st poll question

God gives a man right standing with Himself by mercifully accounting him innocent and virtuous.

This is wrong (God gives a man right standing with Himself by actually making him into an innocent and virtuous person.)

Praise the Lord everyone seemed to agree on this one. Justification need not be confused with sanctification, or glorification.

Question: What is justification?

Justification is a declarative act, or forensic. Justification should not be confused with Regeneration, or Sanctification.

Justification is a declaration or pronouncement respecting the relation of the person to the law, which he, the judge is required to administer.

Justification does not mean to make holy or upright. When a Judge justifies a person he does not make that person an upright person. He simply declares that in his judgment the person is not guilty but is upright in terms of the law relevant to the case.

If what the Bible says about man is true, and it is. The questions is not “How can man be just with God; but how can sinful man become just with God?"

Passages in the Old Testament say.

Deut. 25:1 “If there is a dispute between men and they come into court and the judges decide between them, acquitting the innocent and condemning the guilty,

Proverb 17:15 He who justifies the wicked and he who condemns the righteous are both alike an abomination to the Lord.

This is the question we will look at next. John Murry addresses this issue in his book Redemption Accomplished and Applied. I highly recommend it if you do not have it. (see description below)

Description: Murray explores the biblical passages dealing with the necessity, nature, perfection, and extent of the atonement, and goes on to identify the distinct steps in the Bible's presentation of how the redemption accomplished by Christ is applied progressively to the life of the redeemed.

More later.....