Justification by faith is essential to salvation.

It is the center of one’s relationship with God. Failing to understand either the importance of justification or its nature is a serious problem. Ideas that cause us to misunderstand justification directly affect our faith and our saving relationship with God. In the Bible, when a person believed God, they were justified at that moment.

“Abraham believed God and it was counted to him as righteousness.” (Rom. 4:3 ESV)

The context of Romans 4 Paul is discussing the nature of justification as illustrated in the faith of Abraham. In Galatians, Paul teaches that NT believers are children of Abraham by faith. (Galatians 3: 6-14) When was Abraham counted righteousness? When he believed God. justification is not a process, the equal of sanctification. It is a once-for-all-time work of God. Here is the fundamental reason it is not a process: the righteousness by which one is justified is Christ’s righteousness and not one’s own.

Justification is a whole, occurring at the moment of truth faith and is effective for the rest of one’s walk of faith. Justification as an event is not a process, neither is it a progressive work, as if we become increasing justified or need to renew or recharge our justification. Nonetheless, its effect is an ongoing reality in the life of the justified. There is a progressive effect of justification on our lives as we learn the power of living the justified life.

This is certainly a process as we live by faith. But this does not define the meaning of justification as a progressive process.