“The preparations of the heart in man, And the answer of the tongue, is from the LORD. All the ways of a man are clean in his own eyes; But the LORD weigheth the spirits. Commit thy works unto the LORD, And thy thoughts shall be established. The LORD hath made all things for himself: Yea, even the wicked for the day of evil. Every one that is proud in heart is an abomination to the LORD: Though hand join in hand, he shall not be unpunished. By mercy and truth iniquity is purged: And by the fear of the LORD men depart from evil. When a man's ways please the LORD, He maketh even his enemies to be at peace with him. Better is a little with righteousness Than great revenues without right.”
Proverbs 16:1-8 KJV
https://bible.com/bible/1/pro.16.1-8.KJV
Justified by Faith
Paul, the writer of the letter to the church in Rome, covers the details of what is known as “the Gospel message”—a message that was handed down to them. It's packed with deep theological truths that are meant to shape the way Christians live.
One of the central components to the Gospel is that salvation comes through faith alone. That means we are saved by the power of God through believing and trusting in Jesus. Every Christian comes to God through faith—not through good deeds or by trying to earn salvation.
Paul says that we have peace with God by our faith in Jesus. Prior to that, we were considered ungodly and unrighteous—because we would live our lives in our own power, doing our own things. This led to separation from God.
However, by faith in Jesus, we are justified before Him. This means that through Jesus’ own right-living, we are made right before Him. Even though we still make mistakes, we can stand innocent before God because of Jesus.
It’s ...