Faith IN Christ and the faith OF Christ

In this present dispensation of grace we are justified without our works and by the faith of Jesus Christ. In this age when a person puts their faith in Christ's blood after that God justifies us by Christ's faith.

Romans 3:
[20] Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin.
[21] But now the righteousness of God without the law is manifested, being witnessed by the law and the prophets;
[22] Even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe: for there is no difference:
[23] For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;
[24] Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus:
[25] Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God;
[26] To declare, I say, at this time his righteousness: that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus.
[27] Where is boasting then? It is excluded. By what law? of works? Nay: but by the law of faith.
[28] Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith without the deeds of the law.

The "faith of Christ" whereby we have righteousness and justification is Christ's faith, not ours. The "faith in His blood" is our faith that we have when we believe the gospel and trust Christ being instantly and freely justified from all things.

1 Corinthians 15:
[1] Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand;
[2] By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain.
[3] For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures;
[4] And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures:

Romans 3:24 Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus:

Ephesians 1:
[6] To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved.
[7] In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace;

[13] In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise,

Ephesians 2:
[5] Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;)
[6] And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus:
[7] That in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus.
[8] For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:
[9] Not of works, lest any man should boast.
[10] For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.

Colossians 1:
[13] Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son:
[14] In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins:

Acts 13:
[38] Be it known unto you therefore, men and brethren, that through this man is preached unto you the forgiveness of sins:
[39] And by him all that believe are justified from all things, from which ye could not be justified by the law of Moses.

Now justification by faith is actually a broad category. Who's faith are you being justified by? Your own faith (human faith) is weak and has to be perfected by works. In the Old Testament a man lived by his own faith (Hab. 2:4) and in the gospel of the kingdom that we see preached in Matthew 3-Acts 8 (by the apostles of the circumcision) requires justification by a persons own faith (James 2:17-26, 1 Peter 1:7-11, 1 John 2:1-5, 1 John 5:1-4, 2 John 1:9). That is why Peter said, "if the righteous scarcely be saved" in 1 Peter 4:18, because one might very well barely be saved because his faith is weak. 

Thankfully in this dispensation of grace and the gospel of the grace of God, we are justified by Christ's faith without works as we already saw. 


Galatians 2:
[16] Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified.
[17] But if, while we seek to be justified by Christ, we ourselves also are found sinners, is therefore Christ the minister of sin? God forbid.
[18] For if I build again the things which I destroyed, I make myself a transgressor.
[19] For I through the law am dead to the law, that I might live unto God.
[20] I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.

Philippians 3:
[8] Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ,
[9] And be found in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith:

But what is the faith of Christ?

Philippians 2:
[5] Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus:
[6] Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God:
[7] But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men:
[8] And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.

That is it, Christ came to earth and lived a perfectly obedient life and then paid for our sins. That is the "faith of Christ". He lived a perfect life, was crucified, buried, risen, and seated and that is what we receive for our justification--THE FAITH OF CHRIST. That is not our faith in Christ, that is Christ's faith to the Father. Nothing about you justifies you, not even your faith. It is all Christ, His work and His power. And that is exactly what we got. We got justified by His faith and work. When God looks at a saved man he sees a sinless, crucified, buried, risen, and seated person IN CHRIST JESUS. You are "created IN CHRIST". Look at the passages below......

Ephesians 2:
[5] Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;)
[6] And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus:
[7] That in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus.
[8] For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:
[9] Not of works, lest any man should boast.
[10] For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.

Romans 6:
[3] Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death?
[4] Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.
[5] For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection:
[6] Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin.
[7] For he that is dead is freed from sin.
[8] Now if we be dead with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with him:

Colossians 2:
[10] And ye are complete in him, which is the head of all principality and power:
[11] In whom also ye are circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, in putting off the body of the sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ:
[12] Buried with him in baptism, wherein also ye are risen with him through the faith of the operation of God, who hath raised him from the dead.
[13] And you, being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh, hath he quickened together with him, having forgiven you all trespasses;

1 Corinthians 12:
[12] For as the body is one, and hath many members, and all the members of that one body, being many, are one body: so also is Christ.
[13] For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit. 

Now that is church age doctrine, it does work differently for those in the kingdom gospel where one is required to live by his faith instead of the faith of Christ. 

Habakkuk 2:4 Behold, his soul which is lifted up is not upright in him: but the just shall live by his faith.

Galatians 2:20 I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.

Also see these references to the Jews under the kingdom program having to live by their own faith which requires being "tried" through works for justification. Mark 16:15-16, Acts 2:38, Acts 3:19, 15:11, Matthew 19:21, 24:13, James 2:17-26, 1 Peter 1:7-11, 3:20-21, 1 John 1:9, 2:3-4, 3:6, 5:1-5, 2 John 1:9, Revelation 2:5, 16, 23, 26, 3:16, 14:12, 22:14, Ezekiel 36:24-28, Jeremiah 31:33-36, 32:37-40, and Romans 11:26-2 

That is not true for the church age believer as we saw that we get instant justification through the faith of Christ. When you put your faith in Christ's blood you are instantly justified "from all things" because of the faith of Christ. 

--Eli "Hoss" Caldwell