justification by grace, through faith

Cultural  

1. In Christianity, the belief that a person can achieve salvation (see also salvation) only through faith and reliance on God's grace, not through good deeds. The phrase is adapted from a sentence in the epistles of Paul in the Bible (see also Bible): “By grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God.”

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Whether the actions of human beings can contribute to this justification, in addition to God's grace, was one of the great points of division among Christians (see also Christian) at the time of the Reformation.

Example Sentences

Paul does that in sentences with no punctuation that go on for paragraphs, but that is a rough calculation of his justification by grace through faith.

From Time

He contemplated himself as a depraved, guilty, perishing, and helpless creature; the grand doctrine of justification by grace, through faith in the propitiation of Christ, was his refuge and his solace; in the sense in which we should employ the words, he was "looking for the mercy of God unto eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord."

From Project Gutenberg

However, the N.A.B. notes admit justification by grace through faith alone, thereby sounding like a cross between Martin Luther and the modern Catholicism of Swiss Theologian Hans Kung.

From Time Magazine Archive

Justification by grace through faith in Jesus does not end with a forgiveness of past transgressions only, but includes the impartation of the divine, or eternal life to the soul.

From Project Gutenberg

The Holy Spirit had evidently been their teacher, and the doctrine of justification by grace through faith alone, was the foundation of their hopes.

From Project Gutenberg