Root & Fruit

You read two sermons that refer to Abraham and how he was justified. In the first, Pastor Paul says quite clearly that we are justified by faith. But then you read Pastor James, and he says (so clearly that you remember his exact words): “You see that a person is justified by works and not by faith alone.” Now you have two problems. Problem 1: there seems to be a contradiction. Problem 2: Pastor Paul is in fact Paul the apostle, and Pastor James is James the brother of our Lord. What are you supposed to do? In Root and Fruit two of the most influential preachers of our time patiently explain the Scriptures and help us to resolve the “problem.” Spoiler alert from John Calvin: If you think you can receive Christ for justification without receiving him for sanctification, you “rend Christ asunder.”

—Sinclair B. Ferguson