Justice and Mercy

Suppose we said that Jesus received the Father’s approval of His work by grace, rather than by strict justice. What damage does that do to our soteriology? I’m not saying this is the case; I’m merely trying to pinpoint the motivation behind the Klinean position that insists on the strict justice of the covenant of works as an essential of the gospel.

If we were to say that, would we be able to be confident of our standing with God? Could we be certain that God would not accept us forever. I think we could. We could say that Jesus received the blessing of His Father by grace, and by grace the Father extends that blessing to us. We can rely on the mercy of God, which is renewed every morning, which is everlasting, which is certain and sure, which is unwavering, which is manifest in everything He does. We can rely on His mercy; it’s a secure and certain foundation.

It seems that Kline’s position is based on the assumption that the justice of God is somehow a surer ground for salvation than the mercy of God, or, to push the point, that God is somehow more just than He is kind. But of course, God’s justice and mercy are not really separable in the first place; His mercy is just, and His justice merciful, and He is ALL His attributes. Kline’s position appears to assume that we only have certain ground for salvation if the foundation is pure justice, but that seems to me to imply a very strange theology proper (but one consistent with other things Kline says – his view of the covenant, of the law, of Adam’s status as servant, and so on). It appears in Kline’s view that the mercy of God is capricious, but His justice is absolutely secure.

The cross was a satisfaction and we have standing with God on the basis of His justice. The Bible teaches all that; the gospel is about the “righteousness” or justice of God. I do not say that the Father’s approval of Jesus was an act of “mercy in the face of demerit.” Jesus had no demerits, and would not have achieved salvation for Himself or for us without His perfect obedience to death.

But I’m challenging the polarization of justice and mercy, and suggesting that the justice of God that’s manifested in the cross and resurrection is a merciful justice, and the mercy is a just mercy.