Here's the outline to a recent sermon that I did. It does more than just answer your question about whether or not justification or righteousness is a one time event or a process. (Luke 1:6 tells us that Zechariah and Elizabeth were just or righteous because they walked in the commandments and ordinances of the Lord; This is works and it's not a one time event.)
Righteousness or justification is a process; it’s achieved by works; it’s not something that believers have automatically.
[Hebrews 1:8-12] I want to center our thoughts this morning on verse 9 and in particular the first part of this verse, where it says, “Thou hast loved righteousness, and hated iniquity…” The word “iniquity” is lawlessness. Lawlessness means simply that you can live like you want and not worry about prosecution, retribution, or consequences.
[Hebrews 10:26-31] “We” includes the author and those to whom he is writing. This warning is not to unsaved people, but it is to saved who have been weaned from the milk of the Word.
“Sin”: present, active, plural, participle. The present tense indicates that this sin is actively practiced in the present; it’s ongoing action; it’s durative.
“Willfully”: The willful sin is a sin that one believes is the right thing to do and that he has the right to do. The willful sin is sin (or sins) practiced by those who are lawless!
Hebrews 1:9 – The Lord loves righteousness.
Matthew 5:10 – We will be persecuted for righteousness; has to do with the Kingdom.
Matthew 5:20 – Emphasis is on entering the Kingdom, not spiritual salvation.
1 Timothy 6:11 – we have to pursue righteousness! “Follow” is similar to persecute; just like the doctor on “The Fugitive” followed the man.
2 Timothy 4:7-8 – we have to work for it; it’s a crown of righteousness; not salvation.
Matthew 5:6 – the hungry will be satisfied. These two basic elements in a human’s life will drive him to do most any thing. If you’re hungry or thirsty enough, you will steal or drink polluted water.
The Lord loves righteousness! If you live a righteous life, and you do that by living a life that pleases God, the rewards are beyond comprehension. It’s about rewards.
Hebrews 1:9 – The Lord loves righteousness, but he hates lawlessness.
Judges 17:6 – Lawlessness.
Matthew 24:3 – These things concern the end of this age.
Matthew 24:11-12 – Lawlessness; these are saved people who are practicing lawlessness.
2 Thessalonians 2:7 – Lawlessness and apostasy have already started.
Matthew 7:21-23 – First occurrence in the NT of lawlessness. Sermon on the Mount deals with what he loves (righteousness) and hates (lawlessness). These were workers of signs. It’s talking about entering the Kingdom; not salvation. “I never knew you”. I assure you that our God is not dumb; he knows everything; he is omniscient. What he is saying is that I do not recognize you because of your lawless behavior. He tells these that work these signs to depart; not to the lake of fire. These people are not lost. Satan knows that a house divided will not stand. Satan is not casting out Satan; not dividing his house. These people are saved people, and they are doing something that God does not want them to do, and God allows it to happen.
1 Corinthians 13:8-10 – Signs stop; there were signs at one time (Hebrews 2:3-4; Mark 16:20)
1 Corinthians 13:11 – Signs are child’s play!
Romans 6:19 – You can become addicted to lawlessness.
James 2:24 – We need to become addicted to righteousness. We need to be pursuing righteousness, which is of faith. We need to do something; this is works; this is a process. We need to be justified; we have to pursue righteousness. Faith in and of itself does not make us righteous or justified. Righteousness is achieved through works. We don’t achieve that through being addicted to lawlessness.
Titus 2:14 – It may seem hopeless, but we are redeemed from that addiction to lawlessness!
Romans 6:22-23 – We need to be addicted to righteousness. “Being made free from the sin”. There is the definite article “the” before sin in the Greek. Because of the definite article “the” before the word “sin”, and sin being singular in number, it is the sin of lawlessness because of the context and also because of 1 John 3:4.
1 John 3:4 – (Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law: for sin is the transgression of the law; CLV - Everyone *who is doing [the] *sin is doing *lawlessness also, and [the] *sin is *lawlessness.)
(Romans 6:22-23 – “And become servants to God, ye have your fruits unto holiness, and the end agelasting life [or life for the coming kingdom]. For the wages of the sin (lawlessness) is death, but the gift of God is life [in the coming Kingdom] through Jesus Christ our Lord”.) The death in this verse is the loss of life in the Kingdom or being told to depart from me ye that work lawlessness. We can have life for the Kingdom age. That is what agelasting [eternal] life is all about. It’s about ruling and reigning with Christ, not spiritual salvation; this is talking about works.
Matthew 13:41 – The Lawless shall be removed; “they shall gather out of his Kingdom”
Romans 5:21 – In order to be righteous in order to have life in the coming age, grace must reign in our lives. Lawlessness has reigned unto death (thanatos).
2 Timothy 2:22 – “Flee also youthful lust”. When we were a youth, in 1 Corinthians 13, we were pursuing sign gifts and experiences. We have been redeemed from that. When you continue in the experiences provided by the sign gifts, you have abandoned faith; you are not pleasing the Lord.
I want to live by faith. I want to love the righteousness which of faith, and I want to hate lawlessness. If I don’t, I will become addicted. If you don’t love righteousness and hate lawlessness, you will become addicted as well.
If you're interested, here's a link to another sermon on justification (and how it relates to baptism). You can open it here and download the pdf or the mp3:
Justification
