The Justification Of Abraham
Scripture doesn't say that Abraham's justification was a process, but it's a logical inference that we can draw from what Scripture does say. Abraham had faith and acted on it in Genesis 12, so it makes sense that he was justified there (or perhaps even earlier), and we know that Abraham was justified in Genesis 15. The problem for the Protestants is that Abraham seems to have been justified at least twice, which contradicts sola fide. Mark argues that no matter what I say, Abraham was counted as righteous in Genesis 15, so he could not have been counted as righteous before that. The problem with this, however, is that as I showed in my first rebuttal, being "reckoned" as righteous does not have to mean being considered righteous without actually being so, so there's no reason why Abraham couldn't have been justified in both instances.
I am not arguing against Paul. He was saying that we are justified by God's grace rather than by legally earning salvation, but continuous justification by faith and works does not necessarily mean legally earning salvation.
As for Mark's claim that Abraham first heard the Gospel in Genesis 15, he's wrong. While Paul does quote Genesis 15 in Galatians 3:6, verses 7-9 are referring to Genesis 12:3, which only digs the hole deeper. Not only did Abraham have faith and act on it then, but he also first accepted the Gospel!
The Justification of Phinehas
First of all, if Mark wants to argue that Psalm 106:30-31 means that Phinehas' God-produced righteousness was merely recognized, then his argument for imputation based on the meaning of the word "credited" (in his opening statement) falls apart. Secondly, Paul would not contradict himself by citing this passage. It would not help his argument, but it would not contradict it. Paul's point was that we are justified by God's grace apart from any intrinsic righteousness we may have that does not come from God and that we don't need to be circumcised to be justified. Paul already demonstrated that nobody can legally earn salvation, and as I said before, justification by works does not equal legally earning salvation. Only if you start with sola fide do you see a (possible) contradiction. Thirdly, the plain meaning of this passage is that Phinehas was justified. Paul bases his interpretation of Genesis 15:6 on the phrase "reckoned to him as righteousness," so it makes sense that when that same exact phrase was applied to Phinehas, he was also justified. Only by making up a second meaning for the phrase that contradicts its clear meaning can Protestants explain this passage.
James
Mark interprets James correctly to a point, but then he stops. Yes, James is trying to show the relationship between faith and works. Yes, you can't have faith without works. Mark stops there, but James doesn't. James goes on to say that not only do faith and good works always go together, but works actually justify us! Mark still has not gotten around the fact that we are "justified by works and not by faith alone." By using the formula "You are X-ed by Y and not by Z alone," James is clearly putting both faith and works on the same level and saying that they justify us in the same way.
In addition, Mark did not deal with my explanation of the two examples James used, Abraham and Rahab (particularly Abraham). As I showed in my opening statement, by quoting Genesis 15:6, James was clearly teaching that Abraham was justified before God by his work.
Justification As A Process
In his first rebuttal, Mark says that both justification and condemnation in Matthew 12:36-37 are one-time declarations as opposed to processes, so that passage doesn't help my case. However, if justification is a declaration that comes at the end of one's life (as Jesus clearly says in the passage in question), then the Protestant position that we are justified once here on earth cannot be correct. So, how do we explain this passage? At the end of one's life, we go to either heaven or hell based on how we've lived our lives. The process of justification in our lives continues from when we're first justified to the day we die, when God finally judges us once and for all and sends us either to heaven or hell.
He also points out that in Philippians 2:13, Paul says that God is the one working through us, and I agree. Every good work we do comes solely from the grace of God. However, this does not invalidate everything else that I said about Philippians 2:12 and the surrounding context.
Losing Justification
Mark said that the perseverance of the saints is not the topic of the debate, so he didn't deal with my section on losing justification. However, I think that this subject is closely related to the topic of the debate, so it warrants being touched upon a bit. If we can lose justification, then it cannot be a permanent, one-time declaration, as it is in Reformed theology (and most branches of Protestant theology).
"I am confident of this, that the one who began a good work among you will bring it to completion by the day of Jesus Christ." - Philippians 1:6
This is the only verse that Mark brought up to try and show that we cannot lose justification. The problem with this verse, however, is that Paul says he is confident that the Philippians will persevere, but he in no way implies that every single Christian in Philippi would persevere till the end. There's a difference between being confident of something and knowing 100% that it will definitely happen.
Jesus' Words
In Matthew 5:20, Jesus says, "For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heave." Mark interprets this passage as merely saying that Jesus wants us to be righteous, but that's just a half-truth. Sure, Jesus does want us to be righteous, but that's not all that Jesus says. By saying that we must be righteous to enter the kingdom of heaven, He was saying that our righteousness is what God judges when He decides whether or not we are worthy of heaven. This is consistent with some other verses that I brought up in my opening statement, such as 1 Peter 1:17 and Revelation 20:21. It must be stressed, however, that whatever righteousness we have comes solely from God's grace and does not legally earn us salvation.
In Matthew 7:21-23, Jesus says to the condemned, "I never knew you," and Mark interprets this literally, but I disagree. These people prophesied and cast out demons, so they must have had true faith and been justified at one point; Jesus was probably using a hyperbole. The unjustified don't normally go around casting out demons and prophesying, so, for one, this passage shows that we can fall away from justification. Secondly, the sermon was mostly about works (and it's sandwiched between two other teachings about works), so Jesus was stressing the fact that they didn't do works. Since the whole sermon was given as an explanation of 5:20, it's logical to conclude that these people were condemned because by not doing works, they were not righteous. Yes, when you don't do works your faith suffers, but Jesus was emphasizing the place of works in justification this passage.
Regarding Matthew 12:37, Mark again falsely separates the fact that works come from our faith and the fact that works actually justify us. Yes, Jesus does say that our words reflect our hearts, but the fact still remains that Jesus said that our words can justify or condemn us. Just because our words come from and reflect our hearts does not mean that they can't actually justify us, and the plain meaning of the text is that they do justify us (along with our faith), regardless of what else Jesus was also saying. Regarding the quote from Calvin and his argument from the contrast that Jesus sets up between justification and condemnation, I think I answered that adequately in the section on justification as a process.
Romans 2:6-8
Mark argues against my use of Romans 2:6-8 by saying that Paul is merely saying that the Jews have no reason to boast just because they are Jews, but he misses the point. Yes, Paul is saying that the Jews can't boast just because they're Jews, but he forgets the reason why. Jews can't boast because God judges everyone impartially by their works.
