What is it about?
Colmplete moral purity is impossible in this morally ambiguous life we lead. Disciples of Martin Luther affirm that Christian believers are simul justus et peccator--that is, simultaneously just yet sinful. A forgiven sinner makes the best moral judgment possible when confronted by an impossible situation, and then sins boldly.
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Why is it important?
What is so widely misunderstood is the way sin works. We sinful persons do not commit evil for the sake of evil. Rather, we justify our evil by painting it with good colors. The result is self-justification accompanied by scapegoating. To realize that one can be forgiven by God's grace is to learn that we do not need to self-justify nor to scapegoat others in order to appear just.
Perspectives
I believe that to realize we are justified by God's grace relieves us of the temptaton to self-justify and scapegoat. This is what is meant by "Christian freedom."
Prof Ted F Peters
Graduate Theological Union
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This page is a summary of: Preface, JSTOR,
DOI: 10.2307/j.ctt12878zt.6.
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