"How can man be just with God?"
1. The Justifier;-"It is God that justifieth." The sentence of acquittal must come from His lips, and be registered in His books.
2. The justified;-Man, the sinner, under wrath, the ungodly, the condemned.
3. The justifying fact;-The death of Him whose name is Jehovah our righteousness.
4. The justifying instrument;-Faith. Not strong faith, or great faith, or perfect faith, but simply faith, or believing. "We are justified by faith."
5. The justifying medium;-The righteousness of God. This is the "best robe" which is prepared for the prodigal, by which he is clothed and beautified, and made fit to enter his Father's house, and sit down at his Father's table.
Horatius Bonar
“The justifying work of Calvary was God's way, not only of bringing pardon, but of securing certainty. It was the only perfect thing which had ever been presented to God in man's behalf; and so peculiar was this perfection, that it might be used by man in his transactions with God, as if it were his own.”
Horatius Bonar