How is a person justified according to Galatians 2:16?
According to Galatians 2:16, a person is not justified by the works of the Law. Instead, justification comes by the faith of Christ, and even Jews by nature have believed in Jesus Christ so that they might be justified by faith in Him, not by law works.
Les explains that Paul, after confronting Peter for still succumbing to the demands of the Law, writes to Jews by nature. In Galatians 2:16, Paul declares that no one is justified by the works of the Law; rather, even Jewish believers have believed in Jesus Christ so that they might be justified by the faith of Christ, not by law works. Les then points to Romans as a fuller explanation, likening Galatians to a pencil sketch and Romans to the finished oil painting, showing Galatians is introductory.
Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified.