Paul's Passing Thoughts

The linchpin of the Protestant gospel is double imputation. What is it? It is a theory of salvation based on three false presuppositions about God’s law, or the Bible.

First, justification, or holiness, is defined by perfect law-keeping or the fulfillment of “the righteous demands of the law.”

Second, double imputation only has one perspective on the law, or confines the law to only one use by the Spirit. The law can only demand a perfect fulfillment of all its tenets and any shortfall or slightest infraction results in eternal condemnation.

Third, Christ not only died as a penal substitution for sins against the law, but also obeyed the law perfectly, and thereby obtained righteousness which is also imputed to the believer’s account.

I. Double imputation is not APART from the “law of sin and death.” It doesn’t matter who keeps the law; justification is “apart” from it (Romans 3:20, 28).

II. Double imputation makes Christ subservient to the law. Rather than Christ being righteous by virtue of who He was and is, double imputation demands that Christ “validated” himself through perfect law-keeping (Matthew 3:17, Romans 9:11).

III. Double imputation denies God as the Father and strips the significance of the title from God. Rather than the righteousness of God being infused into the believer through the new birth, righteousness is only credited to an untransformed person’s “account.” Therefore, the “believer” has “no righteousness of their own” which is stated as if righteousness can only be possessed by someone from whom the righteousness originated (2Timothy 1:9, 1Peter 2:9). Therefore…

IV. Double Imputation denies salvation as a gift and makes the new birth a mere legal declaration and not a new state of being (2Corinthians 5:17, Hebrews 3:1, Matthew 23:35). In addition…

V. Double imputation tries to call “righteousness apart from the law” a “legal declaration.” How is a “legal” declaration apart from the law? (Galatians 3:17).

VI. Double imputation makes salvation a mere covering, or atonement for sin and not an ending of sin. Sin is not taken away as far as the east is from the west, but only covered by a “righteousness not our own.”

VII. Double imputation denies that “God is one.” This refers to God as the only life-giver. This is the cardinal point of Galatians chapter 3. Double imputation claims that the law can give salvific life through its fulfillment. This makes the law a fourth member of the Trinity.

VIII. Double imputation denies the ministry of the Spirit in the life of the believer. The law can only be used for a condemning standard that defines righteousness rather than the Spirit using it to sanctify believers (John 17:17).

IX. Double imputation denies the ability of believers to love God and others. Since righteousness is also a substitution, any actual act of love must be a substitution and not really performed by the “believer.” Therefore…

X. Double imputation does, in fact, make God unrighteous; He not only forgets the loving service of the saints, but the “saints” are not able to perform acts of love to begin with (Hebrews 6:10, John 14:15, Romans 8:7, Romans 13:10).

XI. Double imputation leaves the “believer” enslaved to sin. Consequently…

XII. Double imputation will promote sin when Protestants are exposed to the law. Being still under law, Bible teaching will not promote a service of love to the law apart from condemnation, but will rather provoke one to more sin (Romans 6:14, 7:4-8).

XIII. Double imputation requires a reapplication of Christ’s “atonement” because “Christians” being under law continually fall short of the law. Being continually under condemnation, they need continued atonement (“We must preach the gospel to ourselves every day”). Hence…

XIV. Double imputation calls for a progressive justification (Hebrews 9:26).
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