““The words of Christ bring comfort to all who are afflicted with their own sinfulness, “I am telling you the truth: whoever hears my words and believes in him who sent me has eternal life” (John 5: 24). This is the essence of justification by faith. Such a promise seems difficult to harmonize with the abundant texts in scripture which state that all human beings including the righteous will be judged according to their works. However, the key to understanding this seeming contradiction lies in the substitutionary work of Christ itself. Our works cannot save us in the final judgement and neither can our commitment to God, for both are imperfect, and inadequate to perform such a task (Isa. 64: 6). The judgement is good news for all who genuinely seek intimacy with Jesus and claim His blood, because Christ himself stands in their place in the judgement and his perfect works are credited to them in place of their failures and imperfections (1 John 4: 17). Those who are in Christ have already been judged and saved (John 12: 31).””