Galatians 2:15-16 — even Jewish believers know that justification is by faith in Christ, not works of the law

Galatians 2:15-16: 'We ourselves are Jews by birth and not Gentile sinners, yet we know that a person is not justified by works of the law but through faith in Jesus Christ.' Paul, writing as a Jew to Jewish (and Gentile) Christians, explicitly says what Ben is relying on — works of the law — does not justify. This is a direct biblical answer to Ben's self-assessment.