Objection 2. Christ by His death, merited that our works should merit life everlasting. Answer. That is false. All we find in Scripture is that Christ, by His merit procured pardon of sin, imputation of righteousness, and life everlasting. And it is . . . Continue reading →
Sola Gratia
Christian Corrects Ignorance Concerning The Role Of Good Works In Salvation
Olevianus: Salvation Is Through Faith Alone Because Christ Is A Complete Savior
157 Q. Now that we have discussed the various articles and parts of articles of the confession of our Christian faith, I would like to hear from you whether we shall be fully saved through such true faith in Christ? A. There . . . Continue reading →
Piper’s Rejection Of The Gratitude Ethic Is A Rejection Of The Reformation
The magisterial Protestant Churches, i.e., the Lutherans and the Reformed, agreed that salvation (justification, sanctification, and glorification) is by divine favor alone (sola gratia), through faith alone (sola fide), in Christ alone. These convictions were essential to the Reformation but those convictions . . . Continue reading →
The Reformed Brotherhood: Overcoming Confirmation Bias On Piper And Final Salvation Through Works
Does John Piper teach a two-stage doctrine of salvation wherein the initial stage is said to be justification by grace alone (sola gratia), through faith alone (sola fide), on the basis of the imputed righteousness of Christ but in which final salvation . . . Continue reading →
Boston: Sanctification Through Faith Alone Is A Gospel Mystery
The gospel method of sanctification, as well as of justification, lies so far out of the ken of natural reason, that if all the rationalists in the world, philosophers and divines, had consulted together…” Thomas Boston, Preface to The Marrow of Modern . . . Continue reading →
Heidelcast 149: Q & A On How Pray, When To Drop The H Bomb, What Did OT Believers Know, And Why Final Justification Through Good Works Is Bad News
Now sanitized for your listening safety, the Heidelcast is back with episode 149 in which we take questions from Lancaster, PA, Houston, TX, Cork, Ireland, and Belfast, UK. The Heidelcast is a global podcast. As always we had some good and challenging . . . Continue reading →
Saved Through Good Works?
In Reformed theology the noun salvation is typically used in two ways. Sometimes it is used as a synonym for justification. When used this way it does not include sanctification since, according to the Reformed confession, justification is a declarative act of God whereby he credits (imputes) to sinners the perfect, active and suffering righteousness of Christ so that it is as if those sinners to whom Christ’s righteousness has been so imputed are considered to have themselves accomplished personally all the Christ did for them as their substitute. Further, we say that this benefit is received through faith alone (sola fide) defined as trusting, resting in, and receiving Christ and his righteousness. We confess that both the imputation of Christ’s righteousness and faith as the receiving instrument are nothing but God’s free gifts. Hence we attribute all of this to God’s favor (grace) alone. The slogan for this is sola gratia, by grace alone. Continue reading →
The Reformed Churches Confess Luther’s Translation Of Romans 3:28: Allein
In his 1521 translation of the Greek New Testament into German, the so-called September Testament, which he completed in about 11 weeks (seminary students take note, that is two weeks shy of one semester) Luther’s most controversial decision may have been to . . . Continue reading →
New Resource Page On The Reformation Solas
The Reformation was, at its core, the recovery of the biblical doctrine that Scripture is the only final authority (sola Scriptura) for the Christian faith and the Christian life, that salvation is by divine favor alone (sola gratia), through faith alone (sola . . . Continue reading →
The Most Heavenly Thought Of The Most Heavenly Man Does Not Deserve Heaven
The most holy and heavenly man that ever breathed, durst not adventure the salvation of his soul upon the most heavenly thought that ever he conceived. Our impressions of this will help to keep your hearts right in point of righteousness; so . . . Continue reading →
Perkins: The Doctrine Of A Two-Stage Justification Is A “Popish Device”
“That popish device of a second justification is a satanical delusion for the Word of God does acknowledge no more but one justification at all, and that absolute and complete of itself. There is but one justice, but one satisfaction of God . . . Continue reading →
Turretin: The Reformation Was Not A Cold, Academic Debate
Perkins: Two-Stage Justification Is Not Protestant
Perkins: By Nature We Seek To Contribute To Our Salvation But The Gospel….
By nature we desire to stand upright and righteous before God by some good thing in ourselves; as the rich man in the gospel, he demands of Christ, ‘What good thing shall I do to be saved?’ [Matthew 19:16]. Again, it is . . . Continue reading →
Heidelcast 134: A Federal Vision Primer
I am interrupting the series on the doctrine of God to talk a little bit more about the Federal Vision. I have received many comments from those who tell me that they do not understand the Federal Vision. What is it? From . . . Continue reading →
Perkins: God Finds In Our Good Works More To Damn Than To Save
Q: How is he accepted righteous before God? A: By the righteousness of Christ imputed to him [2 Col 5:21]. Q: What profit comes by being thus justified? A: Hereby and by no other means in the world, the believer shall be . . . Continue reading →
The Heidelberg Catechism Confesses Salvation By Grace Alone, Through Faith Alone
It has become fashionable among some who identify as confessionally Reformed and among so-called Reformedish (i.e., Baptists who identify with aspects of Reformed theology) types to claim that the Reformed doctrine of salvation hold that there two stages to salvation: initial and . . . Continue reading →
Just In Time For Reformation Day: The Return Of The Federal Visionists (And Their Allies)
Most of the confessional Reformed denominations took formal positions or at least received study papers rejecting the self-described Federal Vision theology a little more than twelve years ago. Because the original debate is so far in the rear view mirror, it seems . . . Continue reading →
The Gospel According To Jesus, Grace, Salvation, And Sanctification
Since the 1970s and 80s the Dispensational-evangelical world has been involved in a running controversy over “the Lordship of Christ.” On one side are those Dispensationalists allied with Lewis Sperry Chafer, Charlies Ryrie, and Zane Hodges, who assert that so long as . . . Continue reading →