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Sola Fide

Faith Only

by Sam Hughey

Rom 3:21-28 "But now the righteousness of God apart from the law is revealed, being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets, even the righteousness of God, through faith in Jesus Christ, to all and on all who believe. For there is no difference; for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God set forth as a propitiation by His blood, through faith, to demonstrate His righteousness, because in His forbearance God had passed over the sins that were previously committed, to demonstrate at the present time His righteousness, that He might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus. Where is boasting then? It is excluded. By what law? Of works? No, but by the law of faith. Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith apart from the deeds of the law."

"Being justified by faith, we have peace with God." (Romans 5:1) and then in Galatians 2:16, "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."

To the Roman Catholic, the instrumental cause of justification is "sacramental baptism". The Convert's Catechism of Catholic Doctrine states: "Baptism is a Sacrament which frees us from original sin, makes us children of God, brethren of Christ and co-heirs with Him of the Kingdom of Heaven." To this is added obedience to the Law, "through the observance of the commandments of God and of the Church" [Roman Catholic church].

To Arminian theology, the instrumental cause of justification is "personal decision". While I am not saying that Roman Catholicism and Arminianism share a common theology (for they do not), I am saying that both systems of theology have a commonality within their theology. To the Arminian, John 3:16 actually says "whosoever ‘decides’ to believe can be saved". It is the "decision" of the unbeliever and the "allowing" of the unbeliever that is required from the unbeliever before salvation can come to the unbeliever. One of the worst presentations I have heard was from a Southern Baptist pastor of a mega church and a former SBC President. His statement, "As unbelievers we hold the power of God prisoner to our own free will. It is not until we "decide" to "allow" God to save us that the Holy Spirit can actually work salvation in us". And yet, this same pastor claims to believe in the sovereignty of God!

Whether one believes he must be baptized, obey a rule or make a decision in order to be saved is basically irrelevant. What is relevant is that any system of thought that requires "something" from man before receiving "salvation" from God, denies and contradicts scripture; "For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God". Faith is a gift from God and not an invitation from man for God to do something; "Galatians 2:16, "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." Notice that we are saved by the faith of Christ! As the man of 1 Corinthians 2:14, we have no faith to exercise because we have no ability to exercise what we do not have. It is only when the Holy Spirit gives (of Christ) life to us that we are able to exercise the faith that He has also given to us. Neither the grace nor the faith comes from man. God is not a responder to the works of a spiritually dead person who can only exercise fleshly obedience to some sort of law whether it be baptism or making a decision. Making a decision has become a law to the unbeliever that is a pre-requisite for receiving salvation and therefore nullifies the very act of grace through the faith of Christ in the matter of salvation.

Calvin explains the doctrine:

If a price is to be put upon works according to their own worth, we hold that they are unfit to appear in the presence of God: that man, accordingly, has no works in which he can glory before God, and that hence, deprived of all aid from works, he is justified by faith alone. Justification, moreover, we thus define: The sinner being admitted into communion with Christ is, for his sake, reconciled to God; when purged by his blood he obtains the remission of sins, and clothed with righteousness, just as if it were his own, stands secure before the judgment-seat of heaven.*

*John Calvin. Institutes of the Christian Religion, Book 3, Chapter 17, Section 8

"Why, then, are we justified by faith? Because by faith we apprehend the righteousness of Christ, which is the only medium of our reconciliation to God. But this [justification] you cannot attain, without at the same time attaining to sanctification.... Christ therefore justifies no one whom he does not also sanctify. For these benefits are perpetually and indissolubly connected, so that whom he illuminates with his wisdom, them he redeems; whom he redeems, he justifies; whom he justifies, he sanctifies.... Since, then, the Lord affords us the enjoyment of these blessings only in the bestowment of himself, he gives them [justification and sanctification] both together, and never one without the other. Thus we see how true it is that we are justified, not without works, yet not by works; since union with Christ, by which we are justified, contains sanctification as well as righteousness."

- John Calvin, Institutes of the Christian Religion, trans. John Allen (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1949), III: xvi, 1.

It was not Adam who exercised his faith after transgressing God's holy law. It was God who called out to Adam, who was hiding from God, and gave Adam the faith he needed to believe he was forgiven and to live faithfully. The faith that Abraham had was not a faith that Abraham created or freely chose to exercise from within himself. If this was so, then certainly he would have had something of which to personally boast. It was not Abraham who called God out of Heaven, it was God from Heaven who called Abraham out of Haran. It was not Israel that chose God but, rather, God who chose Israel and not because of her faith. The faith that opened the eyes of the Apostle Paul did not come from the same man who murdered Stephen. It was from a new and living heart circumcised by the Holy Spirit. Our faith is of (from) Christ. We do not manufacture faith either as an unbeliever or a believer. It is from Christ. Without our Lord graciously and lovingly bestowing upon us his mercy, we would and could never exercise a faith from a nature that is naturally the enemy of God.

FAITH ALONE
by R.C. Sproul

This book is a serious study of justification by faith alone as expounded by the Reformers in comparison to the view that both faith and works are essential as mandated by Roman Catholicism. At issue is whether the doctrine of "justification by faith alone is necessary and essential to the gospel and to salvation" (a view expressed by the Reformers) or is it just "an important element of the gospel but not essential to the gospel or salvation?" Sproul states that "The purpose of Faith Alone is to explore the doctrine of justification in its biblical and historical context. (Page 48)." Examined are the doctrinal causes of the Reformation, with the major emphasis on the justification controversy as the material cause. "The Reformation was waged, not over the question of justification by faith, but over the issue of justification by faith alone, It was the sola of sola fide that was the central point of dispute." - according to Sproul. Linked to the issue of justification are the Roman Catholic sacraments as means of acquiring grace and merit. Key questions explored are: "Does faith enable us to become actively righteous so that God will declare us righteous? Or does God declare us righteous before we actually become actively righteous by imputing to us the righteousness of Christ?" In answer Sproul emphasizes that the doctrine of justification involves a legal matter of the highest order in which "the sinner stands or falls; his status before the supreme tribunal of God." He addresses the question of inherent versus imputed righteousness that goes to the heart of the Reformation debate. Are we justified by the imputed righteousness of Christ or by the righteousness of Christ that becomes inherent in the believer, by infused grace or imputed grace? (Page 105) The issues remains, How is that righteousness appropriated by the believer?

Faith Alone: R.C. Sproul
The Evangelical Doctrine of Justification

Rightly concerned that today's evangelicals seem uncertain about salvation, Sproul offers a clarifying work that is right on target. He dissects the doctrine for today's Christians and explains why "justification is by faith, through grace, alone." His response to the recent affirmation, "Evangelicals and Roman Catholics together," draws the limits of interchurch dialogue while recognizing mutual goals. A thought-provoking book.

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