Blog In Audio:
Greetings,
I have been addressing the five Solas historically viewed as the foundation of the reformation of the church that began with a revelation of the just live by faith. I believe that every revelation of grace grows in the successive generations of the church. The government of God is grace. It is His manifest presence working in our lives by the working and power of Holy Spirit within us. We should have a better understanding of the just living by faith today than when this revelation was birthed by the grace of the Spirit of the Lord. I have been presenting the five Solas and confirming what I believe to be truth in the foundation of the just live by faith.
I believe that the Scripture is the true witness to the voice of God. Holy Spirit is the voice of God to our hearts, but the Scripture is the true witness to the voice of Holy Spirit. No pope, tradition, or council stands above this. Only Scripture (Sola Scriptura) is the greater witness to the voice of God, but Scripture is not the voice of God to our hearts. Holy Spirit is the voice of God to our hearts. Faith comes by hearing God, and the Scriptures are a true witness to the voice of God.
The second Sola in the summary of the teachings of the just live by faith is the Sola Fide (Faith Alone). This is simply to say that salvation is received through faith alone, not through good works or rituals. Faith is a growing testimony of a personal relationship with God in our hearts. Faith works through love and faith is the testimony of hearing God’s voice within. Our obedience is to faith not some religious belief system. Our obedience is to the voice of the One who loves us.
The third Sola was Sola Gratia (Grace Alone). Salvation is an unearned gift from God, not a result of human merit. Salvation is the testimony of God’s grace working in our lives. It’s not limited to going to heaven when we die. Salvation is seen in every part of our journey in Christ.
Now we come to the fourth Sola – Solus Christus (Christ Alone): Salvation is accomplished only through Jesus Christ’s mediatorial work and His substitutionary atonement. Salvation is a testimony of eternal life. Eternal life is knowing God our Father and Jesus Christ His Son by Holy Spirit in our lives (Jn. 17:3). This is the testimony of Christ in us. Christ in us is the hope of glory (Col. 1:27). Jesus is not just the mediator in heaven. Holy Spirit within us is our connection to all that Jesus is in heaven and in our daily lives. True salvation comes by turning to the Lord within our hearts (2 Cor. 3:16-18). Christ in us guarantees us eternal life today and in that which is beyond this world. Salvation is not merely going to heaven when we die. It is the saving of our souls. The salvation of our souls includes a change in our thoughts, reasonings, imaginations, emotions, and desires. Salvation is seen through Christ reigning in our lives.
The fifth Sola for the just live by faith is Soli Deo Gloria (Glory to God Alone): The ultimate purpose of salvation is to bring glory to God alone, as it is a work entirely of His doing. This is not just a work that He does apart from us but includes our partnership with Him for His glory in all things. Our partnership with Him is not a work of our own power but a testimony of God working in and through us for His glory.
Romans 11:36 For of Him and through Him and to Him are all things, to whom be glory forever. Amen.
2 Corinthians 1:20 For all the promises of God in Him are Yes, and in Him Amen, to the glory of God through us.
I believe that the truth of the five Solas presented by the historical church all have elements of truth, but they are also truths that expand in our understanding when we know that God’s plan is not some belief system for a structure called the church. They are thoughts to inspire each of us as we grow as sons and daughters of God in Christ.
No religious structure or external voice of men can replace each believer’s need for the Scripture as a witness to the voice of God in their hearts. No law, tradition, or creed of men can replace each believer’s need to hear God’s voice in their hearts. This is true faith. No religious form of discipline can usurp our need for the grace of God working in our lives. That grace is the manifest presence of Holy Spirit within us that changes us by the unmerited favor of His presence. We are a dwelling place of God by His Spirit (Eph. 2:22) and only Christ within us is the hope of the glory of being the light of Christ to our world. All that we are and all that we do is for the glory of God and not for any earthly glory of our own. We live for His story in all things.
Food For Thought,
Ted J. Hanson
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