Today we celebrate the Reformation of the church. An event that began just over 500 years ago with an Augustinian Monk by the name of Martin Luther nailing his infamous 95 Thesis to the Wittenberg Castle Door. The objective of those thesis was not to change the church but to bring the church back to the pure teaching of Christ which had been mingled with so much human error that salvation to eternal life was no longer experienced by the people. Instead, the grace of God was replaced by human efforts be that through paying with money or paying by good deeds – neither of which gave any comfort at all.
The hallmark of the Reformation is summed up in what are known as the 5 solas –
Sola being Latin for “alone” The 5 solas being: That Christians are saved by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone, by Scripture alone, to the glory of God alone. For my sermon today I want to explain why these were of vital importance for the Reformation:
SOLA GRATIA by “Grace Alone”
First of all we should explain – salvation from what? Salvation from the judgment and condemnation of God that every human being deserves (because we are sinners). As Paul reveals in his letter to the Romans: “There is no one righteous, not even one; there is no one who understands; there is no one who seeks God. All have turned away, they have together become worthless; there is no one who does good, not even one. Salvation is being saved from what we deserve because of our sin and receiving what we do not deserve. Again, as Paul says in Romans: For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. Grace alone means that eternal life in heaven is a gift of grace from God.
It has nothing to do with human merit. For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast.
Luther discovered it in his days as a monk when he tried to buy comfort through his good deeds. Luther came to the place where he admitted that he hated God for his holy requirement of perfection from us. “This word is too high and too hard that anyone should fulfill it,” he wrote. But that’s how Luther’s life began.
Fearing for his life in a thunderstorm he prayed to St Anne to save him and he would become a monk He bargained with God. Isn’t that how many people feel about God today? If God will do this for me, I will do that for God. Or vice versa – If I do this for God then I expect God to do this for me. And that’s how we then try to get comfort from God – like the Pharisee: God, I thank you that I am not like other people: thieves, rogues, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week; I give a tenth of all my income. And still he went home NOT right with God.
As Luther discovered – assurance of salvation cannot come from ourselves no matter how much we have done for God – salvation is by “Grace Alone. For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. Which leads us into our next “sola” – through faith alone.
It’s important to understand that we are saved “through” faith – and not by faith.
It is not by the believer’s works or efforts but by Christ’s work on the cross that a person is saved. Paul reminds us in Romans 5:8-9 that God shows His love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. God did all the work for our salvation BEFORE we could do anything. Faith is not how we are saved but how we receive God’s grace. As the writer in Hebrews 11 says, faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see. We simply believe that God has done all the work for us. As Paul says in 2 Corinthians – God made him who had no sin to become our sin so that we could BECOME the righteousness of God.
Remember last week’s Gospel – the tax collector went home “made right with God”. He did not believe he was worthy of being saved but by that unbelief he was saved by God’s grace through faith.
in Christ alone – SOLUS CHRISTUS
John 14:6 Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” Salvation is found in Christ alone. No human being can forgive sins. It is Christ alone who saves. Even the crowd acknowledged that when the friends of the paralytic lowered him down through the roof of a house to have Jesus heal him. When Jesus saw their faith, He said to the man, “Friend, your sins are forgiven.” The teachers of the Law and the proud religious law-keepers thought to themselves, “Who is this Man Who speaks as if He is God? Who can forgive sins but God only?”
Likewise in Acts 4:12 And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved. This is a difficult thing to proclaim in a world where Christianity is mocked and rejected. In a world where the one who called himself the way, the truth and the life and that no one comes to the Father except through him – when truth is your own personal truth. But as Jesus said in today’s Gospel that through him we shall know the truth and the truth shall set us free.
By Scripture alone – SOLA SCRIPTURA
As much as many would like a more modern reference book – the 66-books of the Bible – the Old and the New Testament is the sole authority for Christians in faith, doctrine, and practice. Sola Scriptura – Scripture alone – acknowledges the facts that the Bible is the Word of God, without error, all sufficient and the source of all truth. As much as it is debated that it is merely a book written by human beings, Paul, in 2 Timothy 3:16-17, declares that all Scripture is breathed out by God for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, so that the people of God may be complete and equipped for every good work.
The word of God is then enacted in our lives as Luther points out when explaining God’s grace: How can eating and drinking in Holy Communion do such great things – it is not in the eating and drinking but in hearing and believing God’s word – given and shed for you for the forgiveness of sins. In Baptism, how can water do such great things? It is not in water alone but water used together with God’s word. And in our forgiveness of sins – Jesus breathed on his disciples and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive anyone’s sins, their sins are forgiven.
God’s word of authority is not found anywhere else other than in the Scriptures we call the Holy Bible. In fact John declares that in his Holy Gospel: Jesus performed many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not recorded in this book. But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.
And finally – all this is to the glory of God alone. SOLI DEO GLORIA
Salvation is wholly a work of God for His glory. We contribute nothing to our salvation. As Paul says in 1 Corinthians 10:31 So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God. As Luther says in explaining the Article of God’s Creation:
I believe that God has made me and all creatures; that He has given me my body and soul, eyes, ears, and all my members, my reason and all my senses, and still takes care of them. He also gives me clothing and shoes, food and drink, house and home, family, land, animals, and all I have. He richly and daily provides me with all that I need to support this body and life. He defends me against all danger and guards and protects me from all evil. All this He does only out of fatherly, divine goodness and mercy, without any merit or worthiness in me. For all this I surely ought to thank and praise, serve and obey Him. This is most certainly true.
As we pray when praying the Lord’s Prayer. For the kingdom, the power and the glory are yours – forever and ever. Amen. Like our Baptism, the Reformation was not an historical event but a call for the church to constantly check itself against the 5 Solas. Is our teaching and practice on salvation by grace alone – is it through faith in Christ alone, is it through God’s Word in Scripture alone and is everything that we do and say to the glory of God alone. For there is no other name by which we are saved.
