Title: Grace Alone, Faith Alone, Bible Alone
Contents
Are you grateful for being a Protestant believer?
Text Commentary/ Today is Reformation Sunday. This year marks the 491th anniversary of the Reformation. On October 31, 1517, Martin Luther raised the banner of Reformation in a rebuttal of Article 95 against the Catholic Church.
Question 1: Why was Paul not ashamed of the gospel? (verse 16)
Answer: (1) First, because the gospel shows God's saving power (verse 16). Many people believe that salvation comes from God, but at the same time double think that it is something that is earned through hard work. Here is the anxiety of salvation. However, if we have faith that God's power to give us salvation is in the gospel, our anxiety will disappear. The cross for Jesus to bear our sins is the gospel. And the resurrection of Jesus, who overcame the powers of sin and death, is the gospel. If you believe this as the grace of God, your salvation is no longer insecure (Ephesians 2:8-9). What is 'grace'? It means that Jesus paid the price for my sins on the cross (Ephesians 2:5).
(2) Second, for everyone who calls on the name of the Lord Jesus Christ has salvation. There is no limit to the object of salvation. Anyone who calls on Jesus Christ will be saved (Romans 10:13).
Question 2: What should we do to avoid being ashamed of the gospel?
Answer: (1) Pursuing God's grace. Sola Gratia! Sadly, the Galatians quickly forgot the grace of Christ. Then they followed other gospels (Galatians 3:2-5, Gal 1:6). It rejects any human merit in human salvation (Romans 3:23-24).
(2) What is our problem today? We confess with our lips that we are saved only by grace. But in life, we forget that grace and live our lives.
Question 3: What did Paul declare that he would live completely different from the way he lived before he believed in Jesus (verse 17)?
Answer: (1) “The righteous will live by faith” (Sola Fidei!) Because “the righteousness of God” is revealed in the Gospel. The gospel is Jesus Christ, and the “righteousness of God” means that Christ was provided for us as righteousness (1 Corinthians 1:30). What is the righteousness of Jesus Christ? It is the righteousness of God who died on the cross and rose from the dead on the third day. This is the righteousness that fulfilled the moral law of man. So, wisdom, righteousness, holiness, and salvation are also found in Christ. Verse 17 “appeared” became a present tense. It means that people must come into contact with and receive the righteousness of God in the present moment when they believe in the gospel. Our religious life must begin with faith and end with faith. Some people start with faith and end with unbelief, and it seems that they start with faith, but later on, they end with their own merits, pride, and the law. So faith is corrupted, and the church is corrupted.
(2) We Christians should always check whether we live by faith. We keep trying to put our own righteousness first. He thinks he's good at it. He thinks it was his own effort and is proud. Therefore, we do not live by the gospel, but by our own thoughts. The reform of our personal faith is to cut off all that we do without the faith in us. I entrust everything in my life to the Lord. How far you can trust is the measure of a person's faith.
Question 4: What is the third agenda of the Reformation? (verse 17)
Answer: (1) Only the Bible (Sola Scriptura!) The Word of God is necessary for the process of faith growth. “By faith from first to last”. There is the power of salvation in the Word of God, and that salvation leads to the righteousness of God. The Bible, the Word of God, is necessary for this growth of faith.
(2) In each era, there was a guide for history. A powerful leader may act as a light to illuminate the darkness, and some human theories may be the standard. Science and economics or some invisible power could be the standard. However, all of these do not prevent the depravity of the human psyche. The only way to prevent man's sinful nature is the Word of God (Psalm 119:105).
Decision message:
The way we can live today is to restore the three major spirits of the Reformation. Only by grace, only by faith, and only by the Word. This is to restore the essence of the early church and is the secret to realizing the vision of Acts. But it comes from the determination and recovery of me alone. You must become a person who loves the Church of God. And we must always ask ourselves whether we live by faith in everything (Luke 18:18-27).