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What is the Reformed
Faith?
1. ORIGIN.
The Reformed faith derives its name from the Protestant Reformation in the
sixteenth century. Men such as Martin Luther, Ulrich Zwingli and John Calvin
were used by God to break with the errors of the medieval Roman Catholic
church. This break has become known as "The Reformation".
2. TEACHING.
The teaching of the Reformed faith basically follows the teaching of the
Reformers five centuries ago. The Reformers did not want to change God's
Word, but to return to the truth contained in it. Thus the Reformed faith
today is the faith which Scripture teaches. This brochure aims to outline
some of the distinctive doctrines of the Reformed faith, as taught by the
Bible.
3. IMPORTANCE.
Many Christian churches today do not fully maintain the truth that is taught
in the Bible. The Bible itself indicates the importance of maintaining the
true doctrine, and the Reformed faith best reflects what God Himself teaches
in the Bible. Look up the Bible passages referred to, and judge for
yourself, "examining the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so."
(Acts 17:11).
"If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples."
- John 8:31
CONTENTS
Sola Scriptura
- by Scripture alone
The teaching
of the Reformed faith rests completely and entirely on the Bible alone.
God's Word is the complete and final authority for all matters of faith and
life. Reformed believers are thus committed to the importance of the Bible
both in their worship services and in their personal lives.
1. The Bible
is inspired.
Although God
used human writers, the Bible is not a mere human book. It is inspired by
the Spirit of God, so that what is written is the very Word of God. Since
God is its author, the Bible is infallible and without error (2Tim 3:16;
1Thess 2:13).
2. The Bible
is authoritative.
Since the Bible is the Word of God, it has an absolute and divine authority.
Neither the church nor writings of men have equal value with Scripture, and
so the Bible alone is authoritative for all matters in the church (Rom 15:4;
2Tim 3:16; 2Pet 1:19-21).
3. The Bible
is sufficient.
Scripture contains the full and complete revelation of God. All that you
need to believe is contained within it. Thus you may not add or subtract
from God's Word in any way, not even by further prophecies, ongoing
revelation, or speaking in tongues (Deut 4:2; 1Cor 4:6; Rev 22:18,19).
4. The Bible
is necessary.
The message of the Bible is necessary for the church, since it witnesses to
Jesus Christ. God uses the good news of salvation in Jesus Christ contained
in the Bible to gather His church, and work faith in the hearts of those who
believe (Deut 8:3; John 20:31).
5. The Bible
is clear.
Scripture itself is clear and its message understandable. Although certain
parts of the Bible can be hard to understand (2Pet 3:15-16), you do not need
special statements of church leaders to explain the sense and purpose of the
Bible. It is clear to those who read it carefully, with the help of the Holy
Spirit (Ps 19:8; 119:105; 1Cor 2:12-14).
Sola Fide - by
faith alone
Justification.
Justification is when God declares that you are innocent, and have perfectly
obeyed God's law. The Bible also calls this being righteous (Rom 2:13).
Not
justified by works.
You can
never be justified or made righteous on the basis of your own works or
merits, since you are entirely corrupt (Rom 3:28; Gal 2:16).
Justified by
faith alone.
You can be
justified by faith alone. Christ was righteous before God because of His
perfect obedience to God's law throughout His whole life. His righteousness
is given to you as a free gift when you have faith, that is, when you
believe in Him (Rom 3:28; 1Cor 1:30; Gal 2:16).
Faith is an
instrument.
Faith is
thus the instrument by which you embrace Christ our righteousness. When you
believe, Christ's righteousness is given to you. You are not justified on
the grounds of faith, as if God makes you righteous because you have
faith. Faith is not enough to make you righteous - only Christ's
righteousness can make you righteous. It is Christ's righteousness that
justifies you, but this righteousness is given to you by means of
faith. Thus we say that you can be justified through faith alone (Rom
3:25-26; 5:18; 2Cor 5:21).
Faith is a
gift.
Even this faith - through which you are justified - is a gift. God Himself
works in your heart by His Holy Spirit, through the preaching of the gospel
(Rom 10:17; Eph 2:8; Php 1:29).
Sola Gratia -
by grace alone
Since we are
entirely sinful, and unable to save ourselves, we are entirely dependent
upon God for salvation. Salvation is worked by God from beginning to end,
and is given as a free gift. Salvation thus has its origin in God and not in
us, and is only the result of God's grace (unmerited favour). It is "by
grace alone". This teaching is also known as The Five Points of Calvinism,
which are best remembered with the acronym TULIP.
Total
Depravity.
We all are
conceived and born in sin. By nature, you are totally incapable of doing any
true good, and rather are inclined to do all evil. Your natural spiritual
condition is thus much worse than just being sick. You are unable even to
believe, and can thus be said to be spiritually dead. (Gen 6:5; Ps
51:5; Jer 13:23; Rom 5:12; Eph 2:1-3).
Unconditional Election.
God, out of
mere grace, has chosen from the whole human race a certain number of persons
to be saved in Christ. This choice was not based on who might later believe
and have faith, but was entirely based on God's good pleasure (Acts 13:48;
Rom 9:15; Eph 1:4).
Limited
Atonement.
Christ did
not redeem all men by his death. The only ones who were atoned and saved by
His death are God's people, the believers elected to salvation. By His death
on the cross, Christ obtained eternal salvation for all God's people, and
these only (Matt 1:21; John 10:15; 17:9).
Invincible
Grace.
Man is in himself unable to believe in God. But God works in man's heart by
His Holy Spirit, working faith and repentance. The Holy Spirit thus changes
man, making him turn away from sin and towards God. Although the grace of
the Spirit can be opposed, it can never be resisted completely, and God's
Spirit can soften the hardest of hearts (Ezek 36:26; John 6:44; 10:27; Eph
2:8; Php 2:13).
Perseverance
of the Saints.
Because of the power of sin, believers could not persevere in faith if they
were left on their own. But God preserves and keeps all true believers in
whom He works faith unto the very end. Those who are elect and in whom God
works by His Spirit, can never fall away from God completely, and lose their
salvation (John 6:39; 10:28; Rom 8:28-30; Php 1:6).
God's
Sovereignty
The Reformed
faith revolves not around man, but God. God's sovereignty is His rule. He
rules over all creation with absolute power and authority. God is the one
who created heaven and earth (Gen 1:1; Isa 45:12). God also determines
everything that happens, and controls all things. Nothing is outside of His
control and dominion, or can frustrate His purposes (Ps 22:28; 104:14; Prov
16:9; Dan 4:35; Luke 1:37).
Everything
which exists, exists in order to give Him glory and praise (Ps 103:22;
150:6). The ultimate purpose of all of life, is thus to give God glory. This
must also be the goal of your entire life (1Cor 10:31). This is all the more
true, since salvation is God's work from beginning to end (Eph 2:8-10).
God's Covenant
God relates
to man by means of a covenant. The covenant originates with God, and
includes promises and threats, as well as demands.
Covenant
promises.
To believers
and their children, God gives the promise to be their God. He gives
them the promise of salvation and the forgiveness of sins (Gen 17:7; Heb
8:8-12).
Covenant
demands.
The covenant
has a conditional aspect, for God also gives the demand of faith and
obedience (Ex 19:5; Heb 4:1-2).
Covenant
threats.
Where there
is unbelief and disobedience, God will not give the promise, but the
threat of the covenant, namely, punishment and curse instead of blessing
(Deut 28:15; Heb 4:11; 10:26-31).
Covenant
members.
God makes
His covenant with believers and their children (Gen 17:7; Matt 19:14; Acts
2:38-39; 1Cor 7:14). In the old covenant with Israel, the sign of the
covenant was circumcision, and was given to believers and their children
(Gen 17:10). In the new covenant the sign of the covenant is baptism, and
likewise is given to believers and their children (Acts 16:33; Col 2:11-12).
Infant baptism is thus required by Scripture.
God's Church
Since the
beginning of time, over the whole world, God is gathering for Himself a
church of true Christian believers, of which Christ is the head. All true
believers must join themselves to the true church. God Himself gathers this
church by His Holy Spirit, through the preaching of His Word. It can be
found wherever there is faithful preaching of the Bible, the use of the
sacraments as Christ instituted them, and the faithful exercise of
discipline in correcting sins.
God's Cultural
Mandate
The Reformed
faith recognizes the ongoing validity of the cultural mandate given to Adam
and Eve in Paradise, to "be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth and
subdue it; and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of
the air and over every living thing that moves upon the earth." (Gen
1:28). This mandate is restored in Christ, who is Lord over all things (Col
1:17; 2:10).
Reformed
believers are thus called to be in the world, and not to withdraw from it.
Christ reigns as King, and Christians must work in every area in society to
submit all things to the Lordship of Christ, and His Word (2Cor 10:5). This
is not limited to family and church, but includes politics, education,
business, economics, the arts, and every other part of society. Believers
are called especially to bring the gospel of Jesus Christ to the ends of the
earth, making disciples of all nations, teaching them to observe all that He
have commanded (Matt 28:19).
You, too,
must observe all that Christ has commanded. That is what the Reformed faith
is all about. For this reason, I hope you will take this brochure very
seriously.
(Click here if you wish to download this pamphlet
in PDF format - requires
Adobe Reader)
The information in
this pamphlet was prepared by
Rev. R.E. Pot,
minister of the Pilgrim Canadian Reformed Church in London, Ontario
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