Faith Alone, Christ Alone
Notes
Transcript
FCF: We must be on guard against those who would bring any form of law-keeping into the church so that we do not loose our standing in grace.
What saves is faith alone, but the faith that saves is never alone.
J. I. Packer
Because Christ is all we have, we must maintain the simplicity of faith.
Our Faith Must Not Be Mixed
Our Faith Must Not Be Mixed
Do not give up our freedom (v. 1)
Do not give up our security (vv. 2-3)
Do not become cut off (v. 4)
Our Hope Must Be Maintained
Our Hope Must Be Maintained
We hope for final salvation (v. 5)
Paul loved to liken the Christian life to a race in the arena. Notice that to ‘run well’ in the Christian race is not just to believe the truth (as if Christianity were nothing but orthodoxy), nor just to behave well (as if it were just moral uprightness), but to ‘obey the truth’, applying belief to behaviour. Only he who obeys the truth is an integrated Christian. What he believes and how he behaves are all of a piece. His creed is expressed in his conduct; his conduct is derived from his creed.11 Stott, J. R. W. (1986).
We maintain our present faithfulness (v. 6)
Doctrinal purity must be accompanied by purity of life. There is an inseparable link between truth and morality, between right belief and right behavior.
John F. MacArthur
Our Confidence Must Be Guarded (vv. 7-12)
Our Confidence Must Be Guarded (vv. 7-12)
Christ will keep us going (v. 7-8)
Christ calls us to purity (v. 9)
Christ promises to preserve and purify us (v. 10)
Christ causes a scandal (v. 11)
The Preacher’s Notebook: The Collected Quotes, Illustrations, and Prayers of John Stott The Scandal of Original Sin and the Cross
Joy [JRWS’s sister] wrote to me after Billy Graham had preached at a televised service in All Souls on September 2, 1973. “He preached well (in my poor opinion)—it was the same old doctrine hammered home about original sin, and redemption through Jesus Christ—but as this seems so monstrous and vindictive and unjust, I’m afraid it’s like water off Joie’s goose’s back.”
Christ causes castration (v. 12)
Because Christ is all we have, we must maintain the simplicity of faith.