The fourth cry of the protestant reformation is solus Christus which is a Latin phrase meaning “in Christ alone.”   Our salvation is in Christ alone.  Jesus was not merely a good teacher, a philosopher, or a healer.  He was God.  John 1 speaks of Jesus Christ as the creator who became flesh and dwelt among us.  Jesus was and is God.  He is a God that not only came to the earth but who died on a cross to give us victory over sin and death.  He is a Lord and Savior that can be trusted.  The Christians of the reformation were calling people to place their faith in Christ alone!

The third cry of the protestant reformation is sola gratia, which means “by grace alone.”  This means that we come to Jesus not by our good works or achievements but by grace alone.  The grace of God through Jesus’ death on the cross is what saves someone.  Salvation comes purely by the grace of God and not due to someone’s worth or value that would cause them to deserve it.  

Grace is unmerited favor from God.  We need to live lives in light of the grace of God and look for ways to share sola graitia with those around us.

The second cry of the protestant reformation that we will explore is sola fide which means “by faith alone.”  This truth as a focus in the reformation is essential to Christian doctrine.  Sinners come to Jesus not by their good works, morality, or penance.  They come to Jesus by faith alone.  Faith places all of one’s belief in Jesus Christ to be who He says that He is and to do what He says He will do.  

Faith is an easy theological word, but it is hard to live and embrace.  We live in a culture that is so focused on individual achievement that it is hard for us to acknowledge by faith that Jesus is all we need.  Embracing Jesus as the only hope for our salvation and not trying to impress God by adding something to pure faith is the essence of sola fide.

The first summary statement of the Protestant Reformation is sola scriptura.  This Latin statement means “by scripture alone.”  The Protestant Reformation placed scripture as the center of any theological and practical discussion.  Scripture was to be read and studied by all people not just the professional church people.  

The importance of making scripture central in the church was a response to the false teachings of purgatory and indulgences that Luther’s 95 Thesis addressed.  Scripture should be the standard of truth through which all ideas and teachings are filtered.  If something is being taught, even by a church minister, that contradicts scripture, the Christian must stick with scripture.  

Man’s words, no matter how eloquent or convincing they may sound, are still merely the words of man.  God’s words in scripture are truth from the mouth of God.  We must stand behind the words of God!

This week, we will be exploring the five solas of the Protestant Reformation and their importance to our theology.  On October 31st, 1517, Martin Luther nailed his 95 Thesis on the front door of a Catholic church in Wittenburg, Germany.  These 95 Thesis were a call to the church to embrace the Bible as a basis of theology and Christian practice and to protest indulgences.  

Indulgences were essentially get out of purgatory for a price cards that the church was selling to raise money to spend on massive cathedrals.  The idea of purgatory, a place where one goes after death as a waiting room before entering their eternal destination of heaven or hell, is entirely unbiblical.  There is no biblical evidence that this waiting room exists.  In addition to this theological fabrication, the church was using scare tactics to get people to purchase these indulgences.  Imagine hearing that you could get grandma out of purgatory for only $500.  The guilt of not doing what you could and giving money was used to force giving.  

The people were convinced this was the truth because they had no access to scripture.  The Word’s of God only came through the mouths of church leadership leaving church leaders with little accountability and the people with no standard to determine truth from error.  

The Protestant Reformation, which many say began with Luther’s 95 Thesis, brought the Word of God to the people and centered around five key priorities that are essential for the church to continue to embrace today.  These priorities in Latin are:

• Sola Scriptura
  
• Sola Fide
• Sola Gratia
• Solus Christus
• Soli Deo Gloria

Since we explored ministry calling this week, I thought that I would end the week with an additional perspective on ministry calling from Dr. Albert Mohler, the President of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary:

Has God called you to ministry? Though all Christians are called to serve the cause of Christ, God calls certain persons to serve the Church as pastors and other ministers. Writing to young Timothy, the Apostle Paul confirmed that if a man aspires to be a pastor, “it is a fine work he aspires to do.” [I Timothy 3:1, NASB] Likewise, it is a high honor to be called of God into the ministry of the Church. How do you know if God is calling you?

First, there is an inward call. Through His Spirit, God speaks to those persons He has called to serve as pastors and ministers of His Church. The great Reformer Martin Luther described this inward call as “God’s voice heard by faith.” Those whom God has called know this call by a sense of leading, purpose, and growing commitment.

Charles Spurgeon identified the first sign of God’s call to the ministry as “an intense, all-absorbing desire for the work.” Those called by God sense a growing compulsion to preach and teach the Word, and to minister to the people of God.

This sense of compulsion should prompt the believer to consider whether God may be calling him to the ministry. Has God gifted you with the fervent desire to preach? Has He equipped you with the gifts necessary for ministry? Do you love God’s Word and feel called to teach? Spurgeon warned those who sought his counsel not to preach if they could help it. “But,” Spurgeon continued, “if he cannot help it, and he must preach or die, then he is the man.” That sense of urgent commission is one of the central marks of an authentic call.

Second, there is the external call. Baptists believe that God uses the congregation to “call out the called” to ministry. The congregation must evaluate and affirm the calling and gifts of the believer who feels called to the ministry.  As a family of faith, the congregation should recognize and celebrate the gifts of ministry given to its members, and take responsibility to encourage those whom God has called to respond to that call with joy and submission.

These days, many persons think of careers rather than callings. The biblical challenge to “consider your call” should be extended from the call to salvation to the call to the ministry.

John Newton, famous for writing “Amazing Grace,” once remarked that “None but He who made the world can make a Minister of the Gospel.” Only God can call a true minister, and only He can grant the minister the gifts necessary for service. But the great promise of Scripture is that God does call ministers, and presents these servants as gifts to the Church.

One key issue here is a common misunderstanding about the will of God. Some models of evangelical piety imply that God’s will is something difficult for us to accept. We sometimes confuse this further by talking about “surrendering” to the will of God. As Paul makes clear in Romans 12:2, the will of God is good, worthy of eager acceptance, and perfect. Those called by God to preach will be given a desire to preach as well as the gifts of preaching. Beyond this, the God-called preacher will feel the same compulsion as the great Apostle, who said, “Woe to me if I do not preach the gospel!” [1 Corinthians 9:16, ESV]

Consider your calling. Do you sense that God is calling you to ministry, whether as pastor or another servant of the Church? Do you burn with a compulsion to proclaim the Word, share the Gospel, and care for God’s flock? Has this call been confirmed and encouraged by those Christians who know you best?

God still calls . . . has He called you?

Ministry calling is a call to vocational ministry.  This is a life-long call, but the context of the ministry itself may change.  We see this frequently in pastors who change churches or youth ministers who become senior pastors.  The people, age group, church, or style of ministry may change, but the calling remains the same.  

When looking at where God is calling you to ministry, there is a quote by Fredrick Buechner that comes to mind:

“The place where God calls you is where your deep gladness meets the world’s deep hunger.”-  Fredrick Buechner

We need to find where out deep passions and desires meet the hungers and needs of the world and that is where we need to minister.  I think that over time our place of deep gladness in ministry roles may change, but there will always be a new hunger and need to go along with our new passion.

In Monday’s post, I mentioned that all Christians are called to be the church by ministering and using their spiritual gifts to build up the church and to share Jesus with the lost.  We must not confuse the call of a Christian to embody the gospel and the call into vocational ministry.  

Today, I want to build an argument from the two tests that we looked at earlier this week getting to what I think is the core of whether the Holy Spirit is leading you into vocational ministry.  Here are the tests once again with comments corresponding to each point:

Daniel Akin’s Five Biblical Tests of the Call to Ministry

1. Do I meet the qualifications of a preacher set forth in the Word of God?-  A Christian who is living life in light of scripture and seeking to follow Jesus Christ could very well meet the qualifications of a preacher that are presented in scripture.  This question could apply to all Christians who through the power of the Holy Spirit are seeking to live like Jesus, but it must apply to someone who is called into ministry.
2. Have I the witness of the Spirit in my heart that God has called me? This is a question that would be something that could potentially apply to all Christians if this calling is a calling to use your spiritual gifts in order to build up the church and reach the lost.  The distinctive factor is the confirmation from the Holy Spirit that this ministry should be vocational instead of just using your gifts in the context of your local church body.
3. Has the gift of the ministry become evident in my life and service? This could also apply to both all Christians and Christians called into vocational ministry.  If you are a Christian seeking to follow Jesus Christ, you will be using your spiritual gifts in your life to reach the lost and in your service to build up your church.
4. Has my church recognized and confirmed my ministry gift? This is a confirmation that could be seen in all Christians but is especially essential for someone called into ministry.  If your brothers and sisters in Christ do not recognize that you have been gifted the way that you are and called into the ministry that you feel that you have been called into, you must seriously reevaluate and seek God to see if where you feel called is truly where He is calling you.
5. Has God used my ministry gift to the salvation of souls or the edification of the saints? All Christians have ministry gifts to build up the church and lead people to Jesus.  This could apply to any Christian but is definitely essential for someone called into ministry.  

The second test of ministry calling comes from the Prince of Preachers, Charles Haddon Spurgeon.  In his essay “The Call to the Ministry” from Lectures to My Students, Spurgeon shares three tests of a call to ministry:

1. Intense, all absorbing desire for the work.
2. Apt to teach, possess qualities needful of the office of a public minister.
3. Must see a measure of conversion work going on under his efforts.

The first set of questions for thought about vocational ministry calling come from Dr. Daniel Akin, the President of Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary.  These are adapted from his Expository Preaching class notes.  Here are five biblical tests of the call to ministry:

1. Do I meet the qualifications of a preacher set forth in the Word of God?
2. Have I the witness of the Spirit in my heart that God has called me?
3. Has the gift of the ministry become evident in my life and service?
4. Has my church recognized and confirmed my ministry gift?
5. Has God used my ministry gift to the salvation of souls or the edification of the saints?

What do you think about these questions?