Protestant doctrine and belief is founded upon the Five Solae or Solus which are: By Grace, Through Faith, Scripture Alone, In Christ Alone, and to Glory Be to God Alone. These five which match the Five Wounds of Christ encompass the entire statement or canon of Protestant belief. As aforementioned in "The Triumph of Protestantism" our Reformed Churches are not neo or new, but a resurgence and return to Biblical Christianity (33 A.D. to 100 A.D.). Since very few institutions educate people in Five Solae, I shall unpack each statement of faith, its Scriptural support, and how it is practiced by us Protestant Christians.
Solae Gracias or Grace Alone
Grace Alone was penned by Martin Luther who discovered while reading The Scriptures that his salvation did not lie in indulgences, penance, or the merit of his good works, but rather in grace and free gift of God and His sacrifice on the cross. Luther's Solae Gracias is really St. Paul's who said, "For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith--and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God--Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it." (Ephesians 2:8-9). The Apostle Paul made it clear in his epistles, and letters that salvation was free gift of God, not earned through sacrifice and good works. The Apostle makes this case elsewhere in Scripture, "and are justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus," (Romans 3:24), "made us alive with Christ, even when we were dead in our trespasses. It is by grace you have been saved!," (Ephesians 2:5), and, "So then, it does not depend on man's desire or effort, but on God's mercy." (Romans 9:16). The Apostle Paul was not the only one to emphasize this salvation by God free gift and death on cross for our sins, other Apostles said the same, "On the contrary, we believe it is through the grace of the Lord Jesus that we are saved, just as they are," (Acts 15:11), and, "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! By His great mercy, He has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. and into an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, reserved in heaven for you, who through faith are shielded by God's power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time." (1 Peter 1:3-5). One can see the second Solae, Through Faith within these same verses, because they are connected and revealed in his letter to Romans, "If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe (have faith, trust) in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is by believing in your heart that you are made right with God, and it is by confessing with your mouth that you are saved." (Romans 10:9-10). The doctrine of salvation by Grace was pivotal to the Reformers because the Roman Catholic Church teaches The Sacraments, particularly Eucharist (Communion), Confession, Penance, and Baptism save a Catholic soul; and only absolution from His Holiness, The Pope in for of an indulgence can truly assure salvation. This contradicts faith in Christ, and The Holy Bible, and authors who recorded the Faith.
Solae Fidel, By Faith or Through Faith Alone
This doctrine is intrinsic and connected to Grace Alone. The Grace is Jesus Christ died for our sins on the cross (1 Peter 2:24), but it is through faith or accepting this gift, believing it that we are saved (Romans10:9-10). The Reformers saw that a transaction has taken place, Jesus who is God (Col 2:9) died on the cross for mankind's sins, but the salvic power of this sacrifice of God for our sins is not bestowed or sealed on a person until they believe it and confess it (Romans 10:9-10). Thus it is Grace Alone, the Gift of God, only God can save us, but through faith, we must believe it and confess it to partake in the benefits of gift; in short you cannot enjoy the gift if you never open it, claim it, and confess it is a present. This is emphasized via the following verses, "They replied, "Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved--you and your household," (Acts 16:31), and "For this is how God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life." (John 3:16). Believe and have faith in are interchangeable.
Solae Scriptura, Scripture Alone
This tenet of the Protestant creedo means that Scripture alone is our measure and document to test everything that happens spiritually and what authority any pastor or priest has. This comes from, "All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, God uses it to prepare and equip his people to do every good work." (2 Timothy 3:16-17). Thus Scripture becomes the measure of how a Christian tests wither something is from God or the devil, wither it is acceptable or unacceptable to practice, and so forth. This is the canon of Scripture which was in opposition to Canon Law (44 books at about 400-4000pgs) that the Roman Catholic Church used as their measure to guide the "faithful" via the Magistratium. In lengthy volumes of the Popes and priests of the Church (Canon Law) there were contradictions to Scripture, The Gospels, and even contradictions with other parts of Canon Law. The Bible is to be a Christian's guide and measure for how to live, behave, think, and act as Christian, combined with the leading of Holy Spirit. The Apostle Peter affirms the divine inspired nature of Scripture, "Above all, you must understand that no prophecy of Scripture comes from the prophet's own interpretation. For prophecy never had its origin in the human will, but prophets, though human, spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit." (2 Peter 1:20-21). Here the Apostle Peter, whom the Roman Catholic Church reveres most (Peter Primacy, linage of Popes and their power), says that Scripture is not penned except by the Holy Spirit through the person.
Solus Christus, Christ Alone
The authority of Scripture established, the doctrine of Reformation shifts to Solus Christus, that grace comes from Christ alone, and faith in Christ alone saves a sinner, "For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God. He was put to death in the body but made alive in the Spirit," (1 Peter 3:18), "But now He has reconciled you by Christ's physical body through death to present you holy, unblemished, and blameless in His presence," (Colossians 1:22), "Otherwise, He would have had to suffer repeatedly since the foundation of the world. But now He has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to do away with sin by the sacrifice of Himself," (Hebrews 9:26), "And by that will, we have been sanctified through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all," (Hebrews 10:10), "When he died, he died once to break the power of sin. But now that he lives, he lives for the glory of God," (Romans 6:10), and, "so Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many; and he will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him." (Hebrews 9:28). This was a critical doctrine to establish because the Roman Catholic church teaches salvation through merit and the Sacraments (Baptism, Eucharist/Communion, Confession, Penance, Holy Orders, Holy Matrimony), when the Scriptures testify that Jesus Christ is only path to salvation, "Jesus answered, I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." (John 14:6). The idea of mediators, popes, priests, and even pantheon of canonized saints along with Madonna to intercede and mediate between a Christian and Christ is debunked via Scripture, "For there is one God and one mediator between God and mankind, the man Christ Jesus." (1 Timothy 2:5). Solus Christus established that Jesus Christ alone saves a Christian through His death on cross and the person believe it, and in His resurrection and that He is God. Thus the Creed is it is By Grace Alone we are Saved through Faith alone, Scripture Alone testifies this and it is in Christ Alone we receive the Grace and through faith in Him are saved, and finally it climaxes in the last Solae.
Solae Glorium or Solus Gloria, Glory Be To God Alone
Solus Gloria is a concept that only the Divine Trinity of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit should receive glory, honor, and praise. In Roman Catholicism there is worship of saints and glory given to the Madonna, even to point of overshadowing the One True God. The Scriptures say, "To our God and Father be glory for ever and ever. Amen." (Philippians 4:20). Glory does not belong to popes, priests, or even the Church, but to the Alpha and Omega, to Christ Jesus. Thus the complete Creed is By Grace Alone we are saved through Faith Alone, by Scripture Alone through Christ Alone, and Glory be to God alone for He alone has do what can save us and turn us from sin. It would be better to organize it By Grace we are saved Alone through Faith Alone in Christ Alone by the account of the Scriptures Alone and this Glorifies or brings Glory to God Alone.
The Five Solae are Scriptural and simple once you connect all five. They are not self containing like John Calvin's TULIP (see my post on Calvinism), but rather each Solae is like a vine or branch from the same Tree. Roman Catholic doctrine requires thousands of pages of Catechism and over forty books full of hundreds to thousands of pages of Canon Law. The Reformers simplified salvation by following the Apostles and Christ's own words. The Protestant Creed can be summed up in the words of the Apostle Paul, "If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is by believing in your heart that you are made right with God, and it is by confessing with your mouth that you are saved." (Romans 10:9-10). The Protestant Reformers decided to adhere to Solae Scripture for doxology (doctrine), theology, eschatology (end things, end days), and every practice. The Reformers were tired of doctrines of men, they wanted to return to the divinely inspired words of God (2 Timothy). For the Scriptures even confront the doctrines of men and the Papacy, "Their worship is a farce, for they teach man-made ideas as commands from God," (Matthew 15:9, cross ref Mark 7:7), "Now the Holy Spirit tells us clearly that in the last times some will turn away from the true faith; they will follow deceptive spirits and teachings that come from demons. Such teachings come through hypocritical liars, whose consciences have been seared as with a hot iron. They forbid people to marry and order them to abstain from certain foods, which God created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and who know the truth," (1 Timothy 4:1-3), "They will act religious, but they will reject the power that could make them godly. Stay away from people like that!," (2 Timothy 3:5), and "You were dead because of your sins and because your sinful nature was not yet cut away. Then God made you alive with Christ, for he forgave all our sins. He canceled the record of the charges against us and took it away by nailing it to the cross. In this way, he disarmed the spiritual rulers and authorities. He shamed them publicly by his victory over them on the cross. So don’t let anyone condemn you for what you eat or drink, or for not celebrating certain holy days or new moon ceremonies or Sabbaths. For these rules are only shadows of the reality yet to come. And Christ himself is that reality. Don’t let anyone condemn you by insisting on pious self-denial or the worship of angels, saying they have had visions about these things. Their sinful minds have made them proud, and they are not connected to Christ, the head of the body. For he holds the whole body together with its joints and ligaments, and it grows as God nourishes it. You have died with Christ, and he has set you free from the spiritual powers of this world. So why do you keep on following the rules of the world, such as, “Don’t handle! Don’t taste! Don’t touch!”? Such rules are mere human teachings about things that deteriorate as we use them. These rules may seem wise because they require strong devotion, pious self-denial, and severe bodily discipline. But they provide no help in conquering a person’s evil desires." (Colossians 2:13-23). The Reformers decided to abandon the Talmud of the Roman Catholic Church, and get back to Holy Bible which contains everything a Christian should believe and test things with from God himself and His first followers, oppose to supposed disciples of the Disciples, and popes. The Reformers returned to Authentic Christianity or Biblical Christianity, breaking free of the yoke of Rome and all its idolatries (see my post on Roman persecuting Christianity since 33 A.D.).
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