Nathan Busenitz: Sola Fide

This message took place during the Sola Conference at Countryside Bible Church in Southlake, Tx:   

Book Review: By Faith: Twenty-Five Selected Sermons on Faith

Over the years, there has been a resurgence of books, sermons, and even lectures from Charles Spurgeon that have been published for the church today. Many of his books are available for free on Kindle. His lectures can be found in bookstores. His sermons have been written for the church to read.

In this book, By Faith: Twenty-Five Selected Sermons on Faith, edited by Kerry James Allen, has become one of the latest collection of sermons from Spurgeon to edify and equip the church today. As you can imagine, this books deals with subject of faith. These sermons have been collected and edited from the New Park Street Pulpit and Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit series.

In these sermons, Spurgeon tackles how the Christian is to live by faith in the world. He also addresses the faith of people in the Bible as an example for us in the modern world. Spurgeon exhorts the believer to life by faith and not by sight and in full obedience to God which is a result of saving faith.

Spurgeon has become one of my favorite preachers from church history. I have benefitted from many of his writings over the years. I know many have as well and many preachers have used Spurgeon's sermons for sermon preparation. I am thankful that we have these 25 sermons on faith for the church whether to be used for sermon or for one's own personal growth.

I am delighted to recommend this collection of sermons from Charles Spurgeon

I received this book from G3 Press in exchange for an honest review. 

Book Review: What is Saving Faith? by John Piper

What is Saving Faith? Seems like a simple question yet for some Christians it tends to be more confusing which is sad. Some would say saving faith is trusting in Christ alone to save you from your sins. Others would say trust in Christ and do other things to secure your salvation.

The Bible is clear that saving faith comes from Christ we can do nothing to earn it nor add to it to make it more secure. Christians can trust in Christ for their salvation. John Piper believes that saving faith is not just trusting in Christ, it is also treasuring Christ, which he explains in his book, What is Saving Faith?

As I read this book, I am aware that Piper has had some confusing material comes out over the years that sounds like Piper believes we can be right with God through Christ by faith alone but cannot get into heaven by faith alone. This is ironic because one of the chapters of the book addresses why he is not a Roman Catholic which they believe you have to continue to do good deeds and not be in some mortal sin before you die to gain access into heaven. 

Piper addresses that he is taking the Lordship Salvation issue to whole new level. Lordship Salvation is basically if you are Christian who believes Jesus is Lord and your faith is backed by what you do which is Biblical (see James 2:14-26 and the entire book of 1 John). What Piper is suggesting is our faith needs to be affectional. We need to see Christ as our absolute treasure that communicates, we really love Christ. 

Piper's approach almost sounds if you are not an emotional person, you may not be a Christian. This is borderline legalism. I remember hearing a pastor say he would not hire anyone if he cannot ask the question, "When was the last time the gospel brought you to tears?" There is nothing wrong with being emotional preaching the gospel, but to question one's calling or even salvation because they are not emotional is faith plus works. 

Piper does write about how there is surpassing worth in knowing Christ and that we have a message of proclaiming His value. This is something we can all agree on. Paul said his all of his accomplishments of the flesh are rubbish compared to knowing Christ as Lord. We are also to evangelize. My issue with Piper's book is that it sounds like if we are not seeing Christ as treasure and not affectional in our faith, we may not be saved even though we have faith in Christ. Last time I checked, if we confess with our mouth Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart God raise Him from the dead you will be saved (Romans 10:9). 

If you desire to read this book, do it with extreme caution. 

I received this book from Crossway in exchange for an honest review.

Sola Fide

One of the solas of the reformation is sola fide which means that we are saved by faith alone. We are not saved by works. The Bible tells us:

For by grace you have been saved through faith, and this not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not of works, so that no one may boast (Ephesians 2:8-9).

He saved us, not by works which we did in righteousness, but according to His mercy, through the washing of regeneration and renewing by the Holy Spirit, whom He poured out upon us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that having been justified by His grace, we would become heirs according to the hope of eternal life (Titus 3:5-7).

nevertheless knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the Law but through faith in Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Christ Jesus, so that we may be justified by faith in Christ and not by the works of the Law; since by the works of the Law no flesh will be justified (Galatians 2:16).

The Bible is clear that works will never save us no matter how good they are or the intention of our hearts. Because of our sin, God demanded perfect obedience for all His children. There were 613 laws and if you break just one, you are convicted as breaking all of it (see James 2:10).

Jesus came to fulfill the Law on our behalf. The Bible says:

Do not think that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I did not come to abolish but to fulfill (Matthew 5:17).

Jesus lived on our behalf so that He could die on the cross to be the perfect sacrifice:

For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life (Romans 5:10).

He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him (2 Corinthians 5:21).

Three days after His death, God rose Jesus from the dead because He accepted the sacrifice of Jesus in our place (see Romans 4:24-25). We received eternal life through Jesus by faith not by works which we can never boast about because we boast in Him:

Where then is boasting? It is excluded. By what kind of law? Of works? No, but by a law of faith. For we maintain that a man is justified by faith apart from works of the Law (Romans 3:27-28).

Let him who boasts, boast in the Lord (1 Corinthians 1:31).

We are not saved by works; however we are saved for works as the evidence of one who has been given eternal life from God the Father:

For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them (Ephesians 2:10).

What use is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but he has no works? Can that faith save him? If a brother or sister is without clothing and in need of daily food, and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, be warmed and be filled,” and yet you do not give them what is necessary for their body, what use is that? Even so faith, if it has no works, is dead by itself. But someone will say, “You have faith; and I have works. Show me your faith without the works, and I will show you my faith by my works.” You believe that God is one. You do well; the demons also believe, and shudder. But are you willing to recognize, you foolish fellow, that faith without works is useless? Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered up Isaac his son on the altar? You see that faith was working with his works, and as a result of the works, faith was perfected. And the Scripture was fulfilled which says, “And Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness,” and he was called the friend of God. You see that a man is justified by works and not by faith alone. And in the same way, was not Rahab the harlot also justified by works when she received the messengers and sent them out by another way? For just as the body without the spirit is dead, so also faith without works is dead (James 2:14-26).

We are saved by faith alone which is backed up by the works God has given us to walk in obedience to Him as a response to this salvation He has given us.

Book Review: Feelings and Faith by Brian S. Borgman

Emotions are part of life. They come and go. We have feelings of gladness when things go our way. We have feelings of sadness when things go wrong. We have feelings of fear when we are certain of things.

Many in the Christian life like to incorporate faith with their feelings. Sadly, there are some in the Christian faith that think they are not saved because they do not feel saved. 

How can we understand our feelings? How can we regulate them? What role do they play in the Christian life? These are some of the questions Brian S. Borgman answers among others in his book, Feelings and Faith.

The first part of the book addresses a Biblical foundation for our emotions which looks into the character of God followed by having a healthy Biblical anthropology. Next, Borgman addresses how emotions can play a part into our Christian life by putting them under the authority of God's Word and how our emotions should be regulated by the truth of God's Word. 

Emotions are not a bad thing in themself, but they can tend to drive us to sin. Borgman gives practical guidance in mortifying any ungodly emotions such as unrighteous anger, fear, unforgiveness, and depression. Finally, Borgman give council when it comes to cultivate emotions that are God honoring especially in the areas of preaching, worship, prayer, and reading the Bible.

The Reformed community is always accused of being stoic and not showing emotions. Emotions are a good thing given to us by God, and we are to express them in a Biblical manner. This book gives us a healthy, Biblical approach to feelings being incorporated into the Christian life.

I received this book from Crossway in exchange for an honest review. 

Around The Web-December 20, 2019

Ten Ways Materialism Brings Us to Ruin by Randy Alcorn

What is Biblical Theology? by Andreas Köstenberger

Biblical Spirituality in Historical Perspective with Michael Haykin from The London Lyceum

9 Marks Journal: Complementarianism: A Moment of Reckoning

Allie Beth Stuckey on the G3 Podcast discussing life, faith, politics, and social justice

Ask Pastor John: How Do I Battle Subtle Temptations to Lust?

Gaining Victory Over Temptation by H.B. Charles, Jr.

God the Holy Spirit by Robert Letham

Faith is the Instrumental Cause of Our Salvation

For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them (Ephesians 2:8-10).

The anti-gospel which runs through every false religion and every false heart is the “gospel” that says “can do” instead “is finished” by Christ. We are saved by faith alone, not because of any works. What’s more, faith itself is a gift. Faith is not the ultimate good deed that saves us but the instrumental cause of our salvation—grace flows through the channel of faith, but the channel is itself of God’s construction. We are saved by Christ; faith simply acknowledges and rests upon who he is and what he provides.

Because salvation is entirely by the grace of God, we ought never to boast of our spiritual insights or accomplishments. Instead we should rest in Christ our righteousness, our holiness, and our redemption (see 1 Cor. 1:30).

Faith alone justifies, but, the Reformers would say, the faith that justifies is never alone. Good works are not the root of our redemption, but they are the necessary fruit. If God has prepared good deeds beforehand, we must consider how and where we will walk today in order to fulfill his eternal purposes for us in Christ.

Adapted from the ESV Gospel Transformation Study Bible

Faith Is An Unswerving Gaze

for in Christ Jesus you are all sons of God, through faith. For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ (Galatians 3:26-27).

Some people imagine that faith is a quality that sticks to the heart on its own, with or without Christ. This is a dangerous error. Christ should be placed directly before our eyes so that we see and hear nothing apart from him and believe that nothing is closer to us than Christ. For he doesn’t sit idly in heaven but is continually present in us. He is working and living in us, for Paul says, “I no longer live, but Christ lives in me” (Galatians 2:20). He also says that you “have clothed yourselves with Christ” (Galatians 3:27).

Therefore, faith is an unswerving gaze that looks on Christ alone. He is the conqueror of sin and death and the one who gives us righteousness, salvation, and eternal life. This is beautifully illustrated by the story of the bronze snake, which points to Christ (John 3:14). Moses commanded the Israelites, who had been bitten in the desert by poisonous snakes, to look at this bronze snake with an unswerving gaze. Those who did so were healed, simply by steadily gazing at the snake alone. In contrast, others who didn’t obey Moses looked at their wounds instead of the snake and died.

So if you want to be comforted when your conscience plagues you or when you are in dire distress, then you must do nothing but grasp Christ in faith and say, “I believe in Jesus Christ, God’s Son, who suffered, was crucified, and died for me. In his wounds and death, I see my sin. In his resurrection, I see the victory over sin, death, and the devil. I see righteousness and eternal life as well. I want to see and hear nothing except him.” This is true faith in Christ and the right way to believe.

Adapted from Faith Alone: A Daily Devotional by Martin Luther

Around The Web-January 10, 2018

The bestsellers of 2017 on sale at WTS Books until January 16

Think Pastorally and Missionally About Worship Music with Tony Merida and Matt Boswell

Brief Thoughts on the Death of Thomas Monson by James White

Faith & Repentance by Sinclair Ferguson

The Uniqueness of the Gospel from Grace To You

Joe Thorn answers questions regarding Communion

Themes (or Challenges) for Reformed Christians in 2018 by Tim Challies

Will Your Phone Dominate Your Life in 2018?

A Biblical Theology of Church Discipline by Bobby Jamieson

Does the New Testament misquote the Old Testament? Greg Beale answers that question in this video.

John Owen on the Reasons We Come To Christ

There are two reasons for coming to Christ in faith. The first is to receive life and salvation. But secondly, we come to him as believers so that we have "life more abundantly" (John 10:10). That is, to receive such supplies of grace as we may keep our souls spiritually healthy and strong. And as Christ reproves those who would not come to him that they might have life, so also he reproves those who do not come to him by faith for abundant life.

John Owen, The Glory of Christ

Not Everyone Who Hears The Gospel Will Continue In The Faith

Jesus addresses the question of who is and is not genuinely saved in His parable of the sower (Matt. 13:1–9). It is important to note the context of this famous parable. Just before it, someone says to Jesus, “Behold, Your mother and Your brothers are standing outside seeking to speak to You” (Matt. 12:47, NASB). But Jesus answers, “Who is My mother and who are My brothers?” (v. 48, NASB). Then, indicating His disciples, He says: “Behold My mother and My brothers! For whoever does the will of My Father who is in heaven, he is My brother and sister and mother” (vv. 49–50, NASB). Jesus says that His true brother is the one who does the will of the Father, not one who simply makes a decision to follow Him.

We should always keep in mind that nobody forced Judas to become a disciple. Judas chose to follow Jesus; he made his own decision to enter the school of Jesus, and he stayed with our Lord during His earthly ministry for three years. Yet we are told that he was a devil (John 6:70). It wasn’t that Judas was genuinely converted and then fell out of grace and was lost; rather, although he was close to Jesus, he was never a converted man. That ought to give us pause as we consider the states of our own souls.

A little later in the book of Matthew, Jesus gives an explanation of His parable of the sower. It is one of the rare times in the Gospel accounts where we are given an explanation of a parable. That explanation is most helpful because this parable differs from normal parabolic instruction. Most parables have just one point. It is generally dangerous, therefore, to turn parables into allegories, which tend to have symbolic meanings sprinkled throughout the story. But the parable of the sower approaches the level of an allegory as Jesus makes several points of application.

Jesus begins His explanation by saying: “Hear then the parable of the sower: When anyone hears the word of the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what has been sown in his heart. This is what was sown along the path” (Matt. 13:18–19). The first group He is talking about is represented by the seed that fell on the path. In antiquity, at planting time, a farmer sowed his seed first, then plowed the ground. But any seed that fell on a roadway or pathway was not plowed under. Lying on the hardened path, it had no way to take root, and was devoured by birds. Jesus likens the birds to Satan. Many people are like this seed. They hear the preaching of the gospel, but it makes no impact on them. It does not take root in their lives.

Jesus continues, “As for what was sown on rocky ground, this is the one who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy, yet he has no root in himself, but endures for a while, and when tribulation or persecution arises on account of the word, immediately he falls away” (vv. 20–21).

If you go to an evangelistic meeting or watch one on TV, you may see huge crowds thronging to the front of the church in response to the call of the gospel. In fact, I once saw a report about a massive international evangelistic campaign in which millions of people supposedly had made decisions for Christ. When I read that, I wondered how many of those decisions for Christ were true conversions and how many of them were spurious. People like what they hear at these events and can be emotionally moved to make a decision to follow Christ. However, it is an established fact that many of those who come forward at evangelistic meetings soon abandon their commitments altogether. Their spur-of-the-moment responses are often groundless.

I don’t want to be too harsh in my response to reports about the successes of evangelistic events. I recognize that all outreach ministries face the problem of measuring their effectiveness. Churches generally do it by reporting the number of members in their congregations and how much they have grown over a period of time. Evangelistic ministries often do it by reporting the number of people who come to the front, raise a hand, sign a card, or pray a prayer. These ministries want to have some kind of statistic to measure the response people are making.

But how does one measure a spiritual reality? Anyone who has been involved in evangelism knows that we cannot see the heart, so the next best thing is to count the number of decisions that people make. But Jesus warns us about that here in the parable of the sower when He says that many people hear the gospel with joy—but they don’t continue in the faith. This second type of seed falls on stony ground—ground that is so shallow the seed cannot put down roots, and as soon as the sun comes up, the seedlings begin to wither. The result is that they die away and never bear fruit. Jesus tells us that these people fall away because of the tribulations and persecutions that inevitably arise in the way of faith.”

Explaining the third type of seed, Jesus says, “As for what was sown among thorns, this is the one who hears the word, but the cares of the world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and it proves unfruitful” (Matt. 13:22). This seed represents a category of people who also hear and receive the Word, but who are overwhelmed by the cares of this world. Like thorns, worldly cares “choke the word.

Lastly, Jesus says: “As for what was sown on good soil, this is the one who hears the word and understands it. He indeed bears fruit” (Matt. 13:23a).

Clearly, then, there are many who respond to the message of the gospel with joy but ultimately do not continue in the faith. Not everyone who hears the Word of God is saved, and the same is true for many who respond to it initially. Those who are genuinely saved are those who prove themselves to be doers of the Word. When the seed takes root and grows, there is fruit.

This was adapted from Many Hear the Gospel with Joy but Don’t Continue in the Faith which is also adapted from Can I Be Sure I'm Saved? by R.C. Sproul

Podcast Wednesday: This Is Us, Nintendo, Stories, and more

Pastor, Confess Your Sin—No Matter the Consequences with Ray Ortlund and Collin Hansen

Popcorn Theology talks about the pilot episode to This Is Us

Presidents and Politics from Doctrine and Devotion

The Reformed Gamers talk about the new Nintendo Switch

To Be The Church address the controversy over one church having a "no fat people allowed" policy for their worship team

Equipping You In Grace and Nancy Guthrie talk about What Grieving People Wish You Knew about what really helps (and what really hurts)

The Cultivated Podcast speaks with Gabe Lyons on Faith and Work

Stories, Sci-fi, and Faith from Calvinist Picard

Around The Web-June 24, 2016

America’s favorite fast food restaurant is Chick-fil-A

Lead singer of Blink-182 quits the band to investigate aliens

Property owner asks Verity Baptist Church to leave after pastor praises Orlando massacre

All ESV Heirloom Bibles are 50% until June 30th

How To Become Holy by Joe Carter

Overcoming Anger by Joe Thorn

I’m a single-issue voter on multiple issues, and so are you by Denny Burk

Is faith in Jesus a leap in the dark? John Piper answers that question in his conversation with Michael Reeves



Kevin DeYoung reminds us that the people of the world are to be loved while the worldly system is to be rejected



Andrew Hebert on why preaching must be expositional

Faith in God is Life-Changing

Our faith in God is not just a philosophical belief in a supreme being; it is a life-changing experience of the one who has made us what we are. Everything we think, say, and do bears witness to this, and there is no aspect of our lives that is not affected by it. Other people need to understand the all-embracing depth of our convictions, even if they do not share them. Because we love them as we believe God loves them, we have a duty to tell them that what has happened to us can and ought to happen to them too. The treasure we have received is not for hoarding but for sharing, and it is our duty to go out and find those whom God has called to be his sheep.

Gerald Bray, God is Love: A Biblical and Systematic Theology

Proper Response To The Gospel: Repentance and Belief

Evangelical shorthand for the gospel is to "ask Jesus into your heart," or "accept Jesus as Lord and Savior," or "give your heart to Jesus." These phrases may not be wrong in themselves, but the Bible never tells us, specifically, to seek salvation in those ways. The biblical summation of a saving response toward Christ is "repentance" and "belief".

He who believes in the Son has everlasting life; and he who does not believe the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him (John 3:36 [NKJV])

"Sirs, what must I do to be saved?”...“Believe on the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved—you and your household.” (Acts 16:30-31, HCSB)

To him who does not work but believes on Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is accounted for righteousness (Rom. 4:5 [NKJV])

If you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation (Rom. 10:9-10 [NKJV])

Belief...means acknowledging that God told the truth about Jesus, namely that He is Lord and that He has finished forever the work of salvation...Repentance...means "acting" on that belief. Repentance means reversing your direction based on who you understand Jesus to be. It was the first response Jesus called for in His preaching of the gospel (Mark 1:15), and what Paul said God had commanded all men everywhere to do now that Jesus had been resurrected (Acts 17:30). Apart from repentance there is no salvation.

You can "ask Jesus into your heart" without repenting and believing, and you can repent and believe without articulating a request for Jesus to come into your heart.

Repentance and faith are heart postures you take toward the finished work of Christ.

J.D. Greear, Stop Asking Jesus Into Your Heart

Feelings Are Misleading

I have heard many people in church say, "I just do not feel saved." Others would say, "I want to feel his presence." Are these legitimate desires? Maybe. Are they realistic? No. The fact that faith accompanied by feelings is as unrealistic as a pig growing wings and fly.

Years ago, I fell into the lie that I do not feel saved. It was during my sophomore year in college when I approached a pastor who was preaching our fall revival services at East Texas Baptist University (ETBU)and told him I just do not feel saved. He looked me straight in the eye and said, you cannot base your faith on feelings. How true that statement was.

We can be tempted to believe that God will give us some kind of peachy feeling to accompany our salvation and when we do not feel "it," we think we commit some sin that ticked God off. The truth is the Bible never promises any feelings to accompanied our salvation. There will be times when you do not feel saved, like when you do not get enough sleep (how many of us have done that?)

The Bible says we are saved by grace through faith (Ephesians 2:8), not our feelings. Hebrews 11:6 says, "And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him." I do not see faith accompanied by feelings anywhere in that verse.

Faith in God means to hanging onto Him when you do not feel like you are close to Him, which you already are because of Jesus (Ephesians 2:13). You're feeling will mislead you into thinking God does not love or give a rip about you anymore. When your feelings start making you think that, go to the Bible. The Bible is the final authority for all believers not our feelings.