“Works of new obedience are required as necessary to the possession of salvation [i.e. how we maintain it], but faith is that alone which puts us into a condition of having the title and right to it, by the blood and righteousness of Christ [i.e. how we gain it].” —Thomas Goodwin, The Works of Thomas […]
The Doctrine of Apostasy
Apostasy, the unforgivable sin (i.e. blasphemy of the Holy Spirit, falling away) is the result of refusing to obey the official prescription of repentance/justice[1] issued by Christ’s church (through her elders/judicial committee). Simply put, it is unrepentance in re: to the church. Biblical Support: 1.1. Rejecting the authority/power of the Holy Spirit is an unforgivable […]
Quotable “Christian” Heresy
“My salvation rests solely in God’s faithfulness to me, not mine to Him. Sadly I am aware that at my best I fail miserably every day, but I know beyond a shadow of a doubt I’m saved having accepted Christ’s free gift of salvation through His death on a cross for my sins. I am […]
Apostasy and Loss of Justification
“The reality of apostasy for real Christians (Heb 6:4-6, 10:26-30), means a justification that can be lost by real Christians (Gal 5:4).” (RSJ)
Biblical/Historical/Reformed
The American Evangelical movement is Christianity in America. It is however not Biblical, Historical, or Reformed Christianity. It is instead an aberration-even a perversion of those things. In contrast, it is these three attributes which define Christ Covenant Church. We are Biblical, Historical and Reformed [1]. 1. We are Biblical, Historical and Reformed in our […]
The Pattern of Salvation
All saving relationships between God and man in the Bible are a marriage covenant[1]. There are five[2]major marriage covenants in the Bible: the Adamic Covenant[3], Noahic Covenant, Abrahamic Covenant, Mosaic Covenant and New Covenant. 1.1. The Mosaic Covenant (OC) is spoken of using marriage terms and conditions: 1.1.1. God as husband, Israel as wife (Isa […]
Marriage Covenant Theology
All saving relationships between God and man in the Bible are patterned after the marriage covenant. There are five [1] major marriage covenants in the Bible: the Adamic Covenant [2], Noahic Covenant, Abrahamic Covenant, Mosaic Covenant and New Covenant.
What are the deeds by which we will be judged?
Examine yourselves, to see whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Or do you not realize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you? —unless indeed you fail to meet the test! – 2 Corinthians 13:5 What exactly does the Bible mean by “good deeds”? Scripture tells us that everyone, both believers and […]
The Gospel Explained in Eight Truths
The Gospel is the good news of abundant life in Jesus Christ if we submit to Him as Lord before Savior in the relationship of covenant through His Church. 1. All People All people need God the Father’s abundant blessings of forgiveness and righteousness, earthly provision and purpose, eternal salvation and life. (Romans 3:10-12, 23; […]
23 Bible passages which teach the loss of . . . something . . .
The vast majority of Evangelical and Reformed theologians accept the doctrine which teaches that no man who has been sovereignly elected to salvation will be lost (John 6:39, 10:25-29, 17:12-15) as this doctrine is well-supported in Scripture. However, if not understood with biblical precision, this idea creates apparent inconsistencies with a large number of […]
Sound Gospel: Abundant Life in Jesus Who Saves
Humanity loves her heroes. We write about them, sing songs about them, and even fantasize about being them. And that because, at our deepest sociological level, we all realize we need them. This means also that we realize there are problems in this world which are bigger than our abilities or resources. And such is […]
The Fall: Our tragic beginning, but not our end.
As discussed in the previous lesson, the Creation account found in the first chapters of Genesis provides us with not only the answer to how everything that exists came into being, but also why. It was all created to serve as the striking motif of and motivation for what would prove to be every human […]
Sound Gospel: The Goal of God
Indeed man wishes to be happy even when he so lives as to make happiness impossible. -St. Augustine All men seek happiness. This is without exception. Whatever different means they employ, they all tend to this end. The cause of some going to war, and others avoiding it, is the same desire in both, attended […]
20 Statements Characteristic of Antinomianism
There is only one heresy, and that is Antinomianism. – Rabbi Duncan The following is taken from the article “Antinomianism” as found in The Encyclopedia of Christianity, edited by Edwin H. Palmer. As a part of the longer article, William Young seeks to provide a definition for antinomianism and then gives twenty ideas which are […]
10 Truths Taught by the Clothing Metaphor in Scripture
A metaphor is used to illustrate unfamiliar ideas through the means of familiar objects and Scripture often uses the common object of clothing as a picture of man’s standing before God. There are scores of instances where Scripture uses the metaphor of clothing in order to picture one’s standing before God. We find instances of […]
A Short Biblical Definition of Justification
Nearly every Christian and student of theology will readily accept that the doctrine of justification is one of the most important doctrines in Scripture. Yet nearly 2,000 years after the death and resurrection of Christ, the doctrine of justification continues to be controversial and unsettled. This is despite the fact that a proper understanding […]
So, you call yourself a Christian: 10 Legitimate Evidences of True Faith
In our last article here at Sound Church, we highlighted 10 Illegitimate Evidences of True Faith. After focusing on many of the false evidences of the Christian faith, it would hardly be helpful to allow the discussion to end there. So, today, we are listing the characteristics that will be true of your life if […]
Justification Rediscovered: Application
In Protestant Christianity, the application of justification to the life of the believer has primarily been discussed under the doctrine of imputation. However, due to the rampant error bound up in the evangelical church’s definition of justification as well as her serious misunderstanding of Second Temple Judaism, the religious context of the word justification and […]
5 difficulties in studying the doctrine of justification
The Protestant Reformation of the 16th Century was in large part fueled by a disagreement with the Roman Catholic Church over the doctrine of justification. Yet despite the seismic shifts caused by the debate, there was little or no consensus back then. Now, even though nearly 400 years have passed, justification continues to be a […]
Justification Rediscovered Affirmations
As a catalyst for expediting the material Christ Covenant Church’s study of justification and as a hermeneutical and theological control for future discussions and criticisms, we assume the following ten statements to be well supported in the biblical text: