Title: Reformed Theology Basics
Text: 2 Timothy 3:16-17
Q1. Why Study Reformed Theology
(1) It has an historical significance
One of the things we are often remiss in doing in the church is studying our history.
We tend to see things in the lens of our personal experience, rather than seeing how the things that we do and believe often have foundations that go back hundreds of years in history.
Illustration: "Peanuts" Charles Shultz, writer of the Peanuts cartoons, once made a telling observation in his strip. The character Lucy made the announcement that she was going to write a paper on church history. She began, "My preacher was born in 1942..."
Reformed Theology is an examination of the biblical teachings that were brought to the forefront during the Protestant Reformation.
Men like Martin Luther, John Huss, and John Wycliffe, all who were committed to the truth of the bible, stood against the false teachings of Rome, and sparked the movement that would permanently change the face of Christianity around the world.
Thus, we study these teachings because they give us a glimpse of our Protestant history and heritage.
(1) It has an historical significance
(2) It has a personal significance
This is a subject that is personally very close to my heart as a pastor.
First, because I believe it presents the most biblically and logically sound understanding of God.
It seeks to look at the entirety of Scripture, and not pick and choose certain portions, to arrive at a proper understanding of who God truly is.
Second, because it is the worldview that I hold to and teach from.
I believe that Reformed Theology is just another way of saying Biblical Theology, and I have been teaching from this perspective ever since I entered the pulpit as the pastor of this church.
Third, because I find that people tend to reject Reformed Theology primarily because of ignorance and/or allegiance to tradition.
I want to tell you, if you have never studied Reformed Theology before, it will certainly present you with ideas that will challenge your preconceived ideas about God and man.
Q2. What is Reformed Theology?
As I stated already, the designation Reformed Theology indicates that this is the faith that was fought for during the Protestant Reformation.
These are the doctrines that the church of Rome had suppressed, and rejected, yet were clearly biblical.
Something that we need to realize from the outset is that when we talk about Reformed Theology, we are talking about a theology, and NOT a religion.
But what's is difference?
Theology = the study of God (theocentric)
Religion = the expression of human behavior (anthropocentric)
Theology is strictly about who and what God is.
Religion is focused on how people behave - prayers, singing, sacrifice, worship - all expressions of human behavior.
NOTE: Many people are religious, yet they are void of a sound theology.
Muslims are some of the most religious people in the world, yet their expressions are based on a faulty understanding of God. Mormons are some of the most zealous in regards to their desire to proselytize new members to their movement, but their theology is askew.
All humans are inescapably religious - even atheists are often very religious about their atheism, joining clubs and groups to promote their disbelief.
Humans are designated as "homo religiosis" which means a religious being.
Yet, apart from a sound theology, our religious expressions are an abomination to God.
Some people say, "it doesn't matter what someone believes, as long as they are sincere."
But the bible does not teach this.
The bible teaches that what we believe has far and reaching implications.
Consider the situation following the Exodus. Moses had gone to receive the Law of God on Mt. Sinai.
While gone, the people begin to express their desire for an idol to worship. This was an expression of religion devoid of proper theology.
And what happened as the result?
READ: Exodus 32:1-10
For anyone to say that what we believe doesn't matter to God, they have to ignore the clear biblical testimony of passages like these.
God was willing to destroy the people because their religious expression was based on a false theology.
To say God doesn't care about what we believe, as long as we are sincere, means we have to ignore stories like those of Nadab and Abihu, who God killed before the temple, because they chose to worship in a way that God did not prescribe (Leviticus10).
Genuine and true worship of God requires right understanding of who He is and what He requires.
Proper theology is the foundation of this.
Without a proper biblical theology, we are worshipping a false understanding of God...essentially, we are bowing down to a golden calf.
Q3. What are the Foundations of Reformed Theology?
As I said, Reformed Theology is essentially biblical theology. It is built on scripture.
It has five foundation stones which are all clearly derived from the teaching of scripture.
Historically, they have been known by their Latin titles…
SOLA SCRIPTURA
The holy scripture (the bible) is our sole infallible rule for faith and practice.
Nowhere else in the world is God's revelation of Himself so explicitly. In the bible, God is not only described, but His holy will and plan are laid out for people to read and understand. It is the Word of God. To reject it, is to reject God.
Sola Scriptura is based on three truths:
(1) The Inspiration of Scripture
II Timothy 3:16-17 16 All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, 17 that the man of God may be competent, equipped for every good work.
(2) The Infallibility of Scripture
This belief grows out of the belief in inspiration. If the bible is "God-breathed" then it cannot fail to contain the truth. Since God is infallible, and He superintended the writing of Scripture, it is also infallible.
2 Peter 1:20-21 20 knowing this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture comes from someone's own interpretation. 21 For no prophecy was ever produced by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.
(3) The Inerrancy of Scripture
Some would see infallibility and inerrancy as the same thing, but they are slightly different. Infallibility is the cause, inerrancy is the result.
Because God is infallible, His Word is inerrant.
The scripture, which we possess a translation of, was completely without error in its original condition. This is why we study so hard to ensure that what our translations say is in keeping with the original language.
SOLA GRATIA
This is the teaching that salvation is totally an act of grace.
As humans, we do not contribute to our salvation, as much as we might like to think we do.
During the reformation period, salvation had become a commodity that could be purchased through indulgences and priestly blessings.
The Reformers rejected this for the biblical view that salvation is through the sufficient grace of God.
Not many denied that grace was necessary, but few believed it was sufficient to save.
"Grace had to be added to" was the teaching of the time.
But the Reformers taught that grace was totally sufficient to save---it was a perfect gift that needed no additions.
SOLA FIDE
This was probably the most important, and easily the most controversial argument of the Reformers.
This was the teaching that man is justified before God not by works, but by faith alone.
This was the sister to the doctrine of grace alone, because it relied on the fact that God's salvation was a gift, and not something someone earned.
This was so important to the Reformers that Martin Luther claimed that this was the "article upon which the church stands or falls".
SOLUS CHRISTOS
This means that salvation is found in Jesus Christ alone.
That should be a given. No one could read scripture with any conviction and come away with another doctrine.
However there are many who say they are Christians who do not see Jesus Christ as essential for salvation.
According to University of Virginia sociologist James Hunter, 35% of evangelical seminarians deny that faith in Christ is absolutely necessary.
According to George Barna, that is the same figure for conservative, evangelical Protestants in America: "God will save all good people when they die, regardless of whether they've trusted in Christ," they agreed.
Over one-fourth of the professed "born again" evangelicals surveyed agreed with this statement: "If a person is good, or does enough good things for others during life, they will earn a place in Heaven."
Furthermore, when asked whether they agreed with the following statement: "Christians, Jews, Muslims, Buddhists, and others all pray to the same God, even though they use different names for that God," two-thirds of the evangelicals didn't find that objectionable.
Beloved, if these things are true, Jesus is unnecessary.
This is why Reformed Theology is based on the foundation stone of salvation being in Jesus Christ alone.
No one is good in and of themselves.
Everyone needs a Savior, and Jesus Christ is the only Savior.
SOLI DEO GLORIA
Glory is to be ascribed to God alone.
This was one of the most profound statements of the reformation, because it said that we should not glorify the pope, the bishops, or the priests.
That God alone should receive all praise, all adoration, all glory.
He receives all glory for creating us, and for saving us. Some people, who believe that their works aid in their salvation, might come to think they deserve to share in the glory.
They might not say this, but it would show in their proclamations of their supposed goodness.
The reformed believer understands that any goodness we have is because of God's Holy Spirit, thus God receives the glory even when I do good works.
I never deserve to be praise.
God alone is worthy to be praised.
There are many theologies that came after the Protestant Reformation, all of which would have been impossible had the Reformation not taken place.
The Methodist movement, the Presbyterian movement, and even the modern Baptist movement all owe their beginnings to the people who stood against Rome in the Reformation.
However, though these groups had their foundations in the Reformation, many of them have diverted from the theology that sparked the Reformation, and much of their theology is sub-biblical.
So, we ask, what are the doctrines that are specific to Reformed Theology?
Reformed Theology is theocentric, God-centered.
Thus it is focused primarily on the attributes of God, and how they affect us as believers.
One attribute that Reformed Theology focuses on is God's holiness.
Holiness means separate and different.
God is not like any other being in the universe - He is wholly other.
Another specific focus of Reformed Theology is God's sovereignty.
The bible teaches that God has ordained all things that come to pass, and that He is working all things toward His ultimate glory.
This includes both the salvation of His elect, and the punishment of those who remain in their sins.
Though we experience things in time, God has ordained their fulfillment from eternity past.
Reformed Theology sees God as He truly is --- seated upon His throne as the sovereign king of the universe.
God is the almighty ruler of this world.
As one of the reformers taught, "not a drop of rain falls from heaven apart from the decree of almighty God."
God is the focus of Reformed Theology, because God is the focus of Scripture.
Those of you who attend all of the meetings during this conference can expect the following results:
Your traditional understanding of God will likely be challenged.
I remember when I was first exposed to this level of understanding the Word of God.
I did not readily receive it because, though it was clearly taught in Scripture, my natural mind did not want to accept doctrines like predestination, election, and foreordination.
I fought tooth and nail, until God's Spirit overcame my ability to keep denying what His Word said.
I realized that my problems were not that I didn't understand the bible, but rather that my traditional understanding of God did not line up with Scripture.
I ended up having to abandon some things I thought were right because they were in opposition to the Biblical teaching.
I encourage all of you, when you attend this conference, to come with a mind prepared to be challenged. If you are unwilling to examine what you believe in the light of Scripture, this series will do you no good.
Your religious expression will be enhanced.
As we saw when we looked at the situation at Sinai, wrong theology leads to wrong religious expression. On the other hand, proper theology leads to proper worship.
It is the truth that only proper THEOLOGY can lead to proper DOXOLOGY.
When your understanding increases, you will see more clearly the God whom you worship, and be more able to worship Him the way He demands.
Your relationship with God will be strengthened.
Now, why would our relationship with God be strengthened by this study?
Because it is impossible to have a strong relationship with a being that you do not know.
This is true in our human relationships.
The only way we build relationships is getting to know one another.
And until we break through the surface level understanding, and get to the heart of a person, we do not have a strong relationship.
Likewise, there are many people who have just a superficial relationship with God.
They do not go deeper in their understanding, and God is not very meaningful in their life because they do not truly know Him.
I am the first to say that some of the things that we learn about God are not the most pleasant.
When we consider things like predestination and election, it can often become very difficult for us to understand.
But when we see the full picture of the God that is described in Scripture, our love for Him will increase, because our relationship will be built on a deep understanding of His character, rather than just a superficial recognition of His nature.
