AP

The idea of ‘faith’ may be implied but not specifically included in the Five Points of Calvinism formula. That is largely because they are an expression of a particular response to a particular heresy at a given point in church history. This is also true concerning the contents of the earliest Creeds. They do not mention the need for ‘faith’, although, it can be rightly said that the Creeds stand on the whole, as confessions of faith. Likewise, the Five points are not a complete expression of Reformed theology, nor indeed the Gospel. Yet they help us to understand the person and nature of God.  It is why the ‘Five Solas’ help to complete the picture: Scripture alone, Christ alone, Grace alone, Faith alone, to the Glory of God alone.

The core of Reformed Christianity is that salvation is the work of God from start to finish, with no contribution required or added by human effort. Reformed Theology emphasises our total humble reliance on the sovereignty of God. That means God’s sovereignty is absolute and includes His being truly sovereign in each individual’s salvation. Christ does not just make it possible to be saved – He successfully saves those He determined to save.

Because salvation is completely accomplished by God (revealed throughout Scripture, in Christ, by Grace, through Faith) all glory must go to Him only. Believers cannot take any credit for anything to do with their salvation, including believing (to the Glory of God alone).

The Bible is the only inerrant, sufficient and final authority for the believer. Human traditions, councils and decrees cannot be placed on equal footing with the Word of God (Scripture alone).

Jesus Christ is the only mediator between God and humanity. Human saints and priests cannot mediate on a believer’s behalf (Christ alone).

Salvation is an entirely unmerited gift from God. We are spiritually dead and incapable of making ourselves spiritually alive. Just as we had no role in our earthly birth, neither do we cause our spiritual birth (Grace alone).

When God moves to justify us and apply Christ’s righteousness to us (in place of our own efforts to be good enough for God) He gives us the gift of faith which activates our response to God’s love. Conviction of our need for forgiveness and our hopelessness other than to trust (believe) in Christ’s work – not our own works – is a gift from God. It is part of His grace and mercy toward us. Good works are a result of salvation, not a mechanism to earn it (Faith alone).

So, how can ‘Faith’ fit into the Five Points of Calvinism?

God’s grace does not come from faith; faith comes by God’s grace. Faith is an unearned gift of God (Ephesians 2:8,9). God justifies us in Christ as the Spirit grants us the faith to trust in Him. We are saved through faith in Christ alone and not our faithfulness to him. Otherwise, being faithful to God would be the good effort that earns our own salvation. We would then be saving ourselves through obedience, not by God’s merciful grace. Faithfulness is not faith; it is the fruit of faith. It is part of the result of having the Spirit of God in us. We move from spiritual death to spiritual life (John 3:3; Titus 3:5). We are not saved by our work but rather to do good works (Ephesians 2:10). Yet, we are not forgiven without exercising the gift of faith (Luke 7:50). Faith becomes our new way of life (Galatians 3:11).

Faith is what connects us to God in the Holy Spirit. It is the believing and trusting response to Jesus redeeming us through his death and resurrection – justifying us before a Holy God by taking upon himself the penalty for our sin and granting to us his own righteousness so that we can be reconciled to God and live safely and joyfully in his presence. We do not collaborate with God in our justification. It is entirely his initiative. We cannot earn it or contribute to it in any way. We are not able to muster up faith or belief by our own effort.

God does not give us grace so that we can keep our justification safe by doing the good his grace empowers us to do. He justifies us because of Christ’s work alone and gives us faith by his completely undeserved grace so that we may obey and live for him.

While our faith does not save us, we cannot be saved without faith.[1] Faith is simply accepting that Jesus is who he claims to be and all that he says is true – that he has reconciled us to God. Faith is placing our trust in Jesus Christ and all of his promises that he has indeed forgiven us forever of all past, present and future sin, and has saved us for all of eternity.

While it might appear that some can have different levels of faith the key factor is that God expects us to exercise the faith he gives to every believer. When Jesus challenges his disciples with the question “where is your faith” he was not declaring they did not have any faith, he was rebuking them for not exercising the faith God had given them (Luke 8:25). God has given us a body and requires us to get out of bed and use it. Likewise, when he gives us spiritual life, he expects us to utilise that new life through faith. Those occasions of exercising ‘little faith’ are when we leave our faith in bed and fail to trust God for everything throughout the day. Believers can move mountains; we just doubt that we can. However, we can all pray with the anxious father “I do believe, help my unbelief!” (Mark 9:24).

We can trust that the Father has answered the Son’s prayer for us, that those who have faith in Christ will certainly be sanctified in the truth of God’s Word (John 17:19,20). We can be truly filled with the joy and peace of believing (Romans 15:13). Paul knew that God does not walk away from what he starts, as he completes his saving work in every believer (1 Philippians 1:6).

We receive salvation; we do not achieve it. As John Stott put it so helpfully:

“Faith is the eye that looks to Christ, the hand that lays hold of him, the mouth that drinks the water of life … faith’s only function is to receive what grace freely offers. We are not, therefore, justified ‘by’ our faith, as we are justified ‘by’ God’s grace and ‘by’ Christ’s blood. God’s grace is the source and Christ’s blood the ground of our justification; faith is only the means by which we are united to Christ.” (The Cross of Christ, pp.218, 222)

It has been said it is not the strength of our faith that matters as much as the strength of him in whom our faith is placed. Richard Hooker says it clearly: “God doth justify the believing man, yet not for the worthiness of his belief, but for his worthiness (of) who is believed.”

While stepping beyond the original context and without attempting to re-write history, it may be helpful to consider the mnemonic ‘TULIPS’ rather than ‘TULIP’, together with our part in each doctrinal truth:

TULIPS                                                            OUR HEARTFELT RESPONSE

Total Depravity                                             Confession

Unconditional Election                                Humility

Limited Atonement                                      Praise

Irresistible Grace                                          Gratitude

Perseverance of the Saints                          Peace

Supplied Faith                                               Trust

This probably better reflects neatness rather than completeness.

The thief on the cross was saved and entered the Kingdom of God before he ever had the chance to be baptised, learn a creed, partake of the eucharist, go to church, witness, attend a Bible study, confess to a priest or do any good deeds. Yet, the man was completely justified by God, resulting in him placing his trust solely in the finished work of Jesus upon the cross right next to him.

– Wayne Richards

[1] Leaving aside the cases of infants and those who are mentally defective.