There are so many false gospels out there today that are unfortunately very popular amongst some who claim to be Christians. The prosperity gospel teaches that one will be healthy and wealthy when they come to Jesus. The self-love gospel is hyper-focused on loving the self and doesn’t place much emphasis on sin or repentance. The social justice gospel preaches that Jesus came to stop oppression rather than to save sinners. Some believe that Jesus isn’t the only way to salvation. Others believe you have to do good works to earn your salvation. And those with a progressive view of Christianity spout ideas like the Bible isn’t the Word of God, homosexuality isn’t a sin, and hell doesn’t really exist.
Knowing and preaching the true gospel is important for many reasons. The Bible tells us that those who teach are held to a higher standard and will be judged with greater strictness (James 3:1). God’s Word also tells us that those who preach a gospel that differs from what’s written in it is cursed or, as the New Living Translation puts it, condemned to hell (Galatians 1:9). They will be judged and condemned because they are essentially leading people to eternal spiritual death, and Jesus once said that it would be better for these false teachers to have a millstone tied around their neck and drowned (Matthew 18:5-6).
These may seem like harsh words, but they highlight the extreme importance of having a proper view of the gospel. It is only when we know and understand the foundations of our faith that we can share the true gospel with others. You may be wondering, Well, what are the foundations of our faith, of Christianity, of the gospel? You don’t have to figure them out on your own. Thankfully, the Reformers formulated five phrases based on the truths of Scripture to describe the pillars of the gospel, and they all begin with the Latin word for alone – sola.
Sola Gratia
The first of these phrases is sola gratia, which means “grace alone.” We are sinful creatures. Everybody sins (Romans 3:11-12). The Bible describes our hearts as deceitful and desperately sick (Jeremiah 17:9). We fall short of God’s glory (Romans 3:23), and because of our sins against our holy and righteous God, we do not deserve eternal life in His presence. If anything, we deserve death (Romans 6:23).
Despite our sins, God loved us so much that He sent His Son, Jesus, to die in our place for our sins (Romans 5:8). This atonement was not something that we deserved; it was an act of grace, a gift of unmerited favor. As Ephesians 2:8 tells us,
“For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God,” Ephesians 2:8, ESV
We are saved by grace alone.
Sola Fide
How do we receive this salvation? Through sola fide – faith alone. Many of the world’s religions preach that you must work for your salvation. In these worldviews, you must live a good enough life and do enough good deeds to outweigh your bad ones to be saved. Christianity, however, is different. We cannot do enough good things to outweigh our many sins, so God provided a better way for our sins to be paid for.
Jesus came and lived a perfectly righteous and sinless life. Through His death and resurrection, He took on our sins and imputed His righteousness into those who would believe in Him (2 Corinthians 5:21). Just as Abraham was counted righteous when He believed God (Galatians 3:6-9), we are counted as righteous when we put our faith in Jesus (Ephesians 2:8-9). We are not saved by works-
“yet we know that a person is not justified by works of the law but through faith in Jesus Christ, so we also have believed in Christ Jesus, in order to be justified by faith in Christ and not by works of the law, because by works of the law no one will be justified.” Galatians 2:16
We are saved through faith alone.
Solus Christus
As I’ve mentioned in the last two sections, our salvation is in Christ alone, solus Christus. Those who ascribe to universalism think that it doesn’t matter what you believe in during your life. They believe that God will lovingly, graciously, mercifully save everyone, regardless of their religious beliefs.
But the Bible clearly shows us that this not the case. Christ Jesus is the only mediator between us and God (1 Timothy 2:5). It was Christ who was cursed for our redemption (Galatians 3:13). It was Christ who was slain for our ransom (Revelation 5:9). It is according to Christ’s mercy that we’ve been regenerated and renewed by the Holy Spirit (Titus 3:5). It is only through believing in Him that are saved (Romans 3:22).
“Jesus said to him, ‘I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.’” John 14:6
We are saved in Christ alone.
Sola Scriptura
We’ve been saved by grace, through faith, in Christ. But how do we learn to live out our faith? What is our authority or source of knowledge? We have everything we need for life and godliness in scripture alone, sola scriptura (2 Peter 1:3). The Bible is our authority for all matters that pertain to the Christian life. It is profitable for teaching, reproof, correction, and training in righteousness, for it was breathed out, or inspired, by God (2 Timothy 3:16). It is inerrant (without error) and infallible (without mistake) and can be trusted to be the Christian’s source of truth.
Many Christian traditions believe that their denomination or church leaders are the final authority on things. They often forsake seeking the Scriptures and trust in their religious traditions. However, Jesus rebuked the Pharisees (the religious leaders of the day) for holding to their traditions and rejecting God’s commandments (Mark 7:6-9). Instead of blindly trusting our pastors or leaders, we should be like the Bereans who daily examined Scripture to determine if Paul was teaching the truth (Acts 17:11). Men are fallible, but God’s Word is not-
“knowing this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture comes from someone’s own interpretation. 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.” 2 Peter 1:20-21
We find truth in Scripture alone.
Soli Deo Gloria
The Bible is our authority in life, but what exactly does it tell us to do with our life? We are to live soli Deo gloria, to the glory of God alone. God is our sovereign Creator and our merciful Savior, and He is worthy of all praise and honor and glory (Revelation 4:11). Therefore, we must do everything in our life to the glory of God (Colossians 3:17). And how do we glorify and worship God in our daily lives? By obeying His commandments (John 14:15).
As human beings, we have a tendency to be self-serving and do what seems best for us. This desire goes all the way back to the Garden of Eden when Adam and Eve disobeyed God because they thought the fruit would make them wise (Genesis 3:6). Like our ancient parents, we can mistakenly believe that God doesn’t really know what’s best for us in today’s world, and we rely on ourselves to determine what is good and right and true. We must fight against this temptation and glorify God in everything we do. We don’t deserve any glory; He deserves it all.
“So whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.” 1 Corinthians 10:21
We live to the glory of God alone.
The Five Solas
These are the five solas. Sola gratia. Sola fide. Solus Christus. Sola scriptura. Soli Deo gloria. We are saved by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone. We find truth in Scripture alone, and we live to the glory of God alone. This is the foundation of our faith, the pillars of the gospel. If you believe something that is contrary to these solas, then you’re believing and preaching a false gospel! And I pray that you would repent and search the Word of God for what is true.
If you do believe in these five solas, I encourage you to be strong and stand firm in your faith. I encourage you to spread this gospel message to everyone you meet. And I hope the truths listed above will remind you of the peace and joy you have in Christ.
