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Subsection
Guilt of Culpability vs. Punishment
Daily Forgiveness
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Order of Contents
Articles 6+
Ordinarily No Salvation Apart from Gospel
Latin 2
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Articles
See also ‘Commentaries on the Apostles’ Creed’ on ‘The forgiveness of sins’ and See also ‘Expositions of the Lord’s Prayer’ on the 5th Petition.
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1500’s
Musculus, Wolfgang – Common Places of the Christian Religion (1560; London, 1563)
‘Remission & Forgiveness of Sins’ 238.b
Whose part it is to forgive sin 239.a
To whom sins be forgiven 240.a
By what means the forgiveness of sins is gotten 240.b
Upon what conditions our sins be forgiven 241.b
Whether all sins be forgiven 242.a
Whether when forgiveness of sins is once gotten, it may be void again? 242.b
Whether not the fault only, but the punishment also be forgiven 244.a
Whether sins be forgiven also after death 247.b
Zanchi, Girolamo – Ch. 27, ’Of Perpetual Remission of Sins in the Church of Christ’ in Confession of the Christian Religion… (1586; Cambridge, 1599), pp. 250-57
Viret, Pierre – A Christian Instruction… (London: Veale, 1573)
The Sum of the Principal Points of the Christian Faith
45. Of the True & Christian Confession & Absolution, & of the Remission of Sins 47
A Familiar Exposition of the Principal Points of the Catechism, 14th Dialogue
Of the Forgiveness of Sins, and of the assurance of the conscience by the same
Olevian, Caspar – An Exposition of the Apostle’s Creed (London, 1581), pt. 2
’I believe the forgiveness of sins’
Testimonies out of the prophets and apostles
The meaning of this article
That sin is forgiven, not that it should not be, but that it should not be laid to our charge
Olevian (1536–1587) was a significant German reformed theologian, and has been said to be a co-author of the Heidelberg Catechism along with Zacharias Ursinus (though this has been questioned).
Ursinus, Zachary – The Sum of Christian Religion: Delivered… in his Lectures upon the Catechism… tr. Henrie Parrie (Oxford, 1587)
1. What Remission of sins is
2. Who gives remission of sins
3. For what remission of sins is granted
4. Whether remission of sins agrees with God’s justice
5. Whether remission of sins be freely given
6. To whom remission of sins is given
7. How remission of sins is given
Lord’s Prayer, Fifth Petition
1. What Christ here calls debts
2. What is remission of sins
3. Why we are to desire remission of sins
4. How our sins are remitted unto us
Beza, Theodore, Anthony Faius & Students – 79. ‘Of Remission of Sins & the Sin Against the Holy Ghost’ in Propositions & Principles of Divinity Propounded & Disputed in the University of Geneva by Certain Students of Divinity there, under Mr. Theodore Beza & Mr. Anthony Faius… (Edinburgh: Waldegrave, 1591), pp. 263-66
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1600’s
Leigh, Edward – ch. 7. Of the Parts & Terms of Justification, Remission of Sins & Imputation of Christ’s Righteousness in A System or Body of Divinity… (London, A.M., 1654), bk. 7, pp. 519-22
Turretin, Francis – Institutes of Elenctic Theology, tr. George M. Giger, ed. James Dennison Jr. (1679–1685; P&R, 1994), vol. 2, 16th Topic
5. ‘Does remission of sins consist in an absolute removal of them? Or in the pardon of them? And after the guilt is remitted is a certain punishment retained? Or is it wholly remitted? The former we deny; the latter we affirm against the Romanists.’ 660
6. ‘What is the adoption which is given to us in justification?’ 666
7. ‘Does faith justify us properly and of itself or only relatively and instrumentally? The former we deny; the latter we affirm against the Socinians, Remonstrants and Romanists.’ 669
8. ‘Does faith alone justify? We affirm against the Romanists.’ 675
9. ‘Was justification made from eternity or is it made in time? Is it an undivided act taking place at one and the same time?’ 682
10. ‘The unity, perfection and certainty of justification.’ 686
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There Ordinarily is No Salvation for Adults apart from the Gospel
See also, ‘On the Phrase, ‘There is no Salvation outside the Church”.
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Order of Contents
Bible Verses
Westminster
Quote
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Bible Verses
Gen. 6:5-6 “And God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. And it repented the Lord that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart.”
Ps. 14:2-4 “The Lord looked down from heaven upon the children of men, to see if there were any that did understand, and seek God. They are all gone aside, they are all together become filthy: there is none that doeth good, no, not one. Have all the workers of iniquity no knowledge?”
Mk. 16:16 “He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned.”
Jn. 1:9-11 “That was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world. He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not. He came unto his own, and his own received him not.”
Jn. 3:36 “He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him.”
Jn. 10:16 “And other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be one fold, and one shepherd.”
Jn. 10:26-27 “But ye believe not, because ye are not of my sheep, as I said unto you. My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow Me.”
Jn. 14:6 “Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by Me.”
Acts 2:47 “And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved.”
Acts 4:12 “Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.”
Acts 16:5-6 “And so were the churches established in the faith, and increased in number daily. Now when they had gone throughout Phrygia and the region of Galatia, and were forbidden of the Holy Ghost to preach the word in Asia.”
Acts 17:30 “And the times of this ignorance God winked at; but now commandeth all men every where to repent:”
Rom. 3:19-21 “Now we know that what things soever the law saith, it saith to them who are under the law: that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God. Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin. But now the righteousness of God without the law is manifested, being witnessed by the law and the prophets;”
Rom. 10:17 “So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God.”
1 Cor. 1:18 “For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God.”
1 Cor. 1:21, 23-24 “For after that in the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe… But we preach Christ crucified, unto the Jews a stumblingblock, and unto the Greeks foolishness; But unto them which are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God…”
1 Jn. 5:12 “He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life.”
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Westminster Confession
ch. 5, ‘Of Providence’
“III. God in his ordinary providence maketh use of means,[k] yet is free to work without,[l] above,[m] and against them,[n] at his pleasure.
[k] Acts 27:31,44. Isa. 55:10,11. Hos. 2:21,22.
[l] Hos. 1:7. Matt. 4:4. Job 34:20.
[m] Rom. 4:19-21.
[n] 2 Kings 6:6. Dan. 3:27.”
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ch. 10, ‘Of Effectual Calling’
“III. Elect infants, dying in infancy, are regenerated and saved by Christ through the Spirit,[m] who worketh when, and where, and how He pleaseth.[n] So also are all other elect persons, who are incapable of being outwardly called by the ministry of the Word.[o]
[m] Luke 18:15,16 and Acts 2:38,39 and John 3:3,5 and 1 John 5:12 and Rom. 8:9. [Compared together.]
[n] John 3:8.
[o] 1 John 5:12. Acts 4:12.”
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ch. 14, ‘Of Saving Faith’
“I. The grace of faith, whereby the elect are enabled to believe to the saving of their souls,[a] is the work of the Spirit of Christ in their hearts,[b] and is ordinarily wrought by the ministry of the word:[c]
[a] Heb. 10:39.
[b] 2 Cor. 4:13. Eph. 1:17-19. Eph. 2:8.
[c] Rom. 10:14,17.”
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ch. 25, ‘Of the Church’
“II. The visible church, which is also catholic or universal under the gospel (not confined to one nation, as before under the law) consists of all those throughout the world that profess the true religion,[b] together with their children;[c] and is the kingdom of the Lord Jesus Christ,[d] the house and family of God,[e] out of which there is no ordinary possibility of salvation.[f]
[b] 1 Cor. 1:2. 1 Cor. 12:12,13. Ps. 2:8. Rev. 7:9. Rom. 15:9-12.
[c] 1 Cor. 7:14. Acts 2:39. Ezek. 16:20,21. Rom. 11:16. Gen. 3:15. Gen. 17:7.
[d] Matt. 13:47. Isa. 9:7.
[e] Eph. 2:19. Eph. 3:15.
[f] Acts 2:47.”
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Quotes
1600’s
Samuel Rutherford
The Divine Right of Church Government (London: 1646), ch. 23
p. 520
“…so the Gospel may be taught in catechism to children, Dt. 6:6-7; 2 Tim. 3:15; Ex. 12:26-27; Gen. 18:19; Prov. 22:6, because there is a necessity they be saved by hearing, Rom. 10:14; 1 Cor. 1:23.”
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p. 522
“What word of Christ has Mr. [William] Prynne for extraordinary conversion of men by miracles without the Word? He must conceive with Arminians and Socinians that many are converted that never heard of that precious name of Jesus, without which there is no salvation, Acts 4:11, or of a faith in Christ, as Moses Amyraldus dreams, without the knowledge of Christ, and may write books De salute Ethnicorum [On the Salvation of Ethnics]…
This may make us fancy somewhat of the salvation of Aristotle, Seneca, Cicero, Aristides, Scipio, Regulus, without the Law or Gospel, this way of extraordinarily saving men by miracles without the Gospel is the doctrine of Arminians and Socinians; so say the Arminians at the Synod of Dort, pp. 334-35:
‘Those whom God has deprived of the Gospel, He has not precisely rejected them from a communion of the benefits of the Gospel.’
Adolphus Venator (Adversus Dracenos, p. 84), says, ‘The heathen are saved without the Gospel, if they even but pray, Ens Entium miserere mei [‘Being of beings, have mercy on me’]. [Faustus] Socinus (Lectures on Theology, ch. 3), tells us of an inspired word that saves us, called verbum interius [‘an interior word’].
You may please schoolmen thus, such as Granadus (Contr. 8, de grat., tract 6, disp. 1, numb. 43) did Ruiz (De Predesti. se. 8. numb. 7), Alexander Alens. (8, p. q. 69, member 5, art. 3, De bonis Philosophis sic credo, etc.), Roa. (bk. 1, De Provident., quest. 7, n. 50), Vega (bk. 13 in Trident. ch. 12), Enriquez (tome 2, De ultimo fine, ch. 14, num. 6, quod bk. 8, quest. 5), Vasquez (1, par. disp. 97, and ch. 5), Soto (bk. 1, de nat. et grat., ch. 18, ad. 2), Francis Sonnius (in demonstrat. tract. 12. de consiliis ch. 8), Camerarius (bk. 1, de grat., ch. 8 and bk. 7, ch. 8), who do all of them send all the good philosophers and white morallists to heaven by miracles, inspirations, extraordinary works of providence and that without any rumour of Christ and the Gospel;
famous Papists, to their own shame, yield that divine faith cannot be produced by miracles. Andradius says often they may be false. Maldonatus says that no necessary argument of faith can be drawn from miracles. Gregorius de Valen. says miracles give us no infallible certainty of doctrine. Bellarmine says, ‘Miracles cannot convince the mind.’ Durandus gives a sure reason why miracles cannot produce faith, ‘because’ (says he) ‘suppose it were known of itself that this miracle of the raising e.g. of Lazarus were true, yet it is not known by itself that it testifies that this is a true doctrine which he preaches who works the miracle.’
Mr. Prynne then has put the salvation of those who never heard the Gospel upon extraordinary pillars when he bottoms them on miracles without the Word, which are extraordinary rotten pillars.”
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Latin Article
1600’s
Voet, Gisbert – Syllabus of Theological Problems (Utrecht, 1643), pt. 1 Abbr.
section 1, tract 4, Remission
section 2, tract 3, 8. Reconciliation & the Remission of Sins
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Related Pages
On Confession of Sins, Penance & Human Satisfactions for Sin
Classifications & Degrees of Sin, & on Venial vs. Mortal Sin