KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Midwestern Seminary announced today that the book project Sola: How the Five Solas are Still Reforming the Church, edited by President Jason Allen, was released by Moody Publishers on January 1.
The purpose of the book is to introduce readers to each of the five solas of the Protestant Reformation, namely, Sola Scriptura (Scripture alone), Sola Gratia (Grace alone), Sola Fide (Faith alone), Solus Christus (Christ alone), and Soli Deo Gloria (Glory to God alone). In each chapter, the author situates the sola in its historical and theological contexts and then explains how the sola impacts the Christian life.
It has been 501 years since the Protestant Reformation, yet, this work posits that the core tenets of the Reformation are still making reverberations among the people of God today. In Sola, Allen, Jason Duesing, Jared Wilson, Matthew Barrett, and Owen Strachan reintroduce the five solas of the Reformation in a theologically rich and practical way.
Commenting on the significance of remembering the Reformation, Allen said, “For evangelicals, remembering and applying the lessons of the Protestant Reformation is of utmost importance. The Reformers are our theological forebears. They fought the good fight; they finished their course; they rediscovered and proclaimed the faith. As evangelicals, we are sons and daughters of the Reformers.”
While most Protestants would say that remembering the Reformation is a must, some would question whether the solas themselves are really that important. Allen believes they are, saying, “If the solas are true, they provide the doctrinal infrastructure for our spiritual lives. They frame our Christian identities and ministries, and are perennial touchpoints of theological and spiritual formation.
“The solas are not peripheral matters, positioned to entangle us in needless, tertiary doctrinal squabbles,” he continued. “Rather, they are the essence of the gospel. When we embrace them, we embrace the gospel. When we articulate them, we speak the gospel. When we live consciously of them, we live in the power of the gospel.”
Tony Merida, pastor for preaching and vision at Imago Dei Church in Raleigh, N.C. has high hopes for Sola, saying, “I pray that this book will not only be informative, but also inspiring, as you consider how God used ordinary people during the Reformation to bring about a glorious Christ-centered transformation in churches and in the broader culture. Who’s to say the Sovereign Lord will not do something like it again in our dark day? You have some wonderful guides walking you through the five solas—men who are deeply devoted to the gospel and the church—to give you such instruction and inspiration.”
Merida went on to state the importance and impact the solas can still have today, “The historic leaders of the Reformation are gone. They will not preach any more sermons, but living ministers today can preach and teach the five solas to a world that remains in darkness. As we face the darkness, let us not shirk back in fear, but let us minster with an unshakable confidence in the gospel of grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone, as testified in Scripture alone, to the glory of God alone.”
To purchase Sola: How the Five Solas Are Still Reforming the Church visit jasonkallen.com/sola.
Tyler Sykora is research assistant to the President at Midwestern Seminary.
