Sola Fide
One of the key rallying cries of the Reformation was that a sinner is justified sola fide—by faith alone. It was a clarion for the gospel. It served as a direct counter against distorted medieval views of justification. For Martin Luther, it was “the summary of all Christian doctrine” and “the article by which the church stands or falls.”
In it the biblical concept of imputation was revived, and human hearts came alive. This leading material principle of the Reformation radically changed the way people understood Christ, the crucifixion, the human condition, merit, works, and faith.
As it is written, “One is justified by faith apart from works of the law” (Romans 3:28). And again, when the apostle Paul speaks of being “found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith” (Philippians 3:9).
Rome insisted that we must have a righteousness of our own that comes from the law. That we are justified by faith and works. Though they taught that God’s grace prompted such work, nevertheless, meritorious deeds were necessary for salvation.
The Reformation revived the scriptural teaching that a sinner is not justified by the works of the law, but by looking to Jesus Christ through faith alone.
Christ was given to us by God’s generosity, to be grasped and possessed by us in faith. … [Justification by faith alone] is the main hinge on which religion turns, so that we devote the greater attention and care to it. For unless you first of all grasp what your relationship to God is, and the nature of his judgment concerning you, you have neither a foundation on which to establish your salvation nor one on which to build piety toward God (Institutes, III, xi, 1).
Solas Overview Next: Sola Gratia
(See also: Sola Fide)
