I am very much encouraged (and thankful to God) due to the feedback I am continuing to receive regarding the Five Solas book. It is now available in a number of formats (including a newly translated Spanish version):

The books starts with these words:

“Light dispels darkness. When the light of God’s Word shines into places of spiritual and cultural darkness, it transforms people, families and nations. It does not matter how long the darkness has persisted; when light appears, darkness, like a hostile, renegade, usurper to the throne, must submit, bow its head, and walk away in shame. Again, light dispels darkness. The entrance of God’s word brings light!

Darkness is the shared experience of a people without light. Such was the case before the Protestant Reformation. The Bible was not known. In its place, religious superstition, tradition and falsehood reigned. The Reformation brought God’s word and the Gospel back into the hands of the masses.

Man-made traditions that had kept the people in bondage for centuries were now exposed for what they really were. Entire nations, held captive by the powers of darkness, were now exposed to the truth. Dramatic change occurred. Outside the book of Acts in the New Testament, there has not been a greater move of the Holy Spirit in the history of the church. Our world would never be the same. A Latin phrase, ‘Post tenebras lux’ captured the enfolding, historical drama, meaning, ‘After darkness, light!’

As the Bible came to be read in the common language of the people, the great central truths the Bible proclaimed were recovered, often at great cost to those who came to embrace them.

The Reformation recovered and highlighted glorious Scriptural truths which have been expressed in five memorable phrases, now known as the Five Solas. Properly understood, these Five Solas bring us back to the very heart of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.”

Paperback Version

Ebook and Audiobook version

Spanish translation

Endorsements:

“You have succinctly and clearly distilled the essence of the ‘solas.’ May God mightily use your book for His glory. Thank you for the encouragement in the gospel you have brought to me.” – R. C. Sproul

“This is such a crucial topic; and having read many pieces written on the five solas, this one stands out for not only being theologically sound, but also clear and concise. It is written in a way that just about anyone could pick up and understand. I am thankful that God has raised up his servant John Samson for this deeply needed work; a work we ought to get into the hands of as many people as possible.” – John Hendryx, monergism.com

“Get this book! Then get several more to share with your friends and family. John Samson has the remarkable ability to communicate essential truths with an undeniable passion and faithfulness that is winsome, clear, and devastating to the opposition. The people of God in this generation are in need of these old truths: the same truths that transformed the early church and led our heroes (throughout history) into living lives that changed the world. Go sell 100 of your vapid, modern Evangellyfish books and turn that money into getting this book into the hearts and minds of Christians everywhere.” – Jeff Durbin, Pastor, Apologia Church, Tempe, Arizona

“Recent years have seen a number of key anniversaries connected with events and people who were vital catalysts in the Protestant Reformation. Thankfully this has resulted in a renewed focus on the ‘five solas’–a convenient shorthand list of the Reformers’ key convictions. Throughout church history, wherever these principles have been stressed and adhered to, the church has always flourished. So it is a highly encouraging trend. I’m thankful for this excellent book by John Samson; a cogent, focused, and accessible study of the solas that not only reminds us what these principles mean, but also shows us why they are important–and why they must stand together.” – Phil Johnson, Executive Director, Grace to You

“Some authors make you read three chapters before getting to the first point in their outline. If you wish to understand the foundation of the solas of the Reformation but would like to do so in under an hour, John Samson provides you with the basics right here.” – Dr. James White, Alpha & Omega Ministries, Phoenix, Arizona

“Part celebration and part exposition, Pastor John Samson has provided a brief and readable introduction to the grand framing truths of the Reformation. In this timely little work, Samson particularly emphasizes how the five “Onlies” magnify God’s complete and gracious work of salvation in Jesus Christ — of which we learn in Scripture alone, which we find in Christ alone and enjoy by grace alone, through faith alone, to the glory of God alone! As a bonus, Samson not only concisely shows the radiance of each, but also the interrelationship of the whole. Pastors will find this a very useful introductory work for use in ministry.” – Dan Phillips, Pastor, Copperfield Bible Church, Houston, Texas

Part 1 – Chapters 1-3

A bird’s eye view of the first three chapters of Romans.

Do you want the good news or the bad news?

Well, before the Apostle Paul gives us the good news, he makes sure we fully grasp the harsh and stern reality of the bad news. The bad news is VERY bad, which makes the good news, exceedingly glorious!

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https://www.youtube.com/c/KingsChurchTV

Psalm 1:

Passage: John 5:24-31

The Father’s testimony concerning His Son is on record. To fail to believe it is a great dishonor to the Father, and carries with it severe, eternal consequences.

This excerpt is adapted from What’s So Great about the Doctrines of Grace? by Richard D. Phillips. (original source of this article here)

I am writing to praise the doctrine of limited atonement because it so exalts the cross of Jesus Christ, which gained a full redemption for all those appointed by God to eternal life. But what is the cash value of this doctrine? Does it offer something to my Christian experience or is it just abstract theology? What’s so great about the doctrine of limited atonement?

First, whenever a doctrine receives the prominence the Bible gives to Christ’s atonement, it must be significant to our lives.

The solemnity of the subject matter of Christ’s atonement urges us to consider it of great significance and to think carefully about it, in conformity with the Scriptures. In this respect, limited atonement should be received as a great doctrine simply because of its importance to Jesus and His saving work.

Second, if we grasp how personal in its application and how efficacious in its effects is the cross of Christ, we will find solid ground for our assurance of salvation.

There can be no assurance if the ultimate cause of our redemption is found in ourselves. The Arminian concept of a universal atonement, Packer remarks, “destroys the Scriptural ground of assurance altogether… . My salvation, on this view, depends not on what Christ did for me, but on what I subsequently do for myself.” This is why assurance of salvation is a field of theology and Christian experience plowed only by the Reformed. Murray notes, “It is no wonder that the doctrine of assurance should have found its true expression in that theology which is conditioned by the thought of the divine atonement or effective redemption, the irreversibility of effectual calling, and the immutability of the gifts of grace.

It is when you realize that even your faith is the outworking of Christ’s saving death for you, by the electing will of the Father, as applied by the Spirit, that you know the solid ground on which your salvation stands. If you truly believe–and the Bible gives you tests to determine whether you do–you can rest your heart in God’s sovereign grace and begin looking forward to an eternity of glory in the kingdom that you are now called to serve.

Lastly, limited atonement impacts us powerfully with regard to the psychology of our devotion to the Lord.

There are some who die for principles, and we admire them for it. Socrates accepted the cup of hemlock for the principle of tacit consent to civic rule. For this, his influence has spread far and wide across the ages. There are others who die for causes. If we share the cause, we may honor the martyr’s name. Nathan Hale has gone down in American history as the revolutionary who declared, “I only regret that I have but one life to lose for my country.” Schoolchildren are taught those words even today, and we remember him with respect. Logically, the doctrine of universal atonement places Jesus in this category, though as the most noble of people who died for the greatest possible cause.

But there is another category of devotion that rises far above the rest. Some die for principles and others for causes. But what about someone who dies for me? This calls for a different kind of devotion altogether.

The movie Saving Private Ryan tells of a rescue operation immediately after the Allied invasion of Normandy in June 1944. The War Department learns that three out of four sons in a family named Ryan have died in battle on the same day. The Army’s top general orders that the fourth son be rescued from behind German lines, where he parachuted on D-Day. An elite squad of Army Rangers is assigned to find Private Ryan. The search leads to a bridge where German tanks are trying to break through Allied lines, and there the squad is destroyed as the quest finally succeeds. As the captain who saved Ryan lies dying on the bridge, surrounded by the bodies of the men from his squad, he draws Ryan close and gasps: “Earn this. Earn it.” The movie concludes with Ryan, as an old man, returning to the cemetery where the men who died for him were buried. Falling to his knees at Captain Miller’s grave, he says to the white plaster cross: “Every day I think about what you said to me that day on the bridge. I’ve tried to live my life the best I could. I hope that was enough. I hope that at least in your eyes, I earned what all of you have done for me.” Turning to his wife, who comes up beside him, he stammers: “Tell me I have led a good life. Tell me I’m a good man.”

We praise God that we are not required to earn what Christ has done for us, for we never could do so. We receive His death by simple faith alone. Jesus never demands that we earn what He did for us. But the Bible does tell us to live “in a manner worthy of the Lord” (Col. 1:10). So we can turn to His wooden cross every day and pray, “If, with all Your glory, You, the Son of God, died for me, then I can live for You.” We live not merely for a principle and not even for a great cause. We live for a person, the Lord Jesus Christ. He died not merely for a principle or even for the greatest of causes. He died for us. So every Christian can say, “I live for Him, because He died for me.” He died for me.

“When we think of the Protestant Reformation, we immediately think of the act of Biblical preaching as the means whereby the Gospel was established in the life of the Church. While a very true statement, it is not a complete one.

It was when not only idolatry and falsehood were removed from the worship service, but when in its place, Biblical, Gospel truth shaped the week by week liturgy (order of worship) of the Church, that the people truly ‘got the message.’

Each time the people gathered to worship God, with on purpose thought behind it, each element of the Reformed worship service was intentionally devised to reveal both Law and Gospel – the reality and consequences of our sin and the perfect work of the perfect Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ. As a result, the common people were able to gain a fuller and growing comprehension of the greatness of their salvation, and even more importantly, the greatness of their Savior God.

In the power of the Holy Spirit, the two together: preaching and liturgy (order of worship) brought Reformation in the Church.” – John Samson

Doug Bruner is a man who exemplifies the character qualities of an Elder listed in 1 Timothy chapter 3. I am proud to call him a friend and it is a joy to serve with him as my fellow elder at King’s Church in Peoria, AZ. Here is his brief bio found on the King’s Church website:

Doug grew up in Southeastern New Mexico in a non Christian home. After finishing high school he went to college but had no real direction in life. After four years of aimless wandering, he enlisted in the Army and served four years as a helicopter mechanic. Choosing not to make a career of the military he went back to New Mexico State University and finished his Bachelors Degree in Agriculture. While working at the job he thought would be his career, he had an existential crisis.

Deeply unhappy and plagued with questions about the meaning of life and why we are here, he attended a church service and prayed to receive Christ, hoping this would make him happy. Life did not change and shortly afterwards, he moved to Phoenix.

Four years later, he was born again and asked God to forgive him through the work of His Son. The Holy Spirit revealed to him that the Bible is God’s word and he began attending church services regularly (and was a member of another local church for several years). Though he had grown in his faith he lacked the assurance of salvation, not being truly established in the gospel.

Doug learned of Pastor John through a radio broadcast and began attending King’s Church in 2011 (when it met in a local home). Through hearing the faithful preaching of the gospel and the doctrines of grace, he now has that grounding and assurance. Doug’s parents have also become believers through the ministry of King’s Church and are faithful members. Doug’s passion is for people to come to faith in Christ and become grounded in the doctrines of grace.