#concise theology

True faith acknowledges Christ as what he truly is, our God-appointed king as well as our God-given priest, and true trust in him as Saviour will express itself in submission to him as Lord also. To refuse this is to seek justification through an impenitent faith, which is no faith.

"The new life, which comes to sinners as a gift of God's free grace, must be expressed in a new lifestyle. Those who live by grace must practice gratitude; those who have been greatly loved must show great love to others; those who live by being forgiven must themselves forgive; those who know God as their loving heavenly Father must accept His providences without  bitterness, honoring Him at all times by trusting in His protecting care. In a word, God's children must be like their Father and their Savior, which means being utterly unlike the world."

The particular judgments of conscience are to be received as God’s voice only when they match God’s own truth and law in Scripture. Conscience must therefore be educated to judge scripturally.

Only those who show themselves to be regenerate by pursuing heart-holiness and true neighbor-love as they pass through this world are entitled to believe themselves secure in Christ. Persevering in faith and penitence, not just in Christian formalism, is the path to glory. To suppose that believing in perseverance leads to careless living and arrogant presumption is a total misconception.

The assertion of original sin makes the point that we are not sinners because we sin, but rather we sin because we are sinners, born with a nature enslaved to sin.

Though God's ways of expressing his faithfulness are sometimes unexpected and bewildering, looking indeed to the casual observer and in the short term more like unfaithfulness, the final testimony of those who walk with God through life's ups and downs is that "every promise has been fulfilled; not one has failed" (Josh 23:14-15). God's fidelity, along with the other aspects of his gracious goodness as set forth in his Word, is always solid ground to rest our faith and hope.