THE NINE POINTS OF (URCNA) SYNOD (SCHERERVILLE) 2007
Synod affirms that the Scriptures and confessions teach the doctrine
of justification by grace alone, through faith alone and that nothing
that is taught under the rubric of covenant theology in our churches
may contradict this fundamental doctrine. Therefore Synod rejects
the errors of those:
1. who deny or modify the
teaching that "God created man good and after His own image, that
is, in true righteousness and holiness," able to perform "the commandment
of life" as the representative of mankind (HC 6,9; BC 14);
2. who, in any way and for
any reason, confuse the "commandment of life" given before
the fall with the gospel announced after the fall (BC 14, 17, 18;
HC 19, 21, 56, 60);
3. who confuse the ground
and instrument of acceptance with God before the fall (obedience
to the commandment of life) with the ground (Christ who kept the
commandment of life) and instrument (faith in Christ) of acceptance
with God after the fall;
4. who deny that Christ earned
acceptance with God and that all His merits have been imputed to
believers (BC 19, 20, 22, 26; HC 11-19, 21, 36-37, 60, 84; CD 1.7,
RE 1.3, RE 11.1);
5. who teach that a person
can be historically, conditionally elect, regenerated, savingly
united to Christ, justified, and adopted by virtue of participation
in the outward administration of the covenant of grace but may lose
these benefits through lack of covenantal faithfulness (CD, I, V);
6. who teach that all baptized
persons are in the covenant of grace in precisely the same way such
that there is no distinction between those who have only an outward
relation to the covenant of grace by baptism and those who are united
to Christ by grace alone through faith alone (HC 21, 60; BC 29);
7. who teach that Spirit-wrought
sanctity, human works, or cooperation with grace is any part either
of the ground of our righteousness before God or any part of faith,
that is, the "instrument by which we embrace Christ, our righteousness"
(BC 22-24; HC 21, 60, 86);
8. who define faith, in the
act of justification, as being anything more than "leaning and resting
on the sole obedience of Christ crucified" or "a certain knowledge"
of and "a hearty trust" in Christ and His obedience and death for
the elect (BC 23; HC 21);
9. who teach that there is
a separate and final justification grounded partly upon righteousness
or sanctity inherent in the Christian (HC 52; BC 37). Back
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