Christian Basics: What Does "Christ Alone" Mean?
Photo by Constantin Mutaf on Unsplash
Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links, meaning Beautiful Christian Life LLC may get a commission if you decide to make a purchase through its links, at no cost to you.
You may have seen the phrases on t-shirts and tattoos, heard pastors mention them when preaching, or come across them in your readings: the five “alones” (or most commonly “the five solas” in Latin) of Protestant Christianity: “Scripture alone” (Latin: Sola Scriptura), “grace alone” (Sola Gratia), “Christ alone” (Solus Christus), “faith alone” (Sola Fide), and “to the glory of God alone” (Soli Deo Gloria). Following is a brief explanation of the meaning of “Christ alone”:
We are pardoned and made righteous by the merits of Jesus Christ alone.
Because of our sins, rebellion, and hatred of God, we owe an immeasurable debt of obedience to God that we can never pay. The only way for us to be reconciled to God was for our debt to be paid by the atoning sacrifice of the one and only mediator between God and man—Christ alone—the sinless Lamb of God.
Jesus paid our debt, satisfied the justice of God, and merited eternal life for us. Protestants reject the claims of the Roman Catholic Church that the righteousness of Mary and the “saints” contribute to our forgiveness or that there is any other mediator besides Christ only (Isa. 53:1-12; 1 John 2:1-2; Second Helvetic Confession 5, 11, 23; Belgic Confession 26).
What does the truth of “Christ alone” mean for us today and tomorrow?
Some may wonder why Christ had to suffer and die in order to pay the penalty for our sins—why couldn’t God simply forgive us? Since God is righteous and holy, our sins must be punished to uphold God’s justice. In order to pay this immeasurable penalty for us, the Son of God was born in the flesh (the incarnate Christ: truly God and truly man), lived a sinless life on earth, and suffered and died to atone (pay) for our sins.
Christ freed us from the guilt of sin by justifying us and removing our guilt. At that moment, he also freed us from slavery to sin, enabling us through sanctification to live godly and selfless lives for him and his people. Let us remember to be thankful for the great payment of Christ only—his sinless life and atoning death for us.
To learn more about all five “alones” (solas) of the Protestant Reformation, be sure to check out: Christian Basics: What Are the Five “Alones” and Why Do You Need to Know Them?
