Three Scriptural Dogmatisms

    There are three fundamental, irrefutable, absolute truths (not to the exclusion of any truth) plainly and boldly revealed in the Word of God that are essential to the honour and glory of God in the preaching of the Gospel and the salvation of the elect. Upon these truths all else stands. Without them all falls. These are so plain and simple that even I can understand them. May God help me to believe and embrace them!

    1. God is God! He is God alone. There is none other. Almighty God in the Trinity of his sacred person is holy, infinite, just, omnipotent, omniscient, omnipresent, all wise and sovereign. Know therefore this day, and consider it in thine heart, that the Lord he is God in heaven above, and upon the earth beneath: there is none else (Dt 4:39). He does as he pleases without any cause outside himself, and what he does is in absolute harmony with his virtues and character. And by the way, there is nothing done that he does not do! All the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing: and he doeth according to his will in the army of heaven, and among the inhabitants of the earth: and none can stay his hand, or say unto Him, What doest thou? (Dn 4:35).

    2. Man, all mankind, every man that is a descendant of Adam, is a dead, vile, wretched, filthy, depraved sinner, within and without, before God. Man is helpless and hopeless within himself. Man at his best is but a maggot in his own worth. The stirring up of man’s goodness is but a stink in the nostrils of God.We are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away (Is 64:6). There is not one man righteous, not one good, all are guilty of sinning against God. And not only that, there is nothing we can do about it! Only God can do something about it!

    3. Salvation for chosen sinners is in and by the Lord Jesus Christ alone! The salvation of God’s elect is certain. There is only one Saviour of sinners. Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved (Acts 4:12), and he absolutely, completely, eternally accomplished salvation for those whom he loved.

    Our Lord did not live his life in the flesh and die his death so sinners would have an option to choose to make him Lord of their life if they wanted to. He, without assistance, obtained eternal redemption for us (Heb 9:12). And all those whom he redeemed will be brought to faith in him by the irresistible, sovereign grace of God in Christ, through the preaching of the Gospel—For after that in the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe (1 Cor 1:21).