About 20 years ago, I had the joy of teaching some classes in a Christian school on Worldview. I really had fun. Along with my classes – which were mostly seniors – I got to speak in chapel from time to time to the entire student body. One of those times was especially memorable to me.

I chose as my topic for that chapel, how to “Cult-proof” yourself. Five things which if you stick to, will keep one from being sucked into actual cults (i.e. Jehovah’s Witnesses, Mormonism, Children of God, etc.); cultish or cult like Christian Churches or ministries; and all false religions to boot.

A pretty high claim I know. But I still stand by it.

What were those 5 things? The simple and so-called “Five Solas” of the Reformation. I didn’t invent them. But they have stood the test of time, and are as relevant now as ever. Maybe more so in an age of the wild proliferation of religious sects, and organizations like NXIVM, Scientology, Multi-level-marketing schemes, extreme breast-feeding (yes, it’s a real thing), separatists and Preppers, on and on.

1 – Sola Scriptura: Standing on the Word of God as the final authority in all matters of life and faith, especially in opposition to dreams, visions, experiences teachings and writings as located in one’s self, or another’s person or personality.

Sola Scriptura does not mean we ignore Church history, nor the teachers and preachers God has gifted His Church with throughout the ages. But it does mean we sift everything through the careful, systematic sieve of the Bible’s teaching. That we and those we listen to are held to the scrutiny of sound principles of Biblical interpretation. Requiring that doctrines and teachings are neither contrary to “the faith that was once for all delivered to the saints.” (Jude 3) Note – already in place by the closing of the New Testament canon; nor invented out of whole cloth, privately interpreted or dependent upon wild or unique applications of obscure passages.

All those claiming to have some new or secret revelation are to be dismissed out of hand. “To the teaching and to the testimony! If they will not speak according to this word, it is because they have no dawn.” (Isa. 8:20)

It is in the Scriptures alone, that we find that we are saved by –

2 – Sola Gratia – grace alone.

Every false group, EVERY false group, no matter how seemingly orthodox, will make salvation and reconciliation to God, dependent in some way on receiving their unique teaching or brand and some form of human merit as prescribed by them. Performance in their eyes. Not the reception of free grace. Do this, don’t do that, in order to make yourself worthy as they imagine it.

Run! You can do NOTHING to make yourself worthy of salvation in the least bit. As Luther once said, we bring absolutely nothing to the table but the sin that makes our salvation necessary. Salvation has nothing to do with our worthiness, but of Christ’s. He saves the unworthy. Only the unworthy. When we inject any personal worthiness into the equation – we either say that Jesus’ righteousness imputed to us is not enough, or that we can somehow do something He couldn’t. It is a lie. Eph. 2:8-9 “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.”

3 – Sola Fide – by Faith alone. The Bible also teaches us that salvation and right standing with God is received by faith alone, apart from any human effort. We always receive it as opposed to making it happen. We can never do enough. But every aberrant group will have you jumping through hoops – and never answering the question “how much is enough?”

As the passage just quoted says – “by grace you have been saved through faith.” Believing what God has said in His Word is true, and obeying the Gospel by believing and resting upon Christ and His finished work on our behalf. When those in John 6 asked Jesus what they must be doing to do the works of God – He answered: “This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He has sent.”

On the “mount of transfiguration”, the voice of the Father was heard as Jesus stood with Moses (representative of the Old Testament Law) and Elijah (representative of the Old Testament prophets), the text says: “He was still speaking when, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them, and a voice from the cloud said, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to him.” (Matt. 17:5) He is the fulfillment of all the Law and the Prophets, so that Paul can write: “Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith.” Phil. 3:8-9.

4 – Solus Christus – We are saved by Christ alone. We are not saved by a doctrine, a creed, nor an association with any group or person other than being found in Christ by faith. He alone saves us from the wrath to come on all human sin.

He is the one who died in the place of sinners. He alone atoned for human sin. He alone was God incarnate. He alone fulfilled all the Law required. He alone fulfilled the Scriptures. He alone died, was buried, rose again and stands at the right hand of the Father on high. He alone has the power to forgive sins. He alone will come to mete out final judgment on those who remain in their rebellion against Him, and reward the saints who have put their trust in Him. He alone will raise us from the dead.

5 – Soli Deo Gloria – All of this is to the glory of God alone.

Nothing was more important to Christ Jesus than that the cosmos would come to honor, love and revere the Father as He did. So it is when teaching us to pray, the first thing on His mind is that we seek that His name be hallowed, be restored to its rightful place. God has done all things for His own glory.

And what is this glory? Is it some sort of divine ego trip? No! God can bless us with nothing greater than revelations of Himself – for He is the source of all goodness, beauty, justice, glory, sweetness, wonder, pleasure and holiness. He can give us nothing higher than Himself. And all He needs to be glorified, is to be revealed. And where is He best revealed? “For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.” 2 Cor. 4:6.

After the chapel where I shared this, a young man, dressed in all black, complete with a full-length leather coat and stegosaurus spiked hair came up to me, holding up his hand with the five fingers splayed said “Cool!” He had written one sola on each finger in permanent marker. Then, make up and all he said: “I’ll bet you sing hymns in your church, don’t you.” I said yes. And he said: “I wish they did at my church.” Then he turned and walked away. He was so hungry. But he was not being fed this kind of truth in his home Church.

I hope you are.