The Solus Christus Confession

The good news of Jesus is the unchanging truth of the church — Jesus died for our sins, was buried, and rose again according to the Scriptures (1 Corinthians 15:3). This good news is the very power of God unto salvation for everyone who believes (Romans 1:16). 

When studying the history of the church, one witnesses the diverse mountain range of Christianity — the peaks of goodness where the church embodied profound faithfulness to Jesus Christ and the valleys of evil where the church tragically drifted from the truth of the gospel (Galatians 2:5).

Growing up as a mainline Protestant Christian, I learned the history of Martin Luther nailing his Ninety-Five Theses to the door of the castle church in Wittenberg in 1517, lighting the spark of the Protestant Reformation. The fires of salvation by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone, as revealed by Scripture alone, to the glory of God alone, and the priesthood of all Believers would burn bright because of this little spark.

And yet four hundred years later in Germany, we see the human propensity to stray from the truth of the gospel. It is during this period that we see the likes of Dietrich Bonhoeffer lamenting the compromise of the Lutheran church. As one of the leaders of the Confessing Church, Bonhoeffer helped author and promote the Barmen Declaration of 1934. This Declaration became the rallying cry of German Christians who resisted the syncretism of the German State Church. 

Nonetheless, their efforts, while commendable, fell woefully short of stopping the horrors that would follow. Ten years after authoring the Barmen Declaration, Bonhoeffer found himself in a prison cell. His letters and papers from prison have been classic Christian writings for 80 years now. In one of his letters, dated April 30, 1944—less than one year before he died—Bonhoeffer penned a piercing question.

This question did not originate with Bonhoeffer but was the key question Jesus asked His disciples in Caesarea Phillipi. He first asked them, “Who do men say that I am?” They answered, “Some say John the Baptist, some Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” Jesus then moved to the heart of the matter, “Who do you say that I am?” This is the foundational question that must be answered. How do My people see Me? Who do my disciples think and believe I am right now in this decisive moment? Peter would declare rightly, “You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God,” (Matthew 16:16). This is the only answer that builds the church and overcomes the gates of hell.  

Thirty years ago, when I was a student at Asbury Theological Seminary, I was asking myself a similar question. After being disappointed by an aging denominational church’s loss of historic Christian orthodoxy and its inability to reach the next generation of youth, I became attracted to a charismatic movement that was hungry for God’s presence and committed to vibrant spirituality at the center of church life.  

On May 7, 1999, the International House of Prayer began, and I found myself on staff at ground zero for the beginning of a global prayer and worship movement. By September 19th, prayer and worship were ascending 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. The “fire on the altar would never go out” until the Church was revived, the Great Commission was fulfilled, Israel was saved, and Jesus returned. The following two decades would witness night and day prayer explode as thousands of 24/7 prayer and worship expressions would emerge in the nations. An unceasing flame of devotion would touch millions and lead to thousands finding spiritual renewal through singing and praying God’s Word.

This past year (September 19, 2024) marked the 25th anniversary of 24/7 worship and prayer at IHOPKC, and I am in perhaps the most pain I have ever experienced. The shadow side of IHOPKC’s powerful light has been exposed through survivors testifying of harm from clergy sexual and spiritual abuse, elitism, unhealthy rhythms, unsustainable financial models, and prophetic manipulation. What I thought would be a catalytic fire to start a revival of the heart through the spiritual disciplines and missionary fervor is now more of a reproach than a blessing. Over twenty years of tremendous global impact is all but gone in a matter of months as more victims of sexual and spiritual abuse come forward from all sectors of the Body of Christ. What I thought was part of an answer for the next generation now seems like more of a cautionary tale. 

Unfortunately, there seem to be too many cautionary tales to bear these days. Many of us who believe in Jesus Christ are in shock as more scandals emerge, another leader’s sin is revealed, and another Board of Directors embraces self-preservation and cover-up over and against honesty and transparency. It seems as if every church expression is in the crosshairs of the Lord’s loving discipline as leaders from every Christian denomination, theological tradition, and church expression are exposed through scandals of abuse and immorality. Our forms and leaders often become idols built upon empires of structural power and social influence from books, resources, social media platforms, conferences, crowds, and reputations. Untethered from Jesus, the towers are falling, and religious edifices are crumbling in the wake of seemingly unending scandals of abuse and cover-up as the next generation walks away from the circus of Western, celebrity Christianity in all its religious forms. 

How should members of the Body of Christ respond? What should we do when something is wrong at the core of our church expressions? What do we do when the problem is us? I thought prayer would revive the church. It turns out that even prayer and its leaders can become idols. 

In a cell of great pain, humbled by my 25-year attempt to be part of an answer to the church, I am asking Bonhoeffer’s question again, “What is Christianity; who is Christ for us today?” This is the perennial question of the church, especially in the tragic valleys of Christendom. It was the crucial question Jesus asked his leaders, “Who do you say that I am?” (Matthew 16:18), and is always the crucial question for every generation of Christians. 

I am convinced the church needs to be reformed, and I believe it will only come through a wholesale return to the knowledge of Jesus. He is still the preeminent One who walks among His Church (Revelation 2-3), encouraging and exhorting us to stop the celebrity circus and return to the centrality of Christ. The scriptures clearly state that the Lord will judge His people, even the most renowned, and shut down any religious infrastructure to get to the heart of the matter.  Christ alone is to be the Church’s greatest passion and highest exaltation in the nations, for Christ was the longing of all the Old and New Testament saints.

The awaited One was the great anticipation of Israel. The apostles were set on keeping Christ central in doctrine and life together. None compares to Christ because He is the fullness of God in bodily form, and in Him, we live, move, and have our being (Acts 17:28). Ministers of the gospel are workers in God’s field, but Jesus Christ is the very image of God’s radiance. In Him are hidden all the riches and wisdom of God. In times past God spoke to the fathers in various times and ways, but now in these last days, He has spoken to us by His Son, whom He has appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the worlds. He is the very brightness of the Father’s glory and the express image of His person, upholding all things by the word of His power (Hebrews 1:1-3).

Our vision statements, methodologies, and discipleship efforts must again be yoked to the chief Cornerstone. We must build upon one foundation alone—Christ! Our greatest need and highest joys are found in Him. The knowledge of God in the face of Christ Jesus is our daily bread. It is our sustenance. Until our lives are rooted in the experiential knowledge of Him and the manifestation of His life in our midst, we remain scavenging after food that perishes and drink that never satisfies. Even in this time of shaking, discipline, and confusion, I believe the Holy Spirit calls us to return to Christ and behold Him again.

Have you beheld the glory of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth? Has your heart experienced His splendor and tasted His love? Until you have personally encountered the indomitable force of His life and personality, you have yet to brave the true meaning of your created purpose: to commune in love with the God of all truth, beauty, and goodness. You were not designed for religious forms, mere duty, or the fleeting pleasure of notoriety and selfish ambition. You were created for loving communion with the Maker of the universe, who has forever joined Himself to you in the person of His Son Jesus and showed you the way of everlasting life.

We must reform the Church and form our Christian communities around Christ alone. We must evaluate every leadership value, principle, strategy, goal, and community practice by the person and work of the Lord Jesus. He must become our great preoccupation and superior pleasure again. This must happen leader by leader, member by member, and community by community, choosing Christ alone over every other desire and ambition. Jesus must again become the north star of all our religious desires, expressions, forms, and structures. The scaffolding of Christlikeness with a commitment to fully please Him in how we love God and our brothers and sisters must replace our cultural obsessions and outward lures of impact, size, influence, and prestige. Our ministries and their impact must be tethered to Christ. We must give something better to the next generation than the wake of our scandals. We must give them a genuine return to the eternal joys of knowing and loving Christ, being set apart anew for Him and Him alone in love to our Father and love for our brethren by the power of His Spirit.

It is in this spirit of sincere desire to be satisfied in Christ and conformed to His image that we return to Christ alone and make the following Solus Christus Confession:

Reforming the Church and Forming Community around Christ Alone

“What is bothering me incessantly is the question of what Christianity really is, or indeed who Christ really is, for us today?”