A Survey of the Reformation: Its History and Doctrine

This Fall marks 500 years since the start of the Protestant Reformation. October 31, 1517 is the date that Martin Luther nailed his “Ninety-five Theses” on the church door in Wittenberg. His Reformation ideas quickly spread over all of Europe by means of the movable-type printing press… and the rest, they say, is history.

In honor of this anniversary, I am re-posting my teaching series entitled, “A Survey of the Reformation: Its History and Doctrine.”

I developed this teaching series in 2012 and have taught through it for adult Sunday School classes in two different churches. The audio files are primarily from 2012, but one of the lessons had corrupted audio and so I made a replacement recording in 2014 the next time I taught the material.

My goal in this series is two-fold: to introduce people to the history and ideals of the Reformation, and to give an introduction to the doctrine known as the five points of Calvinism or the doctrines of Grace. I have found that understanding and appreciating the doctrines of Grace is easier when one is led to understand the history of the Reformation as a whole. Also stressed in this study, are the Five Solas, and the Reformation emphasis on God’s sovereignty.

The Reformation doesn’t stand or fall with the doctrines of Grace, but that understanding flows directly from the heart of the Reformation. And while Luther may not have agreed on all the particulars of how the five points came to be articulated, he is in fundamental agreement on God’s role in salvation — as were all the original reformers.

Feel free to use the .pdf and .mp3 audio files freely, I just ask to be credited as the source of this presentation. May God grant the spirit of the Reformation and its doctrine, to continue to occupy a warm place in the hearts and minds of God’s people.

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A Survey of the Reformation: Its History and Doctrine

HISTORY

  1. Introduction & An Overview of Church History • Download the Audio ∼ View the Slides.
  2. Forerunners of the Reformation • Download the Audio ∼ View the Slides.
  3. The Protestant Reformation • Download the Audio ∼ View the Slides.
  4. Puritanism & The Legacy of the Reformers • Download the Audio ∼ View the Slides.

DOCTRINE

  1. Reformation Doctrine: The Big Picture • Download the Audio ∼ View the Slides.
  2. Total Depravity & Irresistible Grace • Download the Audio ∼ View the Slides.
  3. Limited Atonement • Download the Audio ∼ View the Slides.
  4. Unconditional Election • Download the Audio ∼ View the Slides.
  5. Perseverance of the Saints • Download the Audio ∼ View the Slides.
  6. Answering Objections • Download the Audio ∼ View the Slides.
  7. Why the Reformation Matters Today • No audio (see note below) ∼ View the Slides.

Note: You may notice that the audio deviates from the slides more and more as the lessons progress. This is due to the fact that the slides match the 2014 audio, which is unavailable. The 2012 audio files line up closely with my older slides available here

I used a variety of resources for this series, but the four I recommend to my SS class are listed here below:

A Survey of the Reformation, pts. 7 – 10: The Five Points of Calvinism, Answering Objections & Why the Reformation Matters

This Fall, I’ve been teaching a 10 part Adult Sunday School series called “A Survey of the Reformation: Its History and Doctrine.” We finally have the audio up for the final four lessons in this series. I finish out the Five Points of Calvinism over the course of these lessons, and in the final session I make room for answering objections and wrap up the series looking at why all this matters.

The lesson plan for the entire series (which has changed some) is below, and you can download the audio or view the slides from the lessons as they are completed.

    HISTORY

  1. Introduction & An Overview of Church History – Download the Audio, View the Slides.
  2. Forerunners of the Reformation – Download the Audio, View the Slides.
  3. The Protestant Reformation – Audio not available, View the Slides.
  4. Puritanism & The Legacy of the Reformers – Download the Audio, View the Slides.
  5. DOCTRINE

  6. Reformation Doctrine: The Big Picture – Download the Audio, View the Slides
  7. Total Depravity & Irresistable Grace – Download the Audio, View the Slides
  8. Total Depravity & Irresistable Grace (cont.) – Download the Audio, View the Slides
  9. Particular Redemption and Unconditional Election – Download the Audio, View the Slides
  10. Unconditional Election (cont.) & Perseverance of the Saints – Download the Audio, View the Slides
  11. Perseverance of the Saints (cont.), Answering Objections, & Why the Reformation Matters Today – Download the Audio, View the Slides

I used a variety of resources for this series, but the four I recommend to my SS class are listed here below:

A Survey of the Reformation, pts. 5 & 6: Reformation Doctrine, Total Depravity and Irresistible Grace

This Fall, I’ve been teaching a 10 part Adult Sunday School series called “A Survey of the Reformation: Its History and Doctrine.” The audio is now up for lessons 5 and 6, which move on from the historical introduction into an actual discussion of Reformation doctrine and the five points of Calvinism. Lesson 5 focused on the big picture of Reformation Doctrine with its emphasis on the “5 solas” and God’s sovereignty. Lesson 6 took us into the background of the 5 points of Calvinism. We also covered the total depravity and started explaining irresistible grace. Regarding the 5 points of Calvinism, I’m making use of my explanation of the five points that I keep here on my blog.

The lesson plan for my entire series (which has changed some) is below, and you can download the audio or view the slides from the lessons as they are completed.

    HISTORY

  1. Introduction & An Overview of Church History – Download the Audio, View the Slides.
  2. Forerunners of the Reformation – Download the Audio, View the Slides.
  3. The Protestant Reformation – Audio not available, View the Slides.
  4. Puritanism & The Legacy of the Reformers – Download the Audio, View the Slides.
  5. DOCTRINE

  6. Reformation Doctrine: The Big Picture – Download the Audio, View the Slides
  7. Total Depravity & Irresistable Grace – Download the Audio, View the Slides
  8. Irresistible Grace, continued
  9. Unconditional Election & Particular Redemption
  10. Perseverance of the Saints & Answering Objections
  11. The Other “Points” of Calvinism and Why the Reformation Matters Today

If you’re in the Minneapolis area, you can also see the schedule for these lessons at the SS page from our church website for this information as well.

A Survey of the Reformation, pt. 4: Puritanism and the Legacy of the Reformers

This Fall, I’m teaching a 10 part Adult Sunday School series called “A Survey of the Reformation: Its History and Doctrine.” Last week’s lesson finished up the Protestant Reformation, and then went on to survey Puritanism and the legacy of the Reformers. The audio and slides are now available for this lesson, which completes the historical survey. Next week we’ll start looking at the doctrine of the Reformation.

The lesson plan for my series is below, and you can download the audio or view the slides from the lessons as they are completed.

    HISTORY

  1. Introduction & An Overview of Church History – Download the Audio, View the Slides.
  2. Forerunners of the Reformation – Download the Audio, View the Slides.
  3. The Protestant Reformation – Audio not available, View the Slides.
  4. Puritanism & The Legacy of the Reformers – Download the Audio, View the Slides.
  5. DOCTRINE

  6. Reformation Doctrine: The Big Picture
  7. Total Depravity & Irresistable Grace
  8. Unconditional Election & Particular Redemption
  9. Perseverance of the Saints & Answering Objections
  10. The Other “Points” of Calvinism
  11. Why the Reformation Matters Today

If you’re in the Minneapolis area, you can also see the schedule for these lessons at the SS page from our church website for this information as well.

A Survey of the Reformation, pt. 3: The Protestant Reformation

This Fall, I’m teaching a 10 part Adult Sunday School series called “A Survey of the Reformation: Its History and Doctrine.” This past Sunday’s lesson covered the Protestant Reformation. We only were able to survey background to the Reformation, and the Reformation in Germany and Switzerland. We also covered conflict and development in the Reformation. Next week we will finish the Reformation with the AnaBaptists and the Radical Reformation, as well as the English & Scottish Reformations. We will also move into a discussion on the Puritans and the legacy of the Reformers.

The lesson plan for my series is below, and you can download the audio or view the slides from the lessons as they are completed.

Note: for this week’s session, there was an audio problem and the audio is not available, unfortunately. The slides are available however.

    HISTORY

  1. Introduction & An Overview of Church History – Download the Audio, View the Slides.
  2. Forerunners of the Reformation – Download the Audio, View the Slides.
  3. The Protestant Reformation – Audio not available, View the Slides.
  4. Puritanism & The Legacy of the Reformers
  5. DOCTRINE

  6. Reformation Doctrine: The Big Picture
  7. Total Depravity & Irresistable Grace
  8. Unconditional Election & Particular Redemption
  9. Perseverance of the Saints & Answering Objections
  10. The Other “Points” of Calvinism
  11. Why the Reformation Matters Today

If you’re in the Minneapolis area, you can also see the schedule for these lessons at the SS page from our church website for this information as well.