In the adult Sunday school class, we have been working through the redemption from our Triune God. Our redemption is appointed by the Father, accomplished by the Son, and applied by the Spirit. And to help us talk about some of what Christ accomplished in His atoning death, we turned for some help to the Canons of Dort. No, not those cannons…

These are the “canons” or “rules” that God’s people used to declare the truth of sacred Scripture.

If you would like to learn more about where the Canons of Dort came from, what they mean, and how they can encourage Christians, this article by Dr. R. Scott Clark at Ligonier Ministries will be very useful to you.

But even better is to have a copy of the Canons of Dort for yourself. You can download a free PDF of the Canons here.

When you have a copy, you will read some marvelously encouraging things. Truth like the Gospel “with the command to repent and believe, ought to be declared and published to all nations, and to all persons promiscuously and without distinction, to whom God out of His good pleasure sends the Gospel” (II.5).

You will also find that Jesus’ work on the Cross did not just make salvation possible, it was actually accomplished! So the Canons can say, ” God the Father has ordained His Son to the death of the cross with a certain and definite decree to save, so that the necessity, profitableness, and worth of what Christ merited by His death might have existed, and might remain in all its parts complete, perfect and intact, and merited redemption that in fact is applied to His people” (II, Rejection 1). After all, Jesus didn’t say that He made salvation hopeful, He declared “It is finished!” (John 19:28 – 30). He has not merely begun to save us, but is even now bringing to completing His saving work for the Day of Christ (Philippians 1:6)!

So there is VERY good news for Christians, and the Canons help us remember, confess, and believe these biblical truths. Download your copy here.