"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His great mercy has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to obtain an inheritance which is imperishable and undefiled and will not fade away, reserved in heaven for you, who are protected by the power of God through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time." (1 Peter 1:3-5).
"For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren; and these whom He predestined, He also called, and these whom He called, He also justified; and these whom He justified, He also glorified." (Romans 8:28-30).
"For I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus." (Philippians 1:6). Emphasis mine.
"Those whom God hath accepted in the beloved, effectually called and sanctified by His Spirit, and given the precious faith of His elect unto, can neither totally nor finally fall from the state of grace, but shall certainly persevere therein to the end, and be eternally saved, seeing the gifts and callings of God are without repentance, whence He still begets and nourisheth in them faith, repentance, love, joy, hope, and all the graces of the Spirit unto immortality; and through many storms and floods arise and beat against them, yet they shall never be able to take them off that foundation and rock which by faith they are fastened upon; notwithstanding, through unbelief and the temptations of Satan, the sensible sight of the light and love of God may be for a time be clouded and obscured from them, yet He is still the same, and they shall be sure to to kept by the power of God unto salvation, where they shall enjoy their purchased possession, they being engraven upon the palm of His hands, and their names having been written in the book of life from all eternity." Chapter 17:1 of the 1689 London Baptist Confession.
(John 10:28-29; Philippians 1:6; 2 Timothy 2:19; 1 John 2:19; Psalms 89:31-32; 1 Corinthians 11:32; Malachi 3:6)
"They went out from us, but they were not really of us; for if they had been of us, they would have remained with us; but they went out, so that it would be shown that they all are not of us." (1 John 2:19).
Well, here we are at the end of our video study of Reformed Theology with R. C. Sproul. I hope and pray that in going through this series you have a better understanding of the Reformed view of the Scriptures and have found them biblically thorough, Christ-centered, historically orthodox, and personally edifying. It is important to recognize that our study over the last couple of weeks is merely an overview of the key components that characterized Reformed Theology rather than a comprehensive compilation. I would recommend coming back to these Reformed Theology posts at your convenience, looking up the Scriptures that are the basis for the doctrines, and perhaps even purchasing some of the referenced books for further study. What any good theology does is labor intensively to discern what the Word is saying rather than attempt to sway others to a definitive theological perspective per se. The Reformed doctrines were a rediscovery and recovery of biblical truth at a time in which the Roman Catholic church had corrupted the sound doctrine of Scripture and the gospel of our Lord Jesus. In our day, there are different attacks on orthodoxy and they seem to me more subtle, but no less dangerous. The Reformed faith answers these attacks well and brings us soberly back to the timeless truths of God's Word! As one brother says, "The Christian faith does not need to be re-invented, it needs to be re-discovered."
Our last doctrine for consideration in the doctrines of grace is that of the perseverance of the saints. As R. C. mentions in today's video, this tag can be misleading because it implies that Christians need to preserve their faith through self-effort. For this reason, we will refer to this biblical doctrine as the preservation of the saints. The gist of this doctrine is: all whom God sovereignly elects in eternity, foreknows will be called to faith in Christ by the gospel, calls efficaciously to new birth in time by the power of the Spirit, and justifies to stand blameless before Him in the imputed righteousness of Christ, will certainly be kept by God in the faith until final glorification in His presence (Rom. 8:28-30). Philippians 1:6 is a wonderful and concise expression of this certain preservation of God's invisible church/actual church . . . what He begins in salvation, He will complete. This doctrine by no means teaches that God's people cannot commit egregious sins, subjectively doubt their standing from time to time, be assaulted by spiritual forces whom attempt to undermine our faith, or face severe obstacles in life that can make our profession of faith appear tenuous. These things and more will happen to each one of us on the path to glory, but God will see those whom are His through until the very end!
Have you ever wondered why some who seem to be strong and grounded in the faith end up denying Christ and sometimes even become outward enemies of Christianity (e.g. Judas). Have you been perplexed by those in the visible church who clearly abandon the essential doctrines of the faith, but still regard themselves (and are regarded by many) as Christians? In your reading of Scripture, have you been disillusioned or confused at times with the sins of God's people? Abraham's lying? Moses' murder? David's adultery (and conspiracy to murder)? Samson's treachery and rebellion? How about Peter's denial of His Lord with swearing (with oaths, not cussing as some teach!)? What about our own sins? Can we lose our salvation or "fall from grace" as is taught in most Arminian camps? The Scriptures are clear that God's people will make it to glory despite themselves and are thus preserved by God through all of life as He is working everything for the good of those whom are His (Rom. 8:28). For those who willfully leave and finally deny the faith, the Scripture is clear that they never possessed eternal life. As Dr. Sproul said, "If you have it you cannot lose it; if you lose it, you never had it."
Reformed Theology emphasizes that salvation is and must be God's work. His Spirit powerfully applies the benefits of Christ's redemption from the beginning to the end. After His resurrection and exaltation to the right hand of the Father, Christ lives to make intercession for His own as our Mediator and Great High Priest! When we sin He pleads His merit and blood at the throne, when we are wayward He grants us repentance through conviction by the Spirit and the confession of our sins, when we are smug and self-sufficient He disciplines us to humility, when downcast He restores us through the joy of the Spirit, when we stray into lies He brings us back to truth, etc. etc. etc.. His work, His faithfulness, His power is more than enough to keep us in the faith. "Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you entirely; and may your spirit and soul and body be preserved complete, without blame at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. Faithful is He who calls you, and He also will bring it to pass." (1 Thessalonians 5:23-24) Emphasis mine.
Showing posts with label Doctrines of Grace. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Doctrines of Grace. Show all posts
Monday, February 21, 2011
Saturday, February 19, 2011
What Is Reformed Theology?: Effectual Grace or Effectual Calling
"Those whom God hath predestinated unto life, He is pleased in His appointed, and accepted time, effectually to call, by His Word and Spirit, out of that state of sin and death in which they are by nature, to grace and salvation by Jesus Christ; enlightening their minds spiritually and savingly to understand the things of God; taking away their heart of stone, and giving them a heart of flesh; renewing their wills , and by His almighty power determining them to that which is good, and effectually drawing them to Jesus Christ; yet so as they come most freely, being made willing by His grace." Chapter 10:1 of the 1689 London Baptist Confession.
(Romans 8:30; Romans 11:7; Ephesians 1:10-11; 2 Thessalonians 2:13-14; Ephesians 2:1-6; Acts 26:18; Ephesians 1:17-18; Ezekiel 36:26; Deuteronomy 30:6; Ezekiel 36:27; Ephesians 1:19; Psalm 110:3; Song of Solomon 1:4)
"This effectual call is of God's free and special grace alone, not from anything at all foreseen in man, nor from any power or agency in the creature, being wholly passive therein, being dead in sins and trespasses, until being quickened and renewed by the Holy Spirit; he is thereby enabled to answer this call, and to embrace the grace offered and conveyed in it, and that by no less power than that which raised up Christ from the dead." Chapter 10:2 of the 1689 London Baptist Confession.
(2 Timothy 1:9; Ephesians 2:8; 1 Corinthians 2:14; Ephesians 2:5; John 5:25; Ephesians 1:19-20)
From now on our study in Reformed Theology will not be referred to as TULIP or Calvinism because I'm realizing more and more how the convenient acronym and the reference to Calvin can be a bit misleading and may turn away people from the truth of the doctrines themselves. As with all Christian doctrine, the key is the truth of the Scriptures and not mere labels per se. This spirit is embodied in the Reformed Baptist preacher Charles Spurgeon who once said, I believe nothing merely because Calvin taught it, but because I have found his teaching in the Word of God." So from now on, I will refer to the 5 biblical points as The Doctrines of Grace and they are as follows:
(Romans 8:30; Romans 11:7; Ephesians 1:10-11; 2 Thessalonians 2:13-14; Ephesians 2:1-6; Acts 26:18; Ephesians 1:17-18; Ezekiel 36:26; Deuteronomy 30:6; Ezekiel 36:27; Ephesians 1:19; Psalm 110:3; Song of Solomon 1:4)
"This effectual call is of God's free and special grace alone, not from anything at all foreseen in man, nor from any power or agency in the creature, being wholly passive therein, being dead in sins and trespasses, until being quickened and renewed by the Holy Spirit; he is thereby enabled to answer this call, and to embrace the grace offered and conveyed in it, and that by no less power than that which raised up Christ from the dead." Chapter 10:2 of the 1689 London Baptist Confession.
(2 Timothy 1:9; Ephesians 2:8; 1 Corinthians 2:14; Ephesians 2:5; John 5:25; Ephesians 1:19-20)
From now on our study in Reformed Theology will not be referred to as TULIP or Calvinism because I'm realizing more and more how the convenient acronym and the reference to Calvin can be a bit misleading and may turn away people from the truth of the doctrines themselves. As with all Christian doctrine, the key is the truth of the Scriptures and not mere labels per se. This spirit is embodied in the Reformed Baptist preacher Charles Spurgeon who once said, I believe nothing merely because Calvin taught it, but because I have found his teaching in the Word of God." So from now on, I will refer to the 5 biblical points as The Doctrines of Grace and they are as follows:
- Radical Corruption and Moral Inability
- Sovereign Election
- Definite or Particular Redemption
- Effectual Grace or Effectual Calling
- Preservation of the Saints
In today's video lesson, R. C. will begin to explain how the redemption of Christ is applied to His church! If you recall, the key to the doctrines of grace is the 1st doctrine of radical corruption and total inability. What did man become after the fall? Did he retain a sliver of inherent righteousness that God would accept? Did he still have the ability to obey the law of God perfectly (God's requirement) in his sinful condition or respond to God apart from grace? We have seen that the Bible teaches that post-fall man is neither willing nor able to come to God on His terms without divine enablement. Words like "dead in trespasses," "blind," "hostile to God," "alienated from God," "without hope in the world," etc. etc. etc., come quickly to mind from the Word to describe man in his post-fall, natural condition.
In saving His people, God must act alone to save us from sin and thankfully, He does just that through the redemption of our Lord Jesus Christ! Interestingly, 3 main concepts in the New Testament are used to describe the application of redemption: birth, creation, and resurrection (3 things man cannot do or add to). The sovereign, powerful act of God saving sinners is called monergism (mono=one) because God alone overcomes our natural resistance to Him through the powerful regeneration by the Holy Spirit accompanied with the gifts of repentance and faith. In our natural state in Adam, we are unable and unwilling to come to Christ and bound in sin, but in effectual grace God calls us into new life in Christ and we willingly run to Him in faith! The biblical gospel leaves no room for boasting . . . except in the Lord of course!
Friday, February 18, 2011
What is Reformed Theology?: Definite or Particular Redemption
" . . . and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins" (Matt. 1:21)
"I am the good shepherd; the good shepherd lays down His life for the sheep" (John 10:11)
"But you do not believe because you are not of My sheep. My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me; and I give eternal life to them, and they will never perish; and no one will snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father's hand" (John 10:26-29). Emphasis mine.
"As God hath appointed the elect unto glory, so He hath, by the eternal and most free purpose of His will, foreordained all the means thereunto; wherefore they who are elected, being fallen in Adam, are redeemed by Christ, are effectually called unto faith in Christ, by His Spirit working in due season, are justified, adopted, sanctified, and kept by His power through faith unto salvation; neither are any other redeemed by Christ, or effectively called, justified, adopted, sanctified, and saved, but the elect only." Chapter 3:6 of the 1689 London Baptist Confession."
(1 Peter 1:2; 2 Thessalonians 2:13; 1 Thessalonians 5:9-10; Romans 8:30; 2 Thessalonians 2:13; 1 Peter 1:5; John 10:26; John 17:9; John 6:64).
"Christ did not come to put men in a redeemable position but to redeem to Himself a people." John Murray, p. 63 of his modern classic, Redemption: Accomplished and Applied.
The 5 Points of Calvinism/doctrines of grace, can easily be misunderstood through the terminology itself. For example, the term "total depravity" could be seen as a person being as wicked as he could be. Total depravity may better be deemed "radical corruption" or "total inability" because what is meant is that all born in Adam have had the entirety of their beings adversely affected by sin and are unable in themselves to respond to God in faith. Similarly, the doctrine of "unconditional election" may be best understood as "sovereign election" because it states that God chose His elect before creation by His gracious choice apart from foreseen works. Up front, I think it is so important to understand the distinct meaning of Reformed Theology doctrines before jumping to unwarranted conclusions. You may recall from my own testimony that I once thought Calvinism was just short of evil before I had even read Reformed Theology . . . much less having done a Scriptural evaluation. Don't be like I was!
Through the years, I have met many believers that might say they are "4 point Calvinists," or "3 pointers," even one recently who dubbed themselves as a possible "Calminianist." Usually, it is the doctrine of limited atonement that is first on the list of those who don't embrace the 5 Points of the doctrines of grace. It is important up front to make sure we are not saying that the Lord's atonement is limited in any way! As one theologian said, "The work of Jesus would be sufficient to save countless sinful worlds!" Christ's work is of infinite value because He is of infinite worth as God, so that is not the teaching of limited atonement. As R. C. mentions, the doctrine may better be described as definite or particular redemption. Reformed Theology declares that Christ's work in redemption was purposeful in saving God's elect specifically. Rather than God making redemption possible and leaving it into the hands of the supposed free-will choice of sinners (see post on Radical Corruption and Total Inability ), the Father's plan in sending Christ accomplishes with absolute certainty the salvation of His elect. The Reformed view is that Christ came to accomplish with certainty the redemption of God's people through the Covenant of Redemption (see post on Covenant Theology). In His life, death, and resurrection Jesus put away the sins of the elect and secured all we need to guarantee our salvation! In time, the redemption of Christ is applied by the Spirit . . . we will study this more in our next 2 lessons.
In our video today, R. C. gives an explanation of limited atonement then works from 2 Peter 3:8-9 (a common passage used to argue against limited atonement) to help us with this difficult doctrine.
"I am the good shepherd; the good shepherd lays down His life for the sheep" (John 10:11)
"But you do not believe because you are not of My sheep. My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me; and I give eternal life to them, and they will never perish; and no one will snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father's hand" (John 10:26-29). Emphasis mine.
"As God hath appointed the elect unto glory, so He hath, by the eternal and most free purpose of His will, foreordained all the means thereunto; wherefore they who are elected, being fallen in Adam, are redeemed by Christ, are effectually called unto faith in Christ, by His Spirit working in due season, are justified, adopted, sanctified, and kept by His power through faith unto salvation; neither are any other redeemed by Christ, or effectively called, justified, adopted, sanctified, and saved, but the elect only." Chapter 3:6 of the 1689 London Baptist Confession."
(1 Peter 1:2; 2 Thessalonians 2:13; 1 Thessalonians 5:9-10; Romans 8:30; 2 Thessalonians 2:13; 1 Peter 1:5; John 10:26; John 17:9; John 6:64).
"Christ did not come to put men in a redeemable position but to redeem to Himself a people." John Murray, p. 63 of his modern classic, Redemption: Accomplished and Applied.
The 5 Points of Calvinism/doctrines of grace, can easily be misunderstood through the terminology itself. For example, the term "total depravity" could be seen as a person being as wicked as he could be. Total depravity may better be deemed "radical corruption" or "total inability" because what is meant is that all born in Adam have had the entirety of their beings adversely affected by sin and are unable in themselves to respond to God in faith. Similarly, the doctrine of "unconditional election" may be best understood as "sovereign election" because it states that God chose His elect before creation by His gracious choice apart from foreseen works. Up front, I think it is so important to understand the distinct meaning of Reformed Theology doctrines before jumping to unwarranted conclusions. You may recall from my own testimony that I once thought Calvinism was just short of evil before I had even read Reformed Theology . . . much less having done a Scriptural evaluation. Don't be like I was!
Through the years, I have met many believers that might say they are "4 point Calvinists," or "3 pointers," even one recently who dubbed themselves as a possible "Calminianist." Usually, it is the doctrine of limited atonement that is first on the list of those who don't embrace the 5 Points of the doctrines of grace. It is important up front to make sure we are not saying that the Lord's atonement is limited in any way! As one theologian said, "The work of Jesus would be sufficient to save countless sinful worlds!" Christ's work is of infinite value because He is of infinite worth as God, so that is not the teaching of limited atonement. As R. C. mentions, the doctrine may better be described as definite or particular redemption. Reformed Theology declares that Christ's work in redemption was purposeful in saving God's elect specifically. Rather than God making redemption possible and leaving it into the hands of the supposed free-will choice of sinners (see post on Radical Corruption and Total Inability ), the Father's plan in sending Christ accomplishes with absolute certainty the salvation of His elect. The Reformed view is that Christ came to accomplish with certainty the redemption of God's people through the Covenant of Redemption (see post on Covenant Theology). In His life, death, and resurrection Jesus put away the sins of the elect and secured all we need to guarantee our salvation! In time, the redemption of Christ is applied by the Spirit . . . we will study this more in our next 2 lessons.
In our video today, R. C. gives an explanation of limited atonement then works from 2 Peter 3:8-9 (a common passage used to argue against limited atonement) to help us with this difficult doctrine.
Thursday, February 17, 2011
What Is Reformed Theology?: Sovereign Election
"How blessed is the one whom you choose and bring near to You"(Psa. 65:4a)
"You did not choose Me but I chose you" (John 15:16)
"Who has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace which was granted us in Christ Jesus from all eternity" (2 Tim. 1:9)
"Those of mankind that are predestined to life, God, before the foundation of the world was laid, according to His eternal and immutable purpose, and the secret counsel and good pleasure of His will, hath chosen in Christ unto everlasting glory, out of His mere free grace and love, without any other thing in the creature as a condition or cause moving Him thereunto." Chapter 3:5 of the 1689 London Baptist Confession.
(Ephesians 1:4, 9, 11; Romans 8:30; 2 Timothy 1:9; 1 Thessalonians 5:9; Romans 9:13, 16; Ephesians 2:5).
Moving along in our video study of Reformed Theology with R. C. Sproul, we now come from the doctrine of total depravity to look at unconditional election. The issues before us in our study of Reformed Theology are in the area of biblical hermeneutics, which is simply bible interpretation. We want to know what the Bible teaches, rather than hold to preconceived notions. And since the Word of God clearly teaches the doctrine of election (no Christian I have met has ever disputed this), we should aim to know this doctrine as we would all others.
The crucial question to answer in election is: does God choose His people for salvation in a conditional or unconditional manner? Does God in His eternal foreknowledge predestine sinners whom He knows will choose to believe in Christ from their own free will and moral ability? Or does God elect sinners in eternity past with the foreknowledge that they are His by His own sovereign choice, and then predestine the elect to be saved in time through the means of the gospel and regeneration by the Spirit? Yesterday, we took a biblical look at the doctrine of total depravity and free will. A Reformed understanding of total depravity leads us right to unconditional election! As you recall, since the sinner in his natural condition is both unable and unwilling to come to God on His terms, God certainly does not save anyone because they warrant it through free-will faith or otherwise. The logical conclusion regarding election is if God is to save elect sinners before He created the world, He must save sovereignly and unconditionally by His grace alone.
In today's video lesson, Dr. Sproul looks at a crucial passage in Romans 9. Before they were born, the twins Jacob and Esau characterize the doctrine of God's unconditional election perfectly. God's purpose in granting Jacob His blessing and not the firstborn Esau were not contingent upon anything but God's sovereign choice. Why? Because He is the Potter of His clay is Paul's argument in Romans 9:20-23. In eternity past, God chose certain one's to be saved even though there was nothing inherently better about them than others. As R. C. said well, "We are saved by free-will, but it is God's not ours." This is the doctrine of unconditional or sovereign election! All to the praise of His mercy and grace through Christ! John Piper agrees that he has no merit in anything God has done in his life!
"You did not choose Me but I chose you" (John 15:16)
"Who has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace which was granted us in Christ Jesus from all eternity" (2 Tim. 1:9)
"Those of mankind that are predestined to life, God, before the foundation of the world was laid, according to His eternal and immutable purpose, and the secret counsel and good pleasure of His will, hath chosen in Christ unto everlasting glory, out of His mere free grace and love, without any other thing in the creature as a condition or cause moving Him thereunto." Chapter 3:5 of the 1689 London Baptist Confession.
(Ephesians 1:4, 9, 11; Romans 8:30; 2 Timothy 1:9; 1 Thessalonians 5:9; Romans 9:13, 16; Ephesians 2:5).
Moving along in our video study of Reformed Theology with R. C. Sproul, we now come from the doctrine of total depravity to look at unconditional election. The issues before us in our study of Reformed Theology are in the area of biblical hermeneutics, which is simply bible interpretation. We want to know what the Bible teaches, rather than hold to preconceived notions. And since the Word of God clearly teaches the doctrine of election (no Christian I have met has ever disputed this), we should aim to know this doctrine as we would all others.
The crucial question to answer in election is: does God choose His people for salvation in a conditional or unconditional manner? Does God in His eternal foreknowledge predestine sinners whom He knows will choose to believe in Christ from their own free will and moral ability? Or does God elect sinners in eternity past with the foreknowledge that they are His by His own sovereign choice, and then predestine the elect to be saved in time through the means of the gospel and regeneration by the Spirit? Yesterday, we took a biblical look at the doctrine of total depravity and free will. A Reformed understanding of total depravity leads us right to unconditional election! As you recall, since the sinner in his natural condition is both unable and unwilling to come to God on His terms, God certainly does not save anyone because they warrant it through free-will faith or otherwise. The logical conclusion regarding election is if God is to save elect sinners before He created the world, He must save sovereignly and unconditionally by His grace alone.
In today's video lesson, Dr. Sproul looks at a crucial passage in Romans 9. Before they were born, the twins Jacob and Esau characterize the doctrine of God's unconditional election perfectly. God's purpose in granting Jacob His blessing and not the firstborn Esau were not contingent upon anything but God's sovereign choice. Why? Because He is the Potter of His clay is Paul's argument in Romans 9:20-23. In eternity past, God chose certain one's to be saved even though there was nothing inherently better about them than others. As R. C. said well, "We are saved by free-will, but it is God's not ours." This is the doctrine of unconditional or sovereign election! All to the praise of His mercy and grace through Christ! John Piper agrees that he has no merit in anything God has done in his life!
Wednesday, February 16, 2011
What Is Reformed Theology?: Radical Corruption and Moral Inability (Part 2)
"For I will take you from the nations, gather you from all the lands and bring you into your own land. Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean; I will cleanse you from all your filthiness and from all your idols. Moreover, I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; and I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will be careful to observe My ordinances" (the New Covenant in Ezekiel 36:24-27).
"The mind set on the flesh is hostile toward God; for it does not subject itself to the law of God, for it is not even able to do so, and those who are in the flesh cannot please God. However, you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. But if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Him." (Romans 8:7-9). Emphasis mine.
"Our first parents, by this sin, fell from their original righteousness and communion with God, and we in them whereby death came upon all: all becoming dead in sin, and wholly defiled in all the faculties and parts of soul and body." Chapter 6:2 of the 1689 London Baptist Confession.
(Romans 3:23, 5:12; Titus 1:15; Genesis. 6:5; Jeremiah 17:9; Romans 3:10-19)
In our next video, Dr. Sproul continues in the study of the doctrine of total depravity. To state the crucial questions again: What did man become in relation to God after the Fall? Does fallen man have free-will to choose true righteousness and God on his own? If so, in what capacity is his will free or in bondage relative to God's moral law? The Reformed stance on these questions is that the natural man or a man in the flesh is neither willing nor able to come to God on His terms and must be saved by the sovereign work of God. In the 16th century, the Reformers renewed the 4th century debate on this issue between Augustine and Pelagius as Luther refuted Erasmus' view of free-will in his classic work, The Bondage of the Will. The debate continues today with immense implications on how a church conducts her ministry and how the gospel itself is communicated. Is man's sin the result of merely poor choices or from a sinful nature/sinful inclination? Can man remedy his status as a sinner through better education and instruction? Does he merely need a 2nd chance with God? Is spiritual understanding simply a matter of intelligence? Or, does man need to be completely renovated, reborn, made a new creation, given a new heart, regenerated, quickened, made alive, etc., etc., etc., by a sovereign work of God in order to love God and His law?
Another important contribution to this conversation is that of the Scottish puritan Thomas Boston. Boston's classic early 18th century work, Human Nature in Its Fourfold State is immensely helpful. In this Reformed classic, Boston gives us a biblical anthropology that further simplifies a very difficult subject. A summary of Boston's great work, describes man in 4 historical conditions as Augustine did previously:
"The mind set on the flesh is hostile toward God; for it does not subject itself to the law of God, for it is not even able to do so, and those who are in the flesh cannot please God. However, you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. But if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Him." (Romans 8:7-9). Emphasis mine.
"Our first parents, by this sin, fell from their original righteousness and communion with God, and we in them whereby death came upon all: all becoming dead in sin, and wholly defiled in all the faculties and parts of soul and body." Chapter 6:2 of the 1689 London Baptist Confession.
(Romans 3:23, 5:12; Titus 1:15; Genesis. 6:5; Jeremiah 17:9; Romans 3:10-19)
In our next video, Dr. Sproul continues in the study of the doctrine of total depravity. To state the crucial questions again: What did man become in relation to God after the Fall? Does fallen man have free-will to choose true righteousness and God on his own? If so, in what capacity is his will free or in bondage relative to God's moral law? The Reformed stance on these questions is that the natural man or a man in the flesh is neither willing nor able to come to God on His terms and must be saved by the sovereign work of God. In the 16th century, the Reformers renewed the 4th century debate on this issue between Augustine and Pelagius as Luther refuted Erasmus' view of free-will in his classic work, The Bondage of the Will. The debate continues today with immense implications on how a church conducts her ministry and how the gospel itself is communicated. Is man's sin the result of merely poor choices or from a sinful nature/sinful inclination? Can man remedy his status as a sinner through better education and instruction? Does he merely need a 2nd chance with God? Is spiritual understanding simply a matter of intelligence? Or, does man need to be completely renovated, reborn, made a new creation, given a new heart, regenerated, quickened, made alive, etc., etc., etc., by a sovereign work of God in order to love God and His law?
Another important contribution to this conversation is that of the Scottish puritan Thomas Boston. Boston's classic early 18th century work, Human Nature in Its Fourfold State is immensely helpful. In this Reformed classic, Boston gives us a biblical anthropology that further simplifies a very difficult subject. A summary of Boston's great work, describes man in 4 historical conditions as Augustine did previously:
- Man in Primitive Integrity: Man in the garden in a pre-fall state of innocence but also under probation/Covenant of Works. Augustine's stance here was: man able to sin and able not to sin. Man's will was free to love and obey God, but also free to sin pre-fall.
- Man in Entire Depravity: Man banished from the garden in post-fall penalty of death. Human posterity is born in sin and lives perpetually in a sinful state. Even good deeds in this state are not acceptable to God because they are not motivated out of unfeigned love for Him and with His glory as the aim. Augustine stance here was: man able to sin and unable not to sin. Man's will is free to act according to a sinful inclination in bondage to sin in this state.
- Man in Begun Recovery: Man in a state of grace though faith in God's Redeemer of Genesis 3:15. Man is given regeneration, repentance, and faith in Christ, a new nature, and true inclinations to holiness according to God's moral law by the indwelling Spirit, but also has a battle with indwelling sin which remains. Augustine stance here was: man able to not sin and able to sin in this state. Man's will is free to love God with a renewed will and free to sin simultaneously. The Christian life in the present age (Gal. 5:17; Rom. 7)! . . . sound familiar to anyone out there?!
- Man in Consummate Happiness or Misery: Man in either the New Heavens and New Earth or in Hell for eternity. In glorification, man is eternally free from the presence of sin and death. Augustine's stance was: man able to not sin and unable to sin in his final state of glorification. In the final state, man's will is completely free to love God forever or his will is completely unable not to sin forever.
Is Reformed Theology making biblical and historic sense as we consider these grand topics? In Reformed Theology God gets all the glory for His great salvation!
Tuesday, February 15, 2011
What is Reformed Theology?: Radical Corruption and Moral Inability (Part 1)
The remainder of our video study in Reformed Theology gets to the doctrines most familiarly known as Calvinism, the 5 points of Calvinism, or the doctrines of grace. The 5 points of Calvinism are also known through the acrostic TULIP:
Though I still had the impression Calvinism (it was never referred to as "Reformed Theology," or "the doctrines of grace") was suspect, I was already subtly beginning to move a different direction. I found my Reformed friends to be especially gracious, grounded in biblical knowledge, keenly aware of church history, and lovers of theology. One of these friends gave me a Westminster Shorter Catechism, which I found solid and interesting from a historical standpoint. Then, in 1998, an act of God's providence radically changed my perspective. At the church we were attending we would occasionally have a guest pastor fill in and he invited me over for lunch at his house after Sunday service one afternoon. Wow, I thought I had seen a personal library before, but I clearly had not! He took me through his study and showed me with excitement, his John Owen's works, Thomas Goodwin collection, Thomas Manton's works, etc. etc (and yes, his collection of John Calvin's works). After looking at his choice books of theology, we then went out to his garage and he said, "Do you like to study the Bible much?" I excitedly said something like, "Yes, there's nothing I like to do more!" He went on, "Well, I'm feeling especially generous and I want to give you some books." We proceeded to fill to the brim, 4 boxes of mostly Reformed books. When I got home, my wife and I laughed that the books were bursting out of the boxes similarly to the disciples fishing nets that wouldn't hold the catch the Lord gave them! Little did I know, how much these books would influence my understanding.
During the next several years, I dug into these Reformed books almost daily and found them difficult to read at first, but wonderfully satisfying! I read for the first time John Calvin's writings (and many that he influenced) and found out they were pleasantly devotional, biblically sound, historically sensitive, and especially centered on the Person and work of our Lord Jesus in redemption. In fact, if I had to characterize Reformed Theology in one way, it would be that it centers thoroughly on the salvation of God. As Jonah's prayer proclaims, "Salvation is from the Lord" (Jonah 2:9d). Rather than salvation being accomplished through going forward at a church or crusade altar call, the saying of the sinner's prayer (still looking for this in the Bible), or meeting with a counselor after a Christian rock concert, these Reformed works pointed to God as the Author and Completer of our faith! Biblically orthodox, historically sound, devotional, God-glorifying, Christ-honoring, and man-humbling is a concise summary of Reformed Theology.
In our first video consideration of total depravity we must consider the biblical view of man after the Fall. With a Reformed anthropology, the remaining 4 points of the Doctrines of Grace are pretty easy to adopt. Martin Luther called the doctrine of total depravity the most important of all and called his classic, The Bondage of the Will his most important work. As R. C. points to in the video, this is the crucial question: Is salvation and redemption in the hands of man's supposed free will, or in the hands of our sovereign God? The Reformed insist that man in his post-fall nature is neither willing nor able to come to God on His terms and needs the sovereign, monergistic (one-party regeneration), and irreversible work of God in the soul to be converted. I believe you will find the Bible is crystal-clear on this doctrine, though it is ultimately the most difficult for us to receive. But when total depravity is acknowledged, it makes what the Lord does in saving us all the more amazing!
1689 London Baptist Confession Chapter 9: Of Free Will:
http://www.vor.org/truth/1689/1689bc09.html
- Total Depravity
- Unconditional Election
- Limited Atonement
- Irresistible Grace
- Perseverance of the Saints
Though I still had the impression Calvinism (it was never referred to as "Reformed Theology," or "the doctrines of grace") was suspect, I was already subtly beginning to move a different direction. I found my Reformed friends to be especially gracious, grounded in biblical knowledge, keenly aware of church history, and lovers of theology. One of these friends gave me a Westminster Shorter Catechism, which I found solid and interesting from a historical standpoint. Then, in 1998, an act of God's providence radically changed my perspective. At the church we were attending we would occasionally have a guest pastor fill in and he invited me over for lunch at his house after Sunday service one afternoon. Wow, I thought I had seen a personal library before, but I clearly had not! He took me through his study and showed me with excitement, his John Owen's works, Thomas Goodwin collection, Thomas Manton's works, etc. etc (and yes, his collection of John Calvin's works). After looking at his choice books of theology, we then went out to his garage and he said, "Do you like to study the Bible much?" I excitedly said something like, "Yes, there's nothing I like to do more!" He went on, "Well, I'm feeling especially generous and I want to give you some books." We proceeded to fill to the brim, 4 boxes of mostly Reformed books. When I got home, my wife and I laughed that the books were bursting out of the boxes similarly to the disciples fishing nets that wouldn't hold the catch the Lord gave them! Little did I know, how much these books would influence my understanding.
During the next several years, I dug into these Reformed books almost daily and found them difficult to read at first, but wonderfully satisfying! I read for the first time John Calvin's writings (and many that he influenced) and found out they were pleasantly devotional, biblically sound, historically sensitive, and especially centered on the Person and work of our Lord Jesus in redemption. In fact, if I had to characterize Reformed Theology in one way, it would be that it centers thoroughly on the salvation of God. As Jonah's prayer proclaims, "Salvation is from the Lord" (Jonah 2:9d). Rather than salvation being accomplished through going forward at a church or crusade altar call, the saying of the sinner's prayer (still looking for this in the Bible), or meeting with a counselor after a Christian rock concert, these Reformed works pointed to God as the Author and Completer of our faith! Biblically orthodox, historically sound, devotional, God-glorifying, Christ-honoring, and man-humbling is a concise summary of Reformed Theology.
In our first video consideration of total depravity we must consider the biblical view of man after the Fall. With a Reformed anthropology, the remaining 4 points of the Doctrines of Grace are pretty easy to adopt. Martin Luther called the doctrine of total depravity the most important of all and called his classic, The Bondage of the Will his most important work. As R. C. points to in the video, this is the crucial question: Is salvation and redemption in the hands of man's supposed free will, or in the hands of our sovereign God? The Reformed insist that man in his post-fall nature is neither willing nor able to come to God on His terms and needs the sovereign, monergistic (one-party regeneration), and irreversible work of God in the soul to be converted. I believe you will find the Bible is crystal-clear on this doctrine, though it is ultimately the most difficult for us to receive. But when total depravity is acknowledged, it makes what the Lord does in saving us all the more amazing!
1689 London Baptist Confession Chapter 9: Of Free Will:
http://www.vor.org/truth/1689/1689bc09.html
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