Slight Change, Big Difference (Pt. III)

A Slight Change Creates a Great Difference (Part 3)
Changing "Savlation by Grace, through Faith"
to "Salvation by Faith, through Grace."

I know this might not be an enjoyable subject for many, and you might be tired that I keep writing about it; but, in truth, that's the reason I keep writing about it - I'm literally begging whatever audience I have to consider the subject of God's sovereign role in salvation. There's a lot at stake here; it isn't a minor theological argument that has no impact on your life. From personal experience and the testimony of many others throughout history and today, I know that this one point changes everything! It changes your worship, worldview, evangelistic practices, perspective on prayer, praise toward God, and very simply your joy. Those aren't just random things I chose to say, I really mean that it effects each one of those - and I could write an 'article' on each one of those. So bear with me as I lay the final nail to this coffin.

When Paul talkes about our salvation, he writes,

For it is by grace you have beend saved, through faith,
and this is not from yourself, it is the gift of God,
not of works, lest anyone should boast.
(Eph. 2:8)

I wanted to focus in on the "by grace, through faith". It's very important to break this up and think about it. There are several points to draw from this:

1. We are saved by grace.
2. We are not saved through grace.
3. We are not saved by faith, but through faith.

Let's cover these three really quick.

Number One: We are saved by grace. This verse is telling us what it is that actually saves us. To our suprise, it isn't our response of faith that is saving us here, but the grace of God. Paul defines that a little when right before this verse he writes,

You were dead in your trespasses and sins in which you once walked,
following the course of this world, following the prince of the power
of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience--
among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh,
carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature
children of wrath, like the rest of mankind.

But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which He loved us,
even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ--
by grace you have been saved.
(Eph. 2:1-5)

So the "by grace you have been saved" is referring to the fact that God mercifully made us alive with Christ "even while we were dead in our trespasses." Paul repeats this just a few verses down in 2:8 as quoted from the beginning. We're born again into Christ by God's doing while we are by nature "children of wrath", or in other words, we were saved by grace.

Number Two: We are not saved through grace. This is important to make note of. This verse does NOT say we are saved through grace, but by it. As it is often taught today, God gives all men a "common grace", and then waits patiently for them to respond in faith. So they make the grace of God a passive thing, and turn our response of faith into the active. In other words they are saying salvation is by faith through grace. But that isn't what the verse says.


Number Three: We are not saved by faith, but through faith. Our faith is not the object that saves us, but it's the instrament, the door, in which God chooses to save us. He chooses to save us through giving us the gift of faith. As greek scholars will point out, there is absolutly no grammical reason to insist that the "gift of God" is merely grace. The greek allows that the whole thing (the grace and the faith) could be the gift of God and not of works. But let's go to some other texts. Hebrews calls Jesus the "founder and perfector of our faith". It's hard to argue that this verse isn't saying that Christ is the one who works in us faith. The greek word for 'founder' literally means "chief leader". Think about that! Christ being the chief leader of our faith simply makes us lowly followers of our faith; in other words, we don't lead ourselves to faith. He says something related in His Gospel,

All things have been handed over to me by my Father, and no one knows the Son
except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and
anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.
(Mt. 11:27; Lk 10:22)

But there's another solid verse that teaches us that faith is a gift from God,

...think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith
that God has assigned.
(Rom. 12:3)

Looking up the greek word here translated 'assigned' brought up 'apportion' or 'bestow'. God apportioned His chosen with faith.

Scripture also plainly says in another place,

So then it (salvation) depends not on human will or exertion, but on God, who has mercy.
(Rom. 9:16)

The context of this verse won't allow much room to believe that this is simply talking about the "common grace" most pastors talk of. Previous to it, the Spirit teaches us that God chose to hate Esau even before he was born and had done any good or evil. This "common grace" wasn't alloted to Esau it seems. Also, the verse just after explains that Pharaoh was raised up by God for the sole purpose of hardening and destroying him. It ends with the phrase, "So then He has mercy on whomever He wills, and He hardens whomever He wills" (9:18). Verse 18 allows no room for the theory of common grace. We are saved through faith, not by it. No one would ever dare say that one can be saved apart from faith, for that is the channel God has chosen to justify a man.



I hope this wasn't too confusing. Please carefully consider these things. I encourage you to be like the Jews of Berea who "received the word with all eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so" (Acts 17:11). Yes, many questions will and should be brought up, but that doesn't change the truth of the matter. And the truth of this is truly a freeing reality, that allows a person who is in Christ to 1) rest that his salvation never depended on himself in the first place, and that God will complete the work He began (Phil. 1:6), and 2) that when witnessing, our sole responsibility is to preach the word in simple language, and not to be cunning and crafty in convensing people to belive because that's for God to decide (1 Cor. 3:6).

Slight Change, Big Difference (Pt. II)

A Slight Change Creates a Great Difference (Part 2)
Replacing "Repentance and Faith" with "Decision"

To continue off of what I talked about last post, I wanted to give some real modern day examples of the danger of the Modern Free Will doctrine.

You can check out this article I'll be quoting from HERE
It is a very neat article; do read it if you have time!

The article shows the contrast of the old-time ministers of the Gospel vs. the current ones. The old preachers took years and years of carefully teaching and preaching the Bible to people (which is in obedience to God's command [1 Tim. 4:16; 2 Tim. 4:2] ). After, with sweat and tears, this long process - they would receive only a few converts. One missionary waited seven years before he saw a single convert.

However, today, the article brings up, people everywhere are claiming thousands of converts in single days, yes some claim even a million (yes, even in a single day). These conversions don't happen because the Gospel was clearly and efficiently taught and preached to the people; but because the music was playing, because the emotion was stirring, because of the pressure, because a half-gospel that has no cost was offered, no repentance from sin, no following of Jesus, no Lord Christ. In these claims, they say that a movie, or a band concert, or some two-day retreat is responsible for leading the people to Christ at that event. It makes sense to me though, that when a person believes, he simply believes. I don't understand the philosophy today that music and 'opportunities' and altars are necessary for convertion - though I know nobody directly says that. But the wrong impression left at these types of events is that everyone can just approach Christ anyway and in any manner they want. I wonder if the Bible really teaches that... "Christ, I don't hate you, but that's only because I don't know you; and yeah, it's true, that if I did know you I would hate you, because you do not allow me to live the way I want to live. Nevertheless, the pastor never told me that, and I'm gonna play innocent as if you haven't given me a conscience teaching me to repent of my sins. This justification thing sounds pretty cool, so why don't you just hook me up, and I'll continue living the way I want because, in truth, my heart despises everything you stand for."

Brothers and sisters, there are the verbal prayers of the mouth, and there are the verbal prayers of the heart. Preaching, by God's design, is meant to change the heart. If the prayer of a man's heart is such, then the verbal prayer will be rejected by God, because as Scripture says it is an 'abomination' to Him (Proverbs 28:9). When we say God is Holy, this is exactly what we mean - he is seperated for wickeness and sin!



Here's a part of the article:

Going back in church history, we see a more discerning attitude, that resisted making immediate conversion claims. George Whitefield, who was a leader in the 18th century Great Awakening, made it a practice to delay judgment until months or years down the road. Whitefield's reasoning for this was, you simply can't know right away. He said:

"There are so many stony ground hearers, who receive the Word with joy, that I have determined to suspend my judgment till I know the tree by its fruits. I cannot believe they are converts till I see fruit brought back; it will never do a sincere soul any harm".

A century later, Charles Spurgeon was also very outspoken against potentially boastful and self-validating conversion claims, saying:

"Do not, therefore, consider that soul-winning is or can be secured by the multiplication of baptisms, and the swelling of the size of your church. What mean these dispatches from the battle-field? "Last night, 14 souls were under conviction, 15 were justified, and 8 received full sanctification". I am weary of this public bragging, this counting of unhatched chickens, this exhibition of doubtful spoils. Lay aside such numberings of the people, such idle pretence of certifying in half a minute that which will need the testing of a lifetime".

He had the same common-sense that Whitefield had a century earlier.
It's a common-sense that seems to be very much lacking today:

"It very often happens that the converts that are
born in excitement die when the excitement is over".

Amen.

Here's what I'm asking all Christians reading this to consider: Changing your mind about quick-fix gospel ideas, and setting your hearts on teaching and preaching the long-term, hard to believe, Gospel message. Also changing your perspective about these incredible claims of salvations, when the Gospel usually has never been sufficiently preached and with the evidence that most of these nominal converts fall away. Please do not deceive yourself nor anyone else on this matter of salvation!

Slight Change, Big Difference (Pt. I)

A Slight Change Creates a Great Difference (Part 1)
Two concepts of Free Will

It seemed like a good and profitable thing to write up a little article on the different views of man's freedom of will, and to argue which one is scriptural. It is absolutely necessary for everyone to set aside pride since this issue hits so close to home, and trust only in the Word of God and sound logic.

Why is it important? I will quickly scratch the surface in answering that question. It's important because depending on which view you take on the freedom of man's will, you will either glorify God as He ought, or deglorify Him as He should never.

1. Free Will (Historically) - throughout church history, the Church basically universally agreed that man's will was free in that no external power forces anyone to make a decision. For example, God does not entice men to sin, nor does He force men to sin (James 1:13); and He doesn't directly force a man to choose good either. Thus man does have a responsibility to refuse evil and choose good. However, man's will is subject to his nature at all times.

2. Free Will (Modern Times) - today it is almost universally taught that man's will isn't forced by an external power other than himself, and also that he is free from his nature in decision making.

Sounds like harmless differences? Once again I stress that the value of getting this straight is great, for many pastors past and present have warned people with loud cries of the great dangers of lifting man higher than he really is, and belittling God.

I would tell you that I believe in free will, but I certainly don't mean it, in it's most important respects, the way most pastors today teach it. Please bear with me as I explain.

What's wrong with the modern-day teaching of free will?

Today, free will means that man has the power in and of himself to freely choose God, apart from God's Spirit giving them the New Birth first. In fact, it is taught that once a man chooses to believe, then God gives him the New Birth of His Spirit. But there are many problems with this idea.

1. The Bible simply teaches that it is impossible for man to come to God on his own. Over and over, such statements arise so that there is no mistaking this truth. Why is it impossible? Because man's nature will not allow it. He is a slave to sin.

The mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God,

for it does not submit to God's law nor can it do so.

(Romans 8:7)

The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit

of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to

understand them because they are spiritually discerned.

(1 Corinthians 2:14)

The heart is deceitful above all things,

and desperately sick; who can understand it?

(Jeremiah 17:9)

You refuse to come to Me that you may have life.

(John 5:40)

None is righteous, no, not one;

no one understands; no one seeks for God.

All have turned aside; together they have become

worthless;

No one does good, not even one.

Their throat is an open grave; they use their tongues to deceive.

The venom of asps is under their lips.

Their mouth is full of curses and bitterness.

Their feet are swift to shed blood;

in their paths are ruin and misery,

and the way of peace they have not known.

There is no fear of God before their eyes.

(Romans 3:10-18)

You were dead in trespasses and sins in which you once

walked, following the course of this world, following the

prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at

work in the sons of disobedience--among whom

we all once lived in the passions of our flesh,

carrying out the desires of the body and the mind,

and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest

of mankind.

(Ephesians 2:1-3)

...When the disciples heard this, they were greatly astonished,

saying, "Who then can be saved?"

But Jesus looked at them and said, "With man this is

impossible..."

(Matthew 19:25-26)

2. The Bible teaches that God must act first, before any man would come to him. Our nature keeps us from choosing God, so God must effectually act first.

All that the Father gives me will come to me

...

No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me

draws him.

(John 6:37, 44)

You did not choose me, but I chose you...

(John 15:16)

But thanks be to God that you, who were once slaves to sin,

have become obedient from the heart to the standard

of teaching to which you were committed, and, having

been set free from sin, have become slaves of

righteousness.

(Romans 6:17-18)

...we all once lived in the passions of our flesh,

carrying out the desires of the body and the mind,

and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest

of mankind.

But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love

with which he loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses,

made us alive together with Christ--by grace you have been saved...

(Ephesians 2:3-5)

(also read Titus 3:3-7)

In this is love, not that we have loved God, but that He loves us,

and gave His Son for a propitiation for our sins.

(1 John 4:10)

...When the disciples heard this, they were greatly astonished,

saying, "Who then can be saved?"

But Jesus looked at them and said, "With man this is

impossible, but with God all things are possible."

(Matthew 19:25-26)

God works in us, so what happens now?

I don't want to belittle this point, but I feel like my post has grown about long enough. All I simply want to say is that when God works the New Birth in the heart of a man and he becomes alive with a new nature, he can't help but choose Christ with all his being. God, in His wisdom, makes His work effectual, it accomplishes exactly what He desires. I'll only leave you with John 10:27-29. Neither the Son nor the Father lose a single sheep. Contrast too what Jesus says in verse 27 with verse 26, "You do not believe because you are not a part of my flock." Notice Christ did not say, "You are not my flock because you do not believe." The difference between these two sentences is exactly the same difference between historical free will and modern-day free will.

Quick Conclusion: To acknowledge the doctrines of the Bible that man is unable to come to God, and that He must do it all if it be done, praises God as He should be praised. To believe that it is your will that determines whether you are saved takes focus off of the grace of God and puts it on yourself, which isn't taught nor is the perspective of the Bible.