"Regeneration Precedes Faith", a Baptist Belief

~ fundyreformed ~ 25 Comments

Some say “ignorance is bliss”, but in discussions of theology, this is definitely not the case. Especially in fundamentalist Baptist circles, to bring up the topic of Calvinism is always to start a fiery discussion. And one of the chief factors in making this topic so heated and controversial (you could call it emotional) is ignorance.

As a former non-Calvinistic (some would say Arminian) fundamental Baptist, at one time I was quite ignorant concerning Calvinism. And one of the points Calvinists believe which was most repugnant to me was their belief that regeneration precedes faith. Such a doctrine seemed to make faith not essential. It made the human response less important. As a fundamentalist, I prized the “sinner’s prayer” and “altar call” methodology, and everything about this strange teaching about regeneration seemed wrong.

If you had told me then, while I was a non-Calvinist, that Baptists historically have believed in this doctrine, if you had told me my Baptist forbears were almost all Calvinists, I would have been astounded. And I am sure many other fundamental Baptists still would share my amazement. I have even seen some people on one particular fundamentalist forum site claim that the belief that regeneration precedes faith is a 20th Century innovation of “neo-Calvinists” like Piper and Mohler. And surely there are many fundamentalists all too eager to believe that such is the case. (Case in point, the widespread fundamental belief that Charles Spurgeon wasn’t really a Calvinist, and that he didn’t really believe in all 5 points of Calvinism—even though he wrote a booklet defending all 5 points!)

With the above background, let me provide a quote from the 1833 New Hampshire Baptist Confession, one of the earliest Baptist Confessions of Faith in America. I recently stumbled upon this quote, and was delighted with what I found. In no uncertain terms, it declares that the Baptists who developed this Confession, believed that regeneration precedes faith. Let me quote from section 7, “Of Grace in Regeneration”.

We believe that, in order to be saved, sinners must be regenerated, or born again (Jn. 3:3, 6-7; 1 Cor. 1:14, Rev. 8:7-9; 21:27); that regeneration consists in giving a holy disposition to the mind (2 Cor. 5:17; Ez. 36:26; Deut. 30:6; Rom. 2:28-29; 5:5; 1 Jn. 4:7); that it is effected in a manner above our comprehension by the power of the Holy Spirit, in connection with divine truth (Jn. 3:8; 1:13; Jam. 1:16-18; 1 Cor. 1:30; Phil. 2:13), so as to secure our voluntary obedience to the gospel (1 Pet. 1:22-25; 1 Jn. 5:1; Eph. 4:20-24; Col. 3:9-11); and that its proper evidence appears in the holy fruits of repentance, and faith, and newness of life (Eph. 5:9; Rom. 8:9; Gal. 5:16-23; Eph. 3:14-21; Matt. 3:8-10; 7:20; 1 Jn. 5:4, 18).

If you are wondering what I am seeing here, let me make it simple. The above says that the “fruits” of regeneration are “repentance, and faith, and newness of life”. In other words, regeneration comes first and the result is repentance, faith, and newness of life. Regeneration precedes faith.

Just to prove that this doctrine was historically held by most Baptists does very little in proving that it is a correct and Biblical doctrine, I know. If you would like an explanation and defense of this doctrine, see my attempt in this post.

“Alone with God” by Jason Janz

~ Bob Hayton ~ 3 Comments

I love blogging, and recently I have started experiencing some of the unique benefits that blogging brings. One of these is the occasional free book. Of course in return, we bloggers are expected to showcase the book with a raving review, hopefully.

One of the first free books I received is Alone with God [Greenville, SC: Journey Forth/BJU Press, 2006] written by Jason Janz the site publisher of Sharper Iron. Don’t worry, the review is going to be good, because this book is both unique and exceptional.

If you are like me, you struggle with a good routine, not to mention consistency, in your devotions. And I’m sure you have experienced times when you read your Bible and pray and yet don’t feel like you really encountered God at all. Jason’s book was written with you and I in mind, so don’t worry there is hope!

Now I’m sure you are also aware that no book will prove to be the panacea for all of our spiritual maladies. No single book, short of the Bible, contains the cure-all for every spiritual problem. And as Jason admits, books written to help readers have meaningful times with God are a dime a dozen these days.

But Alone with God is different. It is not a devotional guide, nor is it a mystical, new age, “fresh” approach. Rather it is designed to be a book that both encourages us to press for a real and sustained relationship with God and gives us a practical approach or plan to make it happen. It is the combination of these two aims which make the book so unique and so valuable.

Now, nothing magical or brilliant is necessarily offered within its pages. Jason believes we should be reading the Bible and praying and that this will be the absolutely indispensable means for us to know and commune with God. But Jason (an assistant pastor for 10 years) also knows a little bit about how people tick. And so his book contains just the right mix of “preaching” and encouragement along with a do-able plan so that the average person will be empowered to consistently have a meaningful time “alone with God” each day.

The book is so helpful, because it was born out of Jason’s need to help himself. He faced his own struggles with consistency and vitality in devotions—faced them and won. Jason’s plan draws from his experience at beginning a disciplined work-out and exercise routine. He has found that planning out each step of what he is going to do was immensely helpful. Then he applied a similar approach to his personal time with God. The result is a simple and organized plan which frees a person to experience a deep and meaningful relationship with God.

The book is basically an explanation of his practical approach to planning out his quiet times with God. At times it seems to simple. In all it is only 148 pages (thirty or so from the appendix section). But who needs something complicated when it comes to revamping your walk with God?

This book challenged me about the seriousness and importance of time with God. But it also encouraged me and provided real hope. Jason doesn’t push for Bible reading or memorization so much as he pushes for encountering and knowing God through the Word. He claims, “We are not simply seeking facts about God; we are seeking to know Him personally.” This focus weaves its way throughout the book and is one of its greatest strengths. Jason also includes a very helpful chapter on meditation, a practice which modern Christians have all but abandoned. Jason also goes out of his way to dispel many myths which surround a daily time with God.

The book, as I said, is not much more than an explanation of the plan, and so you will want to know more about that plan. Again, like the book it is fairly simple, but it draws from insights from George Mueller and others (the book includes a fascinating four page excerpt written by Mueller describing his own habit of meditating and praying from Scripture). Jason has also given a timeline for his plan to be used in either a 20 or 30 minute session. The best thing about the plan is that it’s flexible and includes variety. It should keep you awake and also engaged in the Word and in prayer. What more could we ask? What follows below is my own explanation of Jason’s approach. [I keep using “Jason’s” rather than “Janz’s” because I think its easier. Hope you don’t mind, Jason.]

  • Preparation — This step prepares your mind for time with God. It might be a brief prayer, worshipful song, or even a short reading form a Christian book or devotional.
  • Confession — This step includes a time of searching one’s heart to confess known sin. It may even just be a time to look over a list of sins that the book provides and seriously examine whether they are present in your life. It allows you to get sin out of the way and dealt with before a more intimate time with God ensues.
  • Revelation — This step is an intentional reading of the Bible with the goal of learning about God. It is the longer time of Bible reading that is included in the plan.
  • Adoration — This step is where you praise God intentionally. You may praise Him for the things you just learned about Him in your reading. Also the book provides lists of the names of God for you to ponder. Jason encourages a song of praise or thanksgiving to be sung.
  • Transformation — This step is an interactive reading of a passage of Scripture, primarily from Psalms or Proverbs. It is a time for reading slowly and praying back to God or meditating over and rejoicing in each line or thought that you read. This method will prove to be worth the time it takes to learn. This is when God is speaking to you and you to him in a very personal and transforming way.
  • Communication — This step is for personal and intercessory prayer—praying for needs. It includes a time of casting your cares on God intentionally and may include a time of claiming one of God’s promises.
  • Meditation — This step is where you actually write down what God has taught you and recording a verse or thought from your Bible readings which you will try to meditate on throughout the day.
  • Application — This step includes more journaling. You are to write down what God has told you to do, or what you plan to change because of this time with God. You may also journal other insights during this time.

I would encourage you to get this book and read it. There is a companion journal available to purchase in conjunction with the book. Amazon even offers a deal when you buy both. The book certainly has helped put a fire in my heart again to really and truly know God personally each day. I want to be “alone with God”, and this book can help me actually do so by giving me a simple plan to aim for each day. With God’s help I intend to follow this plan for the remainder of this year (at least).

Before you go, you may be interested in reading Jason’s own review of his book. It includes his reasons for writing it.

Disclaimer: this book was provided by the publisher for review. The reviewer was under no obligation to provide a positive review.

This book is available for purchase at the following sites: Amazon.com or direct from BJU Press.

Strengthening Wimps: The Importance of Pastors and Churches

~ fundyreformed

The following quote grabbed my attention. I’m not sure you will find it in the online manuscript of Pastor John Piper’s message from yesterday. But you can hear it in the audio or video for sure.

I’m in the business of putting fiber in the backbone of wimps.

— John Piper

The context of that statement was yesterday’s sermon on marriage. And a big point from that sermon was that marriage is not just about love, it is about covenant keeping. When love is not there, we are still to keep covenant. It was a great message, and it will be concluded next week. I would encourage you to check Desiring God’s website today as the message will soon be available to read, watch, or hear. But I want to bring out a wider application from that quote.

This quote by Piper is a good summary of a pastor’s job description. Of course the “fiber” and the imparted strength flow not from the pastor’s ability to motivate nor from his “strong leadership”. It is not imparted on the basis of his masculine grit and determination. It comes from his faithful, careful teaching and preaching of the Scriptures. And it comes through the supernatual ministry of the Holy Spirit.

Everyone is, in one sense or another, a wimp. And we need strengthening. So we as people need to submit ourselves to local churches, which are communities of believers pledging to fight “the good fight of faith” together. Fellow believers will be able to lift up the hands that tend to fall down and encourage those who need help, see 1 Thess. 5:11-14 and this related post.

We also need leaders to watch over and care for our souls, see Heb. 13:7, 17. We need pastors to equip us for the ministry, see Eph. 4:11-14. We need to hear the Word of God preached so that we are built up and made strong, see Acts 20:32, Rom. 15:4.

So my simple yet important aim in this post is to remind us that we need fellow believers as well as church pastors and leaders to help us be strong. And it goes without saying that we have a need for strengthening.

So let us not just drift along with the tide. Rather let us be aware of our weakness, and take advantage of the God-ordained means to strengthen ourselves through interaction with the body of Christ—His people. Then, with the help of our fellow-believers, and with the encouragement of the Scriptures, and also by the strengthening of the Spirit, we will be able to obey the following instructions:

Be watchful, stand firm in the faith, act like men, be strong.

— 1 Cor. 16:13

May God strengthen us all and infuse “fiber” into our “backbone”!

My 219 Epiphany, part 2

~ fundyreformed ~ 10 Comments

So I am picking up my story [click here for part 1] at the point when in California we were introduced to a new emphasis in teaching: Scripture assumed that certain behaviors would follow from genuine salvation. As I said before, the issue of false professions was not really explained or dealt with very much in the churches I grew up in, or even at Bible college for that matter.

1 John 2:19 was the verse the pastor pointed us to, which made everything fall into place for me. It became a key verse for me in more ways than one. The verse says, “They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have continued with us. But they went out, that it might become plain that they all are not of us.”

This verse specifically deals with some false teachers (called “antichrists” by John) who eventually stopped fellowshipping with the believers John is addressing. These teachers seemed to be “of us” but they apostasized and John interprets that to indicate that they never truly had been “of us”. They never had genuine salvation. The verse becomes the “key” to interpreting all of the difficult stories one comes across with regard to salvation. So-and-so was at one time a fervent believer and really serving God, but now he denies Christ or he never darkens the door of church. John would have us assume that such a person was never truly saved. They did not lose salvation, they never really ever had salvation. This became a revelation to me. Real believers will persevere in their faith. Real believers will be the ones who are growing in their faith.

Before I go on to explain the ramifications of this, let me go to a few supporting Scriptures which concur with this interpretation of 1 John 2:19. One is from Jesus’ stern warning in Matt. 7:21-23. To those who claimed to do miracles in Jesus’ name and who called him “Lord, Lord”, Jesus says “I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.” It is not that Jesus at one time knew them, and then later disowned them because of their sin. No, he had never known them. Further attestation to this truth would be the promises to “overcomers” in Rev. 2 and 3. The promises are synonymous with being saved (for instance “will not be hurt by the second death” is one of the promises). And the promises are given to those who overcome, not to quitters. Along these lines the parable of the sower as interpreted in Luke 8:11-15 discusses people [rocky soil] who receive the word [seed] with joy yet only “believe[s] for a while” and later apostasize [shrivel up] due to tribulation [heat of the sun on a plant with no deep roots]. These were never truly saved. (Cf. Jn. 15:1-8).

This understanding of the nature of salvation led me to expect more from people who claimed to be saved. And for a time I became quite the fruit-inspector! I was quite judgmental and often suspected the worst of many people. This was due to some of my hyper-fundamentalist assumptions and confusions. It also led me to expect a lot from myself. (And indeed we need to “examine [our]selves, to see whether [we] are in the faith.” cf. 2 Cor. 13:5.) I came to see that many people’s salvation may well not be genuine and that God expects truly saved people to be traversing the high road.

Such an understanding led me in a time of crisis to get saved again. I had been dealing and struggling with a particular sin problem for a long time, and this struggle just didn’t jive with what I thought Scripture expected of believers. I had grasped the key, but was having trouble truly understanding and applying it. But thankfully the epiphany would only get clearer with time.

Eventually, as I started seriously evaluating Calvinism, I began to see how it fit with my understanding of 1 John 2:19. And as I began to grapple with many other verses such as Heb. 3:6; 3:12-14; 12:14; Col. 1:23; 1 Tim. 1:19; 6:12; 1 Cor. 9:27; Rom. 2:6-10; and Jude 21 among others, I began to understand the Calvinist doctrine of the “perseverance of the saints”. This doctrine teaches that true believers will persevere in their faith to the end because God is at work in them “both to will and to work for his good pleasure” (Phil. 2:13). God will produce good works in his children by His power (Eph. 2:10, Tit. 2:14, Phil. 1:6, 1 Cor. 15:10).

Such a doctrine is one means God uses to prod us on to faithfulness and good works. It should warn us to not presume that we will make it. Rather we must fight sin, and cling to our Savior, resting in His work as our sure hope of eternal life. This teaching causes us to continue to believe and rest in Jesus, rather than presume upon a past time when we “believed” in Jesus. It produces “believing ones” not just “believers” (people who one time in their had believed). Such a doctrine does not teach that believers will be perfect and not struggle over sin, but rather that they will fight sin and not have a care-free attitude towards sin.

Such a doctrine is consistent with the idea of eternal security that I had so emphasized as a teenager. Yet it says more. It is not just that people who are “once saved” will be “always saved”. Rather it claims that people who were “once saved” will presently be believing and growing. Unlike the doctrine of eternal security [which gets stretched by many to allow current Christ deniers and perpetual sinners a place in heaven], it calls us to not assume that due to a one time profession of faith we are absolutely “saved”. 1 Cor. 1:18 captures the true meaning of the Greek when it says “to us who are being saved”. Salvation is in a real sense a work in progress. Positionally we are justified and as good as saved. But God is at work redeeming our bodies. Truly saved people are serious about fighting the fight of faith and forsaking sin. They don’t presume upon God but rest in God’s grace.

This doctrine should not, however, be misconstrued as a works based salvation teaching. We are to be trusting in Jesus alone and only His work accomplishes any bit of good works in us. And those good works are not at all the basis upon which we are justified.

Perseverance also shouldn’t frighten us. Rather it should encourage us. If we examine ourselves and see evidences of God’s work in our lives, if we see genuine faith and love for Christ, we have every reason to expect that God is at work in us and will be faithful to enable us to persevere in our faith. 1 John teaches that genuine believers will not have a nonchalant view of sin. They will be ones who strive for fellowship with God. If we are striving, that is most likely evidence that our faith is real

This teaching should also not call us to assume the worst of everyone either. Sometimes fruit is not visible to us “fruit-inspectors”. Humans with beams in their eyes are not the best judges, and in fact they won’t be the Judge (cf. Rom. 14:4, 10). Instead we can be encouraged by evidences of grace in people’s lives. We can hope the best for people. We should lovingly confront those who persist in sin, but we should let God pass the ultimate judgments.

I am not going to be able to answer all the questions in this one post. Remember even after my epiphany, it still took me a long time to really grasp this doctrine. My post “Once Saved, Always Saved?!?!” is another attempt to deal with this doctrine, and if you have questions check that post out for further help.

My 219 Epiphany

~ fundyreformed ~ 13 Comments

Have you ever had an epiphany? A moment when the lights come on…almost literally? I’ve had only a few, and one such moment surrounded an important verse in 1 John: chapter 2, verse 19.

Before I explore my epiphany, let me provide some background. As most of you know, I grew up attending strict fundamentalist churches. And while they sure inculcated us with an understanding of what good fundamentalists did or did not do, they were not always so clear on doctrine. “Theology” was almost a bad word. “Seminary” was always castigated by being referred to as a “cemetery”. But this is not to say that no important doctrines were stressed.

We learned the basic truths of the Gospel, and the bigger doctrines of the Bible: the nature of God, the Trinity, the Deity and Incarnation of Jesus Christ, the Eternal State, along with a heavy dose of pre-trib eschatology and dispensationalism. Yet oft times the messages were fairly shallow.

In such an environment I remember learning two important doctrinal truths. We as Christians are eternally secure and you can’t work your way to salvation. In my soulwinner’s New Testament I compiled lists of verses proving eternal security and also disproving works salvation, and I did my best to use them. I knew my Assemblies of God relatives were very wrong on these issues, for instance.

In some of the circles we were in growing up, there was an overemphasis on salvation being simply a moment in time when one prayed to be saved. As a teenager, when my family travelled around to raise support to go to Africa as missionaries, I remember encountering several different churches where they would push for multiple “salvations” each time people went out soul-winning. Thankfully, such was not the practice of our church. And I am sure my dad never aimed to produce numbers, for numbers’ sake alone.

In my older teen years, I became fairly familiar with David Cloud’s Way of Life Bible Encyclopedia, and I began educating myself more in the way of doctrine. I learned why Jehovah’s Witnesses and Seventh Day Adventists were wrong, for instance. And I was further bolstered in the doctrine of eternal security and against the doctrine of works based salvation. And at Bible college, thankfully, I was further taught that a “quick prayerism” model of salvation was wrong. We were taught the importance of repentance, and also warned that many fundamentalists were minimizing its importance.

Yet still in this environment, I did not really have an answer to the scenario of someone who made a seemingly genuine profession of faith, and had stuck around for a while, but then drifted away. Some wouldn’t drift but they’d wilt. Yes preachers would often push for people to examine whether they had truly been saved or not, but somehow this always came across as making sure you had “said the right words” or were “sincere enough” when you initially “got saved”. Since my profession of faith happened when I was 4 years old, I was often trying to remember what exactly occurred on that day, to be sure it was a genuine profession.

This issue, of false professions of faith, was not really discussed much, that I remember. As I learned more about repentance, I found myself spending lots of time in my gospel presentations making sure everything was clear and that the person knew about everything I could think of before I led them in the sinner’s prayer. I came to eventually stop using the sinner’s prayer and just ask the person to pray on their own, too.

Something else, however, went with the environment I was in to stilt my thinking. It was assumed that there would be many “nominal” Christians. We were always encouraged to press on and become a “super” Christian, of sorts. No one really connected spiritual growth with genuine salvation. It was more or less connected with will power and character. We were encouraged to “just do it”. To do whatever it takes to get up early and be in the Word. And at times it was easy to get burned out as I strived to make myself do the things I felt I should.

Then we moved to California and were introduced to a ministry which prized expositional preaching. This was a completely new thing to both of us. And as we were fed, something kept coming up in the messages. Scripture assumed that true Christians would behave like true Christians. Scripture assumed that if conversion was genuine, then growth was inevitable. And then one day, the pastor pointed us to 1 John 2:19.

The light came on. I had an epiphany, and I began then to understand some things which eventually moved me to affirm Calvinism’s doctrine of the “perseverance of the saints”.

_____________________

Sorry to do this to you, but you’ll have to stay tuned until next time for the rest of the story. Tomorrow, hopefully, we will look at what 1 John 2:19 says and how it reshaped my thinking. I am expecting to finish this tomorrow, but it may take one more installment. We’ll see. Go to Part 2.