Biblical Reformation in the Churches

May 9, 1973 by William Payne

The second book of Chronicles brings to our attention three notable periods of reformation in the life of God's ancient people. The first occurred during the reign of Jehoshaphat, and is recorded in chapters 17, 19 and 20. The second, and perhaps the most remarkable, occurred during the reign of Hezekiah and is describe in chapters 29-31; and the third during the reign of Josiah, as given to us in chapters 34 and 35. When these chapters are compared, it becomes evident that all three "movements" had certain things in common. I am not going to attempt any kind of exposition of these chapters referred to, but will list those features observable in the three reformation movements, and these will form a kind of backdrop for my treatment of the theme of this paper. I believe, in fact, that we shall see the relevance of these ancient records to our situation and the churches today. What then did these three ancient reformation movements have in common?

1. GODLY LEADERSHIP

Of Jehoshaphat we read: "(He) sought to the God of his fathers and walked in His commandments and not according to the acts of Israel...his heart took delight in the ways of the Lord" (2 Chron. 17:4,6). Of Hezekiah we read: "He did what was right in the sight of the Lord, according to all his father David had done" (29:2), and "he did what was good and right and true before the Lord his God" (31:20). Similarly of Josiah it is recorded: "He did what was right in the sight of the Lord and walked in the ways of his father David; he did not turn aside to the right hand or to the left. For in the eighth year of his reign while he was still young he began to seek the God of his father David" (34:2,3a). Each of these men was personally godly, and gave vigorous leadership in the work of reformation.

2. RESPECT FOR THE WORD OF GOD

In 2 Chron. 34 we read of Hilkiah the priest finding the book of the law of the Lord in the temple, and the words of the law being read before King Josiah. The record reads:

"Now it happened when the king heard the words of the law, that he tore his clothes. Then the king commanded Hilkiah, Ahikam the son of Shaphan, Abdon the son of Micah, Shaphan the scribe, and Asaiah a servant of the king, saying: "Go inquire of the Lord for me, and for those who are left in Israel and Judah, concerning the words of the book that is found; for great is the wrath of the Lord that is poured out on us, because our fathers have not kept the word of the Lord, to do according to all that is written in this book." (19-21)

Hezekiah "gave encouragement to all the Levites who taught the good knowledge of the Lord..." (30:22a) and commanded the people to support the priests and the Levites "that they might devote themselves to the law of the Lord" (31:4). In the time of Jehoshaphat we read, "In the third year of his reign he sent his leaders... So they taught in Judah and had the book of the Lord with them; they went throughout all the cities of Judah and taught the people" (17:7-9). The Word of God was vital in these reformations.

3. REJECTION OF THAT WHICH WAS CONTRARY TO THE WORD AND WILL OF GOD

Of Jehoshaphat we read: "He removed the high places and wooden images from Judah" (17:66). In Hezekiah's day, the historian tells us: "They arose and took away the altars that were in Jerusalem and they took away all the incense altars and cast them in the brook Kidron" (30:14). And again: "Now when all this was finished, all Israel who were present went out to the cities of Judah and broke the sacred pillars in pieces, cut down the wooden images and threw down the high places and the altars - from all Judah, Benjamin, Ephraim and Manasseh - until they had utterly destroyed them all" (31:1). The same purging went on under Josiah:

"For in the eighth year of his reign, while he was still young, he began to seek the God of his father David; and in the twelfth year he began to purge Judah and Jerusalem of the high places, the wooden images, and the molded images. They broke down the altars of the Baals in His presence, and the incense altars which were above them he cut down; and the wooden images, the carved imaged and the molded images he broke in pieces, and made dust of them and scattered it on the graves of those who had sacrificed to them. He also burned the homes of the priests on their altars, and cleansed Judah and Jerusalem." (34:3-5)

4. RESTORATION OF TRUE WORSHIP

Those who led the reformations were not satisfied with merely rejecting the false; they desired to restore the true, and this was especially important with reference to worship. In 2 Chron. 29:3 we are told: "In the first year of his (Hezekiah's) reign, in the first month, he opened the doors of the house of the Lord and repaired them". Then, for the next three chapters, we have a detailed description of the restoration of Biblical (OT, of course) worship. The temple was restored, the Levites and priests are reorganized, the singers are put in place and provided with the words of David and Asaph, various required offerings are made, and the feast of the Passover is observed. Little wonder that we read:

The whole congregation of Judah rejoiced, also the priests and Levites, all the congregation that came from Israel, the sojourners that came from the land of Israel, and those who dwelt in Judah. So there was great joy in the land of Jerusalem, for since the time of Solomon, the son of David, king of Israel, there had been nothing like this in Jerusalem. (30:25,26)

The same kind of thing happened in Josiah's day as recorded in 34:29-35:19; and though no detailed account is given in the record of Jehoshaphat's reign, it is not hard to deduce that the same zeal prevailed.

5. ENJOYMENT OF GOD'S BLESSING

In all these periods, as God's people sought to honour Him, so He honoured them, and the blessing of God was evidently upon them.

6. GREAT VICTORY

This was not true of Josiah, but it is interesting that both Jehoshaphat and Hezekiah experienced a remarkable intervention of God in battle. In Jehoshaphat's case, God gave victory against an overwhelming number of Ammonites and Moabites (ch. 20), and in the case of Hezekiah, a miraculous victory was obtained over the forces of Assyria (ch. 32). It has often been said that these reformations were shallow and did not last; subsequent generations lapsed into apostasy. But what does that prove except that reformation is an ongoing need. We know that the blessing of one generation cannot be guaranteed to the next. There is always a need for Biblical reformation in the kingdom of God. This leads me then to suggest that such reformation is need in the churches of our day and I would like to bring to our attention several areas.

THEOLOGY

We must begin with theology. I contend that in our present day churches, there is such a lack of sound doctrine, and such a predominance of superficiality, as to be dangerous to the spiritual health and well-being of the churches. The prevalent view of God and His salvation is one that few of our forefathers would be happy to endorse, and one that only barely reflects the Word of God. The modern evangelical church has largely lost the sense of the glory and the majesty of God. The awesomeness of God which produced the amazement of Moses and Isaiah, the doxologies of Paul and the prostration of John is unknown to many professing Christians today. Admittedly this is only one aspect of God, and those elements of his Being which cause the heart to sing, and the spirit to be glad, need to be declared also; but the point is this, that if the awesomeness of God is forgotten, then the ballast in our theological ship is lost, and the result inevitably is not true joy but frivolity, not gladness but silliness. God isn't praised but patronized; the Lord of Glory becomes the "Big Guy upstairs", and worship is replaced by sentimentality and "feel-good emotionalism".

When God is thus reduced to a trendy "buddy", it is not surprising that man is made his equal, and sometimes more than His equal, so that "Calvinism" with its God exalting/man humbling doctrine is strongly repudiated, and "Arminianism" takes the throne. When it comes to salvation, not God but man must be sovereign, and in so many churches the worst of all heresies today is to deny "the free will of man". What the Puritans used to call the "great idol of free will", once tossed out of the temple of the church, at least in good measure, has in this century been reinstated very firmly. The sovereignty of God in election and in the application of redemption is a strange doctrine in most churches. The God of modern evangelism is the God who must wait for man to "give Him a chance"; He stands by helplessly waiting for man to give His permission to work! He has done all that He can, now it is up to the sinner. He will be glad to save "if only you will let Him". As one respected evangelist crassly put it: "God votes for you, the Devil votes against you; you must cast the deciding vote". Whatever happened to the grand Pauline doctrine of effectual calling, one might ask?

Surely there is a need for doctrinal reformation! Men need to understand what repentance and faith are; the character of God must be set forth again; sin must be explained in a Biblical manner; the doctrines of grace must be declared, and the true nature of conversion must be taught. Preaching

This brings me to the need for reformation in preaching. In our day preaching seems to have fallen on hard times. The quality of preaching is often poor, and preaching has lost the esteem it once enjoyed. Musical programs, dramas, dialogues, movies and a host of other things, are often viewed much more positively than preaching. And yet it may surely be claimed that the Christian church was born of preaching. The Master Himself early identified preaching as one of the main concerns of His coming - "let us go into the next towns, that I may preach there also, because for this purpose I have come forth" (Mark 1:38). His choice of text in the synagogue in Nazareth reveals how close to His heart and how central to His mission was the proclamation of the Word.

"The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, because He has anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed; to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord." (Luke 4:18,19)

After His resurrection, His word was that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in His name to all nations (Luke 24:47); and we know that in the apostolic church the preaching of the Word, not merely for the evangelizing of the outsiders, but also for the edification of the believers, was at the very heart of the church's life. Eric Alexander has pointed out that all the officers referred to by Paul in Ephesians 4:11 - Christ's gifts to the churches for the equipping of the saints and the edifying of the body - were teaching/preaching officers, and in the light of that, this eminent servant of Christ warned against the neglect and despising of the teaching/preaching ministry. I believe it is safe to say that the entire history of the church testifies to the crucial place of preaching in the life of the church, and that when the Spirit of God has been gloriously present in the church, the preaching of the Word was central and powerful. We need hardly wonder at this, seeing that on the day of Pentecost, the immediate result of the outpouring of the Spirit was the preaching of the Word.

I would suggest that in our day we need Biblical reformation in returning the preaching of the Word to a place of esteem and centrality. And we need reformation which will result in a preaching of all the counsel of God. When I say all the counsel of God, I mean all the counsel of God, and therefore we are to preach more than the five points of Calvinism. As Spurgeon said in his inimitable way, "David's harp had more than five strings". Yet those who recognize the truth of those five points should also recognize them as vital truth, fundamental truth. How could they be otherwise when they deal with the very work of God in salvation? And these truths do need to be preached. It seems to me that in Canada we are still in the situation which existed twenty years ago, where men who claim that they believe these truths are still unwilling to preach them. To speak of these doctrines as "family secrets", as has been the case, to be whispered among a select few, but not made know to all, is pathetic. To speak of them as true but unimportant and therefore expendable, is arrogant, to say nothing of ignorant. To speak of them as dangerous and divisive and therefore to be shelved, surely borders on the blasphemous. What God has made known we are to declare; it is not ours to pick and choose between God's truth, as to what shall be preached and what concealed. In a powerful sermon entitled "Spiritual revival the want of the Church", Spurgeon gave his opinion as to how the doctrines of grace were lost to the church. Our present generation of preachers needs to hear this word again:

"It began this way. First of all the truths were fully believed, but the angles were a little taken off. The minister believed election but he did not use the word, for fear it should in some degree disturb the equanimity of the deacon in the green pew in the corner. He believed that all men were depraved, but he did not say it positively, because if he did, there was a lady who had subscribed so much to the chapel - she would not come again; so that while he did believe it, and did say it in some sense, he rounded it a little. Afterward it came to this; ministers said: "we believe these doctrines but we do not think it profitable to preach to the people. They are quite true; free grace is true; the great doctrines of grace that were preached by Christ, by Paul, by Augustine, by Calvin and down to this age by their successors are true; but they had better be kept back, they must be very cautiously dealt with; they are very high and dreadful doctrines, and they must not be preached; we believe them but we dare not speak them out". After that it came to something worse. They said within themselves "well, if these doctrines will not do for us to preach, perhaps they are not true at all", and going one step further, they said they dare not preach them. They did not actually say it perhaps, but they began just to hint that they were not true; then they went one step further, giving us something they said was the truth. And then they would cast us out of the synagogue as if they were the rightful owners of it and we were the intruders. So they have passed on from bad to worse; and if you read the standard divinity of this age, and the standard divinity of Whitefield's day, you will find that they two cannot by any possibility stand together. We have got a "new theology". New theology? Why it is anything but a theology; it is an theology which has cast out God utterly and entirely, and enthroned man, as it is the doctrine of man and not the doctrine of the everlasting God. We want a revival of sound doctrine once more in the midst of the land."

Now in saying this I want to recognize that these truths have sometimes been badly handled. Sometimes the spirit of the preacher has been wrong; he has been out to win an argument rather than bless the people. Some have show a grievous lack of wisdom, pushing great hunks of steak (so to speak) down the throats of those who were still getting used to milk! No wonder that they choked! Some have foolishly demanded that their people grasp and accept doctrines in one month which they themselves took years to receive. All that it true. There must be wisdom, patience and grace. But brethren, let it also be said that it is very easy to hide piously behind these things and never preach all the counsel of God, when the real reason is not so much prudence but cowardice, and ultimately it might have to be said, a lack of faithfulness to the Word of God. It is a pitiful thing when a man spends half a life-time in the ministry, and is still waiting for the right time to introduce the doctrines of grace. The tragedy is that in most of these situations the "right time" never does come. God give us courageous and faithful men who will declare all the counsel of God.

Speaking of the need of courage and reformation in preaching, we should also point out that our preaching needs to address the issues of the day, even if they are controversial. As the great John Owen said, "truth can be lost by weakness as well as wickedness". Do our people know what the Scriptures say about male/female roles, and especially as this relates to eldership and the preaching ministry of the church? Do our people know the Biblical position with respect of homosexual relationships? And what of the whole charismatic world with its claims to tongues, prophecies, revelations and even apostles? Are we addressing these and other pressing current issues in our preaching?

Reformation in preaching must also address the content of our preaching in this sense, that we must truly be preachers of the Word. Our preaching should be expository, not necessarily in the sense that we systematically work our way through books of lengthy sections of Scripture, (though I would personally recommend that), but in the sense that we should always be "opening up" the Word itself. Whether we deal with one verse of numerous verses forming a paragraph, our aim should be to explain the meaning of the text and bring out its application to the hearers. So often evangelicalism has been plagued with preaching which consists in a rehearsal of the preacher's life experiences; where he has been, what he has done, the books he has written. Or, if not about himself, the sermon has consisted of jokes, anecdotes and various illustrations. This is not to deny the place of illustrations in a sermon, nor even the occasional rehearsal of personal experiences; not at all. It is simply to say that these things must always be subservient to the main task of expounding and applying the Word. A return to Biblical preaching is desperately needed in our day.

However we need to understand that such preaching demands a price from the preacher. As preachers we must take sermon preparation seriously. We must be prepared to "labour in the Word and doctrine" (I Timothy 5:17); time must be devoted to study; we must give ourselves to reading and thinking and praying. We must be prepared for hard work so that we can come before our people with a substantial meal to feed their needy souls.

WORSHIP

We move now to a third area in need of reformation, that is worship. Some time ago in a church in the United States, the offering had just been received at the usual point in the service and the pastor was about to lead the congregation on into the worship. Suddenly, several armed, masked men burst into the church and, taking up positions in different spots in the auditorium, threatened the congregation. As children cried, and the elderly quaked, the men gathered up the offering and rushed out of the church. Pandemonium ensued in the congregation, but the pastor quieted the people and told them that it had been a staged event. He had wanted to get over to them in a dramatic fashion the fact that they were robbing God by their poor giving! This "thrice anointed ninny hammer", to use a Spurgeonic phrase, had not considered the trauma such an event would inflict on children, or the real possibility of a heart attack among the elderly. The incident was described in a letter to Ann Landers in the Hamilton Spectator. Incidentally the letter writer left the church. One can only hope that she was one of many!

This reminds me of another incident in an evangelical Baptist church in Ontario many years ago. A Sunday School attendance contest was underway and the pastor and superintendent had been earnestly exhorting the people to bring others to Sunday School so they could win the contest. The morning service began with the pastor and superintendent coming onto the platform in cowboy outfits, gunbelt and all. Two people walked down the aisle as though to make to their seats. The pastor demanded how many people they had brought to Sunday School that day. When the couple answered, "none" the pastor and superintendent drew their guns and "shot" the pair, two loud caps exploding with a bang as they did so. Thus began the worship of God in that particular (note there is no capital "P" there) Baptist church.

It seems to me that with respect to worship, we must avoid the problem of reaction and as usual strive for a healthy balance. In so many evangelical churches the worship is trivial, superficial and sometimes even juvenile. What transpires is often an insult to non-Christians of average intelligence. When you add to the mix the contribution of many charismatic assemblies, we have to summon other words for our description - frenetic, chaotic, wild! But in reacting to that kind of scenario we must avoid over-reaction and not conduct our services in a funereal atmosphere. Must we be restricted in worship to be either burnt to death or frozen to death? Some good reformed churches wonder why people are not enthusiastic about attending their services; they generally convince each other that it is simply the price they pay for faithfulness. Sometimes that is the case; but in other instances the answer lies in another direction - the services are just plain dull, dreary and boring! In speaking of this area to seminary students I have used the expression "reverence suffused with joy, and joy tempered with reverence", when describing the atmosphere we should strive for. Perhaps rather than speaking of striving for an atmosphere, I could use the expression "setting the tone". I would suggest to you that those leading the service do (or should) set the tone. We can, by our attitude or manner, either throw a wet blanket over the congregation, conveying the impression that worship after all, is not by any means to be an enjoyable experience, or we can demonstrate that worship, though a serious business is also a joyous privilege which deserves our enthusiasm.

And what about the content of our services? Do we have any direction as to what is acceptable and what is not acceptable? I s there any principle objection to a juggling act as part of the service? Or someone riding a uni-cycle on the platform (this could illustrate the need for balance in doctrine!)? What about mime or a one act play instead of the sermon? Is it simply left to subjective opinion or is there any direction for us here?

Our fathers debated the regulative principle and the Reformed branch of the church accepted it as directional of the churches. The regulative principle basically stated that the only elements legitimate in a service of worship were those which the New Testament spoke of as being part of worship. These basically were singing the praise of God, prayer, the reading of the Scriptures, giving offerings and the preaching of the Word, with preeminence being given to the preaching. As with every principle there will inevitably be differences of opinion as to understanding and implementation, but given the excesses of the "anything goes that will attract a crowd" mentality in so many churches today, I wonder whether our forefathers were not wise in their approach.

Certainly our worship should adequately reflect our view of God, the importance of His Word, the significance of eternal things, the spirituality of the new covenant and the simplicity which is in Christ Jesus.

CHURCH STRUCTURE

Fourthly, we should consider reformation in the area of church structure, and I am here thinking especially of church officers and particularly the questions of eldership. I said once in a paper given at an F.R.P.S pastors' conference, that this is not a panacea for church problems. No matter how closely modeled on the New Testament model our churches might be, there will always be problems to be confronted for the very simple reason that churches are made up of imperfect human beings; and, we might add, led and superintended by imperfect human beings. Let me also say that I am not adopting a theoretical, idealistic approach here. It is preferable, in my mind, to have a church where the structure and government might be not quite what it ought to be, and yet love, peace and unity be there, rather than a church wondrously orthodox in structure, yet torn by dissension and strife. Nevertheless, acknowledging those things, surely we ought to be as Biblical as we can in this area.

A study of Baptist history will reveal that for most of that history, Baptist churches held to a plurality of elders or pastors, to whom was committed the spiritual oversight and leadership of the church. Frequently only one of these would be fully supported, so that he could devote himself to "labouring in the Word and doctrine": and to him the task of regular preaching of the Word was committed: but he was supported in his work by his fellow elders. This one, the "minister", operated as a "first among equals". The elders in turn were assisted by deacons who were responsible for the financial and practical affairs of the church, thus freeing up the elders for their spiritual duties. How and why Baptists drifted away from the scriptural model, I am not sure, but I think it would be true to say that most Baptist churches today operate on a one pastor/several deacons model.

That churches in the New Testament always had a plural eldership, seems evident from simply an unbiased reading. In Acts 20:17 Paul summoned the elders (plural) of the church of Ephesus. It is to these elders that he says "feed (pastor or shepherd) the flock of God over which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers" (v.28). Elder, overseer, and pastor clearly refer to the same office. The same is true of I Peter 5:1,2, where Peter addressed "the leaders" and bids them to "shepherd (pastor) the flock of God, serving as overseers". In Titus Paul refers to his orders to Titus, that he (Titus) should "appoint elders in every city" (v.5); he then goes on to discuss the qualifications of those appointed, speaking of them as "bishops", i.e. overseers, and he is obviously speaking of the same office. In Philippians 1:1, the structure of the New Testament church is neatly set before us: "Paul and Timothy, bondservants of Jesus Christ, to all the saints in Christ Jesus who are in Philippi with the bishops (overseers) and deacons". In Acts 14:23 we read of Paul and Barnabas "appointing elders in every city" as they visited young churches; and so we could go on. Elders/pastors/overseers in the plural seem to have been the general rule of New Testament churches. That it should be so is not surprising, for authority is given to the elders; they are leaders who are to rule and to whom obedience and submission is due (I Thess. 5:12,13; Heb. 13:7,17). But for rule and authority to be placed in the hands of one man only can be a dangerous thing, and many a Baptist church could testify to that. Many a Baptist pastor while fulminating against the Pope in Rome, has been a veritable pope in his own church! Ruling with an autocratic high hand and often being unreasonable, cruel, dictatorial and unwise, such a man operates to the detriment of the church. I recognize, of course, that even a plural eldership may operate in a harsh and dictatorial manner also; Baptist churches would be wise to make safeguards against that possibility, but that is another subject.

Again, John Owen has pointed out that no one man has all the necessary gifts in himself for adequate shepherding of the whole flock. It is a wonderful thing for "the pastor" to have others sharing with him and contributing their gifts to the spiritual well-being of the church.

We should not view plural eldership as a shibboleth to judge a man's orthodoxy, but we should see it as a desirable aspect of a New Testament church. I would also suggest that if these two offices of elders and deacons are functioning properly in a church, that will streamline the functioning of the church in a positive way. Baptist pastors have often inherited a whole clutch of committees and boards within the church that often function as little independent kingdoms, jealous over their own powers. Many of these could be eliminated if the two New Testament offices were filled with the right men (i.e. Biblically qualified men) and functioning properly. This is not to suggest that no committee is legitimate or useful in a church! It is simply to suggest that Biblical reformation in the area of structure and government would be beneficial to churches.

I would like to touch very briefly on two other areas before concluding, the first being hymnology. It has been said that the theology of a church is shaped by the hymn it sings. If this is the case (and I believe much can be said in support of it) then the leaders of the church ought to give serious thought to the hymn book used by the church and the hymns and choruses that it sings. You notice that I say hymns and choruses for I have no objection to choruses so long as (a) they don't supplant hymns, and (b) they reflect Biblical truth. Many of the Scripture choruses which have been popularized in recent years are well deserving of their popularity, and can be very much a blessing in the lives of God's people. One of their weaknesses, however, is that they lack the element of "exposition". It is good to read the words of Scripture, but we also need those words expounded for us, hence the work of the preacher. It is also good to sing the words of Scripture, but the beauty of a good hymn by comparison is that it has the element of exposition; it explains, enlarges and applies. Let us not set up a contest where none need exist. The main point is that our singing should be true to the Word of God, and the problem that some pastors face is that the teaching which is being given from the pulpit is being systematically undermined by means of the hymnbook or chorus book. Biblical reformation in a church will often mean a change of hymnbook.

The second area for brief comment must be the Sunday School. Once again the danger exists that the teaching given from the pulpit may be denied in the Sunday School classes. This may require not only replacing the Sunday School material being used by the teachers, but it may also require teaching the teachers. The teachers should understand that they are to supplement the pulpit ministry, not undermine it. Care should also be given to methodology, especially relating to children. Children want to please those they like and are easily manipulated; teachers should therefore beware of "decisionising" children and cranking meaningless decisions out of them which could inoculate them against the gospel in years to come. If we want a truly Biblical church, all areas of the work must be measured against the standard of the Word of God.

Before closing, let me return to Jehoshaphat, Hezekiah and Josiah. They were leaders and they did not hesitate to lead God's people in the work of reformation. Surely we need leaders in our churches today who will implement Biblical reform, and who is to do it if not the pastors of the churches? Are we stirred by the desire to see God honoured and glorified? Are we stirred by the sad state of so many of the churches in our land? Do we know anything of the "zeal of God's house" which consumed the Lord Jesus and moved Him to action? We need leaders who will lead in their churches. I have been involved in the Reformed Baptist movement (or the Sovereign Grace Baptist movement) since the late 1960's; I believe that God has done many wonderful things among us and raised up a testimony to His grace and truth. In those early days there was a zeal for a return to Biblical doctrine and for Biblical reformation in the churches, for surely the two things must go hand in hand. But I raise it for consideration, is the same zeal now evident? Yes, numerous younger pastors are confessing the doctrines of grace, and for that we are truly grateful to God; but is there the same zeal for Biblical reformation in the churches? I fear that some simply do not see the connection between the two things; others see the connection and the need, but are prepared to accept the status quo because they are not ready for the hard work and the pains that the work will bring.

May God stir us up and make the churches of our land "fair as the moon, clear as the sun and terrible as an army with banners".

Prayer

August 1, 1971 by William Payne

1.  THE IMPORTANCE OF PRAYER

If we are not convinced of the importance of prayer we shall obviously not give much attention to it. The more we are convinced of its importance the more we shall be serious about it. We must surely see its importance when we consider:

THE EXAMPLE OF JESUS

The Bible is full of fascinating people from whom we can learn much, but obviously the most important figure in the entire Bible is the Son of God Himself. He is our supreme example. He is of course much more than our example. He is our Saviour. We do not subscribe to the idea that Jesus came merely to show us how to live. We believe passionately that He came to die for our sins, to be our substitute on the cross and to ransom His people by the shedding of His blood. We do not consider that to be a point for debate: it is settled. However we do recognize that our Lord and Saviour is our example. He is our pattern, and we are called upon to pattern our lives on His.

If you want to learn how to live so that you please God you must study the life of the Lord Jesus Christ. Now when you do that you will discover that the Lord Jesus Himself was clearly a man of prayer. Jesus prayed. Notice these occasions in the Gospel of Luke when the prayer life of Jesus is brought into focus:

Luke 5:16 "And He Himself often withdrew into the wilderness and prayed”.
Luke 6:12 "And it came to pass in those days that He went out into the mountain to pray, and continued all night in prayer to God".
Luke 9:28 "And it came to pass about eight days after these sayings, that He took Peter, John, and James and went up on the mountain to pray."
Luke 11:1 "And it came to pass, as He was praying in a certain place..."
Luke 22:41 "And He withdrew from them about a stones throw, and He knelt down and prayed."

Clearly these verses indicate that prayer was a very central and crucial part of the life of Jesus. If we claim to have Jesus Christ as our example then prayer must have a real place in our life.

Now let us add to the example of Jesus.

THE TEACHING OF JESUS

Two passages in this same Gospel of Luke will demonstrate to us that Jesus taught His disciples the importance of prayer. Look again at the 11th chapter. When the disciples asked Jesus to teach them how to pray He responded by giving them what has become known as the "Lord's Prayer". We have this recorded in Luke 11:2-4. This was given to them as a model prayer. It was not intended to be repeated in a mechanical rote fashion with scarcely any thought given to the words being repeated. There is nothing wrong with Christians praying these exact words of course, and often it is helpful to do so; but we must beware of merely repeating the words without feeling or meaning. The account in Matt.6:9 puts it more clearly for us - "In this manner therefore pray". In other words Jesus is saying "pray like this; here is a pattern for prayers"; and it most certainly is just that.

Now back in Luke chapter 11, after he gives them this model prayer He then tells them the parable of the friend who came to borrow loaves at midnight. The whole purpose of that parable is to teach the disciples to pray, and to teach them to pray earnestly and with great desire. He concludes the parable with the words, "And I say to you ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and it will be opened to you".

Again in this Gospel of Luke, in chapter 18:1 we have this statement, "And He spoke a parable to them to this end, that men always ought to pray, and not lose heart". Then He tells them the parable of the Unjust Judge, and in this parable as in that of chapter 11 He is teaching them to pray, and to pray with tenacity, to keep on praying. You could hardly have stronger teaching as to the importance of prayer than these two parables by the Lord Jesus Christ. Both by example and by teaching Jesus shows us that prayer is important.

Our conviction as to the importance of prayer may be deepened as we also consider:

THE EXAMPLE OF PAUL

This great apostle, truly following in the footsteps of His Master demonstrates by His life that prayer is indeed crucial to the Christian. His letters give us moving and inspiring examples of prayer for other Christians. Listen to him as he prays for the believers at Ephesus:

Therefore I also, after I heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints, do not cease to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers: that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him, the eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that you may know what is the hope of his calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints and what is the exceeding greatness of His power toward us who believe, according to the working of His mighty power... (Eph. 1:1 5-19)

Or again listen to him as he prays for the Philippian Christians:

And this I pray that your love may abound still more and more in knowledge and in all discernment, that you may approve the things that are excellent, that you may be sincere and without offense till the day of Christ, being filled with the fruits of righteousness which are by Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God.(Phil.l :9-l 1)

If you read Paul's letters in the New Testament you will find in many of them such prayers; fervent, beautiful, mighty, reflecting the apostle's conviction that it was vital that intercession be made for the people of God. The inspired apostle, like His Lord, was a man of prayer.

However, it is interesting to note that Paul's conviction as to the importance to prayer is not only revealed by the fact that he prayed for others, but also by the fact that he begged others to pray for him. For instance to the Colossians he writes; “continue in prayer, being vigilant in it with thanksgiving; meanwhile praying also for us that God would open to us a door for the word..." (Col.4:2,3). To the Thessalonians he writes, "brethren, through the Lord Jesus Christ and through the love of the Spirit, that you strive together with me in your prayers to God for me"(Rom.15:30).

Paul knew that prayer was essential; he needed to pray and he needed others to pray for him. Both the example and the requests of Paul underline what Jesus has already set out before us - the importance of prayer.

OTHER GREAT MEN OF PRAYER

The fact is that the greatest of the servants of God were all men of prayer. The Bible records specifically that they did pray, and in some cases records their prayers for us. For instance in Gen. 18:22,23 we read "but Abraham stood yet before the Lord, and Abraham drew near and said.." The rest of the chapter is taken up with Abraham's remarkable intercession, his prayer that God might spare Sodom, because Abraham was concerned about his nephew Lot. Exodus 32:10-13 records a wonderful example of the prayers of Moses as he intercedes for the rebellious nation of Israel. It is a prayer of passion and boldness. In 1 Samuel 12, though we do not have an example of Samuel's prayer, we do find the people begging him to pray for them. It is clear that Samuel must have been known to them as a man of prayer. Samuel's comment in the chapter is interesting - "God forbid that I should sin against the Lord by ceasing to pray for you". Obviously to this man of God prayer was of such importance, and such a necessary duty that he considered it sinful not to pray for these people.

Now let us add final confirmation to our conviction concerning the importance of prayer, by noting that God conditions the giving of His blessing upon the offering of prayer.

PRAYER - THE CONDITION OF BLESSING

Prayer consists in more than just making request, but it is significant that God does make the bestowment of His blessing conditional upon the offering of prayer. It is not always that way. God is sovereign, and is therefore free to work any way He chooses, However the normal way of operating is that He grants His blessings to those who seek them in prayer. Take for example the text which is a favourite of many, 2 Chron.7:14

“If my people which are called by my name, shall humble themselves and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land".

Here are people envisaged as being in great need; but the blessing which they need is only given if they pray. We will of course note that other duties are also laid upon them, but our focus at this point is upon the need of prayer. We see the same principle in the words of Jer.33:3

"Call unto me and I will answer thee, and show thee great and mighty things which thou knowest not".

You see the connection - you call, and I will answer. I will show you great and mighty things, but you must ask for them.

Perhaps one of the most glorious passages in the Old Testament is the latter part of Ezekiel 36. Here God gives wonderful promises about giving a new heart and a new spirit to the people. He emphasizes the blessings which He will bestow; the focus is upon what God will do, and yet he ends the chapter by saying "I will yet for this be enquired of by the house of Israel, to do it for them"(v.37). In other words God says "does this all sound good to you? Is this what you want? Very well then ask for it, seek me concerning this, make it a matter of prayer; you call and I will answer.

We have already seen how Jesus links these things together in the N.T. "ask and ye shall receive...." Do we wish to receive from God? Then we must ask of God. You see God has ordained that He will work in answer to the prayers of His people. It is not that He could not work without them. I have already said that God is sovereign and can work when and how He wants. The fact is that God has been pleased to ordain that it shall be this way; that He will work in answer to prayer; his blessings will be given in answer to prayer. God's people will suffer if they do not pray. Prayer is essential for our spiritual well-being. The uniform testimony of the entire Bible is that prayer is of supreme importance.

2. WHAT IS PRAYER?

In the previous section we spoke about the importance of prayer. Now we ask the question "what is prayer"? Many answers have been given to that question; in fact it is difficult to answer that question in one sentence or expression. One attempted definition put it this way: "prayer is the outgoing of the heart towards the Heavenly Father in unclouded faith". Now that definition reminds us that for true prayer to be offered the heart must be involved. Prayer is not merely a matter of saying words. John Burton expressed this beautifully in the words of the hymn:

I often say my prayers,
But do I ever pray?
And do the wishes of my heart
Go with the words I say?

I may as well kneel down
And worship gods of stone,
As offer to the living God
A prayer of words alone.

For words without the heart
The Lord wi11 never hear;
Nor will he to those lips attend
Whose prayers are not sincere.

Lord teach me what I need
And teach me how to pray;
And do not let me seek thy grace
Not meaning what I say.

Now that is a very searching and profound piece of poetry.

Merely saying words - even though they be very religious words, very true words, very beautiful words - is not prayer. For prayer to be true prayer there must be the engagement of the heart. Our expression of our hearts towards God.

This definition also reminds us that prayer is addressed to the Father. "The outgoing of the heart toward the Heavenly Father". When Jesus gave his model prayer it began "Our Father". When Jesus Himself offered prayer as recorded in John 17, he addressed it to the Father. When the disciples prayed in the hour of persecution they directed their prayer to the Father - "Lord, you are God..." (Acts 4:24). In Acts 4:27 they say "for truly against your holy servant Jesus you anointed... ". So that they are clearly addressing the Father as distinct from the Son.

Now some people make a big issue about not praying to the Son or the Holy Spirit; they say this should never be done and that it is quite reprehensible. It could be demonstrated that we have Biblical warrant for addressing both the Son and the Holy Spirit in prayer. But it is true that the usual way of praying, taking the scriptures as our guide, is to address our prayers to the Father. In Matthew 6:6 Jesus instructs us, "when you pray, go into your room... pray to your Father ..."

However, though we pray to the Father, we must always pray to the Father through the Son. In prayer we come to God through Jesus Christ; in the name of Jesus Christ. It is important that we recognize this and believe this, that we have no possibility of an audience with God except it be through His Son, the Lord Jesus. "There is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus" (l Tim.2:5). A mediator is the one who brings two parties together; he is the one through whom one party approaches another. So that when sinful men and women approach the God of majesty and glory we must come through the mediator He has appointed. That mediator is Jesus Christ, and Him alone. This is the significance of such statements as:

"Whatever you ask the Father in my name he will give you."

"Therefore brethren having boldness to enter the Holiest by the blood of Jesus..." (Heb. 10:19)

It is by the blood of Jesus; it is in His name that we come to the Father. We must not be presumptuous in our approach to God; we must not think that it is a light thing to approach Him; we must not think that we have a right to approach Him in our own name, in our own worthiness. We come to the Father through the Son, in the name of Jesus Christ.

Also, we come by the grace and power of the Holy Spirit. In Zechariah 12.10 we come across the lovely title "the Spirit of grace and supplication". That is the Holy Spirit. He is the one who moves us to pray aright; he is the one who enables us to come. Paul spoke of "praying in the Spirit". He didn't mean in some mysterious emotional frenzy; he meant by the enabling of the Spirit of God. When you get on your knees, or you bow your head to pray it is a good thing to immediately ask God to help you to pray in the Spirit; that He would give you the grace of the Spirit to help you pray aright and to pray with liberty and freedom. Then proceed, trusting in His mercy to hear that prayer.

So prayer is the outgoing of the heart to the Heavenly Father. We pray to the Father, through the Son, by or in the Spirit. That is the way we approach God. That is the way he has ordained that it must be.

Now when we come in this way, what should the content of our prayer be? What is prayer? If you look at 1 Tim.2:1 you will notice that there are different aspects of prayer. It may not be wise to press the distinctions too finely and compartmentalize these words too rigidly; but they do indicate that there are different aspects. Paul speaks about "supplications" "prayers", "intercessions" and "giving of thanks". I am not going to use these actual words to discuss the content of prayer but I will cover pretty well what these words convey.

ADORATION

Prayer involves adoration. That means that in prayer we should praise God for what He is. All too often we rush into the presence of God with our personal requests, full of ourselves and our own needs, when before anything else we ought to set our focus on God and let our minds lay hold on His greatness and glory. Jesus began His model prayer "Our Father which art in heaven". Immediately He directs our minds to God in His glory, and that is the way it ought to be. Remind yourself as you come in prayer that you come to the Sovereign Creator; you come to One who rules the world; you come to One who inhabits eternity. He is the One before whom angels veil their faces; He is the God of infinite splendour and glory. Praise Him for this. He is the God of grace and truth; He is the God who sets His love upon unworthy sinners and brings them out of darkness into His marvelous light. Praise him for this. Adore the Lord for all that He is, and for all that He has done.

In prayer let something of His greatness get through to you. One of our problems is that we are usually in such a rush. This is often tragic. I think this is one of the reasons why, by and large, Christians are such spiritual pygmies compared with our forefathers. They took time to know God, to contemplate His glory and to learn of His greatness; we are usually in such a rush. We have lost the concept of waiting upon God. Seldom do we listen to the words of God through the psalmist, "be still and know that I am God" (Psalm 46 :10). Do not be rushed in your private prayers; take time to adore; take time to let the sense of God's greatness seep into your soul and soak into your mind. This is one of the ways in which prayer can be such a blessing to God's people. Such adoration of God in prayer, when our minds are set on Him and we are contemplating His glory and greatness, results in the Christian being established and strengthened. In times of crisis it is the person who has become truly acquainted with his or her God through prayer who is stable and able to survive. Adoration is a vital aspect of prayer, when you render that honour and praise to God which rightly belongs to Him.

CONFESSION OF SIN

The aspect of prayer referred to above will inevitably lead to another and that is the confession of sin. The more clear our spiritual sight of God, the more acute will be our sense of sinfulness; and in prayer we are to confess our sins to God. Now there are many prayers recorded in the Bible which could illustrate all these aspects of prayer for us, but in my view there is scarcely a greater prayer in all the Bible than the one recorded in Daniel 9. Be sure to read it through carefully and slowly. You will notice that it begins "and I prayed to the Lord My God and made confession"...v.4.

This is truly one of the most moving prayers in the Bible, and Daniel sets before us this example of the importance and the place of confession of sin. Sin mars the fellowship between a Christian and God; and when we have done wrong and we try to justify it, we try to excuse ourselves before God, then we hinder fellowship with God. If we have sin that we refuse to acknowledge before God then he has a controversy with us. David said "if I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear" (Ps.66:18)

Of course this involves a humbling of ourselves before God, and the pride of our heart fights against that; but the Bible tells us that God gives grace to the humble and He resists the proud. Humility is exactly the spirit in which we should come to God. Let us not hide our sins, for the scripture says "he who covers his sins will not prosper, but whoever confesses and forsakes them will have mercy" (Prov.28:13). When you pray, confess your sins before God; seek cleansing of His blood and the renewing of the Holy Spirit.

THANKSGIVING

Then of course there is the element of thanksgiving. I am not thinking now of what was said under adoration, praising God for what He is and what He had done, but I am thinking of thanking God for all his blessings, both spiritual and temporal. I am sure that you have sung that hymn which says "count your blessings, name them one by one, and it will surprise you what the Lord hath done". How true that is. But is it not also true that we are very prone to complain, and we ought to be ashamed when we do so for we have been blessed beyond measure. Let me quote from another hymn, this time written by William Cowper:

Have you no words? Ah, think again,
Words flow apace when you complain,
And fill your fellow creature's ear
With sad tale of all your care.

Were half the breath thus vainly spent
To heaven in supplication sent,
Your cheerful song would oftener be,
Hear what the Lord hath done for me!

Some years ago the Readers Digest carried a moving story about a woman who had been blind for many years and who had her sight restored by an operation. It was a touching story, and at the end of it the woman said that when she is among people now and hears them complaining about their life, she has a great longing to say to them "but you can see, you can see!" She appreciates what a blessing that is. We often take so many blessings for granted. To have a healthy body; to be able simply to walk and talk, to hear and see; to have a sound mind that can reason and converse with others - what blessing these are! To have so much in the way of provision, food and clothing, comfort and shelter - oh how good God is to us! But if we know the Lord; if we have been born again and are united to Christ we have all spiritual blessings in Him. Surely we ought to sing,

Praise my soul the King of heaven,
To his feet thy tribute bring;
Ransomed, healed, restored, forgiven,
Who like thee His praise should sing?
Praise him, Praise Him Praise the everlasting King.

SUPPLICATION AND INTERCESSION

Both these words are closely related and they cover requests for ourselves and for others. In prayers we make our needs known to God. "In everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known unto God" (Phil.4:6). Nothing is to be overlooked in prayer. Nothing is too small to bring to God, nothing is too large. Your own needs and the needs of others must be brought before Him. But let me emphasize that the major focus of our requests ought to be spiritual blessing. Study the prayers of Paul. He does not overlook physical needs but the thing he is most concerned about is increase of faith and love; living to please God; knowing the will of God; being filled with the fruits of righteousness. Great spiritual requests are to the fore. Pray for your own growth in grace; pray for the blessing of others; pray for the cause of Christ; pray for missionaries; pray for the conversion of souls; let the embrace of your prayers be wide.

This then is prayer. It is the outgoing of the heart toward the heavenly Father in the name of the Lord Jesus by the power of the Spirit. It is adoration, it is confession, it is thanksgiving, it is supplication and intercession. It is communing with the living God, through Jesus Christ by the Holy Spirit.

3. PRAYER AS AN EVIDENCE OF THE CHRISTIAN LIFE

Remember that when I use the word "prayer", I am not simply talking about saying certain words. There can be a kind of praying which is just the repeating of words, the reciting of certain formulas; a mere formality. Such "prayer" is not really prayer at all. In the last article I said that where there is true prayer the heart must be engaged; the definition I used spoke of prayer as "the outgoing of the heart to the heavenly Father." True prayer, not just the repeating of words, but true prayer is an evidence of the Christian life. Bishop J.C. Ryle was a man who spoke the truth with great plainness. He didn't beat around the bush and mince words; and in speaking of prayer he made the following statement:

"Prayer is absolutely necessary to a man's salvation, I say absolutely necessary, and I say so advisedly. I am not speaking now of infants and idiots. I am not settling the state of the heathen. I remember that where little is given, there little will be required. I speak especially of those who call themselves Christian, in a land like our own. And of such I say no man or woman can expect to be saved who does not pray.

I hold salvation by grace as strongly as anyone. I would gladly offer a full and free pardon to the greatest sinner that ever lived. I would not hesitate to stand by his dying bed and say, "believe on the Lord Jesus Christ even now and you shall be saved". But that a man can have salvation without asking for it, I cannot see in the Bible. That a man will receive pardon for his sins, who will not so much as lift up his heart inwardly, and say, "Lord Jesus give it to me", this I cannot find. I can find that nobody will be saved by his prayer, but I cannot find that without prayer anybody will be saved.

It is not absolutely needful to salvation that a man should read the Bible. A man may have no learning, or be blind, and yet have Christ in his heart. It is not absolutely needful that a man should hear the public preaching of the gospel. He may live where the gospel is not preached, or he may be bedridden, or deaf. But the same thing cannot be said about prayer. It is absolutely needful to salvation that a man should pray."

(Practical Religion, c 46)

Now the good bishop puts it characteristically plainly. Where you have a prayerless person, you have an unconverted person. Where there is spiritual life, Christian life, you will have prayer. Prayer is an evidence of the Christian life. Let me show you how that must be so.

FIRST PERSPECTIVE

Consider first of all, that when a person becomes a Christian, he or she receives the Holy Spirit. This fact is taught with great clarity throughout the Bible. In Ezekiel 36:27 we have the following great promise: "I will put My spirit within you."

In the New Testament we have the endorsement and strengthening of that promise when the Lord Jesus says to His disciples:

"And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever, even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him. But you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you." Jn.14:16,17

And then of course the epistles of the New Testament speak of the reality of this fact. For example we have the words of Paul: "Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you..." 1 Cor 6:19

Any careful reading of the New Testament makes this clear, that when a person is born again that person receives the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is the great New Covenant gift of God to believers. He resides in us; He moves and works in us.

Now what is the significance of that as far as prayerfulness is concerned? Well consider the title which was noted in the last article, "the Spirit of grace and supplication" (Zech.12:10). It is evident from the context of that verse that supplication is that which the Spirit's grace produces. Where the Spirit of God resides there will be grace and supplication. This is endorsed by the fourth chapter of Galatians, where Paul says, "and because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into your hearts crying Abba, Father" (v.6). Now evidently it is not the Spirit who cries "Father, Father", but the Christian into whose heart has come the Spirit of Jesus Christ. This passage clearly teaches that when the Spirit of God comes into a person's life the result is the outgoing of the heart to the heavenly Father. Where the Holy Spirit resides prayer will undoubtedly be offered. The heart will be lifted up to God.

SECOND PERSPECTIVE

We may look at if from another viewpoint. That is, that prayer is a duty laid upon us by the Word of God. It is perfectly consistent for something to be a great privilege and a great blessing, and a duty at the same time. Some people seem to think that if something is a privilege it cannot be a duty, but that is clearly not the case. For instance, it is our duty to gather at the Lord's Table in remembrance of Him; but that is also a great privilege and blessing. So while prayer is a privilege and a blessing to a child of God it is at the same time a very solemn duty. God orders His children to pray. He doesn’t merely suggest it or request it, he actually orders them to pray.

Consider the following statements:

"Pray without ceasing" (lThess.5:17)

"I will therefore that men pray everywhere..." (Tim.2:8)

In Luke 10:2 Jesus orders His disciples to pray For a specific need, "The harvest truly is great... pray therefore the Lord of the harvest that he would send forth labourers into the harvest".

Again,"...pray for one another that you nay be healed" (James 5:16)

These passages illustrate the point that we are not merely advised to pray; it is not a suggestion; we are told to pray. It is an order from the Captain of our salvation.

Now what are we talking about when we talk about a person being saved, being born again? He are talking about the person receiving Jesus Christ as Saviour and Lord. When you become a Christian you recognize the right of Jesus Christ to tell you what to do! And one of the marks and evidences that a person has been born again is obedience to Jesus Christ and His Word. Any person not interested in putting God's word into practice has serious reason to doubt that he or she has been born again. More than once Jesus described those who belonged to Him in terms of their obedience to God. On one occasion when Jesus was preaching in a house the crowd was so greet that the members of His family could not get to see Him. He was told "your mother and brothers and sisters are wanting to see you". He replied, "Who is my mother or brother or sister? Behold these who do the will of God, these are my brothers and sisters..." What a profound statement1 Jesus was not being unkind to His earthly relatives, but He had to make it plain to them and to all people that it is not earthly attachment to Him that was important but spiritual attachment, spiritual oneness; and that spiritual oneness showed itself by obedience to God.

Now no Christian does the will of God perfectly. All Christians fail to a greater or lesser degree in this. But these are faults and failings, stumbling caused because of the sin which still remains in the Christian. Disobedience is not the general tenor of his or her life. For a person to know that God has imposed something on them in His word in this instance that they should pray and for that person to deliberately ignore or disobey that order continually through his or her life would be an indication that they did not belong to the Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus says "Why do you call me Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say?" A Christian is someone who puts himself under Christ's command. "Ah," says someone, "I thought that a Christian was someone who had his sins forgiven and was given a place in heaven." Well, that is true, but it is not the whole truth! A Christian is a person who has his sins forgiven, and who has been given a place in heaven. But he is also a person who puts himself under Christ's command. So when Jesus, through His Word says "pray", the Christian prays. Prayerlessness reveals a spirit which is in rebellion against God.

THIRD PERSPECTIVE

Conversion gives us to see our dependence upon God, and prayer is an expression of that dependence. The conversion experience is a humbling experience. It is a very humbling thing to see with conviction your own sinfulness. It is a very humbling thing to see yourself in the light of God's awful holiness. It is a very humbling thing to see that you cannot save yourself and that nothing you can be or do of yourself can make you acceptable to God. It is a very humbling thing to seek salvation at the foot of the cross. Pride is one of the most stubborn and vicious sins of human nature. Human nature says "I can do without God; I can do it alone; I can make it by myself; I can be independent even of God Himself. But true conversion puts a stake through the heart of pride. When God saves a sinner, that sinner sees his or her dependence on God.

The Christian recognizes his dependence upon God for grace to live the Christian life; dependence on God for strength to face the trials of life; dependence on God for wisdom to make right decisions; dependence on God for understanding of His word; dependence on God for health and strength, for daily food, for all things. But you cannot tell me that you know your dependence on God and yet you do not pray. When a man does not seek strength and wisdom and grace from God, and never brings his needs to God, whatever profession that man may make, it is unthinkable that he is a Christian.

In an earlier section I referred to the model prayer given by Jesus. You remember that it begins "Our Father which art in heaven." But there is a second part of that prayer in which our needs are brought into focus, "give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our sins... and lead us not into temptation..." The words of the second part breathe the spirit of dependence upon God. The grace of God teaches us that that is so. Conversion enlightens a person so that he or she recognizes that God is the source of all good and blessing, and it is unthinkable a person so taught should not lift up the heart to God even as Jesus instructed us in that model prayer. The conviction in the heart of a converted person that they are dependent on God's will lead them to pray.

FOURTH PERSPECTIVE

Conversion introduces one into fellowship with God. How beautifully John expresses this:

"that which we have seen and heard we declare to you, that you also may have fellowship with us; and truly our fellowship is with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ." (Jn.1:3)

When we are born again we are introduced into that fellowship; a spiritual fellowship with God; and in that fellowship with God prayer is the great means of communion with Him. What would you think if someone asked a man, "do you know John Smith?" "Oh yes," is the reply, "He is my father". "Really," says the questioner, "Tell me something about him. What kind of a person is he?" "Well, I cannot really do that," comes the further response, "because I have never spoken to him in my life." I venture to suggest that if the man made such a reply you would think that he was not his father at all! To have a father yet never speak to him all your life would be incredible. Yet there are those who claim that God is their father; they say they are Christians and yet they never pray. They never have a word to say to their father! Surely it is impossible! True conversion introduces us into fellowship with God, and where there is fellowship there must be communion; there must be sharing; there must be a talking together. God speaks to His children through His word; they speak to Him through prayer. Where there is no prayer there can be no fellowship with God, and therefore no spiritual life.

I hope I have shown that Bishop Ryle’s statement was correct. Where there is no prayer-life there is no real conversion, there is no spiritual life. Prayerlessness is a sad evidence of an absence of grace. May it be said of all who read this article, as it was said of the converted Saul of Tarsus,

"Behold, he prays".

4.  OUR ATTITUDE IN PRAYER

In this article on prayer I have talked, about coming to God the Father through the Lord Jesus Christ, by the enabling of the Holy Spirit. I have tried to describe what prayer is: that when we come to God we come with adoration, confession, thanksgiving and supplication. It is also important to consider our attitude as we come to God in prayer. In what spirit should we come to God? In this article I will suggest some answers to that question.Reverence and Respect

First we must come in a spirit of reverence and respect. One of the ways we are helped on the subject of prayer is by studying the prayers of the saints in scripture. Take Daniel's prayer in the ninth chapter of the book of Daniel: or Solomon's prayer at the dedication of the temple; or that which has become known as "the Lord's Prayer". You will observe that all these prayers are marked by a spirit of reverence. You will find the same if you consider the beautiful prayer of Jesus recorded in John 17:11 where Jesus refers to God as "Holy Father", and in v.25 as "Righteous Father". You cannot read any of the prayers of the Bible without discovering the same thing - there is always a reverent approach to God.

This does not mean that there cannot be a boldness in our approach, because we are encouraged to come with boldness to the throne of grace. It does not mean that we cannot come with a sense of joyfulness; we ought to do that because we are coming to our Father. But boldness and joyfulness must never banish reverence. God is our Father; but He is our Father "which art in heaven". This must ever be kept before us in our day. Generally speaking, this is a day when respect for authority of any kind is lacking. In my opinion it is a day when crudeness and ugliness are asserting themselves. Qualities of grace and gentleness, courtesy and nobility are brushed aside as having no practical value. It is a day of cynicism when the old saying is often fulfilled, "nothing is sacred". Christians have to guard against this worldly attitude rubbing off on them. We are not to be moulded by the world's attitude and opinion, and certainly in our attitude to God we must always maintain that reverence and respect which is right and fitting. We must ever keep the Biblical vision of God before us. We must see Him with the eye of faith as the High and Holy One who inhabits eternity. We must see Him as the One who dwells in light inaccessible which no man can approach unto. We must see Him as the Monarch of the ages, clothed with majesty and honour. He is the God of holiness and truth, the One who from everlasting to everlasting is God.

Only as we keep such a view of God before us can we be delivered from the sin of irreverence. It is a tragic thing that some heathen religions instill in their adherents a greater sense of reverence than we see in many evangelical Christians. If you lived in a Muslim land you would hear several times a day the call to prayer going out to "the faithful" from the minaret towers. "Alluhu Akbar" is the cry - God is great. If followers of a false religion have at least that much truth surely we who have the Word of God in our hands and the Spirit of God in our hearts ought to know it. God is indeed great, and when we approach Him it ought to be in reverence and respect.

THE SPIRIT OF FAITH

Secondly, we must come in a spirit of faith. This is given strong emphasis in the Bible. For instance, James 1:5:

"If any of you lacks wisdom let him ask of God ... but let him ask in faith."

or again, consider Hebrews 11:6:

"He who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him."

The Lord Jesus reminds us of this vital linkage, Matt.21:22:

"And all things, whatever you ask in prayer believing, you will receive."

We must understand this statement in the light of the third point which we will come to in a moment, but let it be noted that faith, "believing" is an important ingredient in our prayers.

There are many other passages which present this same truth to us. God delights to see faith in His children; faith brings joy to the heart of God, and He calls for the exercise of it when we come before Him in prayer. Obviously we must have faith that God will answer prayer. He has said that He will, so it is a great dishonour to God for His people not to believe Him. It is hard to imagine a person praying if they did not believe that God did answer prayer. Imagine what an insult it would be if our children came to us and requested from us something which we had told them they could have, but as they came they said "well we are asking but we don't believe that you have any intention of giving this to us; we don't believe that your word can be trusted or accepted in this matter". How hurtful and insulting that would be! And how much more terrible is it when we come before God with unbelieving hearts, for we are really saying "I don't believe your word is trustworthy; I don't believe that you will do what you have said you will do". It is not strange that people don't experience any blessing from prayer if they come with unbelieving and untrusting hearts. "Without faith it is impossible to please God". We must have a confident spirit in prayer; we must believe that God will do what He has said He will do. We will have to recognize that He may not work in the way we expect Him to work; He may not work within the time-frame we would prefer; we have to grant that He works in mysterious ways; but we must have faith in His wisdom and His power. Faith is a potent weapon. The 11th chapter of Hebrews ought to be read more often than it is. By faith amazing things were accomplished by God's people, and without faith nothing will ever be accomplished. Come believing in prayer; let your spirit be one of confidence. Take God at His word and trust Him for an answer.

THE SPIRIT OF SUBMISSION

We must also come in a spirit of submission. The greatest example of this is the Lord Jesus Himself in the garden of Gethsemane. Though under the most severe strain, and enormous pressure, He prayed "not my will, but thine be done". We must always pray in that spirit. Beware of demanding from God. Humility ought to mark your attitude in the presence of God, and if you have humility you will appreciate the fact that there are many things which you do not know. We get so full of ourselves sometimes that we think we know better than God; we think that we can instruct Him and tell Him what is best, and some people get very angry if God doesn't do exactly what they think He ought to do. But many a person has lived to thank God that He didn't answer their prayer! At the time they were upset; they doubted God's love and care and they were defiant and rebellious. But remember that you know so little. When we come to God we come to one who is infinite in wisdom; He knows all things; He knows the end from the beginning; and whenever we come in prayer we must always have a submissive spirit, praying for guidance in God's will and ready to accept that His will may be done in all things. The promise that God will hear and answer prayer is attached to the supposition that we ask according to His will - "Now this is the confidence that we have in Him, that if we ask anything according to His will He hears us".

It is very important that we take all the Bible has to say on a given subject and not just part of it. Some people like to take the kind of verses referred to earlier and say "there, God promises that anything I ask for in prayer believing I shall receive". And they make a mockery out of it by asking for the most foolish things, and when they don't get them they say "I must not have enough faith, I didn't believe enough". Now certainly our prayers can be hindered by lack of faith, but we must remember that God's promise to answer our prayers and give us what we ask for is related to our asking according to His will. We need therefore to be spiritually minded that we might discern the will of the Lord, and we need to be submissive acknowledging that "now we see through a glass darkly." We may not be praying wisely; therefore we must pray submissively in the spirit of Jesus, "Thy will be done".

FOR THE GLORY OF GOD

Our attitude in prayer must reflect a genuine desire for the glory of God. Some Christians think of prayer as possessing a magic lamp; they think that prayer is a great way for getting every little whim and fancy which comes into their mind. They think of God as the "genie" who exists to satisfy their every desire. But to come to God in a selfish spirit is to come in a wrong spirit. The concern of Jesus as reflected in John 12:27-28 was not his own comfort and well-being but the glory of His Father. That is not to say that we are not to pray for ourselves and our own needs; not at all. Our own needs are a legitimate concern for prayer, but we are always to seek first the glory of God. If that desire is dominant then we shall be kept in proper balance. You can see this working out in 2 Corinthians 12 where Paul prays three times that God would remove the "thorn in the flesh". What that really was we do not know, but clearly it was something which bothered him greatly. But though he prayed three times for its removal he came to understand that it was not the will of God that it should be removed. God had given him that thorn for a purpose; it was to keep him useful in the service of Christ; through that thorn the power of Christ rested upon him, and so he eventually came to glory in his infirmity.

Now Paul could never have come to that place had he not been supremely concerned about the glory of God. If he was to glorify God he must have the power of Christ resting upon him. If he had been concerned only with his own comfort he could never have rejoiced and gloried in this thorn. He would have gone about moaning and complaining that God didn't answer his prayer; he would have gone about feeling sorry for himself - "after all I have done for the Lord look at the way He treats me!" Some people act in this pathetic manner but this man has the glory of God for his greatest desire; nothing is more important than that, and that desire regulates his spirit in prayer.

Few things are more important than having a right attitude when we pray.

Arm of the Lord, awake, awake!
Thy power unconquerable take;
Thy strength put on, assert Thy might,
And triumph in the dreadful fight.

Why dost Thou tarry, mighty Lord?
Why slumbers in its sheath thy Sword?
Oh, rouse Thee, for Thine honour's sake
Arm of the Lord, awake, awake!

Behold, what numbers still withstand
Thy sovereign rule and just command,
Reject Thy grace, Thy threats despise,
And hurl defiance at the skies.

Haste then, but come not to destroy;
Mercy is Thine, Thy crown, Thy joy;
Their hatred quell, their pride remove,
But melt with grace, subdue with love.

Why dost Thou from the conquest stay?
Why do Thy chariot wheels delay?
Lift up Thyself; hell's kingdom shake:
Arm of the Lord, awake, awake!

Henry March, 1839 

5. UNANSWERED PRAYER

At some time or another every Christian has felt perplexed and discouraged because it appeared to them that their prayers were not being answered. David, the sweet singer of Israel, and a man after God's own heart experienced such times of difficulty. He begins Psalm 13 with these plaintive words:

How long O Lord?
Will you forget me forever?
How long will you hide your face from me?
How long shall I take counsel in my soul?
Having sorrow in my heart daily?

Those are the words of a discouraged man who feels that God isn't hearing or answering his prayers. Listen to him again in Ps.55:

Give ear to my prayer O God,
And do not hide yourself from my supplication.
Attend to me and hear me;
I am restless in my complaint...

Or again, consider the words of Psalm 88, "a Psalm of the sons of Korah":

But to you I have cried out O Lord,
and in the morning my prayer comes before you.
Lord why do you cast off my soul?
why do you hide your face from me?

These few examples show us that to be perplexed by unanswered prayer is not a new experience to the people of God. The greatest of saints have grappled with this problem and felt keenly about it. I wanted to suggest some reasons why some of our prayers are not answered, for I think that if we see these reasons we may be helped and encouraged not to despair or allow ourselves to be cast down by the experience.

TESTING

Consider first of all how God tests our faith and our earnestness by not answering prayer. This is beautifully illustrated for us in the incident with the Syrophenician woman recorded in the gospels. This woman came to Jesus with a prayer for the healing of her daughter (Matt.15) but Jesus does not answer her. When he does speak to her he does not at first grant her petition, he seems to put her off and deliberately discourage her. But eventually he does grant her request exclaiming "Oh woman your faith is great". Clearly Jesus had been testing her faith. He did not answer right away and grant her petition immediately so that he might see if her faith would rise to the challenge, and she came through the test wonderfully.

Now it is true that in this instance the woman did not have to wait long, and most times we are thinking of prayers that are offered and perhaps months and even years later they seem to have received no answer; but the principle pinpointed in this incident is the same. God does test our faith, and he often does so by not answering our prayers, at least not at the time when we think they should be answered. He sometimes makes us wait long for an answer because he wants to see how persistent our faith is. Two well known parables in Luke's gospel point out the need to persevere in prayer. In Luke 11 there is the parable of the man who seeks a favour from his friend at midnight. But the friend has settled down for the night, he doesn't want to be bothered with the needs of the first man, But the petitioner keeps on knocking, keeps on asking, and Jesus says (v-8)."..because of his persistence he will rise.." Because the man kept at it, didn't give up, he got what he was after.

The other parable in Luke 18 makes the same point. A woman petitions a judge; the judge does not really want to be bothered by her, but she is persistent! So the judge concludes he had better grant her request is rather than be wearied by her continual seeking. In giving these parables Jesus was not conveying the idea that God was reluctant to answer prayer. The spotlight is not on the judge or the friend who was settled down in bed; it is on the one who comes with the petition. It is their persistence that was met and their prayer was answered. Faith will make a Christian persistent in prayer. Though God withholds the answers from us, and though He might withhold it for a long time, yet faith must persist in seeking the blessing. The Bible says "he that comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is the rewarder of those who diligently seek Him" (Heb. 11:6).

We must have faith in God, and faith in His promises, and we must understand that our faith will be put to the test. Nothing glorifies God more than faith. For one of His children to maintain trust and confidence in God even though they are being led through a dark and difficult way is something God delights to see. A faith which comes through testings and trials strong and triumphant is of great worth and value in the sight of God.

It may well be that someone reading these words is experiencing a situation where prayers seems unanswered. God may well be trying your faith, refining it putting it through the furnace that it might be the more valuable and beautiful. My friend continue to seek; continue to knock; continue to ask. Persevere in prayer and do not be discouraged.

MOTIVATION

Sometimes prayers are not answered because they are offered with a wrong motivation. James puts this before us very plainly:

"You ask and do not receive because you ask amiss, that you may spend it on your own pleasure." (James 4:3)

In an earlier section I said that we ought to pray from a heart which desires before all else the glory of God. We must not think that prayer is a wonderful instrument intended to fulfill our every whim and fancy and provide us with everything that enters our heads and which we think we would like to possess. The question of motivation is a very difficult one to deal with. We have to really examine ourselves and search our hearts to see that we are truly God-centered in this area. It is far easier to make our outward behaviour conform to certain Christian standards than to keep our hearts, minds, thoughts and motives subject to the Lord Jesus Christ. You may pray for financial success, but you may pray for it because you covet luxury and possessions. In the history of the church there have been people whom God has blessed with great business success and financial regard. I imagine they have made their business ventures a matter of prayer, and the cause of Christ has benefited substantially because of them. But if a man prays for that kind of success because he has a worldly minded hankering after luxury and self-indulgence, it is unlikely that that prayer will be answered. Indeed for such a man to receive his request would be more accurate to understand it as a judgment rather than an answer to prayer.

Again, a man may pray for gifts and abilities. The apostle Paul exhorted the Corinthians to earnestly covet the best gifts. There is nothing wrong with desiring gifts and abilities from God if you have a genuine desire to glory the Lord and bless His church. The trouble is that many pray such a prayer simply because they crave attention and a reputation. They want to be admired; they want other Christians to hold them in repute; they want to bask in the limelight and in the admiration of their fellows. But that is a wrong motive for prayer and God will surely not respond to such a prayer.

Even in our prayers for the church and for the salvation of souls and the prosperity of a church we must guard our motives. It is possible to pray for those things - and who could argue with church officers praying for God's blessing upon the church where they labour. But be careful that you don't pray like that because we want to boast in your success and in that wonderful progress being made in your particular corner. Too much of that goes on in Evangelicalism these days:- "our church had so many professions of faith, and so many backsliders restored, and so many of this and that and the other thing". And there is a terrible boasting over other churches: there is a glorying in themselves, and it is sinful and horrible before God. You may be praying for more workers, and yet he praying for more workers because you are too lazy to do the job yourself.

Motivation is important in prayer. We must pray for God's glory, with true concern for the cause of Christ and good of souls. We must guard against allowing “self” to push its way in as it so often does. Sometimes God does not answer because our motivation is wrong.

WHAT IS BEST

Sometimes God does not answer our prayers because he sees that a "no" answer is the best for us. The classic passage is 2 Cor.l2 where Paul tells us that three times he asked God to remove the "thorn in the flesh". God never did answer that prayer in the way Paul had wanted when he had offered it, because God knew that that would not have been best for Paul. If Paul had not had this thorn in the flesh, whatever it was, it appears that he would have been lifted up in pride because of the amazing revelations which God gave him. And if he had become proud his usefulness in the cause of Christ would have ceased. Now there was nothing that Paul wanted more than to serve Christ well, and therefore God in His wisdom did not answer Paul's prayer.

This is seen in every day life. Parents don't grant every request of their children. They refuse many requests, not because they do not love the child, but rather because do love the child and know what is best for it. A good parent is not about to give his or her child something which will ultimately hurt that child. Most children go through the stage of wanting to play with matches; they have seen the pretty flame which flares up when Mommy strikes the match. There would be nothing more wonderful to their childlike mind to play with matches and make lovely flames all day! So they ask Mommy if they can have the box of matches. If Mommy has any love for the child and any wisdom at all she will say "no". The child might cry; he might think that Mommy is hard and uncaring, but the truth is just the opposite. You sometimes cry when God doesn't grant your requests, and you are sometimes tempted to think that God is hard and uncaring. But that is far from the truth. God sees far more than you do; He sees things ahead that you have never considered. You must trust him to do what is right and best for you if you are His child, You must believe the many declarations of His word that tell you that He cares for you and is working all things together for your good. You must believe that His wisdom and love are perfect and that He will not make a mistake. Realize that sometimes the answer must be no, or at least "not now", and be content. Don't fret, but leave it with Him knowing that He does all things well.

GOD OR GIFTS?

Finally, God leaves some prayer unanswered to see if we love God Himself or simply what he gives us. We know how parents sometimes say to Grandma and Grandpa, "please don't bring gifts every time you come to see the children, because we want the children to appreciate you for what you are in yourselves, not just for what you bring them". There is wisdom in that. We are all apt to be that way. Adults want their children to love them for what they are not just because of what they get from them. Have you ever considered that God has thoughts like that too? It is possible to have your attention taken up with the gifts rather than the Giver. God wants you to avoid that. This was in essence the accusation of Satan against Job - "does Job serve God for nothing?" Satan was insinuating "he is in it for what he can get out of it". That is why God permitted Job to go through the trials that he did. God does not want us to love Him simply for what we can get out of Him, He wants us to love Him for what He is, to desire fellowship with Himself, so that even if we were deprived of all earthly goods and comforts we could still rejoice in Him and praise Him because we love Him for what He is.

Have you been more taken up with the gifts than the Giver? It could be that that is why God has not answered some of your prayers; He wants to wean you away from an over-attachment to things. He says "I am all you need; fellowship with me can make life truly worthwhile even without some of those things you think are so necessary. Get to know me some more".

Unanswered prayer can have a real ministry in our lives. If they make us more aware of God Himself; if they exercise our faith and confidence in God; if they make us aware of our motives and inner thoughts; if through the discipline of unanswered prayer we grow in spiritual stature, then we can even thank God for them.

Let us trust and not be afraid and have confidence that Jesus does all things well.

Pastor, What's the Difference?

June 1, 1970 by William Payne

INTRODUCTION

We are beginning to hear names and titles used in religious circles which have rarely been heard in years. "Calvinism", "Arminianism", "Reformed Theology", "Hyper-Calvinism" etc., these terms are cropping up in most unexpected places.

There are many reasons to be thankful that interest is being shown by Christian people in these terms, but it is very important that the man in the pew know what they stand for, and how and why they have arisen.

Discerning Christians realise that preachers are sometimes very different in the message they preach and in the methods they use. They hear one man referred to as a "Calvinist", and another man referred to as an "Arminian", and many people in our day are beginning to ask, "Pastor, what is the difference?"

The purpose of this article is to answer that question in some degree. Obviously this is not an exhaustive investigation; it is anything but that. While it will be very apparent which position I accept as one reads through the booklet, yet it is not an attempt to present biblical evidence of that position; I endeavour to do that in preaching and teaching, and perhaps in other articles ( see Doctrines of Grace article). It is simply an attempt to explain, in a way that the average Christian can understand, the origin and significance of some of these terms.

I - THE REFORMATION

In order to have a proper perspective and understanding of these terms which have been mentioned we should go back to the time of the Reformation.

The 16th. century witnessed the greatest upheaval in the religious world since the time of Pentecost. What is now usually referred to as the Protestant Reformation took place at that time, and it was an event of tremendous significance. Most evangelical Christians regard the Reformation as a glorious movement brought about by the Spirit of God, and give heartfelt thanks for it. The time of the Reformation was indeed a time of great spiritual blessing, and while it was a time of upheaval and debate, and sometimes even of violence, yet it was a time when multitudes were converted to Jesus Christ and brought into the light of the Gospel.

The Reformation is most closely identified with such great men of God as Martin Luther (1483-1546), John Calvin (1509-1564). Huldreich Zwingli (1484-1531), John Knox (1505-1572) etc. The basic desire of these men, and of the Reformation, was to bring the churches back to Apostolic Christianity, from the corruption of Romanism.

One of the "watchwords" of the Reformation was "scripture alone"; the Reformers called the people away from Roman tradition and superstition, and back to the Bible, the Word of God as the only infallible authority for the Christian faith. The Reformation, then, was an attempt to return to Apostolic Christianity, to Apostolic doctrine, to Apostolic preaching, and as such it was greatly blessed of God.

As multitudes were converted through the labours of the Reformers and their helpers, they were established into churches throughout Europe. The need was felt to give expression to the doctrines which the "reformed churches" (as they were often called) believed and taught, and so the great creeds of the Protestant churches began to appear. The Reformers themselves wrote much concerning the Christian Faith for the instruction and edification of their converts.

Probably the greatest theologian of the Reformation was John Calvin. This man was greatly used of God and his labours were prodigious. He wrote excellent commentaries on almost every book in the Bible, and early in his career wrote the "Institutes of the Christian Religion", which had a great influence in establishing the young churches of the Reformation. In the "Institutes" Calvin expounded the major doctrines of the Christian faith, and this great work still remains today as one of the finest expositions of Christian truth.

The Reformation movement was so successful under God's blessing that "reformed churches" were soon establish in most European countries including England, and though there were many difficulties and upheavals the churches flourished. While there were differences of opinion on matters such as the Lord's Supper, and aspects of church government, the churches of the Reformation were one with respect to the great fundamental truths of the Bible, and especially in those truths relating to God's work in the salvation of men.

The Reformation churches preached a God Who was sovereign, a humanity that was in every part corrupted by sin, and a salvation that was altogether of grace.

II - THE REACTION OF ARMINIUS AND THE SYNOD OF DORT

In the latter part of the 16th. century, however, a minister in Amsterdam, Holland, by the name of Jacob Arminius, began preaching certain things that were contrary to the confession of the Reformed churches of his country (the Belgic Confession of faith). Inasmuch as Arminius, like all the other ministers, had pledged to uphold and preach the doctrines set forth in the Confession, this was a serious offence, and he was challenged concerning it.

Although he again pledged to uphold the Reformed doctrine it was not long before his preaching again revealed that he had departed from the position of the Reformation, especially in the area of God's work in salvation. Great controversy ensued, and although Arminius died in the middle of the conflict his followers continued to promote his teachings in opposition to the confessions of the Reformed churches. The proponents of these anti-Reformation teachings became known as Arminians, the name being taken of course from Jacob Arminius, and in 1610 they drew up a document in which they set forth five doctrinal "articles" in the area of soteriology (the doctrine of salvation) exactly opposite to the teaching of the Reformers. These articles were known as the "5 remonstrants".

The Arminians stated:

1.  that God's election was based upon the fact that God "foresaw" that a man would repent and believe of his own "free will"

2.  that Christ's death did not actually secure the salvation of any man in particular, but simply made it possible for all men to be saved

3.  the need for regeneration (however further explanation of this revealed that even here they did not agree with the Reformers as to the nature of regeneration, or the depravity of human nature)

4.  that God's grace could be resisted totally; that is, that God might "try" to convert a man but might fail

5.  that a Christian might after all be lost again after being once saved.

In 1618 a great council was called in the Dutch town of Dort in order to examine the teachings of the Arminians in the light of the Word of God. Representatives from all the "reformed" churches of Europe were present, including a number from England. After more than six months of careful deliberation the "synod" issued its decisions and findings. The teachings of Arminius were shown to be without true biblical foundation, and the "5 remonstrants" were answered by five articles of scriptural truth set out by the synod. It should be kept in mind that the synod was composed of the finest preachers and theologians of the Protestant world of that day.

The churches of the Reformation declared:

1.  that Man's nature was totally effected by sin, which meant that his will was affected by sin, and was in bondage to his sinful nature, and therefore his salvation did not arise out of his "free-will"

2.  that God's election was not conditioned by foreseen faith in man, but was "according to the good pleasure of His will"

3.  that Christ's death secured, and made certain the salvation of the elect, purchasing for them all the gifts (including repentance and faith) that were necessary to it, and that it was restricted in its intent to them only

4.  that God's grace always secured its designed end

5.  that God's elect would persevere in faith and holiness unto the end, they being kept by the power of God.

It is important to notice that these were not new teachings, but these were the doctrines upon which the Reformation had been built. Just as the teaching of Arminius became known as Arminianism, so the position of the reformed churches and the synod of Dort became known as "Calvinism", and the five articles that were presented in opposition to the new teaching of Arminius became known as the "five points of Calvinism".

Calvin's name was linked with these doctrines simply because he was the foremost theologian of the Reformation movement and had most ably and systematically set forth the Biblical doctrines preached by the Reformers. These doctrines did not originate with him; they come directly from the Word of God itself, and they had been ably expounded centuries before by the great Augustine.

III - CALVINISM

The five points of Calvinism simply set forth the work of the Triune God in the salvation of sinners - election by the Father, redemption by the Son, regeneration by the Spirit. These great truths are flanked by the need of salvation, the total depravity and inability of man, and the result of God's work in the soul of man i.e., perseverance in the faith. Thus they deal with the very heart of the gospel and the Christian faith. Calvinism sets forth the sovereignty of God in man's salvation, without detracting from man's responsibility. Armininianism presents man's will as sovereign, and divides the credit for salvation between God and man.

Dr. J.I. Packer states:

"The difference between them (Calvinism and Arminianism) is not primarily one of emphasis, but of content. One proclaims a God who saves: the other speaks of a God who enables man to save himself. One view (Calvinism) presents the three great acts of the Holy Trinity for the recovering of lost mankind - election by the Father. redemption by the Son, calling by the Spirit - as directed towards the same persons, and as securing their salvation infallibly. The other view (Arminianism) gives each act a different reference (the objects of redemption being all mankind, of calling those who hear the gospel, and of electing those hearers who respond), and denies that any man's salvation is secured by any of them. The two theologies thus conceive the plan of salvation in quite different terms. One makes salvation depend on the work of God, the other on a work of man; one regards faith as part of God's gift of salvation, the other as man's own contribution to salvation; one gives all the glory for saving believers to God, the other divides the praise between God, who, so to speak, built the machinery of salvation, and man, who by believing, operated it." (Introductory essay to "The Death of Death" by J. Owen)

It is not the purpose of this booklet to attempt to prove the scripturalness and the truth of Calvinism. This has been done ably by preachers and scholars down through the years.

"Calvinism", then, is simply a "nickname" for the Biblical teaching of the Reformation, and especially the "five points" already referred to. Because it is simply a setting forth of the teaching of the Reformers, Calvinism is also known as "Reformed Theology". Arminianism, however, is a reaction against that teaching, and a denial of the five points."

It is simply a fact of history that "Calvinism" has been the heart and marrow of the teaching of the great Protestant denominations in Christendom, with the exception of the Wesleyan Methodists. The Lutheran denomination might also prefer to be included in the exception, but it should be realized that in following Melancthon in his "synergistic" theology they departed from Luther's conviction, as his writing and their earliest creed reveal. The great historic doctrinal confessions of the churches, such as the Presbyterian Westminster Confession, and the Baptist Second London Confession give clear testimony to the truths of "Calvinism". Even the 39 articles of the Anglican church have a definite "Calvinistic" emphasis. The majority of the greatest evangelists, preachers, and theologians who have graced the Christian church have all rejoiced in a clearly preached Calvinism.

Apart from the Reformers already mentioned, we think of such men as Hugh Latimer, John Owen, Joseph Alleine, John Bunyan, Jonathan Edwards, George Whitefield, David Brainerd, William Carey, Charles Spurgeon, Horatius Bonar, Robert Murray McCheynne, and a host of others. These men, on fire for God, and mightily used of God had grasped the glorious Biblical truths nicknamed Calvinism.

We are reminded of a statement by Spurgeon, when he once said:

"It is no novelty, then, that I am preaching; no new doctrine. I love to proclaim these strong old doctrines, that are called by nickname Calvinism; but which are surely and verily the revealed truth of God as it is in Christ Jesus. By this truth I make a pilgrimage into the past, and as I go, I see father after father, confessor after confessor, martyr after martyr, standing up to shake hands with me. Were I a Pelagian, or a believer in the doctrine of free-will. I should have to walk for centuries all alone. Here and there a heretic, of no very honorable character, might rise up and call me brother. But taking these things to be the standard of my faith, I see the land of the ancients peopled with my brethren, I behold multitudes who confess the same as I do, and acknowledge that this is the religion of God's own church". (Sermon on Election from the text 2 Thessalonians 2:13, 14)

The only group of any consequence who historically were not Calvinists were the Wesleyan Methodists, and they adopted a modified form of Arminianism.

Sad to say, however, it has often been the case that men have let slip their grasp on truth with the passing of generations. This is true as we consider the last few centuries. Arminianism is much more palatable to the natural mind; it is not as crushing to human pride; it is much nicer and easier medicine to take from man's viewpoint!

In the 18th and 19th century the Christian church received great onslaughts from rationalism and humanism and in grappling with the new challenges from these foes, foolishly let slip the strong old doctrines of the church. Arminianism gained the ascendancy in many of the great denominations, and the old faith was well nigh abandoned except for a "remnant". For the past 100 years the great truths of "Calvinism" have been virtually forgotten by the evangelical world, though with some notable exceptions, but there are hopeful signs that God is reviving His truth again, and bringing many to realize that the man-centred teachings of Arminius are no substitute for the truth which our forefathers so gloriously declared.

As we have already stated, because Calvinism was the teaching of the Reformation it is often called "Reformed Theology", and because of its emphasis on the grace of God it is often called the Doctrines of Grace. Calvinism, Reformed Theology, and the Doctrines of Grace, are all the same thing, and present the truth of God's sovereignty in every sphere, and particularly in the sphere of salvation.

IV - COMPARING CALVINISM AND ARMINIANISM

Steels and Thomas present a very helpful table to enable us to compare the two systems:

The Five Points of Arminianism compared to The Five Points of Calvinism

Arminianism ... Point 1: Free Will or Human Ability

Although human nature was seriously affected by the Fall, man has not been left in a state of total spiritual helplessness. God graciously enables every sinner to repent and believe, but he does so in such a manner as not to interfere with man's freedom. Each sinner possesses a free will, and his eternal destiny depends on how he uses it. Man's freedom consists in his ability to choose good over evil in spiritual matters; his will is not enslaved to his sinful nature. The sinner has the power to either cooperate with God's Spirit and be regenerated or resist God's grace and perish. The lost sinner needs the Spirit's assistance but he does not have to be regenerated by the Spirit before he can believe, for faith is man's act and precedes the new birth. Faith is the sinner's gift to God; it is man's contribution to salvation.

Calvinism ... Point 1: Total Depravity or Total Inability

Because of the Fall, man is unable of himself to savingly believe the gospel. The sinner is dead, blind, and deaf to the things of God; his heart is deceitful and desperately corrupt. His will is not free, it is in bondage to his sinful nature, therefore he will not - indeed he cannot - choose good over evil in the spiritual realm. Consequently it takes much more than the Spirit's assistance to bring a sinner to Christ - it takes regeneration by which the Spirit makes the sinner alive and gives him a new nature. Faith is not something that man contributes to salvation, but is itself a part of God's gift of salvation - it is God's gift to the sinner, not the sinner's gift to God.

Arminianism ... Point 2: Conditional Election

God's choice of certain individuals to salvation before the foundation of the world was based upon his foreseeing that they would respond to His call. He selected only those whom He knew would of themselves freely believe the gospel. Election therefore was determined by or conditioned upon what man would do. The faith which God foresaw and upon which He based His choice was not given to the sinner by God (it was not created by the regenerating power of the Holy Spirit), but resulted solely from man's free will. It was left entirely up to man as to who would be elected unto salvation. God chose those, whom He knew would, of their own free will choose Christ. Thus the sinner's choice of Christ, not God's choice of the sinner, is the ultimate cause of salvation.

Calvinism ... Point 2: Unconditional Election

God's choice of certain individuals unto salvation before the foundation of the world rested solely in His own sovereign will. His choice of particular sinners was not based on any foreseen response or obedience on their part, such as faith, repentance, etc. On the contrary God gives faith and repentance to each individual whom He selected. These acts are the result not the cause of God's choice. Election therefore was not conditioned upon any virtuous quality or act foreseen in man. Those whom God sovereignly elected He brings through the power of the Spirit to a willing acceptance of Christ. Thus God's choice of the sinner, not the sinner's choice of Christ, is the ultimate cause of salvation.

Arminianism ... Point 3: Universal Redemption or General Atonement

Christ's redeeming work made it possible for everyone to be saved but did not actually secure the salvation of anyone. Although Christ died for all men, only those who believe in Him are saved. His death enabled God to pardon sinners on the condition that they believe but it did not actually put away anyone's sins. Christ's redemption becomes effective only if man chooses to accept it.

Calvinism ... Point 3: Particular Redemption or Limited Atonement

Christ's redeeming work was intended to save the elect only, and actually secured salvation for them. His death was a substitutionary endurance of the penalty of sin in the place of certain specified sinners. In addition to putting away the sins of His people, Christ's redemption secured everything necessary for their salvation including faith which unites them to Him. The gift of faith is infallibly applied by the Spirit to all for whom Christ died, thereby guaranteeing their salvation.

Arminianism ... Point 4: The Holy Spirit can be Effectually Resisted

The Spirit calls inwardly all those who are outwardly called by the Gospel invitation. He does all that He can to bring every sinner to salvation. But inasmuch as man is free, he can successfully resist the Spirit's call. The Spirit cannot regenerate the sinner until he believes. Faith (which is man's contribution) precedes and makes possible the new birth. Thus man's free will limits the Spirit in the application of Christ's saving work. The Holy Spirit can only draw to Christ those who allow Him to have His way with them. Until the sinner responds the spirit cannot give life. God's grace therefore, is not invincible; it can be, and often is, resisted and thwarted by man.

Calvinism ... Point 4: Irresistible Grace or the Efficacious Call of the Spirit

In addition to the outward general call which is made to everyone who hears the Gospel, the Holy Spirit extends to the elect a special inward call that inevitably brings them to salvation. The external call (which is made to all without distinction) can be, and often is rejected; whereas the internal call (which is made only to the elect) cannot be rejected; it always results in conversion. By means of this special call the Spirit irresistibly draws sinners to Christ. He is not limited in His work of applying salvation by man's will, nor is He dependent on man's co-operation for success. The Spirit graciously causes the elect sinner to cooperate, to believe, to repent, to come freely and willingly to Christ. God's grace therefore is invincible; it never fails to result therefore in the salvation of those to whom it is extended.

Arminianism ... Point 5: Falling From Grace
Those who believe and are truly saved can lose their salvation by failing to keep up their faith etc. All Arminians have not been agreed on this point, some have held that believers are eternally secure in Christ - that once a sinner is regenerated he can never be lost.

Calvinism ... Point 5: Perseverance of the Saints

All who were chosen by God, redeemed by Christ, and given faith by the Spirit are eternally saved. They are kept in faith by the power of Almighty God and thus persevere to the end.

(Calvinism Defined, Defended, Documented. Published by Presbyterian & Reformed Publishing Company.)

A Calvinist, then, is one who accepts and preaches these "5 points" as setting forth Biblical truth in those areas dealt with. However it is a sad fact, that in our day (when, it must be acknowledged a great deal of ignorance abounds in the area of theology and church history) that people who teach these "5 points" are often branded as "Hyper-Calvinists" and this term is used as a strong reproach.

V - HYPER-CALVINISM

Therefore we need to ask, what is a "Hyper-Calvinist"?

The word "Hyper" indicates a "going beyond", "further than the proper bounds"; it indicates an extreme, beyond the norm; and indeed there is such a thing as Hyper-Calvinism, but this can hardly be an acceptance and preaching of the "5 points", for looking historically and accurately at Calvinism the "5 points" are the norm.

In a very real sense Arminianism and Hyper-Calvinism share a basic factor in common. They both try to apply human logic to the divine revelation. The Arminian reasons this way - "because men are commanded to repent and believe the gospel, they must therefore have the ability within themselves to do so" (they fail to apply the same logic to God's command to men to keep His law). From this bad logic they derive their doctrine of free will. The Hyper-Calvinist reasons this way - "because men do not have the ability within themselves to repent and believe the gospel, therefore there is no point in commanding them to do so". Both these groups are correct until they get to their "therefore", and then human logic and deduction takes over; but unfortunately they go beyond what is revealed in the Scriptures.

The Calvinistic, Biblical position takes the truth from both these statements and holds them both without trying to make them "logical". Men are commanded to repent and believe the gospel, and they are responsible to God to do so; men are unable in and of themselves to repent and believe because of their sinful nature. This is the dilemma into which the grace of God enters, according to His purpose of election, and by the mighty power of the Spirit, those for whom Christ died are made alive, and brought by the gospel to repentance and faith in the Saviour. This is the miracle of God's salvation!

The Hyper-Calvinist grasps the truth of man's inability, and the truth that God will certainly save His elect, but he wrongly deducts from that there is no necessity therefore to preach the gospel to every creature, and to engage in efforts to reach the lost.

His "logic" in going beyond the Scriptures brings him into an unbiblical position where he ceases to see the necessity of using God-ordained "means" to produce the God-ordained goals. This sad fact often produces a lack of evangelistic zeal and missionary activity among Hyper-Calvinists, and a lack of compassion for the lost.

Coupled with this fact we may say that the Hyper-Calvinist not only does not see the necessity for preaching the gospel to every creature, but considers it wrong to urge repentance and faith upon sinners indiscriminately. It is sometimes expressed this way, that the Hyper-Calvinist does not believe in "duty faith" and "duty repentance"; he does not believe that all men should be invited to come to Christ. In contrast to this, the historic Calvinist does most certainly believe that it is the duty and responsibility of all men to repent and believe even though they have, through sin, lost the ability to do so; and the Calvinist does not hesitate to bid all men everywhere to repent, and to invite every man to trust the Saviour.

True Calvinism therefore is not opposed to evangelism and missionary activity for it recognizes that the elect must be saved through the gospel, and like Paul the Calvinist puts the question "how shall they hear without a preacher"? Again, if it is the duty of all men to repent and believe, then all men must be told of this responsibility. The fact that true Calvinism is not opposed to evangelism and missionary work is attested to by the great names of history who have gone to the ends of the earth to proclaim the gospel and who were Calvinistic in their theology. The names of John Eliot, David Brainerd, John Paton, William Carey and George Whitefield suffice to make the point.

Hyper-Calvinism is also characterised by the view that God's decree of election is viewed without reference to the Fall of man, that is, the Hyper-Calvinist believes that God created some men with the express purpose of damning them simply as creatures, not as sinful, fallen creatures.

Historic Calvinism, on the other hand, has always presented God's decree of election as a most gracious decree against the background of the Fall of man. Out of a race already on the way to hell because of its own sin. God graciously wills to choose a great multitude out of sheer mercy and grace. God does not damn men for nothing says Calvinism. He damns them because of their sin.

Another characteristic that has been seen in some (though not all) Hyper-Calvinists is "Antinomianism". The word means "against or opposed to the law". It represents the idea that the moral law is not binding on the Christian, and some have indeed claimed to be God's elect, and on the basis of his claim have then proceeded to live as they pleased, disregarding the Word of God and bringing great reproach on the cause of Truth.

Historic Calvinism, following the Bible as its guide, has also insisted that the fact of election is always revealed in holiness of life, and has strongly condemned the Antinomianism of some Hyper-Calvinists.

Other factors might be added, but enough has been said to show that Hyper-Calvinism is as distinct from Historic Calvinism as is Arminianism. They are both extreme positions, though of course opposite extremes; they are both departures from the Biblical position, and both suffer from the insistence of applying human logic where human logic has no right to be!

VI - WHAT DIFFERENCE DOES IT MAKE?

The question, of course, often asked is, what difference does it make? While I would certainly not advocate Christians breaking off fellowship over these matters, we must recognize that it does make a difference which view one takes; it does matter.

We may say immediately that it matters simply from the viewpoint that God's people should be concerned to know the true doctrine of the Word of God. Every true Christian should want to know what the Bible really teaches, and should approach the Scriptures in a submissive spirit, ready to accept all that is plainly revealed. Our problem is that often we are prepared to believe only what we want to believe. We ought not to approach the Bible with the attitude "what do I like best, what appeals to me", but "what saith the scriptures". It is our duty as Christian to study the scriptures and to receive all its teaching.

However, it matters further, in that our doctrinal viewpoint will generally affect our attitude to God. A grasp of Reformed Theology will give a person a proper sense of the majesty of God. It has been said that a Calvinist is one who has "seen God". The one who said that was not inferring a physical sight or vision, but meant that with the "eyes of the understanding", he had perceived the greatness of God. His soul had been overwhelmed with the consciousness of God's glory. Reformed teaching presents God as being truly "high and lifted up", and the one who has grasped these great Biblical truths stands in awe of a sovereign God, a God of awesome holiness, of infinite power, of solemn majesty, before whom he and all of creation must bow in deep reverence and humble adoration.

The truth of sovereign grace produces a spirit of reverence in the soul; it instills a right fear of God; not a fear in the sense of terror which would drive us away from God's presence, but fear in the sense of sonlike reverence and respect. This is the kind of fear what produces good behaviour in the house of God, and which causes a person to hate the idea of sinning against such a God. I suggest that this right attitude towards God is sadly lacking in many churches today, and I suggest that this is related to the fact that the old doctrines calculated to produce it have been forsaken or neglected.

Furthermore, an understanding of the doctrines of grace will produce a profound thankfulness for our salvation that nothing else can.

This is not to say that an Arminian is not thankful for his salvation, God forbid. But one who sees these things from an Arminian standpoint must always be conscious (if he is a thinking person) that some of the credit can rightly go to him. While God provided salvation, it was his (the sinner's) decision that really clinched the deal; it was his right exercise of his independent will which ultimately saved him. The difference between him and those who are lost is not something which God did, but something he did.

The Calvinist cannot agree to such assertions; he sees his salvation as "all of grace". It was God who saved him from first to last - God the Father by choosing him, God the Son by redeeming him, God the Spirit by quickening him. While recognising the necessity to believe, and knowing that we are justified by faith, the Calvinist realises that even that faith was the very gift of God to him. He sees the blood of Christ as not just making salvation possible, but as actually securing his salvation - bearing all his sins, standing in his room and stead, and fully satisfying God's righteous claims against him. He is overwhelmed by the glory of the cross and like Toplady he cries:

From whence this fear and unbelief? Hast thou O Father put to grief Thy spotless Son for me? And will the righteous judge of men condemn me for that debt of sin which Lord was laid on Thee? If Thou hast my discharge procured, and freely in my room endured the whole of wrath divine, payment God cannot twice demand, first at my bleeding Surety's hand and then again at mine. Complete atonement Thou hast made, and to the utmost farthing paid what'er Thy people owed; how then on me can wrath take place, if sheltered in Thy righteousness and sprinkled with Thy blood? Turn then my soul unto Thy rest; the merits of Thy great high priest speak peace and liberty; Trust in His efficacious blood, nor fear Thy banishment from God, since Jesus died for Thee.

The Calvinist recognises that God could have justly left him in his sins; he could have passed him by and left him to suffer the just rewards of his sins; but instead, in saving mercy He "commanded the light to shine in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ". Thus a grasp of these truths prostrates the soul before God "lost in wonder love and praise", that such a God should sovereignly save such a sinner!

It makes a difference also in that a grasp of the doctrines of grace causes the believer to give equal glory to each of the persons of the Trinity for their working in the plan of salvation.

The dominance of Arminian theology in our generation has produced great emphasis on the work of the Son (which in itself is a good thing, of course), but it has almost totally overlooked the work of the Father and the Holy Spirit, and this is not good. Our God is the Triune God, and we must honour the Father and the Spirit, just as we honour the Son, or else we grieve the Lord God.

Because the Father's prerogative in election has been denied, and the Spirit's work in regeneration has been greatly perverted, the honour and glory due these divine persons is not given. Biblical Calvinism, presenting the harmonious working of the Trinity in salvation gives due emphasis to the Father's work of election, the Son's work in redemption, and the Spirit's work in regeneration. Thus we are caused to admire the wisdom and the greatness of the Triune God, and His marvellous salvation.

VII - EVANGELISM

It matters what position we take on this issue when it comes to the work of evangelism.

Arminianism has a tendency to drive men to methods, while Calvinism drives men to God. If it is God who sovereignly saves people through the use of His truth, then the need is for us to make known the truth, and get it out to everyone we can, and fervently to seek God's face for the supernatural power of His Spirit to apply His truth to the hearts of sinners.

However, if we are persuaded that "God has done all He can", that "God can do no more", and that "it is now all up to you", then we are going to take up our time thinking more about men than God. Our thoughts will centre on how we can persuade that sinner to take the necessary independent step that he must take before God can help him. The sinner must be persuaded to "allow God" the chance to come in and do something. So the average modern evangelical, motivated (perhaps unknowingly) by Arminianism is constantly looking for "new soul winning methods" and techniques by which the sinner may be persuaded. Obviously if God can do no more, and the sinner must be persuaded to "allow God", then why waste time praying to God to do something which we've already concluded He cannot do! And so our attention instead of being taken up with God, is taken up with men and methods.

There will be a great difference in the preaching of one who believes as we have just described, and the one who preaches in the assurance that the Spirit of God will do His own work of applying Christ's redemption to God's elect in His own time and way; and that the Spirit and only the Spirit, by means of the truth, can open blind eyes, unstop deaf ears, and cause men to repent and believe the gospel.

Still thinking in the field of evangelism, an understanding of the truth of Calvinism will keep a person from superficial views of conversion, and from this angle the position we take will make a difference.

Arminianism, with its emphasis on the ability of the human will, and man-devised methods has come to view salvation solely in terms of a "decision". This "decision" is usually registered by responding to an "altar call", or going through a given procedure in a counselling room, and once this decision is registered it is confidently asserted that another soul has been born again. But the appalling "drop out" rate in modern evangelicalism; the omission of vital aspects of truth (e.g. depravity, repentance); the evident lack of conviction of sin, and many other things cause one to wonder, is this truly Biblical conversion? Or have we, because of our desire to appear successful, deceived ourselves into accepting a sub-standard "Christianity" which will not stand up under the searching eye of the Word of God, and which will avail nothing in the day of judgment?

Calvinism will deliver one from such superficial views of conversion, for it sees conversion not simply in terms of a "decision", but as the work of the Spirit of God, first of all convincing of sin, then enlightening the mind in the knowledge of Christ, and then renewing the will so that the sinner receives the whole Christ as Saviour and Lord. Furthermore, Calvinism insists on evidence in the life as the great test of the reality of the profession; it is by our fruits, not by our decisions that we must be known. Historic Biblical Calvinism has always strongly emphasised human responsibility, the responsibility of a sinner to repent and believe the gospel, but it also emphasises the necessity of a divine work within the soul, and the absolute necessity of the evidence of this being seen in the life.

In modern evangelicalism, when a "firm decision" is recorded, and yet the subsequent life reveals nothing of the "new creature in Christ", it is regarded as almost a heresy to suggest that regeneration has not taken place. Rather a manner of theories are invented to explain this unfortunate state, but to firmly insist that the person is a Christian! This sad situation simply confirms the deluded souls in their unrenewed state, assuring them that heaven is theirs, while they are on the broad road that leads to destruction.

One of the crying needs of the hour is for evangelicals to return to a Biblical view of conversion. It will be a humbling procedure, for we will have to acknowledge that we are not enjoying the great blessing that we have perhaps been claiming, and that our churches are not experiencing the mighty ministry of the Spirit as we would like to think.

Finally, let me say that our viewpoint in this matter will make a difference with respect to our perseverance in the Lord's service. All evangelical Christians admit that the service of Christ though glorious is not easy. There are disappointments and discouragements. Many a Christian worker has given up because of these things, and in these circumstances Arminianism has no comfort to offer for nothing is assured, success hangs in the balance, the stubborn human will may frustrate our every effort!

But the truths of sovereign grace are a great comfort to the Christian worker. He knows that "no man can come unto me except the Father which hath sent me draw him"; but he also knows that "all that the Father hath given me shall come unto me". It was the truth of sovereign grace, for instance, that enabled Paul to persevere in the difficult work in Corinth, for God had told him, "be not afraid but speak; and hold not thy peace; for I am with thee, and no man shall set on thee to hurt thee for I have much people to this city" (Acts 18:9f). We labour knowing that the Father has given a people to His Son, and that through the witness and labours of God's people, under the blessing of God's Spirit, Christ "shall see of the travail of His soul and be satisfied". Victory is assured because the outcome depends not on man's will but on God's will. As Martin Luther wrote:

And though this world with devils filled,
Should threaten to undo us,
We will not fear for God hath willed
His truth to triumph through us.

We live in a world that has been conditioned to want the spectacular and the dramatic. This, we are told, is the "now generation". They want instant results!

We openly confess that the Calvinistic viewpoint seems to be in contrast to this. The patient exposition of scriptural truth is far less dramatic than great campaigns and "scintillating evangelists". Leaving the Spirit of God to fulfil His ministry is far less spectacular than being able to publish lists of decisions! Yet it is the conviction of this writer that in the long run, the well being and spiritual health of the Church of Christ at large depends on a return to the doctrines of grace, and the proclamation of them in the power of the Spirit throughout the world.

Like the reformers we need to come back to the Bible, and all the Bible, and the Bible alone. We need a return to Biblical theology and Biblical preaching. May God revive His truth in these days, and may He be pleased to revive His work.

The author is informed that the name "Reformed Baptists" is used by a group in the Maritimes whose theology is decidedly Arminian. He wishes to point out, therefore, that the word "reformed" as used in the present article is used in the historical sense, as explained in the article; that is, as flowing from the Reformation.

It should also be pointed out that the author, being a Baptist, does not endorse the infant baptism aspects of covenant theology, as espoused by reformed churches (i.e. Presbyterian, various Dutch Reformed Churches etc.). See the "Abrahamic Covenant and Baptism" article.