Читать книгу Raising the Alarm Over False Conversion - Alfred Chong - Страница 5

A) Man’s Need for Salvation

Man is condemned because he has inherited Adam's sinful nature and guilt (Rom. 5:12 -19). He is by nature spiritually dead (Eph. 2:1; Col. 2:13), separated from God (Eph. 4:18; Isa. 59:2), a child of wrath (John 3:36; Eph. 2:3), in bondage to sin (Rom. 7:14; Gal 4:3) and has a legal standing of eternal damnation (Rom. 5:18). Thus all fallen humans are liable to eternal punishment (2 The. 1:8-9). Unless a carnal man receives salvation during his lifetime or before the Lord Jesus returns, he will end up in eternal misery (Mat. 25:46; 2 The. 1:8-9).

In order to be saved, sinners must willingly repent and believe in Christ (Acts 16:31; 17:30). The problem is a fallen man has lost his ability to do anything good spiritually to attain salvation (Gen. 6:5, Isa. 64:6; Rom. 7:19-21). The Gospel is foolishness to him (1 Cor. 1:18) because he is unable to discern spiritual truth (1 Cor. 2:13-14). His natural tendency is to reject God (Rom. 1:18; 8:7) and he cannot come to Christ (John 6:44, 65). No amount of human goodness and work can earn the favor of God (Eph. 2:8-9; Tit. 3:5; Gal. 2:16). So how does a lost person become a saved soul?

B) God’s Solution

God has provided the grace for sinners to receive the gift of the Holy Spirit (Acts 10:45; 11:17; 15:8; Rom. 5:5). The bestowal of the Holy Spirit is the inception of a true conversion. True conversion is the act of being delivered from the penalty and power of sin so that a converted person gains eternal life and will escape eternal damnation.

By grace God imparts spiritual life and faith to individuals so that they are able to believe. Before sinners can profess their true faith in Christ, they have to be effectually called and regenerated by God the Spirit through the preaching and hearing of the Gospel (2 The. 2:14; Jam. 1:18; 1 Pet. 1:23).

God has chosen to redeem individuals from their sins by the blood of His Son (Eph. 1:4-7; Rom. 5:6-11). Jesus accomplished their judicial redemption through His atoning sacrifice (1 Pet. 2:24; Rom. 3:24-26). It was on the cross that all the righteous demands of a holy and just God were satisfied so that individuals may be justified (Rom. 3:24-26). The moment a person is declared acquitted by God, the guilt and penalty of one’s sin is wiped out forever (Acts 13:38-39; Rom. 8:1). Hence justification delivers a convert from the penalty of sin. A person must have true faith before one can be justified.

When an individual is baptized by the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:5; John 1:33), one also receives definitive sanctification. The person is eternally cleansed from sin by the precious blood of Christ (Heb. 13:12), resulting in one’s separation from sin. Definitive sanctification sets a convert free from the power of sin (Rom. 6:22; 8:2; 2 Cor. 3:17) so that one may walk in newness of life (Rom. 6:4). The basis of a convert’s definitive sanctification is one’s spiritual union with Christ in His death, burial and resurrection (Rom. 6:3-7; Col. 1:21-22; 2 Cor. 5:14-15).

C) God’s Grace

Grace is an unmerited or undeserved favor God has granted to His people (Eph. 1:7; 2:7). It is the amazing display of God's love (Rom. 5:8). God’s grace is eternal (2 Tim. 1:9), sovereign (Rom. 9:11-24), effectual (Rom. 8:29-30; 1 Cor. 1:9, 24), infinite (Rom. 5:20) and irrevocable (Rom. 11:29). Salvation is by God’s grace (Eph. 2:8; Tit. 2:11); it is the grace of God that enables individuals to escape His wrath.

Grace is a gift of God (Eph. 3:7). Therefore grace can neither be claimed as a right nor earned by works. God calls sinners to salvation according to His purpose and grace, not because of their own efforts (2.Tim.1:8-9). Sinners cannot possibly do anything to merit God's approval or earn His favor (Eph. 2:8-9).

Grace is conveyed through the preaching of the Gospel (2 The. 2:14; Jam. 1:18). God grants new birth to a sinner by grace alone. By grace God causes the new birth of individuals by effectually calling them through the power of the Gospel and the Holy Spirit (1 Pet. 1:23, 25; 2 The. 2:13-14; 1 Cor. 2:4-5), raising them from spiritual death and imparting faith to them. Upon regeneration [new birth], one would always respond positively and come to a saving faith in Christ (1 John 5:1; Acts 16:14).

Faith in Christ is the result of God’s work (1 John 5:1; John 6:44, 65; Acts 16:14; Eze. 36:26-27). Believers cannot boast about their faith because it is the gift from the Lord (Eph. 2:8-9; Rom. 5:15-17; 12:3). It is by grace they are enabled to believe (Acts 18:27; John 6:65).

From beginning to end, every act of the salvation process is the work of God’s grace. Sinners must have faith in order to be saved, but even their faith is the gift of God. Therefore salvation is all of grace and accomplished solely through the power of God. Salvation is of the Lord (Psa. 3:8; Jon. 2:9; John 6:44; Rev. 19:1). The purpose of salvation of God’s people is for His glory (Rom. 9:23; Isa. 43:7). Salvation of lost souls is to the praise of God’s glory alone (Eph. 1:13-14). It is all of grace through Christ for all His glory.

D) God’s Sovereignty in the Universe

The Lord God Almighty is the Creator of heavens and earth (Gen. 14:19, 22). He is sovereign over all things in the universe (Psa. 103:19; Job 41:11). God exercises supreme authority and control over all creation (Psa. 103:19; Dan. 2:20-23; Col. 1:17), and His dominion is eternal (Dan. 4:34-35).

God’s will is sovereign and His decree and purpose are unchangeable (Psa. 33:11; Lam. 2:17; Mal. 3:6). If God chooses to do something, it shall come to pass because He does not change His mind. God does whatever He pleases (Psa. 115:3; 135:6). No one can reverse what God wills to do (Isa. 43:13). The Lord works out everything according to His plan (Eph. 1:11; Pro. 16:4). Nothing happens unless the omnipotent God allows it (Lam. 3:37); He either permits or causes it to happen. Everything that occurs on earth does so at the time God chooses (Psa. 75:2; Ecc. 3:1, 11). He upholds all things by His powerful word (Heb. 1:3). It is not difficult for people to see God's sovereignty in His daily providence (Rom. 8:28; 11:36), and it extends to all creatures (Psa. 104:21-29; Mat. 6:26; 10:29).

E) God’s Sovereignty in Salvation

The Lord is the sovereign ruler over all creation and owner of everything (1 Chr. 29:11-12; Gen. 14:19, 22). God has the absolute prerogative to do whatever He desires with His creatures (Dan. 4:34-35). His sovereignty is prominently revealed in His work of salvation (Rom. 9:8-24). It is His privilege to give grace where He chooses and to withhold it when He pleases (Exo. 33:19; Psa. 115:3). God hides from some and reveals Himself to others as He pleases (Isa. 45:14-17). Sinners deserve nothing but God's wrath and judgment (Rom. 1:18, 32; 2:2-4). If God saves certain individuals in spite of their sins, it is because it pleases Him to do so (Eph 1:5-11, Psa. 135:6). The Lord saves whom He chooses, “For just as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, even so the Son gives life to whom he is pleased to give it” (John 5:21). God told Moses, “I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion” (Exo. 33:19). He deals differently with men; He has mercy on some but hardens others (Rom. 9:18). He makes certain individuals to be recipients of His grace, and others to receive His righteous judgment (Rom. 9:13, 22-23). The Lord consults no one in His choice of the blessed ones. God is calling the shots; He alone is in control in the realm of salvation (1 Cor. 1:30; 2 Cor. 4:6; Gal. 1:15-16; 2 Tim. 1:9). The Lord is sovereign in the salvation of sinners; they are dependent on Him for their eternal well being.

God chose people in Christ before the foundation of the world (Eph. 1:4; 2 Tim. 1:8-9). He first sent His Son to die for their sins (1 John 4:9-10; Rom. 5:8). Then by His grace and through the power of the Gospel and the Holy Spirit, He effectually calls them to salvation (1 Cor. 2:4-5; 2 The. 2:13-14; 1 The. 1:4-5). Wherever the Gospel is preached faithfully, the Spirit effectually calls and regenerates the chosen sinners (1 The. 1:4-5; 1 Cor. 2:4-5), imparting spiritual life and faith to them so that they are drawn to Christ (John 6:44). God the Spirit cannot be hindered in His work of conversion (John 3:8). The sovereign Spirit is not influenced by a seeker’s decision for Christ, nor is He submissive to the will of a prospect who recites a sinner’s prayer. Salvation is the work of God (1 Cor. 1:30-31; Phi. 1:6). The decisive factor in salvation is God's sovereign will (Eph. 1:4-5, 11; Rom. 9:15-16), not the free will of man (John 1:13).

It appears unfair that only some individuals receive God’s grace. The Bible reminds us that justice can only condemn all men, for all have sinned (Rom. 9:14). God would have been just if He leaves the entire humanity to perish and share the eternal misery. God does not grant a sinner what one deserves, but what He delights in giving. The Lord is not unjust to extend mercy to some and harden others, because all deserve His judgment. He is only unjust if He holds back the blessings that men deserve. However God is gracious in giving individuals the salvation which they could never merit. People also have to remember that God has the prerogative to do whatever He desires with His creatures.

F) Man Dislikes the Truth

The doctrine of God's sovereignty is one of the most offensive doctrines to the human nature. Man has difficulty to accept the truth that God is the supreme ruler over all creation, and in control of everybody's life. Lost sinners, fallen into the pitfall of pride, are trapped in the delusion of their autonomy. The teaching that God is sovereign in salvation is unpopular among the professing Christians. The reasons are firstly they assume that they are the captains of their own souls, and have innate right to self-control and to rule their own environment; secondly God's sovereignty takes salvation out of the hands of men, stripping them of their pride and honor; thirdly they cannot believe a loving God can be so unfair to saves certain sinners, but leaves others to be condemned eternally; fourthly people are afraid that they might not be among the chosen people of God.

G) God’s Sovereignty and Man’s Free Will

There is no contradiction between God's sovereignty and man’s free will. It is God, the master potter, who formed an individual according to His own purpose (Isa.64:8). The will of man can never move beyond nor contradict what God has already predetermined from eternity past (Isa. 46:10-11). Men are not robots; they are allowed to act according to their will and intellect. Nonetheless, every event or situation that influences the choice of man is foreordained by God (Lam. 3:37; Pro. 16:4; 20:24). Every creature, including angels and human beings, is bound by His sovereign will and power (Eph. 1:11; Isa. 46:9-11). Thus man can never be fully autonomous. His free will can only operate within the constraints of God’s overall sovereign rule and providence (Psa. 103:19, 22; Pro. 16:3-4). Nothing can exist in the universe outside the will of God, and without His sustaining power (Col. 1:17; Heb. 1:3). In Him we live and move and have our being (Acts 17:28). The survival of humans depends upon the keeping power of God; even the air that one breathes is provided and sustained by Him (Job 12:10).