THE DOCTRINES OF GRACE

THE DOCTRINES OF GRACE

(Introduction to a series)

My friend, Stephen Newell has been studying the Doctrines of Grace for some time now in an effort to crystallize exactly what he believes to be taught in the Bible with regard to soteriology. I have agreed to co-blog a series on the Doctrines of Grace with him. I had not intended to do a series on the Doctrines of Grace on this site simply because there is a pervading stigma within the broader theological world that Reformed Theology, or Calvinism, (terms, which may be used interchangeably) is all about the five points. This is a tragic understatement. Reformed Theology, or Calvinism, is a Total-Life theology, encompassing a grand view of the sovereignty of God in ALL things big and small; and a firm commitment to the fact that ALL things big and small exist and function SOLELY for the Gory of God. Reformed Theology/ Calvinism moves man out of the center of everything and places God on the throne. In other words, Reformed Theology is manifestly, necessarily and unapologetically Theo-centric, and snarls with disgust and contempt at anything anthropocentric. It encompasses all areas of theology: revelation, creation, sanctification, pneumatology, harmartology, ecclesiology, eschatology, and yes soteriology. Everything, everything, everything. . . is "from Him, and through Him and to Him; to Him be glory forever, amen." That is Reformed Theology/ Calvinism in a nutshell, and this is the picture I want people to see when those terms are used, instead of immediately focusing on the five points.

That being said, it is certainly within the realm of the purpose of this blog site to do a series on the Doctrines of Grace. However, I will be taking a little bit different approach than usual. With all of the material and discussion about the five points that has flooded the book stores, blog sites and conversations within recent years, I thought it refreshing and more edifying not to simply state and restate the basic doctrinal positions again and again, but rather to show how each particular doctrine serves to glorify God in and of itself. I have seen, (as I’m sure most of my readers will have also) many discussions about how the TULIP system glorifies God as a whole. But I have never read a discussion on how each individual doctrine redounds the Glory of God. It is high time someone approached it from this position.

So here’s how this is going to work. I am going to leave it up to Stephen to lay out the doctrinal positions as he has come to understand them and then I will treat them from the standpoint of how each one glorifies God. We will be posting our blogs simultaneously and they are meant to be read simultaneously, beginning today with the introduction; and then once a week until we finish all five points. I may weigh in doctrinally when it comes to Limited Atonement since this seems to be a sticking point for most people; but by in large I do not intend to replicate what he will be doing. And then at the end, I will unfold a profound secret by explaining why I am a Six Point Calvinist. That’s right! - SIX points. But you’ll have to stay with us through the series in order to get to that one. Having laid out the basic premise, now let me give my brief introduction to the series.

In 1618 the National Synod of Dordt convened in order to form a response to the encroaching heresy of Palegianism/ Arminianism, which taught in so many doctrines that God had done all He could do in the salvation process, and that now it was up to man to finish it. This disgusting doctrine is currently what is being taught in the vast majority of churches. God has done all He can do, they say. The Cross of Christ is not enough to save anybody by itself. We must complete the work by "accepting the free gift." Christ "stands at the door and knocks" hoping and pleading with elephant tears that sinners will just open up and let Him in so that He can save them; but alas, the poor fellow is simply powerless to make that happen. So there he stands, rejected and dejected, un-victorious and incapable of accomplishing that which He desires. This is putrid vomit! This is not the victorious warrior, the King of Kings and Lord of Lords that is presented to us in the Word of God. The Word of God tells us that "He does according to His will in the host of heaven and among the inhabitants of earth; and no one can say to Him, ‘what have You done?’" (Dan. 4:35). There is no possibility that He could ever fail to accomplish that which He wishes to accomplish. "But," says someone, "He wishes to preserve the free will of man so much that He is willing to leave the outcome in our hands." Really!? I have read the Bible many times over and have yet to find a passage where God values the free will of human beings so much that He is willing to take a loss in order to preserve it. And until I do, I consider those who insist this to be guilty of blasphemy. And I am not alone in this. In fact, this is exactly the same conclusion that the National Synod of Dordt reached in 1618 with the codification of T.U.L.I.P. as a response to five heretical doctrines taught by the Palegians and the Arminians.

The Doctrines of Grace, then, consist of five essential doctrines that explain Reformed soteriology, or the process by which God saves sinners. The "T" stands for Total depravity; the "U" stands for Unconditional election; the "L" stands for Limited atonement; and the "P" stands for the Perseverance of the Saints. Notice I said that this is the process by which "God saves sinners." Really, the whole thing can be summed up in that one simple statement. Sinners do not save themselves. They are "dead in trespasses and sins," according to (Eph. 2:1). In our natural, fallen condition, we do not want to come to Christ. Jesus tells us in (Jn. 5:40) "You are unwilling to come to Me so that you may have life." In our natural, fallen condition we do not have the ability to come to Christ. Jesus tells us, "no one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him" (Jn. 6:44). In our natural, fallen condition, nobody seeks God or does anything to deserve His mercy. The apostle tells us in (Rom. 3: 10-18) "There is none righteous, not even one; there is none who understands, there is none who seeks for God; all have turned aside, together they have become useless; there is none who does good, there is not even one." The only way a person can be saved is if God takes the initiative to save us. "But God demonstrated His own love toward us in that while we were yet sinners Christ died for us" (Rom. 5:8).

Quite simply, then, this network of doctrines comes together to form a bulwark against all anthropocentric soteriology. It glorifies God primarily because it takes the process of salvation out of mans hands and places it entirely back into the hands of God, from where it should never have been wrested. It gives God all the glory. It does not rob Him of any of the glory which He so richly deserves in order to confer some of it onto men. I once heard a person say that the reason they don’t like Reformed Theology is because "it makes God sovereign over everything; and I at least like to think I made a good choice." This is the sick plight of fallen humanity! We CANNOT STAND to give God all the glory. We feel like we simply MUST retain some of it for ourselves. But until we can agree with the Scriptures that we were dead in trespasses and sins, unwilling and unable to come to Him unless He took the initiative to draw us to Himself, we will never be able to see God in all of His glorious splendor. And furthermore, we will never be able to glorify Him the way we should. But God is sovereign over even this. In His sovereign wisdom, He has decreed that the vast majority of Christians glorify Him but little while they live on earth. Eventually, He will have His full glory from them; but for now, they are but tarnished mirrors, reflecting only a little of the glory of God. But for those whose eyes He has been pleased to open, He is glorified a thousand times over. I urge you brethren and sisters, take the time to look into this issue. Do you have a firm commitment to the absolute inspiration and authority of God’s Word? Then look into what it says with regard to this issue. The truth is available to all who will see it. Ask God to give you light on this issue. It may be that He plans to open your eyes that you might enter into His full glory. Read carefully, think hard, pray diligently and strive with the Holy Spirit, if perhaps He would grant it that you would be numbered amongst those whose joy it is to give God the glory due His name.

Soli Deo Gloria,

Shane Morgan