The Faith of God’s Elect
The other system, the system which opposes Arminius, holds that God — regarding a fallen, guilty, lost, sinful race — a race deserving to die, hath mercy on whom He himself will have mercy. All are hell deserving, but He rescues a multitude whom no man can number by the distinguishing grace of the Holy Spirit and by the blood of His beloved Son.
For this Gospel system there are these things to say:
1st. It bows to God and submits to His sovereignty. “Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?”
2nd. While not free from difficulties to our carnal, finite reason, it covers the facts of the case, as the other does not. We feel that we are fallen. We feel we are helpless. We feel we cannot save ourselves nor help to do it, and that we need to BE saved.
3rd. The Bible system turns on faith, not choices, efforts which are works. It hinges salvation on faith. “I, Martin Luther, an unworthy preacher of the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ, thus profess and believe that this article: That faith alone without works can justify before God, shall never be overthrown, neither by the Emperor, nor by the Turk, nor by the Tartar, nor by the Persian, nor by the Pope with all his cardinals, bishops, sacrificers, monks, nuns, kings, princes, powers of this world, nor yet by all the devils in hell. This article shall stand fast whether they will or no. This is the true Gospel. Jesus Christ redeemed us from our sins and He only. This most firm and certain truth is the voice of Scripture, though the world and all the devils rage and roar. If Christ alone takes away our sins, we cannot do it by our works; and as it is impossible to embrace Christ but by faith, so He cannot be embraced by works. Faith, then, must embrace Christ, before works can follow, and it must embrace Him and hold Him alone, without any consideration whatever of works. This, this only is the Gospel. In it will I abide. Amen and Amen!”
4th. If faith and faith alone embraces Christ, then this faith, going out into the invisible, to embrace One whom I have never seen with my eyes, and to cast on Him my whole destiny, is a God-given faith — a special distinguishing faith, not common to all — not possible to all. “The faith of God’s elect.”
5th. Every man who has this kind of faith knows where it comes from and recognizes it as something immortal — part of his new nature which cannot be lost.
Irreconcilable Systems
To recapitulate. If I am Arminian, I must deny Predestination and I must hold:
- 1st. That our race possesses a free will to do that which is good.
- 2nd. That justification comes by a meritorious faith — i.e. by a faith of my own, and which merits.
- 3rd. That if the faith is my own and from me, I may lose it, and there is no certain assurance.
If I am a Calvinist I assert, on the other hand, Predestination — then.
- 1st. Man fallen has no free will to do what is pleasing to God.
- 2nd. Justification is by faith, which is “the gift of God”.
- 3rd. “The gifts and calling of God are without repentance” on God’s part — or my part. Once a believer always a believer. “My sheep shall never perish.”
The battle, then, is seen to range around the first point. “Down with predestination!” is the cry of all the enemies of Evangelical truth. “Get that doctrine out and we will agree.”
“Yes,” is our answer, “Get that out and you get all out.”
- Because we are set of God to contend it . . .
- Because the battle of truth is the battle of life. Better die than lie, or run from a lie because we fear to face it.
“We ought to set ourselves,” says Calvin in his sermon on Hymenæus and Philetus, “We ought to set ourselves against perversions of the truth and to rebuke them sharply. For if we wink at them and let them pass, we give them our support. And then we may boast as we please about being Christians, but there are more devils among us than Christians if we countenance falsehood.”
“Therefore,” goes on the Reformer, “therefore, let us look well to the doctrine intrusted to us, and if we see wicked persons trying to infect the Church of God, to darken the doctrine or to destroy it, let us endeavour to bring their works to light that everyone may behold them, and thereby be enabled to shun them. If we attend not to these things we are traitors to God and have no zeal for His honour, nor for the salvation of His Church. We must be the out and out enemies of wickedness, if we will serve God. It is not enough for us to refrain ourselves from wrong and sin, but we must condemn these as much as possible that they may not gain influence or get the upper hand.”
These trumpet tones of Calvin tell us how men spoke and felt to whom God’s truth was dear, in times that tried men’s souls.
My brother, do men, of this day, class thee along with the Puritans?
“Bear the honour well, right noble is
Thine ancestry; and if thro’ following Him,
Who bore thy sin, the world should frown,
Lift up thy head — fear not,
For He who made thee His,
Will give thee courage, honour, influence,
And that true victory which ever crowns
His free-born sons.”