Rev D W B Somerset
In his work, The Doctrine of the Holy Spirit, the Scottish theologian George Smeaton warns against religion in which the “good” ultimately comes from oneself and not from the Spirit of God. This is the form of doctrine which is known to theologians as “semi-Pelagianism”. It is very common among religious people who would acknowledge the existence of God and the obligation to be good, and would even give some place to Christ; yet such people do not have a biblical view of Christ’s work and of their own depravity.
This fatal error is found in Romanism, in High Anglicanism, in liberal (Church of Scotland-type) Christianity, and it is never very far away from the hearts even of true believers. It often disguises itself – and this is what makes it so dangerous – by accepting, or appearing to accept, many of the great truths of Christianity. There is hardly a Christian doctrine that Romanism will not affirm in some sense, and yet at the end everything is subtly conjured away, and the soul is left to its own devices. The late Richard Bennett, who had been a Roman Catholic priest but became a Protestant, described this as the “yea and nay” character of Roman doctrine (2 Cor 1:18). It is as if they would say, “Yes, we teach this doctrine, but here are some other things that we teach, and these things are cleverly devised to negate the doctrine, so that the overall result is that we do not teach this doctrine.”
For example, in answer to the question, Does the Roman Catholic Church teach justification by faith?, the Romanist reply is, “Yes, justification comes by faith, but not by faith alone”. If you then ask, Does the Roman Catholic Church teach justification by faith alone? the reply becomes more subtle. The answer is, “No, justifying faith is faith formed by charity and this faith must be accompanied by good works. However, provided we define faith to be faith formed by charity then we can indeed say that the Roman Church teaches justification by faith alone.” The poor soul is rapidly mesmerised by all this subtlety and soon finds itself in a bog of definitions and distinctions
with little or no meaning. If further pressed, the Roman Catholic theologian will add to the confusion by redefining the word justification as well.
Stepping back from all this, one can see that Roman Catholic teaching is that Christ has done some great work, but that He has not done everything, and that people have to do the last bit themselves. It is not enough, in Roman teaching, simply to trust in Christ for salvation; people have to contribute something, and this “something” has to come out of their own resources. This is semi-Pelagianism.
The same error, but with a very different appearance, is found in liberal Christianity. Here there is no doctrine of hell, and hence no need of salvation, and the life and work of Christ is reduced to a mere example. The liberal teaching is basically that everybody ought to be good; but there are no supernatural resources available to make people good or to help them to be good, so people have to accomplish this themselves. The outcome is the same as in Romanism, although the external form of the religion may look very different. The definition of good may vary according to different backgrounds and fashions, but the ultimate message is the same in both systems: “Try to be good”.
This fundamental identity of teaching is why the liberal Church of Scotland can see no danger in Romanism. In the words of Smeaton, “The grand evil of all these systems is, that they insert a legal condition which men have to perform, and all ends at last in the law of works, leaving men to apply to themselves, as they best may, the benefits which the Redeemer purchased. Humanity is thrown back, under a goodly guise, upon the principle – Do and Live”.1
The true biblical teaching is that everything comes from Christ. The sinner is not thrown back on his own resources. He is “dead in trespasses and sins” (Eph 2:1) and has no resources. Instead, Christ is the One who has opened the way of salvation through His incarnation, death and resurrection. Christ is the One whose Spirit imparts life to the spiritually dead sinner, and Christ’s Spirit convinces the soul of sin and of danger (Jn 16:8). He is the “Spirit of faith” (2 Cor 4:13) enabling the newly quickened soul to flee to Christ and to trust in Him. Christ is the One who then continues to live in His people by His Spirit, causing and enabling them to bring forth spiritual fruit: “For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of His good pleasure” (Phil 2:13). Every gracious motion in the soul – even a holy thought or groan – requires the working and co-operation of the Spirit of Christ: “Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think any thing as of ourselves; but our sufficiency is of God” (2 Cor 3:5).
1George Smeaton, The Doctrine of the Holy Spirit, Banner of Truth reprint, 1974, p 214.
The “semi-Pelagian” spirit is never far away, however, and the souls of believers are continually in danger of trying to live in their own strength. Like the foolish child learning to walk, they grow over-confident, and insist that the mother lets go of their hand and allows them to walk on their own. A fall follows, and tears, and then they hold on more carefully for a while. When Peter was looking to the Lord, he could walk on the water, but as soon as he looked away and “saw the wind boisterous” (Mt 14:30), he started to sink. The sense of weakness is what keeps the believer in dependence on Christ: “Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ’s sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong” (2 Cor 12:10).
People may have inconsistent “semi-Pelagian” aspects of their doctrine and belief, when they are in fact true believers living by faith in Christ. But when the essence of their religion is “semi-Pelagian”, the result in their lives is totally different from true Christianity. They may go through the forms of religion, and be very zealous for these, but everything that they do is, of necessity, in their own strength. They never go to Christ for anything because Christ will not receive sinners on any terms other than dependence upon Him for everything. The result is that they do not know Christ, and though they may talk much about Him, yet their conduct often discloses the fact that they have not “been with Jesus” (Acts 4:13). It is surprising how ready the followers of liberal Christianity and Roman Catholicism are to speak boldly about Christ and the Holy Spirit and to claim the guidance of the Spirit even when their conduct is completely contrary to the teaching of Christ and the Bible, for example in promoting sexual immorality or Mariolatry.
The Holy Spirit does guide the people of God but only in absolute accordance with Scripture. As Smeaton says, the Spirit gives them “ears to hear the Shepherd’s voice, eyes to see the King in His beauty, a true Christian life animated by the Spirit of prayer, and an enlargement of heart to run in the way of God’s commandments”. John warns us against deceptive spirits that lead away from Christ: “Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world” (1 Jn 4:1). Christ leads His people only “in the paths of righteousness” (Ps 23:3). Let David’s prayer be our prayer: “Teach me to do Thy will; for Thou art my God: Thy Spirit is good; lead me into the land of uprightness” (Ps 143:10).
Lie not in the grave of sin now Christ is risen. Mind the world less; mind heaven more.
Ralph Robinson