Sunday, March 01, 2009
Quote of the Day
"Man lost himself at first by self-exaltation, and he must recover himself by self-denial." —Thomas Watson (1620-1686)
Saturday, February 28, 2009
Full Assurance
"Your easy church-goers and chapel-goers; your ladies and gentlemen who think that religion consists in buying a Prayer Book, who imagine that to have a book of Psalms and Hymns, constitutes godliness; your fine folks to whom religion is as much a matter of fashion as some new color, or some new form of dress;—these people, having no vitality in their godliness, never having a religion which could either make them cry or sing, never having godliness enough either to make them miserable, or make them blessed—these think there is nothing more in godliness than they get themselves. They say, “I never knew my sins were forgiven,” and judging all others by themselves, they think that no one else can know it. And I am sorry to say, grieved at heart to say it, not seldom I have known professed ministers of the gospel, who have even rebuked those who have reached to the high attainment of assurance...
I would have each of you put aside those carnal quibbles which are raised by Romanists and Romanizers, against the idea that we can know that we are saved, for not only can we know it, but we ought never to be satisfied till we do know it. And this, mark you, is not my statement; it is the manifest testimony of the Book of God, and was plainly held by all the fathers of the Church, Augustine, Chrysostom, and the like; it is the testimony of all the Reformers—of all the giant divines of the Puritanic times, it is the testimony of all truly evangelical Christians, that every Christian has a right to have a full assurance of his salvation, and should never be content until he attains thereunto." —C. H. Spurgeon (1834-1892)
I would have each of you put aside those carnal quibbles which are raised by Romanists and Romanizers, against the idea that we can know that we are saved, for not only can we know it, but we ought never to be satisfied till we do know it. And this, mark you, is not my statement; it is the manifest testimony of the Book of God, and was plainly held by all the fathers of the Church, Augustine, Chrysostom, and the like; it is the testimony of all the Reformers—of all the giant divines of the Puritanic times, it is the testimony of all truly evangelical Christians, that every Christian has a right to have a full assurance of his salvation, and should never be content until he attains thereunto." —C. H. Spurgeon (1834-1892)
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
TCC '09
I am still in the WOW mode after two full days at last week's True Church Conference where my pastor Jonathan Sims was one of the guest speakers along with Jeff Noblit, Voddie Baucham, Paul Washer and David Miller. To steal a quote from my pastor it was like "drinking from a fire hydrant". This year's theme was "The Wonderful Grace of Repentance" be sure to download the few sermons that have been release for free at SermonAudio.com to get a taste of what took place. The instance unity of Christian love shared from everyone that I met surely was due to the presence of the Holy Spirit and a like mindedness of biblical truth. The bookstore was full of classic gems that you would never find in your local Christian bookstore plus lots of freebies from HeartCry Missionary Society. The deep biblical truth to all the songs that we sang were a joy to shout out and the fellowship was second to none that I have ever experienced at such an event. Can't wait to go again next year!
"There is not a just man that does good and sinneth not in that good he does. There is not only an imperfection, but an impurity in the best righteousness of the saints of their own working out and [are] therefore called "filthy rags" (Isa 64:6)... —John Gill (1697-1771)
"There is not a just man that does good and sinneth not in that good he does. There is not only an imperfection, but an impurity in the best righteousness of the saints of their own working out and [are] therefore called "filthy rags" (Isa 64:6)... —John Gill (1697-1771)
Thursday, February 19, 2009
Pink Assurance
"God the Father predestinated His people “to be conformed to the image of His Son ” ( Romans 8:29), which conformity is not fully wrought in any of them in this life, but awaits the day of Christ’s appearing ( 1 John 3:2). Now is the Father’s eternal purpose placed in jeopardy by the human will? is its fulfillment contingent upon human conduct? or, having ordained the end will He not also make infallibly effectual all means to that end? That predestination is founded upon His love: “I have loved thee (says the Father to each of His elect) with an everlasting love, therefore with lovingkindness have I drawn thee” ( Jeremiah 31:3).
Nor is there any variation in His love, for God is not fickle like us: “I am the Lord, I change not: therefore ye sons of Jacob are not consumed” ( Malachi 3:6).
Were it possible for one of God’s elect to totally apostatize and finally perish it would mean the Father had purposed something which He failed to effect and that His love was thwarted.
Consider God the Son in His mediatorial character. The elect were committed unto Him as a trust by the Father: said He “Thine they were and Thou gayest them Me ” ( John 17:6). In the covenant of redemption Christ offered to act as their Surety and to serve as their Shepherd. This involved the most stupendous task which the history of the universe records: the Son’s becoming incarnate, magnifying the Divine Law by rendering to it perfect obedience, pouring out His soul unto death as a sacrifice to Divine justice, overcoming death and the grave, and ultimately presenting “faultless ” before God (Jude 24) the whole of His redeemed. As the good Shepherd He died for His sheep, and as the great Shepherd it is His office to preserve them from this present evil world. If He failed in this task, if any of His sheep were lost, where would be His faithfulness to His engagement? where would be the efficacy of His atonement? how could He triumphantly exclaim at the end “Behold land the children which God hath given Me” ( Hebrews 2:13)?
The person of the Holy Spirit is equally concerned in this vital matter. It is not sufficiently realized by the saints that they are as definitely indebted to the third Person of the Godhead as truly as they are to the first and second Persons. The Father ordained their salvation, the Son in His mediatorial character purchased it, and the Spirit “applies” and effectuates it. It is the blessed Spirit’s work to make good the Father’s purpose and the Son’s atonement: “He saved us by the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit” ( Titus 3:5).
Said Christ to His disciples “I will not leave you orphans (though I leave this world): I will come to you” ( John 14:18).
That promise given on the eve of His death was made good in the gift of the Spirit “But the Comforter, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, the same shall teach you all things” ( John 14:26).
Christ’s redeemed were thus entrusted to the love and care of the Spirit, and should any of them be lost where would be the Spirit’s sufficiency? where His power? where His faithfulness?
This, then, is no trivial doctrine we are now concerned with, for the most momentous considerations are inseparably connected with it. We are satisfied it is because of their failure to realize this that so many professing Christians perceive not the seriousness of their assenting to the opposing dogma of the total apostasy of saints. If they understood more clearly what was involved in affirming that some who were truly born again fell from grace, continued in a course of sin, died impenitent and were eternally lost, they would be slower to set their seal unto that which carried such horrible implications. Nor may we regard it as a matter of indifference where such grave consequences are concerned. For any of the elect to perish would necessarily entail a defeated Father, who was balked of the realization of His purpose: a disappointed Son, who would never see the full travail of His soul and be satisfied; and a disgraced Spirit, who had failed to preserve those entrusted to His care. From such awful errors may we be delivered.
The importance of this truth further appears from the prominent place which is accorded it in the Holy Scriptures. Whether we turn to the O.T. or the New it makes no difference; whether we consult the Psalms or the Prophets, the Gospels or the Epistles, we find it occupies a conspicuous position. If we cited every reference we should have to transcribe literally hundreds of verses. Instead, we will quote only a few of the lesser known ones. Here is one from the Pentateuch: “He loved the people, all His saints are in Thy hand” ( Deuteronomy 33:3).
One from the Historical books: “He will keep the feet of His saints” ( 1 Samuel 2:8).
One from Job: “When he hath tried me I shall come forth as gold” ( 23:10).
One from the Psalms: “The Lord will perfect that which concerneth me” ( <19d808> Psalm 138:8).
One from the Proverbs: “The root of the righteous shall not be moved” (12:3 contrast Matthew 13:2 1).
One from the Prophets: “I will put My fear in their hearts that they shall not depart from Me” ( Jeremiah 32:40).
These are fair samples of the Divine promises throughout the O.T.
Observe the place given to this truth in the teaching of Christ. “Upon this Rock I will build My Church, and the gates of Hell shall not prevail against it” ( Matthew 16:18). “False Christs and false prophets shall rise, and shall show signs and wonders, to seduce, if possible, even the elect” ( Mark 14:22) —it is not possible for Satan to fatally deceive any of the elect. “Whosoever cometh to Me and heareth My sayings, and doeth them, I will show you to whom he is like: he is like a man which built a house and digged deep, and laid the foundation on a rock; and when the flood arose, the storm beat vehemently upon that house, and could not shake it; for it was founded upon a rock” ( Luke 6:47-48). “This is the Father’s will which hath sent Me, that of all which He hath given Me I should lose nothing” ( John 6:39).
The writings of the apostles are full of it. “For if when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of His Son; much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by His life” ( Romans 5:10). “Hath not God chosen the poor of this world rich in faith, and heirs of the kingdom which He hath promised to them that love Him” ( James 2:5). “Kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation” ( 1 Peter 1:5). “They went out from us, but they were not of us; for of they had been of us, they would have continued with us” ( 1 John 2:19). “Now unto Him that is able to keep you from falling” ( Jude 1:24).
The tremendous importance of this doctrine is further evidenced by the fact that it involves the very integrity of the Scriptures. There is no mistaking their teaching on this subject: the passages quoted above make it unmistakably plain that every section of them affirms the security of the saints. He then who declares the saints are insecure so long as they remain in this evil world, who insists that they may be eternally lost, yea that some of them—like king Saul and Judas—have perished, repudiates the reliability of Holy Writ and signifies that the Divine promises are worthless." —A. W. Pink (1886–1952)
Nor is there any variation in His love, for God is not fickle like us: “I am the Lord, I change not: therefore ye sons of Jacob are not consumed” ( Malachi 3:6).
Were it possible for one of God’s elect to totally apostatize and finally perish it would mean the Father had purposed something which He failed to effect and that His love was thwarted.
Consider God the Son in His mediatorial character. The elect were committed unto Him as a trust by the Father: said He “Thine they were and Thou gayest them Me ” ( John 17:6). In the covenant of redemption Christ offered to act as their Surety and to serve as their Shepherd. This involved the most stupendous task which the history of the universe records: the Son’s becoming incarnate, magnifying the Divine Law by rendering to it perfect obedience, pouring out His soul unto death as a sacrifice to Divine justice, overcoming death and the grave, and ultimately presenting “faultless ” before God (Jude 24) the whole of His redeemed. As the good Shepherd He died for His sheep, and as the great Shepherd it is His office to preserve them from this present evil world. If He failed in this task, if any of His sheep were lost, where would be His faithfulness to His engagement? where would be the efficacy of His atonement? how could He triumphantly exclaim at the end “Behold land the children which God hath given Me” ( Hebrews 2:13)?
The person of the Holy Spirit is equally concerned in this vital matter. It is not sufficiently realized by the saints that they are as definitely indebted to the third Person of the Godhead as truly as they are to the first and second Persons. The Father ordained their salvation, the Son in His mediatorial character purchased it, and the Spirit “applies” and effectuates it. It is the blessed Spirit’s work to make good the Father’s purpose and the Son’s atonement: “He saved us by the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit” ( Titus 3:5).
Said Christ to His disciples “I will not leave you orphans (though I leave this world): I will come to you” ( John 14:18).
That promise given on the eve of His death was made good in the gift of the Spirit “But the Comforter, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, the same shall teach you all things” ( John 14:26).
Christ’s redeemed were thus entrusted to the love and care of the Spirit, and should any of them be lost where would be the Spirit’s sufficiency? where His power? where His faithfulness?
This, then, is no trivial doctrine we are now concerned with, for the most momentous considerations are inseparably connected with it. We are satisfied it is because of their failure to realize this that so many professing Christians perceive not the seriousness of their assenting to the opposing dogma of the total apostasy of saints. If they understood more clearly what was involved in affirming that some who were truly born again fell from grace, continued in a course of sin, died impenitent and were eternally lost, they would be slower to set their seal unto that which carried such horrible implications. Nor may we regard it as a matter of indifference where such grave consequences are concerned. For any of the elect to perish would necessarily entail a defeated Father, who was balked of the realization of His purpose: a disappointed Son, who would never see the full travail of His soul and be satisfied; and a disgraced Spirit, who had failed to preserve those entrusted to His care. From such awful errors may we be delivered.
The importance of this truth further appears from the prominent place which is accorded it in the Holy Scriptures. Whether we turn to the O.T. or the New it makes no difference; whether we consult the Psalms or the Prophets, the Gospels or the Epistles, we find it occupies a conspicuous position. If we cited every reference we should have to transcribe literally hundreds of verses. Instead, we will quote only a few of the lesser known ones. Here is one from the Pentateuch: “He loved the people, all His saints are in Thy hand” ( Deuteronomy 33:3).
One from the Historical books: “He will keep the feet of His saints” ( 1 Samuel 2:8).
One from Job: “When he hath tried me I shall come forth as gold” ( 23:10).
One from the Psalms: “The Lord will perfect that which concerneth me” ( <19d808> Psalm 138:8).
One from the Proverbs: “The root of the righteous shall not be moved” (12:3 contrast Matthew 13:2 1).
One from the Prophets: “I will put My fear in their hearts that they shall not depart from Me” ( Jeremiah 32:40).
These are fair samples of the Divine promises throughout the O.T.
Observe the place given to this truth in the teaching of Christ. “Upon this Rock I will build My Church, and the gates of Hell shall not prevail against it” ( Matthew 16:18). “False Christs and false prophets shall rise, and shall show signs and wonders, to seduce, if possible, even the elect” ( Mark 14:22) —it is not possible for Satan to fatally deceive any of the elect. “Whosoever cometh to Me and heareth My sayings, and doeth them, I will show you to whom he is like: he is like a man which built a house and digged deep, and laid the foundation on a rock; and when the flood arose, the storm beat vehemently upon that house, and could not shake it; for it was founded upon a rock” ( Luke 6:47-48). “This is the Father’s will which hath sent Me, that of all which He hath given Me I should lose nothing” ( John 6:39).
The writings of the apostles are full of it. “For if when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of His Son; much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by His life” ( Romans 5:10). “Hath not God chosen the poor of this world rich in faith, and heirs of the kingdom which He hath promised to them that love Him” ( James 2:5). “Kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation” ( 1 Peter 1:5). “They went out from us, but they were not of us; for of they had been of us, they would have continued with us” ( 1 John 2:19). “Now unto Him that is able to keep you from falling” ( Jude 1:24).
The tremendous importance of this doctrine is further evidenced by the fact that it involves the very integrity of the Scriptures. There is no mistaking their teaching on this subject: the passages quoted above make it unmistakably plain that every section of them affirms the security of the saints. He then who declares the saints are insecure so long as they remain in this evil world, who insists that they may be eternally lost, yea that some of them—like king Saul and Judas—have perished, repudiates the reliability of Holy Writ and signifies that the Divine promises are worthless." —A. W. Pink (1886–1952)
Thursday, February 12, 2009
Common Delusions
"Am I to fancy that I enjoy some special revelation, and am I to order my life by voices, dreams, and impressions? Brethren, fall not into this common delusion. God's word to us is in Holy Scripture. All the truth that sanctifies men is in God's Word. Do not listen to those who cry, "Lo here!" and "Lo there!" I am plucked by the sleeve almost every day by crazy persons and pretenders who have revelations. One man tells me that God has sent a message to me by him; and I reply, "No, sir, the Lord knows where I dwell, and he is so near to me that he would not need to send to me by you." Another man announces in God's name a dogma which, on the face of it, is a lie against the Holy Ghost. He says the Spirit of God told him so-and-so; but we know that the Holy Ghost never contradicts himself. If your imaginary revelation is not according to this Word, it has no weight with us; and if it is according to this Word, it is no new thing. Brethren, this Bible is enough if the Lord does but use it, and quicken it by his Spirit in our hearts. Truth is neither your opinion, nor mine; your message, nor mine. Jesus says, "Thy word is truth." That which sanctifies men is not only truth, but it is the particular truth which is revealed in God's Word—"Thy word is truth." What a blessing it is that all the truth that is necessary to sanctify us is revealed in the Word of God, so that we have not to expend our energies upon discovering truth, but may, to our far greater profit, use revealed truth for its divine ends and purposes! There will be no more revelations; no more are needed." —C. H. Spurgeon (1834-1892)
Lost Hymns
My Lord, I Did Not Choose You
My Lord, I did not choose You,
For that could never be;
My heart would still refuse You,
Had You not chosen me.
You took the sin that stained me,
You cleansed me, made me new;
Of old You have ordained me,
That I should live in You.
Unless Your grace had called me
And taught my op’ning mind,
The world would have enthralled me,
To heav’nly glories blind.
My heart knows none above You;
For Your rich grace I thirst;
I know that if I love You,
You must have loved me first.
My Lord, I did not choose You,
For that could never be;
My heart would still refuse You,
Had You not chosen me.
You took the sin that stained me,
You cleansed me, made me new;
Of old You have ordained me,
That I should live in You.
Unless Your grace had called me
And taught my op’ning mind,
The world would have enthralled me,
To heav’nly glories blind.
My heart knows none above You;
For Your rich grace I thirst;
I know that if I love You,
You must have loved me first.
Friday, February 06, 2009
Quote of the Day
"You say you don't believe in creeds; you want religion and not a dogma. You have no particular creed. Well, I am sure then that you have no particular religion. What ever a man believes, that is his creed and is bound to be his basis of life." —B.H. Carroll (1843-1914)
Friday, January 30, 2009
Prodigal God Plug
Wednesday morning I had the pleasure of hearing Tim Keller preach a message at LifeWay headquarters in Nashville and then got to meet him and get my free copy of his latest book "The Prodigal God" signed. I won't go into detail about the sermon but will leave you with a link to a interview that followed the sermon by LifeWays own Chris Turner on a special edition of Inside LifeWay."One of the signs that you may not grasp the unique, radical nature of the gospel is that you are certain that you do." —Tim Keller
Saturday, January 24, 2009
Trail Hitters
2 Thessalonians 2:3 "Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition;"
"The “falling away” is evidenced on every hand. Not only are many of our Seminaries cesspools of spiritual corruption, not only are hundreds of our pulpits now filled by traitors to the cause they profess to champion, not only is every cardinal doctrine of the faith attacked and denied by the very ones paid to defend them, but the evil effects of such teaching from our religious leaders have influenced multitudes of souls committed to their care. The man in the pew, following the lead of his teachers, has lost faith in the Bible as a Divine revelation, and in consequence, no longer submits to its authority. Hence it is that there is such a “falling away” in the number of genuine conversions — we say “genuine” conversions because there are multitudes of those who come forward to shake some popular preacher by the hand, multitudes of card-signers, “trail-hitters” etc., etc. Hence it is that there has been such a sad and such a wide-spread “falling away” from the old time family worship. Hence it is that we now witness such a lamentable “falling away” from the mid-week prayer-meeting. Hence it is that there is such an awful “falling away” from the observance of the Holy Sabbath.
Hence it is that there is such a fearful “falling away” from the moral standards of former days. Hence it is that there is now such an evergrowing “falling away” from Sunday School attendance all over the land.
Yes, the “falling away” has commenced and is already far advanced...
The “falling away” which characterises our day was referred to by the apostle when he said, “For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they, heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; and they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables” ( 2 Timothy 4:8,4). That time has arrived! Church-goers today will not endure “sound doctrine.” Those who preach the total depravity of man, who insist upon the imperative necessity of the new birth, who set forth the inflexible righteousness and holiness of God, and who warn against the Eternal and conscious torment awaiting every rejector of Christ, find it almost impossible to obtain a hearing. Such preachers are regarded as puritanical pessimists, and are not wanted. In these degenerate times, the masses demand that which will soothe them in their sins and amuse them while they journey down the Broad Road. The multitude is affected with “itching ears” which crave novelty and that which is sensational. They have ears which wish to be “tickled,” ears which eagerly drink in the songs of professional and unsaved soloists and choiristers, ears which are well pleased with the vulgar slang of our modern evangelists." —A. W. Pink (1886–1952)
Excerpt taken from "The Redeemer's Return" by A. W. Pink ( 1886-1952)
"The “falling away” is evidenced on every hand. Not only are many of our Seminaries cesspools of spiritual corruption, not only are hundreds of our pulpits now filled by traitors to the cause they profess to champion, not only is every cardinal doctrine of the faith attacked and denied by the very ones paid to defend them, but the evil effects of such teaching from our religious leaders have influenced multitudes of souls committed to their care. The man in the pew, following the lead of his teachers, has lost faith in the Bible as a Divine revelation, and in consequence, no longer submits to its authority. Hence it is that there is such a “falling away” in the number of genuine conversions — we say “genuine” conversions because there are multitudes of those who come forward to shake some popular preacher by the hand, multitudes of card-signers, “trail-hitters” etc., etc. Hence it is that there has been such a sad and such a wide-spread “falling away” from the old time family worship. Hence it is that we now witness such a lamentable “falling away” from the mid-week prayer-meeting. Hence it is that there is such an awful “falling away” from the observance of the Holy Sabbath.
Hence it is that there is such a fearful “falling away” from the moral standards of former days. Hence it is that there is now such an evergrowing “falling away” from Sunday School attendance all over the land.
Yes, the “falling away” has commenced and is already far advanced...
The “falling away” which characterises our day was referred to by the apostle when he said, “For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they, heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; and they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables” ( 2 Timothy 4:8,4). That time has arrived! Church-goers today will not endure “sound doctrine.” Those who preach the total depravity of man, who insist upon the imperative necessity of the new birth, who set forth the inflexible righteousness and holiness of God, and who warn against the Eternal and conscious torment awaiting every rejector of Christ, find it almost impossible to obtain a hearing. Such preachers are regarded as puritanical pessimists, and are not wanted. In these degenerate times, the masses demand that which will soothe them in their sins and amuse them while they journey down the Broad Road. The multitude is affected with “itching ears” which crave novelty and that which is sensational. They have ears which wish to be “tickled,” ears which eagerly drink in the songs of professional and unsaved soloists and choiristers, ears which are well pleased with the vulgar slang of our modern evangelists." —A. W. Pink (1886–1952)
Excerpt taken from "The Redeemer's Return" by A. W. Pink ( 1886-1952)
Friday, January 23, 2009
Give Me a Break
With all the excitement this week of the new President taking the reins and many Christians standing tall having one of our (so-called) own deliver the Inaugural Prayer. I doubt that very few noticed the very subtle but devious push toward an all inclusive faith.
Titus 1:16 (New American Standard Bible)
“They profess to know God, but by their deeds they deny Him, being detestable and disobedient and worthless for any good deed.”
“I humbly ask this in the name of the one who changed my life, Yeshua, Isa, Jesus, Jesus (hay-SOOS), who taught us to pray, Our Father who art in heaven hallowed be thy name, thy kingdom come, thy will be done on Earth as it is in heaven.” --Rick Warren, from inauguration prayerThis prayer deeply offends me as my lost child who is a practicing Muslim and who believes in the Koran and the false Jesus it calls Isa. I would just like to ask Mr. Warren how I am supposed to reconcile the Christ of the Bible with the christ (aka Isa) of the Koran which he prayed too, to my oldest son now that he has seen a Southern Baptist preacher endorse both before the entire world?
Titus 1:16 (New American Standard Bible)
“They profess to know God, but by their deeds they deny Him, being detestable and disobedient and worthless for any good deed.”
Thursday, January 22, 2009
New Things
Haven't posted in sometime now due to a major computer malfunction that left me with little choice of going without a PC or to purchase a new one so I broke down and got a new Dell, so far so good it's fast and pretty. I am having to learn some new things due to getting Vista but I like it so far. Anyway I should be posting more now that I am back in the groove!
Tuesday, January 06, 2009
Sickly Sentimentality
"The attributes of God have been perverted by a one-sided presentation thereof. The justice, the holiness, and the wrath of God have been pushed into the background, and a God that loves everybody thrust into the foreground. In consequence, the masses of church-goers no longer fear God. For the past fifty years the vast majority of pulpits have maintained a guilty silence on Eternal Punishment so that few now have any dread of the wrath to come. This logically follows from the former, for no one needs to stand in any terror of One who loves him. The repercussions have been unmistakable, drastic, and tragic. Sickly sentimentality regulated the pulpit until it dominated the pew and this evil leaven has so spread that it now permeates the whole nation." —A. W. Pink (1886–1952
(HT) Jono Sims
(HT) Jono Sims
Thursday, January 01, 2009
Getting Bent
"I do not deny that in conversion man himself wills. In everything that he does, thinks, feels, he of necessity wills. In believing he wills. In repenting, he wills. In turning from his evil ways, he wills — all this is true. The opposite is both untrue and absurd. But while fully admitting this, there is another question behind it, of great interest and moment: Are these movements of man’s will toward good the effects of the forth-putting of God’s will? Is man willing because he has made himself so; or is he willing because God has made him so? Does he become willing entirely by an act of his own will, or by chance, or by moral suasion, or because acted on by created causes or influences from without?
I answer unhesitatingly that he becomes willing because of another and a superior will — God’s, that has come into contact with his, altering its nature and its bent. This new bent is the result of a change produced upon it by Him who alone, of all beings, has the right, without limitation, to say in regard to all events and changes, “I will!” The man’s will has followed the movement of the Divine will. God has made him willing. God’s will is first, not second, in the movement. Even a holy and perfect will depends for guidance upon the will of God. Even when renewed it still follows, it does not lead. Much more an unholy will, for its bent must be first changed. And how can this be, if God is not to interpose His power?" —Horatius Bonar (1808-1889)
Excerpt taken from "Truth and Error (The Opening of the Scriptural Truth of the Doctrines of Grace) by Horatius Bonar (1808-1889), p16-17 Pietan Publications 1998
I answer unhesitatingly that he becomes willing because of another and a superior will — God’s, that has come into contact with his, altering its nature and its bent. This new bent is the result of a change produced upon it by Him who alone, of all beings, has the right, without limitation, to say in regard to all events and changes, “I will!” The man’s will has followed the movement of the Divine will. God has made him willing. God’s will is first, not second, in the movement. Even a holy and perfect will depends for guidance upon the will of God. Even when renewed it still follows, it does not lead. Much more an unholy will, for its bent must be first changed. And how can this be, if God is not to interpose His power?" —Horatius Bonar (1808-1889)
Excerpt taken from "Truth and Error (The Opening of the Scriptural Truth of the Doctrines of Grace) by Horatius Bonar (1808-1889), p16-17 Pietan Publications 1998
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