Editorial
John Owen
and Evangelical TheologyReformation Theology
Light from Christ
through W.G.T. SheddSovereign Grace
and the Five PointsThe King's Robes
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Letter
The attack on the World Trade Centre in New York has left the whole world feeling stunned and unsafe. As I witnessed those collapsing buildings and thought of the thousands who died such a dreadful death in the inferno, my first response was one of horror and grief. But immediately certain texts of Scripture came rushing into my mind: "Except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish." (Luke 13.5) "When thy judgments are in the earth, the inhabitants of the world will learn righteousness." (Isa 26.9) "He shall pass over, and offend, imputing this his power unto his god." (Hab 1.11) How significant! especially when almost all the private correspondence I have received since September 11, both from British and American Christians, has mentioned God's hand and America's need to repent. The late Francis Schaeffer reminded us that the American Constitution was drawn up under the influence of a Christian, even Reformation consensus (even when not all of its framers were Christian), but that secularization has turned the nation against the God of her Founding Fathers. A philosophy of acquisitive materialism, driven by greed and pursued at speed, has led to a state of affairs opposed to the original intention of the Constitution. 'We are a nation which has forgotten the gracious hand which has preserved and enriched us,' says a Dutch-American Reformed minister, 'for we have imagined that all this [ie peace and prosperity] is because of our wisdom and virtues. We have turned against God and His Word, and have filled our once [spiritually-] prosperous nation with immorality and sin.' This witness is true.
When the once mighty structures of the twin towers became a heap of rubble and the Pentagon, symbol of America's military might, was unable to function in America's defence, many citizens called for a Day of Prayer. To bow low before God; humbly acknowledge their guilt, vulnerability and helplessness; and cry to Him for mercy, protection and a spiritual and moral reformation would indeed have been an appropriate national response. To pursue the perpetrators of terrorism for retribution and the restoration of peace, stability and safety is also right. But unless America's trust is transferred from her own military might and an international confederacy to Him before whom all nations are as nothing (see Isaiah 8.12-14a and 40.12-17,25-31) we have little hope of either peace, stability or safety. And what applies to America applies also to Britain, Europe and the whole world. May God be merciful to us all.
Introduction
For the godly Bible translator William Tyndale the term Evangelical Theology signified 'good, merry, glad, joyful tidings, that make a man's heart glad, and make him sing, dance and leap for joy.' Clearly Tyndale had in mind the Gospel truths that 'Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners' and that 'Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day.'
For the evangelical Bishop J.C.Ryle it meant that form of theology which acknowledges the Bible as the only rule of faith and practice, gives prominence to the fact of human depravity and sin, recognizes the supreme importance of the Person and Work of the Lord Jesus Christ, accords a high place to the work of the Holy Spirit in people's hearts, and attaches great weight to a life of holiness before God and others.
For the great Puritan theologian John Owen, however, it denoted a dimension which embraces both of these, but which also goes far beyond them. In this article we shall discover precisely what Owen considered this dimension to be.
Preliminaries
Owen paves the way for an understanding of his meaning by laying down a few basic principles and setting them off sharply against common misconceptions about evangelical theology.
First, he regards it as axiomatic that 'Jesus Christ...the only-begotten Son of God' is both the 'immediate author' and the 'proper object' of evangelical theology.
He is its author because He alone, as the Word who is God and with God, is 'equipped to expound God perfectly' and because He has in fact made evangelical theology 'what it is - the final and perfect revelation from God.' 'This most holy Author of our evangelical theology' communicated 'the whole will of God' to His disciples, who in turn spread the gospel through all nations by word of mouth.
He is its object because He is the focal point around which all true evangelical theology gathers. 'To know Him that is true', he states emphatically from 1 John 5.20, 'that is theology.' 'All true theology is' therefore 'gospel theology.' It radiates from God in Christ reconciling the world to Himself and by its light enables us to see His glory in the face of Jesus Christ.
Second, Owen insists that only regenerate believers are capable of evangelical theology. Whoever wishes to learn it, he says, must be 'reborn spiritually.' Here he invokes such relevant texts as 1 Corinthians 2.14 - 'the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God'; John 3.3 - 'Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God'; and John 8.47 - 'He that is of God heareth God's words.'
To the question, 'But who are the regenerate?' Owen replies first negatively:
(1) not those who are baptized. Through the Early Church Fathers' ambiguous terminology many have been led to equate baptism with regeneracy. Augustine, he reminds us, has refuted them.
(2) not those who renounce their vices and profess the faith of Christ. This is well within the capacity of the unregenerate.
(3) not even those who have received spiritual enlightenment, for many of them cannot bear the truth of man's universal sinfulness.
He then states positively that the regenerate are those who have been brought by the Spirit of God to acknowledge the righteousness of the law's verdict against themselves, put by the Spirit on the side of God, and brought as sinners to Christ by gospel 'proclamations...declarations...exhortations...invitations...and promises', and who then willingly offer and consecrate themselves to 'evangelical obedience.'
Third, Owen castigates all those who imagine that either philosophy or systematic theology is the same as evangelical theology.
It was when pagan philosophy had reached the summit of its capabilities, he argues, that 'divine long-suffering could wait no longer' to transform the world by the power of the crucified Redeemer. Besides, no-one can grasp evangelical theology by the intellect alone, yet intellect is the only tool philosophy has. Pride, 'that great corrupter of the human soul', along with prejudice, has led many to imagine they are theologians while blinding them to the true glory of theology.
Owen reserves his severest strictures, however, for arrogant young theology students and their teachers who imagine that a knowledge of Hebrew and Greek, a grasp of grammar and logic, along with the ability to classify theological truths into creeds, confessions, catechisms and commonplaces qualify them as theologians. However useful such knowledge may be, he claims, it 'by no means' makes them 'gospel theologians.' It often makes them 'fierce and fiery disputants' and 'subtle investigators of theologico-philosophical propositions', he acutely observes, but it leaves them 'spiritually empty.'
At this point Owen states his claim that 'certainly none of the ends of evangelical theology are served by theological science.' Yet in pointing out its limitations he draws us nearer his understanding of what evangelical theology really is: 'It [theological science] confirms no-one to God in Christ, renders none fit for and capable of obedience to God, prepares no-one for fellowship with God the Father or the Son, and it will lead none home to the eternal enjoyment of God.' The very fact that, 'despite the holiness of the subject-matter dealt with...theological study in itself does not produce holiness' is proof positive that Systematics 'cannot properly be called theology at all.' It is nothing but 'a species of Christian philosophy', and 'still lacks the hallmarks of theology.'
Two salient reasons explain Owen's assertion:
1. All the statements of the systematic theologians are not themselves spiritual realities, but only propositions describing them.
2. True evangelical theology consists in the knowledge of God, not about God. 'And this is life eternal, that they might know Thee, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom Thou hast sent.'(John 17.3)
Between spiritual realities and the propositions describing them, between knowing God and knowing about God, lies a great gulf, which neither philosophy nor Systematics can bridge.
These, then, are Owen's preliminaries, preparing us for his view of true evangelical theology.
Evangelical Theology
It is now clear what Owen means by the term. It is, he claims, a 'spiritual perception' bestowed by the Holy Spirit enabling the believer to see and understand the spiritual contents of the gospel spiritually. It is the unction from the Holy One referred to in 1 John 2.20. It is 'that saving light by which a sinner's mind' is 'rendered capable of understanding truth in a spiritual and true way.' It is 'evangelical discernment', the fruit of God who 'irradiates the mind with a holy light' according to 2 Corinthians 4.6. It is 'spiritual wisdom', or, as Paul describes it, 'the wisdom of God in a mystery' (1 Cor 2.7).
Such theology, or saving knowledge of God in Christ, is beyond the reach of logic or reason. It surpasses all the 'rules of human wisdom, or any words of philosophy.' Indeed, it leaves the artificial theological systems of the scholars, with all their 'artificial definitions' - the result of re-arranging and dragging the words of the Spirit 'through the sieves of the philosophers' - far behind. Between what Paul prays for the Ephesians (1.17) - 'that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory,' would give them 'the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him' - and 'all secular knowledge or formalized systems of information' lies an 'enormous gulf.' For there is simply 'nothing human', not even 'a bare knowledge of or . . cold acquaintance with Christ' in evangelical theology. It is not a science 'in the academic or philosophic sense', and therefore cannot be forced into an academic curriculum like other sciences. This is because it is 'internal', or an inward perception of and delight in the glory of God in Christ seen through 'external evangelical doctrine'. It is that light of God in which the believer 'sees light' (Psa 36.9), which follows the 'entrance' of God's Word (Psa 119.130), for which the Psalmist prays 'Open Thou mine eyes'(Psa 119.18), which brings with it 'the knowledge of Him that is true.'(1 John 5.20). It is that spiritual 'understanding in all things' which Paul sought for Timothy (2 Tim 2.7), that 'opening of the understanding' by which true disciples 'might understand the Scriptures.'(Luke 24.45) This is why Owen can add with deep conviction, 'Let us never concede the title of theologian to any who is not a disciple of Christ' or 'who do not the things commanded by Christ.' Such people are 'enemies of Christ', however 'erudite' they may be.
It is now apparent why the unregenerate cannot learn evangelical theology. Being spiritually 'blind', even 'darkness' itself, they cannot see the glory of God in Christ. That gospel which is light 'sheds light on all who receive it.' As a result 'the blind see.' Also the unregenerate are spiritually 'dead.' Yet the gospel 'gives life to those knowing it.' Consequently 'the dead live.' These metaphors indicate the 'spiritual realities' which set off sharply the difference between believers and unbelievers. That gospel which is the glory of the regenerate will always remain a mystery to the unregenerate.
Besides, the unregenerate are strangers to evangelical theology because they know nothing of the reason why God sent it into the world; namely, 'that sinners may once again enjoy communion with God Himself, the All-holy One.' The 'cultivation of a most holy and sweet communion with God' is possible only to the regenerate. Only the 'new man in Jesus Christ' can be trained in this school.
Thirdly, the unregenerate are ignorant of evangelical theology because its 'ultimate end...is the celebration of the praise of God and His glory and grace in the eternal salvation of sinners.' To this the unregenerate can never attain. Indeed, all knowledge of the 'technical scheme of theology and its scientific terminology' can no more make a disciple of Christ than the knowledge of Plato's Republic can make a good citizen. This spiritual gift Christ received from the Father in order to bestow it on His Church, and the Holy Spirit, acting as 'Christ's deputy', communicates it only to the regenerate.
Owen has not yet said the best about evangelical theology. Its 'most distinctive and important' aspect, he believes, is the fact that it gradually transforms its recipient into the very image of heavenly truth. How Owen explains the restoration to believers of the 'once lost image of God' is glorious.
First, it is seen to perfection in Christ, (2 Cor 4.4). He is the 'image of the invisible God' (Col 1.15), the 'brightness of His glory and the express image of His person' (Heb 1.3).
Then, according to 2 Corinthians 4.6, this image makes its way from Him to be impressed on believers' hearts as they gaze on it in Him by faith, conveyed through the gospel, (2 Cor 3.18). This, he adds pointedly, is true 'knowledge', true 'awareness', true 'science.' And because gospel truth is active, it 'necessarily brings with it new and spiritual emotions related to' itself.
These in turn lead the renewed and enlightened mind not only into communion with God in Christ, but also into 'gracious covenant obedience.' In short, 'the man who is wise in the mystery of the gospel is the one who has been brought to understand the counsel, design, love and grace of God in and through Christ according to the revelation of the Scriptures, and who, by the powerful operation of the Spirit, comes to willingly surrender himself in obedience to God.' Anything less than this claiming to be wisdom is 'nothing but an empty name', a mere 'ghost of wisdom.' It is in this 'acknowledging of the truth which is after godliness' (Tit 1.1) that the vital force of theology lies. It is piety. It is worship. It is the fear of God. Where these are neglected there can be no progress in evangelical theology, (John 8.31-2).
Thus there is a 'vital link between spiritual wisdom and the practice of holiness.' So when Paul prays that the Colossians 'might be filled with the knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding . . that they might walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing' (Col 1.9-10), he is really asking that they might be filled with 'evangelical theology', or 'the knowledge of God.' To possess it would be their wisdom.
It goes without saying that the light of this wisdom grows brighter through the diligent use of prayer and study of the Scripture. For although 'the Bible is a complete corpus of divine knowledge, lacking absolutely nothing...our understanding of it' increases only 'as the Holy Spirit grants light according to His infinite wisdom' in proportion to believers' 'diligent and faithful use of means suitable to the advance of that knowledge.' The Spirit is not given to render prayer and study superfluous, but to make it effectual.
The Effect of Evangelical Theology on the Church
Lest we might imagine that the bestowal of evangelical theology, or the knowledge of God in Christ, is exclusively a private affair, Owen next launches into an exposition of its effect on the Church. Because it 'expounds the kingdom of God', evangelical theology gathers together those who worship God in Christ and separate themselves from the world. The Church is a kingdom. And because evangelical theology is entirely spiritual, it causes its recipients to institute spiritual worship.
Furthermore, it means 'that the true church consist(s) of none but the regenerate', living stones built on The Living Stone. Old Testament church holiness, Owen claims, was a type of true New Testament church holiness. By it the Holy Spirit pointed forward to the 'permanent and everlasting state of the Church, its inner and spiritual reality.' When John the Baptist preached the necessity of repentance, he did no more than Malachi before him. But when Christ Himself came, He taught that no-one could enter the kingdom of God unless drawn to Him by the Father through re-birth to holiness. His apostles in turn proclaimed 'the same essential term of admission.' (Matt 3.2, 9-10; John 6.37,44; Acts 2.38; Rom 1.7; 1 Cor 1.9)
This 'visible separation' constituted the Church as 'truly catholic - no longer confined to a single region of the earth, or to any distinct tribe, family, race or nation, but instead to all conditions and kinds of men, throughout the entire globe.' Now, 'all places and all races might be reconciled to God', for 'all the ends of the earth are Christ's possession.'
That the only worship 'acceptable to Christ is spiritual worship' is evident from the fact that He has now 'abolished all external magnificence', replacing it with a 'few and simple ceremonies.' (John 4.23; 2 Cor 3.6-11; Heb 9.11-12). Just as God prescribed every detail of Old Testament worship, so Christ 'now ordains what He requires.' Hence the total silence of the New Testament about outward matters and the repeated insistence on the 'inner and spiritual nature of worship, the need for evangelical obedience, for discipline, and for all to be administered in a spiritual way.' To this end Christ set up a 'standard of evangelical worship and the sole rule for judging all matters of faith, obedience and worship.' That standard is 'His Word, the Scriptures.' Where this is obeyed, Christ's promised presence is enjoyed. (Matt 28.18-20; John 14.15-16).
In a concluding chapter, marked by the very percipience he is expounding, Owen assures us not merely that 'wherever worshippers of the true God meet in Christ Jesus through the Holy Spirit, there is the Church', but that this church will last forever. The presence of the tri-une God Himself guarantees this. Particular churches may disappear, but the universal Church is eternal.
The Deformation of Evangelical Theology
It is with considerable reluctance that Owen does not end here. Yet keeping in view the arrogant claim to catholicity of the 'abominable system' called Romanism, that 'most corrupt and apostate of all churches', he rapidly adduces five reasons why it must be seen as a 'total contradiction of the norms of evangelical theology.' This he does because 'many churches...are in some danger of falling again into the root errors...of that loathsome apostasy.' It was precisely through neglect of the fundamental principles of evangelical theology that 'the Romish defection' was initiated.
First, the 'unregenerate and unholy' were admitted into church membership. Inevitably the Biblical doctrines of regeneration, faith and repentance were corrupted to suit their unregenerate state. Worship was reduced to the 'mechanical performance of baptism' and other rites. In short, 'everything instituted by Christ' was 'basely transmuted into another gospel...without a protest.'
Second, church discipline underwent a process of secularization. The churches became 'crowded with men intensely pagan' whose religion was 'shot through with left-over Jewish practices.' Hence the 'worship of angels, prayers for the dead, images, purgatory, monasticism, holy virgins, priests, the sacrifice of the mass,' etc. In England, the baptized paganism of 'that Roman monk Augustine' of Canterbury was responsible for our national apostasy from a purer evangelical faith.
Third, by claiming for her prelates 'special apostolic seats', Rome wholly undermined the principle of catholicity. This claim produced the most 'shameful wrangles and lawsuits as church leaders strove for a wicked pre-eminence over their brothers in express violation of the word of Jesus Christ.' From this 'secular pride and Satanic ambition' Rome emerged as victor over the rest, and so 'destroyed the true catholicity of the Church.' Not only were local churches subverted by the central church, the entire body became ' a shadow of the secular state.'
Fourth, Rome substituted an impressive external show for the inward spiritual worship of the true Church. Carnal eyes feasted on gorgeous ceremonies and trappings, while communion with the Father and Son by the Spirit was utterly lost. Indeed, the whole of worship was converted into an 'empty, superstitious, theatrical farrago of worldly rites, all dished up in a rich sauce of idolatry.' The secular hierarchy abolished the concept of 'mutual rule or shared authority', and all Biblical church discipline, such as 'private and brotherly exhortations, reproofs and warnings, applied by the local church with all becoming leniency, love and peace according to the mind of the Spirit, disappeared.' Instead, its place was usurped by 'jurisdictions, courts, proceedings, penalties' and 'tyrannies' till nothing remained of what was 'sincere, sacred, spiritual, brotherly or evangelical.'
Last, the defection was completed by replacing Scriptural authority with un-Scriptural traditions. Once the 'stable, fixed authority and rule of the Word' was cast away, poor souls had no protection from falling headlong into 'an abyss of errors, heresies and idolatry.' 'The ancient serpent', Owen concludes tellingly, 'never offered a more potent poison to the Church' than unwritten tradition. The 'monstrous contempt of the Spirit' speaking in 'the written Word' rendered His whole oversight of His own Church redundant, leaving all in the hands of 'ministerial power', 'science or learning' and 'unwritten worship.' 'With the Word of God spurned and the Spirit of God neglected', no limits remained to which 'infidelity and apostasy' might descend.
Comment and Conclusion
It is important to notice that Owen does not deal in detail with the relationship between the true spiritual Church and its outward expression. [He does this in other treatises; eg on worship and church government, where he acknowledges that there were false apostles, ungodly men and loose-living women among the early disciples.] Therefore we must not draw the conclusion that a professedly Christian church should comprise only the regenerate. No church officer or member can tell infallibly who are the regenerate, and no-one should presume to be able to do so. (Jonathan Edwards regarded those who pontificated on their knowledge of the regenerate as either immature, proud or ignorant of themselves.) Professing believers should be accepted on the basis of their uncontradicted or accredited profession, as was done in the New Testament Church. Nevertheless, spirituality of mind (not the kind of spirituality that gives licence to bodily lusts or shabbiness in appearance) is a mark of the truly regenerate. [Here we need to be extremely careful and judicious. I once knew of a church elder described by others as 'like a sheaf of ripe corn ready for the harvest' who was secretly a practising sodomite! Thankfully he was discovered and excommunicated.]
It is only when we accept Owen's premiss - that Evangelical Theology consists in the spiritual perception of divine truth - that we can understand the vehemence with which he denounces Systematic Theology. He did this because it cannot give us what the grace of God alone can give us. Only when we grasp that his strictures are levelled against mere head knowledge of Protestant Reformed Orthodoxy shall we appreciate his claim that none of the ends of evangelical theology are served by theological science. Owen here is not becoming a mystic. He would be the first to recognize that Church history and biography testify of many who were brought to know God in Christ through the study of the great Protestant theologians. Yet he is fully justified in denying the power of orthodoxy to make a person evangelically spiritually-minded.
A third lesson we may draw from Owen's understanding of Evangelical Theology is our indispensable need of religious reality. Just as Samuel Rutherford cried out: "O sincerity! sincerity! Tell me what sincerity meaneth!" so must we cry out: "O reality! reality! Give me reality!" The Christianity of many is second-hand. They never experience personal (and usually painful) dealings with God. They call themselves Calvinists yet are complete strangers to the believer's fearful struggles against indwelling sin and worldly temptation. They learn much from reading books, from observing God's people, from attending church worship, from having certain religious experiences, but that is as far as they go.
They speak the language of Canaan and adopt God's people's ways. But they never come to possess what William Guthrie calls a 'personal interest' in Christ. I shall never forget the awesome, dramatic silence in Westminster Chapel long ago when Dr Martyn Lloyd-Jones asked the congregation: "Is your religion YOURS?" That is the great question Owen's study leaves on our conscience. And it must be answered.
Let us therefore acknowledge with gratitude to God the spiritual depth of Owen's analysis, lay to heart his warning against identifying the science of theology with sanctified spiritual understanding, and share his passionate zeal against every externalization of evangelical truth. With churches hurtling Rome-wards at an alarming pace, and Evangelicalism drifting far out from its original moorings, and philosophical scholasticism trying to assert itself over the Reformed constituency, how we need to settle on good grounds the all-important question of our relationship to God. Do we know Him? Do we see His glory in the Person and work of our Lord Jesus Christ? Do we possess that sanctifying light which brings us into sweet communion with Him and sets us apart in decided consecration to Him? Do we seek grace to worship Him in spirit and in truth, strictly according to His revealed will? Do we earnestly pursue evangelical holiness? Do we strive after evangelical obedience? Do we long to be with Him in heaven? Do we protest against every usurper who seats himself arrogantly on Christ's throne? Do we abominate Romanism and Popery and all their detestable enormities? Or do we drift with the great ecumenical tide towards the whirlpool from which there is no return? May God Himself grant us that light which alone will enable us to answer such questions to His approval.
[Owen's work on Evangelical Theology appears in the Soli Deo Gloria volume entitled Biblical Theology by John Owen. Ed.]
[The following material is an Examination Paper set recently by Cranmer Memorial Bible College along with a student's answer to two questions.]
Course THS 05 Reformation Theology -- Examination
Attempt FOUR Questions -- 2 Hours
1. Explain how Luther came to grasp the doctrine of Justification by Faith and why it may be said to be his most important contribution to theology.
2. Discuss in the light of the following quotation Luther's doctrine of the Church: "Luther never lost his belief in the Christian Church. Only it became clear to him that the Roman church was not the Church. The Church was the community of the faithful."
3. Explain how Zwingli saw the reformation of Zurich as a revival of true religion.
4. State Zwingli's doctrine of:
(a) Civil Authority. (b) The Lord's Supper. (c) Holy Scripture.
5. "Calvin's great achievement was to take the classic insights of the Reformation (sola gratia, sola fide, sola scriptura) and give them a clear, systematic exposition." Discuss.
6. Explain what Calvin meant by describing Predestination as:
(a) Absolute. (b) Particular. (c) Double.
7. Write brief notes on any THREE of the following:
(a) William Tyndale.
(b) Thomas Cranmer.
(c) John Hooper.
(d) Hugh Latimer.
(e) John Bradford.
(f) John Jewel.
8. Explain what William Whitaker meant when he wrote that the Church is:
(a) the guardian of Scripture. (b) the champion of Scripture.
(c) the herald of Scripture. (d) the interpreter of Scripture.
9. Mention the main practical lessons of the Reformation for the Church of today.
10. Write a SHORT ESSAY (Introduction, Three paragraphs, Conclusion) based on the following quotation from William Cunningham: "The theology of the Reformers, by far the most important feature of their history."
Question 6
Absolute Predestination alludes to the fact that God alone chooses those who are to inherit glory. (Eph 1.3ff). Man has nothing to say: no vote, no consultation; for "from Him and through Him and unto Him are all things." (Rom 11). Predestination must be placed in eternity past, according to God's purpose and grace. (2 Tim 1.9). Before man was created God had already determined and fixed unalterably who were to be redeemed from the ruinous Fall of Adam. (2 Thess 2.13-14). But God did not choose because of foreseen faith, or good works, or a willingness to repent - rather the contrary: His election assured that His own would respond to the Gospel call. (Eph 1.3ff; Acts 13.48). Predestination is not to be traced to man's behaviour or his efforts. (Rom 9.11-16). Rather the fountain-head of predestination is in God Himself, in His sovereign will and good pleasure (eudokia). Christ praises the Father for electing "babes" - "even so, Father, for thus it was well-pleasing in Thy sight."
Particular Predestination refers to the Biblical teaching that a certain number of mankind, known to God alone, are elected unto life. Calvin realized that God indeed chooses some people for special service, such as Bezaleel for the construction of the tabernacle; or for special ministry, such as Aaron; or even a whole nation, such as Israel. (Deut 7.6-8). But by describing predestination as 'particular' he meant that God chose individuals, and knows them by name. (John 10.3,14). Paul was not afraid to write, "Salute Rufus, chosen (eklektos) in the Lord." (Rom 16.13). The particularity of predestination is seen also in the case of Jacob (Rom 9), Paul (Gal 1.15-16) and Abraham.
Double Predestination brings out the Biblical feature of election and reprobation. Calvin called the latter God's 'decretum orribile', and yet he did not keep it from the view of the faithful. If some are the recipients of God's love, it must also be borne out that some are by-passed and left to the just deserts of their own sinfulness. God is not a debtor to His enemies; He is certainly not obliged to save all, or even any. The marvel is that God willed to save [at all]. Reprobation highlights the wonder of God's love to the elect (who are not inherently better than the rest, being fallen in Adam too, Eph 2.3). Jacob was not morally superior to his twin brother, yet God chose him and rejected Esau. (Rom 9). Reprobation is mentioned in Jude 4 and Matthew 13.11-16 (in contrast to election).
Question 8
By "church" is meant the whole company of the elect, in any age or country. At the Reformation the Church of Christ regained its privilege and assumed its awesome responsibility as:
a. the guardian of Scripture.
The Church is called to preserve Scripture in its integrity, to keep it free from adulterations or changes of any kind, omissions or glosses in the Hebrew and Greek text (for from these all translations are to be produced). The New Testament Church inherited from the Jewish people this responsibility, especially as it now owns the full canon of Scripture (cf Rom 3.2). Owing its life and well-being to the Word of God (Matt 4.4) the Church must fulfil this task (cf 1 Cor 4.1-2; 2 Cor 4.1-2). The Church is the depository of God's truth and as such must never give it up to pretenders (such as human philosophy or reason).
b. the Church champions Scripture.
Cranmer called it "the most holy relic upon the earth." If the Church forfeits Scripture it loses its identity and becomes effectively "a synagogue of Satan." In this respect she must imitate her Lord, who regularly appealed to Scripture to foil the arguments of His adversaries, whether it was on divorce, the final resurrection, His own deity or His resurrection. "What is written?" "What saith the law?" "How do you read therein?" Such phrases were constantly on His lips. Christ held Scripture to be the final arbiter of truth: He championed it, for it proceeded from the mouth of God. It is vox Dei. The Christian Church must likewise hold it as its priceless and unique treasure, and use it for the purpose for which it was given. (2 Tim 3.15-17). Other competitors to Scripture must be exposed for what they are and rejected without compromise. The reading and exposition of the Word are therefore primary. (1 Tim 4.13-16).
c. The Church receives the Word, and is, by the same token, responsible to herald the Word. Preachers and ministers are not to discuss it or engage in give-and-take dialogue with false religions. Rather they are to be heralds or proclaimers (Greek: kerux), to speak authoritatively, as sent from God. There is to be no toning down; the note of "thus saith the Lord" is to be distinctively sounded. (2 Tim 4.1-3). The apostles so described themselves (2 Tim 1.11) and urged others to do similarly. (Acts 20.18-35). Scripture, though written by godly men, did not originate with men. (2 Pet 1.20-21). Being 'autopistos' (self-authenticating) it must be so presented to the lost world.
d. Inevitably and logically, the Church is also called to interpret Scripture. This is unavoidable: the Church may do poorly (as when the allegorical hermeneutic of the Scholastics was popular) or adequately, as the Reformers did. But the sense must be brought out by exegesis (analogia fidei), relevancy for today and application to the hearers. Christ furnishes gifted men to this end (Eph 4.10-15), and yet all Christians are called to "test everything, and hold fast to what is good" (1 Thess 5), as the Bereans were commended for. The Church is "the pillar and ground of the truth" (1 Tim 3.15); in so exercising herself she has made great strides, bringing out the salient truths of the Trinity, Christ's deity and others. The schisms yet existing among professing Christians indicate that the Church has yet a long way to go in this respect.
[Paul Mizzi]
If the human heart, in its self-deception and self-reliance, turns away from the Cross and the righteousness of God to morals and the righteousness of works, then let the Christian thinker follow after it like the avenger of blood. Let him set the heights and depths of ethical perfection before the deluded mortal; let him point to the inaccessible cliffs that tower high above, and bid him scale them if he can; let him point to the fathomless abysses beneath, and tell him to descend and bring up perfect virtue therefrom; let him employ the very instrument which this virtuoso has chosen, until it becomes an instrument of torture and self-despair.
All mankind come upon one doctrinal platform when they enter eternity. They all have one creed there. There is not a skeptic even in hell.
Only faith in Christ and a new heart can protect the soul from future misery. The nature and character of God cannot be altered, and therefore the change must be wrought in man's soul. The disposition and affections of the heart must be brought into . . harmony with God's holiness.
He, and only he, who trusts in Christ's blood of atonement, will be able to look into the holy countenance of God and upon the dread record of his own sins, without either trembling or despair. The merits and righteousness of Christ so clothe the guilty soul that it can endure the otherwise intolerable brightness of God's pure throne and presence.
Were sinful men constantly self-examining, they would be constantly in torment. Men can be happy in sin only so long as they can sin without thinking of it.
There is in the cess-pools of the great capitals of Christendom a mass of human creatures who are born, who live and who die in moral putrefaction.
Light in the intellect is very different from life in the heart. It is one thing to know the law of God, and quite another thing to be conformed to it... There are a multitude of persons who hear the Word of God who never dream of disputing it, who yet, alas, never dream of obeying it.
Sinful man shapes his creed in accordance with his wishes... He does not like to think of a holy God, and therefore he denies that God is holy. He does not like to think of the eternal punishment of sin, and therefore he denies that punishment is eternal. He does not like to be pardoned through the substituted sufferings of the Son of God, and therefore he denies the doctrine of atonement. He does not like the truth that man is so totally alienated from God that he needs to be renewed in the spirit of his mind by the Holy Ghost, and therefore he denies the doctrines of depravity and regeneration. Run through the creed which the Church has lived by and died by, and you will discover that the only obstacle to its reception is the aversion of the human heart.
We say with confidence and positiveness: "God must be just"; but we cannot say with any certainty or confidence at all: "God must be merciful." The divine mercy is an attribute which is perfectly free and optional in its exercises, and therefore we cannot tell beforehand whether it will or will not be shown to transgressors. We know nothing at all about it until we hear some word from the lips of God Himself upon the point... 'I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy.' (Rom 9.15)
Meditation upon God is a sanctifying act, because God is holy and perfect in His nature and attributes. The meditation of which the Psalmist speaks in the text [ie Psalm 104.34 - 'My meditation of Him shall be sweet.' Ed.] is not that of the schoolman or the poet, but of the devout, saintly and adoring mind. That meditation upon God which is 'sweeter than honey and the honey-comb' is not speculative, but practical. That which is speculative and scholastic springs from curiosity. That which is practical flows from love... All merely speculative thinking is inquisitive, acute and wholly destitute of affection for the object. But all practical thinking is affectionate, sympathetic and in harmony with the object. When I meditate upon God because I love Him, my reflection is practical. When I think upon God because I desire to explore Him, my thinking is speculative. None, therefore, but the devout and affectionate mind truly meditates upon God.
Man in every age has endeavoured 'by searching to find out God.' ...But because it was from the love of knowledge rather than from the love of God his efforts have been both unprofitable and futile. He has not sounded the abyss, neither has his heart grown humble, and gentle, and tender and pure. His intellect has been baffled, and, what is yet worse, his nature has not been renovated...because, in his long struggle to understand God, he has not had the first thought of loving and serving Him... And were we accustomed to such heavenly contemplation...the 'fire would burn' in our hearts as it did in that of the Psalmist, and our souls would 'pant' after God. God would be real to our feelings instead of being a mere abstraction to our understandings.
Righteousness imparts to the divine justice its serene and awful beauty. Righteousness regulates the divine mercy, and prevents it from becoming mere indulgence.
Man's life is the shadow of a shadow.
The Christian will one day behold God face to face.
All spiritual excellence resolves itself, ultimately, into a desire to render unto God the glory due unto His name... Morality, or the practice of virtue, is only the shell of religion. Religion itself, in its pure, simple nature, is adoration - the revering praise of God. The shell is good and needful in its own place; but it can never be a substitute for the living kernel and germ.
Man is a very ignorant being.
Whatsoever a man thinks of with most relish here in time, he shall think of with most relish in eternity. He who loves to think of wealth, and fame, and sensual pleasure, and loathes to think of God, and Christ, and heavenly objects, shall think of wealth, and fame, and sensual pleasure in eternity, where all such thinking is 'the worm that dieth not, and the fire that is not quenched.' But he who, in any degree, loves to think of God and Christ, and abhors to think of sin in all its forms, shall think of God and Christ in eternity - where all such thought is music, and peace, and rest.
The Five Points of Calvinism stress the role of God's sovereign grace in saving sinners. Simply stated, they stress:
1. Sovereign grace needed. [Total Depravity]
Though they do not summarize the whole of Calvinism, the Five Points fit (and stand or fall) together to show us how God's sovereign grace saves sinners to His glory.
Some Calvinists prefer to express the truths of the Five Points in other terms, such as:
1. Radical Depravity, to stress that sin lies at the root of our fallen nature and is the cause of the spiritual and moral infection of every part of us.
2. Sovereign Election, to indicate that God is absolutely free from all external influence in choosing those whom He intends to save.
3. Definite Atonement, to focus on the fact that Christ's death was designed for particular individuals without detracting from its unlimited value and efficacy.
4. Invincible Grace, to emphasize that when God chooses to apply salvation to His elect, He overcomes all present as well as previous resistance.
5. Preservation of the Saints, to concentrate on the source of perseverance rather than on perseverance itself.
Calvinism and Arminianism cannot be reconciled because of the following irreconcilable differences between them:
1. Depravity is either total, leaving man's will in bondage to sin and therefore unable to believe on Christ (Calvinism) or partial, leaving man's will free to accept or reject Christ with the help of grace (Arminianism).
2. Election is either conditional on man repenting and believing (Arminianism) or unconditional, God purposing that the elect would repent and believe (Calvinism).
3. Atonement is either universal, designed to save every individual (Arminianism) or limited, intended to save only some in particular (Calvinism).
4. Saving grace is either resistible, because of man's free will (Arminianism) or irresistible, because God makes His people willing in the day of His power (Calvinism).
5. The saints either persevere to the end, in dependence on God's keeping grace (Calvinism) or they fail to persevere, and may finally and irretrievably fall from grace (Arminianism).
These differences are not just matters of emphasis. They represent two opposing systems of belief. [Arminianism is the doctrine held by the apostate church of Rome, Wesleyan Methodists and most present-day Anglicans and Non-conformists. Calvinism is professed by many Presbyterian, Independent, Baptist and some Anglican churches. Ed.] The Five Points of Calvinism, being thoroughly Scriptural, need to be proclaimed boldly and vigorously.
Adapted from an article by Joel R Beeke
I know nothing of a Christ who is presented to me in a human book containing errors, but only a Christ presented in a divine book, the Bible, which is true from beginning to end.
I know nothing of a Christ who possibly was and probably was not born of a virgin, but only a Christ who was truly conceived by the Holy Ghost and born of the virgin Mary.
I know nothing of a Christ who possibly did and possibly did not work miracles, but only a Christ who said to the wind and the waves, with the sovereign voice of the Maker and Ruler of all nature: "Peace, be still."
I know nothing of a Christ who possibly did and possibly did not die as my substitute on the cross, but only a Christ who took upon Himself the just punishment of my sins, and died there in my stead to make me right with the holy God.
J. Gresham Machen
The sacred writer who tells us most about the robes of the King of kings is the beloved disciple, John. In the Gospel that bears his name we read of a Robe of Royalty. The Roman soldiers "put on Him a purple robe" (19. 2). In the same chapter we read of a garment that speaks to us of Christ's Robe of Righteousness: " His coat...was without seam, woven from the top throughout" (19.23). In his old age, when the Evangelist was an exile in the isle of Patmos, he beheld in a vision the Lord arrayed in what may be termed the Robe of Redemption, "a vesture dipped in blood" (Rev. 19.l2) and clothed in the Robe of Priesthood, "a garment down to the foot" (Rev. 1.13),
(i) The Robe of Royalty. 'Sinners in derision crowned Him, mocking thus the Saviour's claim.' "The soldiers platted a crown of thorns and put it on His head, and they put on Him a purple robe and said: Hail, King of the Jews!" What they did in jest will one day be done in earnest, for the time will come when the prophecy of the Apostle Paul shall be fulfilled: "Wherefore God also hath highly exalted Him and given Him a name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee shall bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father" (Phil 2.9-12).
Pilate put a question, one among many, to his royal prisoner: "Art Thou a king?" The solemn, dignified reply was as prophetic as it was pointed: "Thou sayest that I am a king. To this end was I born, and for this cause came I into the world." And King He will be, for the hour is coming when "the kingdoms of this world" will become "the kingdoms of our Lord and of His Christ and He shall reign for ever and ever."
He was not only born to be a King, He was always King. In His pre-incarnate state He, by His sovereign power, ruled in the worlds of creation, providence and grace. "The Lord is a great God and a great King above all Gods." In His incarnation He was still King, for was He not "born King"? (Matthew 2.2). All His words and works proclaimed Him to be a King. Death bowed before Him, devils acknowledged His glorious Person and name; disease fled at His command; even the winds and waves obeyed Him. Though acknowledged only by those whose eye had been opened to see His grace and glory, He was "King over all the earth."
He remains King, for "All power is given unto Me in heaven and in earth" is His royal claim, and is that not the very essence of kingship? A king without power is a mockery of a king. Jesus is in very truth "Prince of the kings of the earth," God's King, set up from everlasting, of whom He Himself testifies, in answer to the opposition of devils and men: "Yet have I set My King upon My holy hill of Zion."
(ii) The Robe of Righteousness. The seamless robe, "woven from the top throughout," of which the rude Roman soldiers said: " Let us not rend it, but cast lots for it, whose it shall be" - that seamless robe of our King speaks to us of His righteous character, His holy life, His blameless walk. Those soldiers might strip from Him His robe, but they could not take from Him His righteousness. He might be falsely accused; by lies they might besmirch His name, but He remained what He always was and ever will be, the Holy One of God, of whom Israel's sweet singer testified: "Thou art clothed with honour and majesty."
Now the seamless, spotless life of the God-man Christ Jesus was not woven for Himself alone. Is it not written: "We are saved by His life"? Are we not as much set apart to "the obedience " of the Lord Jesus, as to the sprinkling of His precious blood? While His blood atones for our guilt, His obedience is imputed to every one of His elect, so that they stand before God cleansed, clothed, "accepted in the Beloved." "For He hath made Him to be sin for us, who knew no sin, that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him." Believe it or not, there is no other righteousness acceptable to God. Hence the cry of the sinner saved by grace: " That I may be found in Him, not having my own righteousness which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness of God which is by faith."
(iii) The Robe of Redemption. As the purple robe speaks of royalty, and the seamless robe of righteousness, so does "the vesture dipped in blood" speak of redemption. The language of the Apostle John here is very similar to that used by the Prophet Isaiah (see chapter 63.1-2) when he asks: "Who is this that cometh from Edom and with dyed garments from Bosrah, this that is glorious in His apparel, travelling in the greatness of His strength? I that speak in righteousness, mighty to save." John says of Him whom he saw in vision: "On His head were many crowns and He was clothed in a vesture dipped in blood, and His name is called the Word of God." Whatever may be included in this solemn prophecy from the Old and New Testament Scriptures of judgment, they certainly testify to the redemption work of Him who is righteousness and who is "mighty to save." [Both passages seem to refer rather to Christ spilling the blood of His enemies than to shedding His own blood. Ed.]
We "are not redeemed with corruptible things such as silver and gold, but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot." Many millions of subjects have laid down their lives for the sake of their kings and emperors. Very few potentates have laid down their lives for their people's sake. Our King has laid down His life for the salvation of His people. He has borne their sins in His own body on the tree. "This is My blood shed for many for the remission of sins" was His royal declaration. The redeemed on earth and the redeemed in glory have but one song: "Thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us unto God by Thy blood." "It is the blood that maketh an atonement for the soul." It is the precious blood that "makes nigh" as well as redeems. It is the blood that cleanses, and that speaks peace and pardon to the soul.
(iv) The Robe of Priesthood. The first vision that John had in Patmos was certainly of a regal character. So overawed was he that he fell at his Lord's feet as dead. The pierced hand was laid upon him and the voice of his Beloved spake saying: "Fear not." Now, as He testified, that blessed One was "clothed with a garment down to the foot."
Oh the comfort, the joy and the assurance that flows into the soul as we remember that the One Who was robed in purple by the mocking soldiery, and stripped of His seamless robe, and whose Iife-blood was poured out for our redemption, lives and reigns in the glory for those for whom He lived and died and rose again. "Now to appear in the presence of God for us" (Heb. 9.24). "A merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God" (Heb.2.17). That robe speaks to us of heavenly grace. The ungodly world will one day have to acknowledge Christ's kingship, His righteousness of character, and the justice of His judgments, and will look upon Him whom they pierced, but this blessed office is known only to those who stand in blessed relation to Him as sinners saved by grace, washed in His blood, robed in His righteousness, and who have kissed His sceptre and lived beneath His rule, and can say with David concerning Him: "All Thy garments smell of myrrh and aloes and cassia." (Slightly adapted)
The True Believer by Jonathan Edwards. 315pp. Hdbk. N.P.
This beautifully-produced compilation of eight of Edwards's sermons sets forth true marks of saving grace in distinction from their counterfeits. In a day when 'easy believism' is blindly leading many down into the pit, few authors are more likely to be used by God to awaken and change them into true believers than the calm, faithful and stately Edwards. The collection contains a most searching sermon on Hypocrites, a glorious one on Election, while the last two sermons on the believer's state in glory simply ravish the longing soul. Edwards stands squarely in the New England tradition of preaching the Moral Law to break up sinners' legalistic and carnal security before showing them Christ crucified as the only cure for their souls. And he is careful at all times to ensure that the honour and majesty of God are in no way impugned by their salvation. What a privilege to have such heart-searching and uplifting truths preached to us once more!
The Mercy Seat by Gardiner Spring. 232pp. Hdbk. N.P.
In these 'Thoughts suggested by the Lord's Prayer' the godly author leads us into the holy of holies in a deep, experiential treatment of each petition of the Prayer. The whole book breathes the spirit of a destitute supplicant who was intimately acquainted with the throne of grace. Especially valuable to this reviewer are the sections on Forgiveness, both God's and ours. The book closes with a consideration of the glory of God as the great motive to prayer.
The Poor Doubting Christian Drawn to Christ by Thomas Hooker. 109pp. Hdbk. N.P.
In this classic Puritan diagnosis of and cure for the main obstacles to our coming to Christ, this skilful heart-physician gives every possible encouragement to struggling souls. Some of his finest passages deal with the great but much neglected matters of believing God's promises and living by faith. Among the many prescriptions found here are the following: 'Look beyond all duties to God in Christ', 'Expect power from Christ alone to pluck you out of yourself and to make you a believer.'
Other excellent titles received from Soli Deo Gloria are Christ's Counsel to His Languishing Church by Obadiah Sedgwick and God's Call to Young People by several New England Puritans (a remarkable book).
The Church Is Mine by Cesar Malan. 142pp. Pbk. £7.95.
This title is a popular (ie non-academic) treatise on the atonement. With persuasive vigour and admirable clarity (partly due to Benjamin Clark's up-dated translation from the 19th century French) the redoubtable Swiss theologian comes down decidedly on the Calvinistic side. Significantly he sees much of the glory of Christ's redeeming work shining out of His matchless love for His Church. For good measure, the book includes most valuable sections on the saints' perseverance and human responsibility, laying the whole blame for his damnation on man himself. Warmly recommended, though somewhat over-priced.
Daily Grace by George Philip. 192pp. Pbk. £7.95.
In this set of daily readings from the Gospel of Mark (for 183 days only), the Sinless Saviour is presented lovingly and faithfully. His identity with His people, His self-disclosure as the great object of their trust, our need to be right with God as a pre-condition of service, and the wonder of His sovereign grace in choosing any-one at all to serve Him, are all simply and effectively drawn out of the Gospel narrative. It is also good to see the last 16 verses of Mark 're-instated' (after their omission from so many modern commentaries) as a genuine part of the text.
A House of Prayer by Andrew Stewart. 480pp. Pbk. £7.95.
This commentary on 2 Chronicles (the sequel to the author's A Family Tree on 1 Chronicles) highlights the place of the temple in the life of the Jewish nation: its building, its centrality in the theocracy, its importance as the site of national apostasy and its significance in relation to the promised Messiah. Far from being a boring regurgitation of the Biblical narrative, it is eminently readable, especially for its inclusion of many practical spiritual lessons for today and for its constant and exclusive pointing of the reader to Christ as the personal embodiment of all that the temple stood for. Cordially recommended.
The Eclipse of the Gospel by Frank Allred. 224pp. Pbk. £6.95.
In this fine assessment of the subordinate place given to the Gospel in today's church, the author faithfully diagnoses the cause in the widespread neglect of the sovereignty of God, the holiness of God and the judgment of God. Besides splendid refutations of 'wishy-washy' Liberal Modernism and baselessly-optimistic Arminianism, it contains clear and convincing re-statements of the great truths of Calvinism. In fact, it is a kind of Christ-centred mini-theology. Of the many aspects of this title which struck the present reviewer, not least were its lucid summaries of covenant theology, election, the impetration and application of salvation, and the author's earnest seriousness in handling the issues at stake. A final chapter fittingly counsels us how to communicate to our own age the Gospel of sovereign grace. A most challenging and inspiriting book, worth far more than its price.
Heaven and Hell by Edward Donnelly.127pp. Pbk. £4.95.
In this study, the compassionate yet faithful author reminds us of where each one of us shall spend eternity - either suffering eternal punishment or enjoying eternal blessedness. No teaching is more needed yet more scoffed at in this God-hating generation than the solemn and glorious truths here set forth. How we would love to place a copy in the hands of every one of our national leaders and people!
We have also received two booklets from Banner of Truth dealing with exclusive psalmody and unity with non-evangelicals, stating a case against both.
John Calvin: Student of the Church Fathers by Anthony N.S.Lane. 304pp. Pbk. N.P.
In this highly technical study of Calvin's use of both Greek and Latin 'Fathers' and Bernard of Clairvaux, (including a few pages of untranslated Latin!), the author combines references to Calvin's citations of patristic sources with certain useless surmises. Pages of hard fact are intermingled with such queries as "Did Calvin Use Lippoman's Catena in Genesim?" (hardly a question to interest readers of 'Peace & Truth' or believers seeking to grow in grace and the knowledge of Christ!) While claiming that Calvin's quotations are rarely accurate, the author fails to clarify Calvin's doctrinal or pastoral purpose in making the quotations. In short, this is not a study in spiritual edification. In the last analysis, what does it matter who Calvin cites or quotes, as long as he adheres to the truth? Such academic investigations belong to the realm of spiritual 'low visibility' above which every Christian should live.
We have also received Abraham Kuyper's fine study of Particular Grace and the very informative Operation World, but regrettably have no room to review them.
The Conversion of John Morris
A Conspicous Example of the Sovereignty of God in Salvation
To Rev J.S.Sergeant
The Vicarage
Wymeswold
Loughborough
May 27th, 1878
It seems very long since we had any correspondence on any subject, but a thing has just happened which I feel you must hear of, and in which, I am sure, you cannot fail to take a great interest. How it has been so long concealed from my own knowledge I know not, but I never heard of it till last week.
Do you remember going with me in the summer of 1860 to the Wolds to see some farmer sort of people, where there was a very deaf old man sitting in a corner, and we both had a conversation with him by turns till we were both exhausted, and he told us to hold our tongues as he had known all we could tell him before we were born? His name was John Morris, then about eighty-four years of age: his two daughters had married men of the name of Hitherly. They were very respected, nice people. But the old deaf man was a real old public-house goer, and used to come toddling down to the village (two-and-a-half miles) to spend the day occasionally at the 'Rose and Crown', hobnobbing with old Joe Bampton, the landlord.
I never heard any more of poor old John Morris that I can remember, till in May 1871 I buried him at the age of ninety-five. I regarded him as a poor old reprobate, at last sealed up in deafness against all the means of grace, and never again destined so much as to have one more thought of heaven or hell! But in this I was more brutish than any man, and had not the understanding of a man. For God's thoughts were not my thoughts, nor had I the smallest idea of His grand purpose of eternal love towards that poor old dark soul.
Well - I had this account from his daughter, Mrs. Hitherly, now herself an old woman. She came here from Grimston, where they now live, for a few days last week, and I called to see her and she told me as follows:
About six years after our call he would sometimes say in a sort of pensive manner, ''be born again - didn't Mr. Walker and that gentleman say I must be born again? Didn't that gentleman say I must pray to have my heart broken to shivers?'' You remember you said this to him as a parting word before we left the house. She said she was surprised to hear him refer to it in that inquiring way, for she was afraid at the time we were there he would have broken out and ordered us out of his house. So she was astonished at his remembering our very words.
The next thing was - her boy, then about ten years of age, said to her, "Mother, I'm sure grandfather will go to heaven, for he prays all night." Still she thought it must be a mistake, till she herself constantly overheard him saying: "Born again! Why, I'm born again; it is as the gentleman said, Except a man he born again he cannot see, no he cannot see (laying great stress on see) the Kingdom of God''.
Then many scriptures used to come to his mind, which is the more remarkable as he never could read, and he would turn them into prayer or praise. His favourite passage was, ''Who shall not fear Thee, O Lord, and glorify Thy name? for Thou only art holy; for all nations shall come and worship before Thee.'' He used to lay great stress on ''all nations,'' and would say sometimes, ''I wish I was a young man, I would go to all nations and tell them what the Lord has done for my soul." Then he would at times break out and say, "I have found out now that for the biggest sinner there is a bigger Saviour. I am a great sinner - I have been a sinner all my life long. I am the biggest sinner - yet I have a bigger Saviour." He was very diligent on Saturdays to pray for ministers - he would always mention both of us by name, and say, "all others who preached Christ." On Sabbath mornings again he would pray for ministers, then for hearers, then for those who cannot go to worship, and then for those who will not go to worship. Ho would add sometimes that he was once one who would not go. There was a public house, 'The Durham Ox', on the forty acre at Six-hills, where in his days of darkness he had spent many an evening and night. Now, he never went there.
Still his daughter had doubts of his conversion and fancied he had picked up religious expressions from somebody or other when he could hear, and now that he was old they came to his memory. She could not believe so great a miracle had been wrought as that his hard, dark, old, wicked heart had really been changed. But one fine day they drove over from Grimston to spend the day at 'The Durham Ox' with Mrs. Biddles, who was the landlady and a friend of theirs. Now she saw the reality of the change - instead of taking his accustomed seat on the ale-bench and drinking as long as they would treat him, he smiled when they offered him any drink and said, "Thank you, I will have a cup of tea presently''; then he would look very kindly at them and say, "God bless you; I hope He will bless you as He has me." To his daughter he said: "Betsy, don't leave me in the tap-room; I will go into the parlour and have tea with you"; and then in a very low voice, so as not to hurt Mrs. Biddles' feelings, he added, "I can't bear to see that seat where I used to sit, I hate the very look of it, don't let me see it.'' This was when he was about ninety-one. He lived four years after this. His constant ejaculation was, ''I want to go home - I want to go home.'' Then he would add very humbly, ''Lord, I know I must wait Thy time, and I am sure that will be a good time." Thus he lived a new man for about five years, being truly born again when he was old, actually ninety years of age.
His death was as might have been expected - he was quite blind for the last two years. He called his daughter to know what o'clock it was, and being told about 9 a.m., he said, ''I shan't be long now - I have had such a vision, unspeakable, I can't tell you - unspeakable; but they will soon be here again for me." Then he continued very dozing for about six hours, and at 3 he said, "Betsy, they have come again for me - I am going home.'' He never spoke again, but smiled and sighed gently and then never moved again.
Thus ended in hope of eternal life a man who till the age of ninety was as hardened a sinner as any in the Wolds! Surely we must say, ''Grace, grace unto it.''
I thought you ought to hear this case; you were, humanly speaking, the instrument God used to strike the spark in his flinty heart, and though all seemed lost for six years, yet at last at the age of ninety he was "brought forth" as a new-born son of Zion, desiring the sincere milk of the Word. Fancy their never once telling me! I would have walked barefoot to Grimston (about seven miles) to have seen him. And fancy their never mentioning it till now, when he has been in heaven seven years - yet so it was!
Best love to you all,
Yours most affectionately,
ROBERT WALKER.
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