By Lewis Sperry Chafer
[Author’s note: Though another subject has been announced and though the whole volume on Soteriology from which these articles have been taken—which is number three in the eight volumes being published—is now in print, it has seemed best to continue the series on this subject rather than to introduce a new subject, so that probably throughout a year at least the same subject, Soteriology, will be continued by the Editor. There are many following these articles who will not perhaps see the volume, and the series has just reached a place of most important truth in connection with the whole doctrine of salvation.]
A. The Finished Work of Christ
Respecting the theme now under consideration, no words of Scripture more accurately or completely describe the destiny-determining truth that God is the Author, Executor, and Consummator of man’s salvation than Jonah 2:9 and Psalm 3:8. These texts assert: “Salvation is of Jehovah” and “Salvation belongeth unto Jehovah.” Though the references, like all in the Old Testament, contemplate those aspects of salvation which are peculiar to the old order—often extending no further than to imply that God’s covenant people were delivered from their enemies—these uncomplicated and conclusive declarations serve as well to set forth the truth regarding the broader field of divine undertaking in man’s salvation as recorded in the New Testament. The gospel preacher should ever be on his guard lest by so much as an inference or intimation he violate or contradict the transcendent revelation that salvation is of Jehovah. Not the slightest insinuation should ever be advanced which implies that man might share in, or contribute to, that final consummation in eternal glory. Again, reason as well as revelation may serve to guide the mind; for, it will be seen, every step of the way from the divine election from before the foundation of the world (Eph 1:4) to the presentation in faultless perfection in glory is superhuman and therefore must be wrought, if wrought at all, by Another who is mighty to save. At no point has Arminianism—and with it all other forms of rationalism—missed the way more completely than it has respecting the truth that salvation is of Jehovah, being misled—often in real sincerity—by the wholly irrelevant fact that God does instruct the one who is saved about his manner of life. Confusion and contradiction arise when these later life-responsibilities are allowed to enter as a part of the human requirements in salvation. By such teachers it is claimed that man is saved by the power of God through faith, provided he continues by good works to adorn the doctrine which he professes. No less subversive of the truth of divine grace is that disposition to require of the unsaved some form of meritorious works as a part of the human step in the initial stage of salvation. That salvation from its beginning to its end is all a work of God in response to saving faith uncomplicated by any form of human merit, virtue, or works, is the cornerstone in the whole structure of Soteriology. It is true, a saved person may do things for God; but the reality of his salvation is due alone to the truth that God has done things for him. Too often this essential feature of salvation is acknowledged as a theory and then for want of due consideration or consistency, such human requirements are imposed on the unsaved as the condition of their salvation as deny the fundamental truth that salvation is by faith alone. In this introductory word only a passing reference to these issues may be made, which issues, later on, must be considered with utmost attention.
To the same end that clarity may prevail, it is essential to recognize that the “salvation [which] is of Jehovah” includes the three Persons of the Godhead as actively engaged in the realization of this stupendous undertaking. It has been demonstrated in previous pages that the central truth of Soteriology is the fact that the Second Person became incarnate and died a sacrificial death; however, when salvation is viewed in its broader aspects, it is seen to be wrought as fully by the First Person and the Third Person. In every aspect of saving grace the three Persons are concurring. Even when hanging on the cross, the Son was not alone in His vast achievement. It was God who was in Christ reconciling the world unto Himself; the Father was offering His Lamb; and that sacrifice was offered through the eternal Spirit (Heb 9:14).
The entire scope of the divine undertaking by which a person may be saved and presented faultless before the presence of His glory is here to be contemplated—and without reference to that divine election which was before all time under seven general divisions, namely, (1) the finished work of Christ, (2) the convicting work of the Spirit, (3) the riches of divine grace, (4) the doctrine of security, (5) deliverance from the reigning power of sin, (6) deliverance from human limitations, and (7) the believer presented faultless.
No apology is to be made for the renewal of the discussion of the finished work of Christ. It inheres as an essential factor of the present theme. The consideration of it again is safe for the student since it is fundamental to a right understanding of the gospel of divine grace, and must undergird every worthy presentation of it.
Attention has been called before to the truth that what is termed the finished work of Christ includes a threefold contemplation of the value of Christ’s death as related to the unsaved. That death is a redemption toward sin, a reconciliation toward man, and a propitiation toward God. No one, or even two, of these aspects of Christ’s death for the unsaved will represent a full exhibition of that specific phase of His death. All three are required; but the three together form a perfect whole which is properly termed the finished work of Christ. No aspect of the sine problem can be conceived which does not find its solution in this threefold achievement. With sufficient consideration of these aspects of doctrine, the student will early arrive at the point where the theological usage by which all that Christ wrought in His death is referred to as redemption will be judged as misleading, and the mind will require as clear a recognition of the facts of reconciliation and propitiation as of redemption. He will as certainly depart from the theological tradition that these are synonymous terms which relate to one and the same thing. Since these three aspects of Christ’s accomplishment in His death are so foundational to all features of Soteriology, reference must be made to them in subsequent discussion, as they have been considered in that which has gone before.
Argument could not arise against the truth that the finished work of Christ is altogether and only a work of God for man to which man could make no contribution whatever. Men, indeed, had their part in the crucifixion of Christ (Acts 4:27–28), but only as the perpetrators of the greatest crime in the universe. These effective factors in Christ’s death for the unsaved are not even remotely within the range of human cooperation. In relation to this threefold work of Christ, man can sustain no part in it other than to believe that it avails for him. To those who believe, the whole value of Christ’s finished work is reckoned and, because of that reckoning, they stand at once redeemed from condemnation because of sin, reconciled with respect to their own relation to God, and sheltered perfectly under that satisfaction which Christ offered to outraged holiness. By so much, the one who believes is forevermore upon a peace footing with God (Rom 5:1). These immeasurable benefits to fallen man are incomprehensible; but though the sum total of all the divine blessings which are gained through the death of Christ be added into one vast whole, that mighty sum is small indeed as compared with the value to God Himself of that which Christ wrought by His death upon the cross.
As a designed purpose, the salvation of men had its origin in God and accomplishes an objective which answers the divine intent with that infinity of perfection, which characterizes every work of God. As for relative importance, the realization of His aim is not only the major goal in view, but is the whole of that aim. That men are rescued from eternal misery is but an integral aspect of the entire objective; for it will not be overlooked that neither the creation of the universe, including all moral beings, nor the fall of man was imposed upon God as a necessity. It is not difficult to deduce from that supreme divine pronouncement—Colossians 1:15–19: “Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature: for by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him: and he is before all things, and by him all things consist. And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence. For it pleased the Father that in him should all fulness dwell”—that creation, including angels and men, is wrought by the Second Person, the Savior of the world, and for Him, and that every adhesion by which the universe holds together and every progression in the march of time is due to His immediate presence, support, and power. Supreme above all is His headship in relation to the Church, and by the Church all fulness of satisfaction is secured to God; for there is that in the Church which corresponds to “the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints.” Upon the divine side, the salvation of men is not merely a rescuer’s expedition or heroism. It is of surpassing import to fallen men that they may be saved; but back of that is a divine project the realization of which is in itself important enough to justify the creation of a universe, the incarnation of the Second Person, and His sacrificial death. It follows that the bringing of many sons unto glory (Heb 2:10) achieves more for the One by whom it is designed and wrought than for the sons who are glorified. Every step God is taking in this great achievement makes its permanent contribution to that which will glorify Him henceforth and forever.
It may be concluded that, by the death of Christ as a redemption toward sin, a reconciliation toward man, and a propitiation toward God, a higher morality is developed by which the Holy One, who cannot look upon sin with the least degree of allowance, is able to remain just while He justifies the ungodly who do no more than to believe in Jesus (Rom 3:26; 4:5 ).
B. The Convicting Work of the Spirit
What is presented in this general division is based on the truth that there are two necessities underlying the salvation of a soul, namely, (1) a righteous dealing with the problem of human sin—and this God has consummated in the gift of His Son as the Lamb who took away the sin of the world—and (2) a free choice of salvation on the part of man and in view of the fact that God recognizes the free will of man for what He created it to be. It is reasonable to conclude that as man by an act of his will renounced God at the beginning, in like manner he, by the act of his own will, must return to God. It matters nothing at this point that man cannot of himself turn to God and that he must be enabled to do so. In the end, though enabled, he acts by his own will and this truth is emphasized in every passage wherein the salvation of man is addressed to his will. “Whosoever will may come.”
The present section aims to point out that aspect of the saving work of God by which He, by the Spirit, exerts an influence upon the unsaved by which they may make an intelligent acceptance of Christ as Savior and by which they are caused to desire the salvation which Christ provides. It is as definitely contended that, apart from this divine influence, no unregenerate person will ever turn to God. From this it will be seen that, next to the accurate and faithful presentation of the gospel of saving grace, no truth is more determining respecting all forms of evangelism than this. It is in connection with this specific enabling work of the Spirit that the sovereign election of God is manifested. Only those are included whom God calls, draws, and enlightens. The gospel is to be preached to all, but not all will respond to it. Because of the fact that not all do respond, earnest evangelists and preachers have often been distressed, supposing that stronger appeals, mightier arguments, and greater personal influence would bring those who are indifferent to Christ as Savior, thus ignoring this all-determining preliminary work of the Spirit by which alone unregenerate people may believe. Outward actions have been stressed in soul-winning—actions which may be performed apart from any heart-acceptance of Christ as Savior. These outward professions have too often been counted as salvation. Because of the fact that such superficial avowals prove spurious, doctrines have been encouraged which allow for the possibility of surrendering saving faith. Since it is clearly indicated that one hundred percent of those predestinated are called, and one hundred percent of those called are justified, and one hundred percent of those justified are glorified (Rom 8:30), the evangelist does well to consider the importance of the divine call by which the heart is inclined and sufficiently enlightened to act intelligently on its own account and by its own volition in the glad acceptance of Christ as Savior. Only confusion and spiritual darkness can result when, apart from this illuminating divine call, the unsaved are forced by human pressure into professions which have no origin in the heart itself. No ground is found in the Bible for the Arminian notion of a general bestowment of grace whereby all men are able to respond to the gospel appeal; yet such a belief, along with the added error that those once saved can be lost again, has encouraged soul-winners to press the unsaved into outward assumptions and expressions which have no depth of conviction behind them. Such profession must end in failure; but little consideration has been given to the damage which is done to the soul that attempts such man-impelled professions and finds them to fail. Any method or appeal which encourages men to do aught other than to believe on Christ is fraught with dangers which are infinite and eternal. It is true that only the elect will believe; but what misrepresentation of, and insult to, God’s faithfulness is engendered when, because of wrong doctrine and misleading appeals, a theory must be propounded and defended which contradicts God’s unconditional covenant that those predestinated will be called, justified, and glorified.
The extended truth related to that work of the Spirit in the human heart which precedes salvation and which makes salvation possible will be considered under three divisions, namely, (1) the need of the Spirit’s work, (2) the fact of the Spirit’s work, and (3) the result of the Spirit’s work.
I. The Need of the Spirit’s Work
Dr. A. A. Hodge distinguishes three meanings in the word inability as it applies to men—it is absolute, natural, and moral. He writes: “It is absolute in the proper sense of that term. No unregenerate man has power either directly or indirectly to do what is required of him in this respect; nor to change his own nature so as to increase his power; nor to prepare himself for grace, nor in the first instance to cooperate with grace, until in the act of regeneration God changes his nature and gives him through grace gracious ability to act graciously in constant dependence upon grace. It is natural in the sense that it is not accidental or adventitious but innate, and that it belongs to our fallen nature as propagated by natural law from parent to child since the fall. It is not natural in one sense, because it does not belong to the nature of man as created. Man was created with plenary ability to do all that was in any way required of him, and the possession of such ability is always requisite to the moral perfection of his nature. He may be a real man without it, but can be a perfect man only with it. The ability graciously bestowed upon man in regeneration is not an endowment extra-natural, but consists in the restoration of his nature, in part, to its condition of primitive integrity. It is not natural in another sense, because it does not result in the least from any constitutional deficiency in human nature as it now exists as to its rational and moral faculties of soul. This inability is purely moral, because while every responsible man possesses all moral as well as intellectual faculties requisite for right action, the moral state of his faculties is such that right action is impossible. Its essence is in the inability of the soul to know, love, or choose spiritual good, and its ground exists in that moral corruption of soul whereby it is blind, insensible, and totally averse to all that is spiritually good” (Outlines of Theology, pp. 340-41).
And Dr. W. Lindsay Alexander also states: “The inability of man to deliver himself from guilt and condemnation arises from want of power to do what is requisite for the attaining of the object; the inability of man to be good and holy arises from a want of will or inclination to do what he has the power physically to do. Strictly speaking, the inability in this latter case is simply confirmed indisposition to do what is right, arising from spiritual blindness and depravity. Man has not lost the capacity to be holy he has not ceased to be a free agent, choosing what he prefers, and determining his own acts; he is under no external force preventing him from being holy. The spiritual inability under which he lies is that of a mind set against God, destitute of the principle of spiritual vitality and activity, through carnality and worldliness and sinful indulgence incapable of discerning the beauty of holiness, and so environed and permeated by selfishness that all true love to God is excluded from it. This is a real inability, inasmuch as it hinders and prevents man from being holy, though it does not destroy his capacity for being holy” (System of Biblical Theology, I, 324).
However, the objective in the immediate discussion is not to demonstrate the general inability of fallen man—to which fact the Scriptures bear abundant proof—but to make evident the more specific truth that unregenerate men are not able to take one step, apart from the enabling power of the Spirit, in the direction of their salvation. The Arminian error which avers that a general and universal grace is given to all men by which they, if they will, may turn to God is exposed and reproved by a large body of Scripture, and no Scripture is found which sustains this error. Several of these vital passages may well be considered at this point:
Romans 3:10–18. “As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one: there is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God. They are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one. Their throat is an open sepulchre; with their tongues they have used deceit; the poison of asps is under their lips: whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness: their feet are swift to shed blood: destruction and misery are in their ways: and the way of peace have they not known: there is no fear of God before their eyes.”
Following the disclosure set forth in Romans 3:9 of the age-characterizing truth that Jews and Gentiles are now alike divinely reckoned to be “under sin,” which means that they are without merit in respect to their salvation, an unqualified condemnation, asserted in verses 10–18, is said to rest upon all men. Of the various affirmations in this context, one directly precludes the idea that unregenerate people of this age have ability in themselves to turn to God. This Scripture declares: “There is none that seeketh after God.” In spite of this far-reaching statement, men have too often been urged to “seek the LORD while he may be found” (Isa 55:6), not discovering the wide difference between the restoration of a covenant people and the present estate of the human race—Jew and Gentile alike—”under sin.” In the present age there is but One that is seeking. Luke 19:10 records Christ’s own words, “For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost.” Thus it is seen to be by divine initiative alone that any from among the lost are, in this age, brought to the place where they embrace the salvation which is in Christ Jesus. A portion of this Romans passage, it will be seen, is quoted from Psalm 14:1–3; yet it is clear that, while the Psalm exhibits the natural wickedness of man as common to all ages and a distinct Old Testament revelation, it omits the specific declaration that none are seeking after God, thus perhaps implying that the inability to seek is not only true, but has a particular manifestation in the present age of grace.
1 Corinthians 2:14. “But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.”
The “things of the Spirit of God” which the unregenerate man is here said to be unable to receive include a vast field of revelation, but none more in evidence than the Scriptures which invite men to God and which extend to them the many wonderful promises. To the unsaved, these Scriptures are “foolishness,” and, owing to their inability, they are disqualified from knowing or receiving these things of God. Romans 8:7 bears on this same incapacity: “Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be.” Likewise, Romans 1:21 asserts that, having rejected God in the beginning of the human race, men “became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened.” Here, as before, much more than depravity is published. It is the inability of man to turn to God apart from divine enablement, which is disclosed.
2 Corinthians 4:3–4. “But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost: in whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them.”
This will be concluded at once to be the most direct and decisive passage bearing on the question whether the unsaved have any power, apart from immediate divine enlightenment, to turn to God in saving faith. It is the gospel—by which alone men are saved—which has been veiled by Satan to the end that its truth should not reach them. Men are not blinded with regard to morals, education, and those things which make for refinement. Upon those and similar themes all may attend without difficulty and within the range of their native ability. On the other hand, as all experienced soul-winners must recognize, the unsaved remain unimpressed with the way of salvation until they are awakened by the Spirit, and when awakened, their response and enthusiasm is a marvel to behold. This blinding is said to be wrought by Satan, and it is implied that it is one of his strategies in the execution of his purpose to defeat God in His grace toward lost men. This satanic effort to defeat God is to be expected from all that has transpired between God and Satan in past ages, and in the light of the fact that a soul when saved is translated “from the power of darkness” (Col 1:13) and becomes a witness against Satan in this sphere of his activity. The same truth that the mind of the unsaved is blinded is declared in Ephesians 4:18: “having the understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God through the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of their heart.” In the light of this Scripture, little ground remains on which the notion may rest which avers that man is able, apart from immediate divine enablement, to turn to God in saving faith.
Ephesians 2:1–8. “And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins: wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience: among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others.”
An estate in spiritual death is by the Apostle thus said to characterize all the “children of disobedience”; and since this disobedience refers to the first sin of the federal head of the race, the term children of disobedience includes all who are unsaved—those who have not, by being united to the resurrected Christ, come under the blessing made possible through the obedience of Christ (Phil 2:8). The estate of spiritual death is universal, and no more should be expected of a spiritually dead person than he is able to produce. Being, as this passage declares, under Satan’s control, no revolutionary, independent turning to God will be permitted. Those in Satan’s power will turn to God only as One who is greater in power than Satan moves them so to turn.
Akin to this specific revelation is that written in 1 John 5:19: “And we know that we are of God, and the whole world lieth in wickedness.” It requires more understanding concerning angelic realities than human beings possess to comprehend the meaning of the word κεῖμαι, here translated lieth, which implies a vital, if not organic, union between the unsaved and Satan. Out of such a relationship no individual may hope to be released apart from divine deliverance.
John 3:3. “Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.”
According to this passage, the incapacity of the unsaved is to a marked degree emphasized by Christ. The kingdom of God is that spiritual realm into which one may enter only by a birth from above, and which, though infinitely real and rich in its essentials, cannot be seen or comprehended by unregenerate men. There is special force in this unqualified assertion by Christ in view of the fact that it was addressed to one of the most faithful and religious men of his day. The truth that the most conscientious of Judaism needed a new birth, which evidently he little understood, should not be overlooked. No discredit is implied respecting the great factors and blessings which Judaism secured; but it is clearly demonstrated here, as everywhere that this truth appears, that a new and marvelous reality is introduced by the death and resurrection of Christ and by the advent of the Holy Spirit. It is in the range of these new and measureless blessings that the inability of the unsaved to “see the kingdom of God” is demonstrated.
John 6:44. “No man can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me draw him: and I will raise him up at the last day.”
The counterpart passage—”No man cometh unto the Father, but by me” (John 14:6)—declares the truth that there is but one way for the lost to be saved (cf. Acts 4:12; Heb 7:25); but the passage under consideration discloses the truth that none will ever come to the Savior apart from the immediate drawing power of God. The statement is unqualified and final. The message presented is so important that the Savior goes on to say: “It is written in the prophets, And they shall be all taught of God. Every man therefore that hath heard, and hath learned of the Father, cometh unto me” (John 6:45).
The present discussion involves the whole doctrine of the divine call. There is a general drawing which is exercised wherever and whenever Christ is preached as Savior (John 12:32), but such should not be confused with the specific and irresistible drawing to which reference is made in John 6:44. Of all who are thus drawn, the Savior could say with an unqualified assurance, “And I will raise him up at the last day.” Likewise, there is a general call which may be felt whenever the gospel is preached, and it, too, may be resisted, as it often is; but over against this is the efficacious call of Romans 8:30. In this passage, as before observed, it is assured that everyone whom God predestinates is called, and the precise numerical company, again, of those called are justified, and that same company—no more and no less—are to be glorified. The lost are not said here, or elsewhere, to originate their own steps toward God; rather it is as His sovereignty determines.
Ephesians 2:8–9. “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: not of works, lest any man should boast.”
So conclusive is this passage relative to man’s inability in the field of saving faith that much has been attempted in the way of exegesis which proposes to make the salvation the gift of God, rather than the faith which receives it. When thus interpreted, the phrase “through faith” is practically eliminated and serves no purpose. The contrast which the passage sets up between faith and works becomes a contrast between salvation and works, for which there is no ground either in Scripture or reason. If the passage stood alone in the Word of God, declaring a truth not elsewhere propounded, some reason might be assigned to such exegetical attempts which divest the context of its assured meaning; but, when rightly interpreted, it stands out as but one of many of the same general character.
Though much Scripture of an indirect nature might be cited, enough has been presented to establish the doctrine of man’s natural inability to exercise saving faith. Were men able to move themselves toward God, there would be no provision from God for this need. The fact that such enablement is provided argues in favor of man’s inability. It is too often supposed that the only restraint upon unregenerate persons in the sphere of their ability to turn to God, is their natural disinclination or prejudice. The Arminian error regarding a universal grace is largely responsible for such suppositions. If Christian workers cannot move the unsaved out of the power of Satan by argument and persuasion, a far more effective way is open and that is prayer. It is probable that God has included prayer as one of the divinely ordained means for the calling out and saving of His elect people. Prayer is not a provision by which men may secure something outside the elective will of God; it is rather one of the ordained steps in the realization of that will.
II. The Fact of the Spirit’s Work
One passage, which records the words of Christ in the upper room and which anticipates the peculiar features of the present age, declares specifically the fact that the Holy Spirit undertakes a work in the hearts of unregenerate men which is quite evidently not their regeneration, but may be defined as a preparation of the mind to the end that an intelligent choice of Christ as Savior may be made. In the light of the Scriptures just considered, there would be no hope of the salvation of any individual in this age apart from this particular ministry of the Spirit. The passage which stands quite alone respecting this work of the Spirit, reads as follows: “Nevertheless I tell you the truth; It is expedient for you that I go away: for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart, I will send him unto you. And when he is come, he will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment: of sin, because they believe not on me; of righteousness, because I go to my Father, and ye see me no more; of judgment, because the prince of this world is judged” (John 16:7–11).
Evidently, this specific work is wrought in behalf of the cosmos world, but, of necessity, it is directed, not to the cosmos as a whole, but to the individual. All that the Spirit undertakes in this ministry is indicated by the word ἐλέγχω, which has been variously translated reprove, convince, convict, etc. The word determines so much at this point that it must not be passed over lightly.
The thought expressed by ἐλέγχω is not at all of the creation of sorrow in the heart, but rather of an illumination or enlightenment respecting certain truths which the Lord was careful to enumerate; that is, the enlightenment will be along three lines—”sin, because they believe not on me”; “righteousness, because I go to my Father, and ye see me no more”; and “judgment, because the prince of this world is judged.” This ministry is one which is accomplished in the heart itself, by which the whole being responds to realities which had not been recognized before. In contrast with this ministry to the unsaved, an enlightening, or teaching, ministry is undertaken on a much wider scale in the heart of the one who is saved. This wider ministry is described and defined in the verses which follow in the same context (John 16:12–15).
These three features of revelation now under consideration—sin, righteousness, judgment—as defined in their scope by the Lord, constitute the essentials of the gospel of divine grace.
1. “Of sin.” In view of a finished work by Christ wherein sin is borne and all blessings are secured, the immeasurable failure for the individual for whom Christ has died is that he does not believe on Him. It is noticeable, though contrary to general opinion, that the Spirit does not enlighten the mind with respect to all the sins the individual has committed. It is not a matter of creating shame or remorse concerning sin, nor is it so much as a reminder of sin that has been committed—though there is nothing, on the other hand, to preclude sorrow or consciousness of sin; it is rather that, since sin has been borne by Christ, there remains the one great and only responsibility of one’s attitude toward the Savior who bore the sin. This unbelief the Lord declared is the basis of final condemnation, when He said: “He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God” (John 3:18). To make the unsaved realize this is a task too great for the preacher; it must be accomplished by the Holy Spirit, and He will so reveal this specific truth to the unsaved, within the elective divine purpose, as the gospel is preached to them. The fact indicated in this text, that the one ground of condemnation is the failure to believe on Christ as Savior, confirms the truth, restated more than one hundred times in the New Testament, that the one and only condition of salvation is faith in Christ as Savior. Only the elect will believe and even these will do so through the enlightening ministry of the Spirit alone. However, though no complete explanation is given of all that is involved, those who do not believe, as indicated in John 3:18, are held accountable for not believing. Unfallen man would experience no such difficulty in the realms of faith; and since his present incapacity is so largely due to that original separation from God which the first sin wrought, there is, possibly, a partial solution to this problem which these Scriptures set up.
The testimony of this portion of the truth is, then, that it is the work of the Spirit to enlighten the unsaved with respect to the one determining sin, that they believe not on Christ.
2. “Of righteousness.” Since imputed righteousness is the only form of righteousness included in salvation by grace and since this context presents only those most vital truths related to man’s salvation which the Holy Spirit reveals, it is clear that the reference here is to imputed righteousness—that perfect righteousness of God which Christ is and which the believer becomes when in Christ. The whole issue is of a perfect standing before God—far more, indeed, than the removal of sin by forgiveness. It is that which God bestows on “him that worketh not” (Rom 4:5); and of the greatest importance is the truth that the one who would be saved shall come to know that he is not entering into a merit arrangement, which would demand of him that he produce his own righteousness as a basis of acceptance before God. Gospel preaching has made much of the remission of sin through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, and not more than should be; but a deplorable neglect has been accorded the equally requisite truth that a perfect standing is imputed also to the one who believes. The truth of the gospel, as outlined in John 16:7–11, is presented in a full-orbed perfection. Wherein it exceeds man’s restricted discernment of the gospel will but serve to demonstrate the inattention of men to the paramount theme. As over against this careless notion that any kind of a statement will serve as a gospel message, attention should again be drawn to the unrevoked anathema of Galatians 1:8–9. So little, indeed, is the fact and value of imputed righteousness comprehended—due to a large extent to the neglect of it—that it is not easy to develop this truth to the same level of realization to which the more accentuated verity of forgiveness of sin has attained. There can be no question that the two ideas—imputed righteousness and remission of sin—are, as a challenge to the human understanding, incomparable, largely due, it would seem, to the obvious fact that remission of sin is a more or less common experience in human relationships, while the imputation of righteousness has no parallel in human experience outside that set forth in the gospel. However, were these to be compared, that which is constructive and positive, as imputed righteousness is, will be held in higher regard by those who understand it than remission of sin, which is only negative in character. What could contribute more to peace of mind and heart than the consciousness that one has become the assured recipient of a perfect and eternal standing before God?
To the extent that the great truth of imputed righteousness is foreign to human experience and to the extent that it is grounded on an invisible Person in heaven rather than on self or any human ability or character, to that degree its presentation to darkened, unregenerate minds must be supernaturally wrought by the Holy Spirit. This is precisely what He does when He convicts of righteousness. It is not affirmed that the unsaved individual must understand the complex doctrine of imputed righteousness before he can be saved; it is rather maintained that the truth that a complete standing and acceptance before God, which renders unnecessary all works of human merit, shall be comprehended and that this perfect standing proceeds from Christ and is based on a new and vital union set up between Christ and the one who believes. Here is introduced a supernatural feature of the gospel. Divine forgiveness of sin is also a supernatural accomplishment when based on the death of Christ; but far too often forgiveness of sin is computed to be no more than a divine benevolence or generosity.
A marked distinction is to be noted between that form of righteousness which man produces and proposes to offer to God as the basis of his acceptance, and that form of righteousness which God has made available and presents to man. In God’s plan of salvation, man ceases from his own works and enters into rest; for there remaineth an unending sabbath rest from all works of merit for those who believe (Heb 4:9–10). So far as the unsaved are concerned, the requirements are met when by the specific enlightenment of the Spirit they recognize that Christ as Savior answers every need of the human heart for time and eternity. This is a far different overture than the proposition that sin may be forgiven. It extends to the larger constructive fact that a perfect righteousness is imputed to all who believe. The essential fact that the Holy Spirit is appointed so to enlighten the mind of unsaved man respecting imputed righteousness, indicates conclusively that this great truth shoulid be included as a major factor in all gospel preaching to the unsaved. The ambitious student, bent on excelling as an effective and accurate preacher of the gospel, would do well to learn—even by tireless effort—the great doctrine of imputed righteousness.
3. “Of judgment.” No reference is made by this phrase to a judgment to come; the reference is rather to the greatest of all judgments, which is now past and was accomplished by Christ as Substitute when He died the Just for the unjust, when the immeasurable billows of God’s hatred of sin swept over the One who had become a sin offering for those for whom He died. This judgment, it is revealed, did concern Satan the prince of this world, but in a sense far deeper than a mere judgment of the person of that great being. The judgment accomplished infinite results for the unsaved and of these results the Holy Spirit would cause them to be enlightened.
The human mind can conceive of nothing more hopeless or helpless than a fallen human being for whom Christ did not die. Such, to an unrevealed degree, was the estate of humanity before the cross—excepting those of one nation with whom covenants were made and who had the advantage of animal sacrifices that anticipated the values of Christ’s death. It is true that the privilege of animal sacrifices was extended to humanity before the nation Israel began its history; but what the precise value of these sacrifices was is not revealed and the people did not long claim their benefits (Rom 1:21). Apparently the very fact that no sacrifices were offered by these multitudes became the ground on which the people were claimed by Satan as his own subjects. In Isaiah 14:17, among the stupendous undertakings of Satan there enumerated, it is affirmed that Satan “opened not the door of his prisoners.” Whether it was in his power to release them is, at this juncture, an unimportant question. It is enough to know that they were helpless in Satan’s power. These people, with respect to helplessness, were not unlike the fallen angels for whom no sacrifice, so far as Scripture discloses, has ever been made. In the description of the mighty realities which Christ would accomplish in His first advent and which He Himself asserted were fulfilled when He came the first time, it is said that He came “to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound” (Isa 61:1; cf. Luke 4:16–21).
The same truth—that Satan held a vast authority over men and that that authority was broken by Christ in His death—is recorded in Colossians 2:14–15, which reads: “Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross; and having spoiled principalities and powers, he made a shew of them openly, triumphing over them in it.” Here, as in John 16:11, it is taught that it was by and through the cross that Christ triumphed over Satan and his fallen angels. The passage (John 16:11) hardly declares that men are redeemed by Christ’s triumph over Satan and his angels; it is rather that men are redeemed by the same death which served as a judgment of Satan and his angels, and by that death are released from that power which Satan exercised over them—as indicated in Colossians 1:13: “Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son,” and 1 John 5:19: “And we know that we are of God, and the whole world lieth in wickedness.”
It is indicated that the Spirit will enlighten the unsaved with respect to judgment—both that their sins are judged and that the one is judged who, because of his assumed authority over the unsaved, holds them in his power. A central truth of the gospel is that Christ in His death as Substitute bore the sins of those who are lost, and there is no truth which needs more the illumination of the Spirit if it is to be disclosed to Satan-blinded minds. This enlightenment is of a work that is finished, to which nothing need be added and to which nothing could be added. It is a work finished as a redemption toward sin, a reconciliation toward the sinner, and propitiation toward God. The work is not something the sinner must persuade God to do, but is something perfectly accomplished, to which the unsaved can sustain no other relation than to believe what God has wrought in his behalf.
Thus it may be deduced that John 16:7–11 presents a truth of measureless import—a threefold work of the Spirit in behalf of the unsaved which is not to be confused with His larger ministries when, as a part of the salvation of men, He regenerates, indwells, baptizes, and seals; nor is this specific ministry of the Spirit in enlightening the unsaved to be confused with His service to those who are saved when He bears fruit in them, exercises gifts, teaches the Word of God, and intercedes in them. When the Spirit enlightens the Satan-blinded mind regarding sin, righteousness, and judgment, that otherwise blinded mind is at once more than normally enabled to understand the three great foundational truths that sin has been judged, righteousness is available in and through Christ, and the condemning sin is failure to believe that which God now offers the sinner, namely, a perfect salvation in and through Christ the Savior. No soul can be saved apart from this enlightenment, for no other power is sufficient to break through the blindness which Satan has imposed on the minds of those who are lost. It therefore follows that evangelism which is adjusted to God’s Word will make a large place for this preliminary work of the Spirit and recognize that in answer to prayer alone the souls of lost men may be moved to believe on Christ
III. The Result’s of the Spirit’s Work
To a degree which allows of no exception, the Scriptures assert the supernatural inability of fallen men to turn to God in saving faith, apart from the supernatural unveiling of the mind which Satan has darkened. It is equally true that this divine enlightenment results in an ability to understand the gospel, which ability is augmented beyond that which is the natural competency of the individual thus blessed. Those thus favored enter into the riches of divine grace by a faith which God engenders. That faith, it is declared, is “not of yourselves: it is the gift of God” (Eph 2:8). Such imparted or inwrought faith leads on to a personal transaction with Christ—that specific commitment without which no adult or accountable person will be saved. In this enlightenment the natural faculties of seeing and hearing are also enlarged. The blind receive their sight and can say, “Whereas I was blind, now I see”; and the deaf hear. Such likewise was the spiritual meaning of those miracles in which Christ gave sight to blind eyes and opened deaf ears. To these realities He referred when He said: “And this is the Father’s will which hath sent me, that of all which he hath given me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up again at the last day. And this is the will of him that sent me, that every one which seeth the Son, and believeth on him, may have everlasting life: and I will raise him up at the last day…. It is written in the prophets, And they shall be all taught of God. Every man therefore that hath heard, and hath learned of the Father, cometh unto me” (John 6:39–40, 45). These passages exhibit the sovereignty of God, and no Scripture is more absolute about divine determination than verse 44 of this same context: “No man can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me draw him: and I will raise him up at the last day.” It is here in the sphere of an effectual call that the divine election is realized. It is not determined on the basis of a theory that there is a selected company for whom alone Christ has died, nor are men saved because of anything good—actual or foreseen—in them. In sovereign grace God predestined and those whom He predestined, He called—no more and no less—and whom He called, He justified—no more and no less—and whom He justified, He glorified—no more and no less. The Arminian practice of intruding into this passage the human element by such phrases as, “if they will to hear the call” and, “if they remain faithful,” etc., deserves the rebuke which belongs to those who distort the Word of God by adding thereto. By these four divine actions—predestinating, calling, justifying, glorifying—the sovereign elective choice of God is disclosed. Not one of these is so related to the death of Christ that it can be claimed that it is by His death God marks off those whom He has chosen for His eternal glory. The elect and no more will be called, justified, and glorified, and evangelism would do well to conform to this revelation and not pursue Arminian misunderstandings which propose that by methods incorporating human works of merit any person can, if he will, respond to the gospel of divine grace.
It is yet to be observed that the individual, unregenerate person must believe for himself. The reception of Christ as Savior must be by a choice which arises in the center of his own being and be a reflection of his own intelligent preference. Too often methods have been employed requiring mere outward actions which, though sincere, may indicate no heart experience; and those outward actions may be motivated by the earnest appeal of loved ones and friends who, being themselves saved, do appreciate the importance of a decision for Christ. The pressure of these outside influences has been, in many instances, the chief dependence of the evangelist for his apparent success in his work. It is often recognized that the evangelist to be a success must possess a dominating and even overpowering personality. This with other psychological influences which are skilfully employed amount to what is almost an irresistible effect. All this mass of influence may be focused upon the unsaved individual to compel him to do something which perchance is no choice of his own, nor has it a vestige of virtue in the realm of that which constitutes a decision for Christ. A few “converts” have held out and these have justified the methods used without due regard to the disastrous effect upon a soul of the one who, under such irrelevant influences, has made professions and taken positions which were unrelated to a true acceptance of Christ as Savior. The lost are saved when they hear the gospel under divine illumination, that is, when they hear and believe. “So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God” (Rom 10:17). As certainly as this is true, it is the preacher’s part to expect that souls will be saved while he is preaching, rather than after he has concluded his message and has given the unsaved something to do that they may be saved. There is a public testimony on the part of those who are saved; but this should not be confused with the simple requirement that the lost may be saved by personal faith in Christ as Savior. The appeal of the soul-winner is of value, for it has pleased God to commit the proclamation of the gospel to those who are appointed to preach the glad tidings.
Dallas, Texas
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