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| Prophesy upon these bones, and say unto them, O ye dry bones, hear the word of the LORD. But who are these dry bones??? |
A Popular Myth - Dry Bones and Gospel Regeneration - Ps 19:7 and Ez 37:1-14
Dear Brethren,
I received an invitation from a RB church (SC, Singapore) to attend a church leaders' conference (April 2006) - a portion of the Announcement is pasted below at the bottom. Please scroll to the bottom and read it first. The intention of the Conference is highly commendable. However, the contents of the Announcement seems to betray some common and popular errors. I have expressed some thoughts below. I hope you find it instructive. Hit 'delete' if you do not wish to read.
I remain,
your brother and servant in Christ,
sing
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[Here are my thoughts - written probably in Feb 2006].
Dear Pastor W...,
Thank you for the invitation to the Conference. I appreciate your kindness and expression of fellowship.
Reading the Announcement for the Conference provoked a few thoughts in my mind. Please permit me to make some comments about what is stated there.
A passage from Psalm 19 was quoted, "Psalm 19:7 is explicit - The law of the LORD is perfect, converting the soul; the testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple.”
What is thought 'explicit' about the text is elaborated by the next sentence; the text is believed to explicitly teach that “Scripture and Scripture alone, is sufficient and effective to deliver the souls of men from eternal damnation.”
Let me suggest a few things that seems explicit and plain to me from Ps 19:7.
Converting the soul is NOT regenerating the soul.
Making wise the simple is NOT making alive the dead.
The latter, regenerating and making alive, is the free and sovereign and direct work of the Triune God without any human instrumentality. The former, converting and making wise, is the solemn duty of the gospel ministry through the instrumentality of the perfect and sure Scriptures of God. I trust the distinction is plain and obvious.
Converting is NOT regenerating. Preached word converts the living but God alone regenerates the dead.
Making wise is NOT making alive. Preached word makes wise the ignorant but God alone makes alive the dead.
The latter is the free and sovereign and direct work of the Triune God that ALONE delivers His elect from their eternal damnation, by freely giving them eternal salvation through the effectual call. The former is the solemn responsibility of the gospel ministry to bring God's children (already born by His own sovereign work of effectual call to grace and salvation) to 'the obedience of the faith,' (Rom 1:5), thus to deliver from temporal damnation as a result of the ignorance of God's wonderful work of salvation. I trust the distinction is plain and obvious.
Scriptures DOES NOT deliver anyone from eternal damnation. The Triune God alone does. Scriptures and Scriptures alone DO inform and instruct God's children how God by His Son and Spirit has done this wonderful deliverance for them. I doubt that's what you have intended to say. But I may be wrong. This is not just semantics. Scriptures, which principally teach what man is to believe concerning God and what duty God requires of man, is most certainly all sufficient to instruct, build up and to equip the children of God, those that have been born of God.
To the spiritually dead, the gospel is utter foolishness, and the God-breathed Scriptures is unprofitable darkness. It is light only to the living. It is only to them that believe (and they believe because eternal life has been given to them when they were dead in their sin), the gospel is indeed the good news of God's power of saving them; they believe what is TRUE of them. To them that are perishing, the same gospel which declares God's power of salvation is foolishness, simply because they can't believe what is not true of them. To them that ARE SAVED, the gospel is indeed the message of the power of God in saving them, 1Cor 1:18.
The perfect and sure word of God (Scriptures) is indeed all sufficient to build up those who are already born with eternal life, delivered from eternal condemnation. The word of God, Scriptures, was never intended to make alive and deliver anyone from eternal condemnation. It is for the instruction and edification of those whom God has made alive, delivered from eternal condemnation, that they may know the truth, be converted and made wise concerning their eternal salvation bestowed upon them by free and sovereign grace. It is NEVER intended to make alive and deliver from eternal condemnation. However, Scripture and Scripture alone, is all sufficient and effective to HERALD to God's children and INSTRUCT them that God has delivered their souls from eternal damnation, and the manner He has done it, i.e. all by free and sovereign grace alone through His Son and Spirit. News has no power to save whatsoever; news announces to the saved the salvation that has taken place. 'For the preaching of the cross is unto them that perish foolishness, BUT unto us which ARE SAVED it is the power of God.'
There is a vast difference between saying that the Bible is sufficient to build up Christians and to equip them for every good work, and that Scripture and Scripture alone, is sufficient and effective to deliver the souls of men from eternal damnation. The former is a biblical truth. The latter is a gross but common misrepresentation. Scriptures does not make alive the dead, it sanctifies the living; it heralds to, and informs the living how God HAS freely given them eternal life in Christ Jesus by His Spirit. Scriptures is able to make one wise (informed and assured) concerning his salvation by the free grace of God. A birth certificate is a wonderful piece of revealed document; it is most certainly sufficient for making a man wise concerning his birth and parentage, and whatever information is revealed therein. However, it is certain that it plays no role whatsoever in the birth of the person.
Only a soul that God has effectually called to grace and salvation can be converted, and be made a disciple. Only a soul that the Holy Spirit has made alive with eternal life can be instructed, converted and made wise. Many believe the subtle lie that one without eternal life can believe in order to receive eternal life, believing that the activity of life is possible without life. They believe that preaching to the dead is the means God use to bring them to life. This is a grave misunderstanding of the ministry of the gospel. The gospel ministry was not instituted as a means to assist God to produce His children. Many love to think like that! However, the gospel ministry was instituted to make disciples, out of those whom God Himself has freely and effectually called to grace and salvation while spiritually dead, and to gather them into NT churches. The gospel ministry is NOT for gathering souls into heaven! It is for gathering into NT churches those whom God has born and made fit for heaven. The gospel ministry is NOT “Lazarus, come forth.” IT IS “loose him, and let him go.”
'Feed my sheep' is not the same as 'preach that sheep may be produced, preach that the dead may come to life by the Spirit'! Yes, we feed sheep by preaching, but we do not change dead into living by preaching! We don't turn children of wrath into children of God through the instrumentality of the gospel ministry. God's sovereign work of grace does that.'
It was asked, "Do we honestly still believe that sinners dead in sin can be made alive by the Holy Spirit when the Word is preached?' and Ezekiel 37:1-14 was quoted as a proof text for the idea expressed in the rhetorical question. Many always have and still do believe that sinners dead in sin are made alive by the Holy Spirit when the word is preached, i.e. regeneration is through the instrumentality of the preaching of the word. 'Gospel regeneration' is a doctrine embraced and advocated by many. Others believe in baptismal regeneration. Still others believe in decisional regeneration. All these are in the same category - divine regeneration is conditioned upon some human acts or assistance.
The Spirit of God makes alive His elect at His own appointed and approved time... NOT - NOT - NOT when the word is preached by a man. Let us be careful of conditioning the sovereign work of the Spirit of God to the feeble and fickle activity of men! It is true that a soul is converted through the preaching of the word that is owned and blessed by the Spirit - 1689.14.1. But the Heavenly Wind blows at God's appointed and accepted time in His work of regeneration, i.e. when, where and how He pleases. That's the truth, and it is wonderfully comforting. Making alive is solely and entirely the direct and sovereign work of God, without any assistance or co-operation from man. Even when regeneration does take place in the very midst of preaching, it is NOT because the Holy Spirit is dependent upon preaching to do His sovereign work of regeneration.
Quoting Ezekiel 37:1-14 to support the humanistic 'gospel regeneration' is as out of place as it can get, and eisegesis at its worst. On the one hand it ignores the plain purpose of the vision and its historical application to the Jews that were in captivity at the time. And then, the statement imposes a foreign and unbiblical doctrinal idea UPON the passage that fails in several ways to harmonize with the context and the literal lesson. This was a "vision" of a future work of God Himself in restoring the captive Jews back into the land of Israel. The "bones" were the WHOLE house of Israel, NOT the spiritually dead sinners. The house of Israel was NOT dead unregenerate sinners - for they are 'alive' and mourn, "Our bones are dried, and our hope is lost: we are cut off for our part;" but while in captivity, they were 'dead' like dry bones. The actual "bones" coming together with flesh and spirit DID NOT occur when Ezekiel prophesied. It was years later when this vision was actually fulfilled by God Himself. The bringing to life in the vision was God's sole act of restoring the Jews in captivity back 'into the land of Israel' (v12). No regeneration is spoken of in this passage, much less gospel regeneration.
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| Slaying a popular calvinistic LIE-zard! |
As we rightly battled against those in the churches who degrade and despise the perfect and sure word of God, let us not exaggerate the role and function of the ministry of the word than is warranted by the sure and perfect Scriptures. Falling into the right ditch is no less worse than falling into the left ditch of the narrow road of truth. Preachers do not play any instrumental role in the spiritual birth of any elect. By divine appointment, they play a vital role in the instruction and nourishment of a child of God, i.e. in making and nurturing disciples of those already born of God. Midwives play NO ROLE whatsoever in the formation of lives in the wombs of mothers. Preachers play no role whatsoever in the regeneration of God's elect. It is a great delusion to claim otherwise.
The ministry of the word is very important... but only for the specific purpose it was divinely appointed for, i.e. to convert soul and to make wise, but never to regenerate dead soul or to make alive the dead in any instrumental sense. Thomas Brooks' quote does rightly glory in the manifold blessings of the Scriptures to the living children of God, but not a trace about it being an instrument to make the dead alive.
We bring "life and immortality to light through the gospel," but we do NOT bring life and immortality through the gospel (2 Tim 1:9-10). The preaching of the gospel brings to light, makes manifest, reveals 'life and immortality' that are ALREADY PRESENT in the effectually called elect. Only what is already present can be brought to light through the instrumentality of the gospel. The 1689.20.1 states simply that the gospel is the only outward means or instrument of revealing, NOT producing, Christ and saving grace. The gospel brings to light, it reveals and makes manifest Christ and saving grace in those effectually called to grace and salvation, 1689.10.1. It is an instrument to reveal, it was never an instrument to produce, Christ and saving grace. The preaching of the gospel DOES NOT bring 'life and immortality' to the spiritually dead. It is not an instrument to produce Christ and saving grace. That's a humanistic idea of naturalistic religions, an idea foreign to the biblical gospel of God.
The preaching of the gospel is a sweet savour of Christ to them that are SAVED; it is the savour of life unto those that possess life. It is NOT the savour of life unto the dead, unto those that are perishing, those that are spiritually dead. The righteousness of God is revealed from faith unto FAITH in the preaching of the gospel, from the preacher who is not ashamed of the gospel unto them that have faith worked in them by the Spirit of God; to them that are SAVED, to them that are LIVING and not to them that are DEAD. The righteousness of God is revealed not from faith unto UNBELIEF (spiritually dead) in the preaching of the gospel. It is the justified living ones, i.e. them that are SAVED, that shall believe, for it is written, 'The just shall live by faith.'
Apostle Paul writes to those in Rome who are 'the beloved of God,' 'the called of Jesus Christ,' and 'called saints.' He even thanked God for their great faith. Yet, apostle Paul is so resolved, urgent and obligated to preach to them the gospel of God, the gospel of His Son, and earnestly desiring some fruit of conversion among them also, even as among other Gentiles. He felt the great and urgent need for these SAME Romans to hear and believe the gospel. These Romans are to be brought to the obedience of the faith. Are we missing some explicit truths concerning the role and function of the gospel so clearly implied in all these clear statements of Apostle Paul? Did Apostle Paul believe that regeneration takes place when he preaches?
Thomas Brooks rightly rejoices in the manifold and wonderful benefits of the word of God; all of them with respect to those who possess spiritual life. To give life is NOT named among the manifold blessings of the word of God. It is a point worth noting.
"Moreover it is required in stewards, that a man be found faithful... a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth." 1Co 4:2, 2Ti 2:15.
Thank you for your patient listening. Please take no offence at my comments because none is intended. They are offered as from a fellow student of God's word, and a servant of Christ.
May the Scriptures and the ministry of the word begins to occupy their rightful place and biblical role in some churches as a result of the planned Conference.
I remain,
a servant in Christ,
sing
[p/s ever since this letter, the SC has quietly ceased fellowship with us!!! No further correspondence since! So much for RB churchmanship!]
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[Here is a portion of the Announcement in the invitation, red high light mine.]
Dear servants of Christ,
Perfect in Converting, Sure in Making Wise
Psalm 19:7 is explicit. “The law of the LORD is perfect, converting the soul; the testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple.” Scripture and Scripture alone, is sufficient and effective to deliver the souls of men from eternal damnation. Ancient but never obsolete, the Bible is equally sufficient to build up Christians and to equip them for every good work (2 Timothy 3:15-17). As one preacher succinctly puts it, ‘All of God’s work is done by God’s Word.’
But does this still hold true for the church of the 21st century? Do we honestly still believe that sinners dead in sin can be made alive by the Holy Spirit when the Word is preached? (Ezekiel 37: 1-14) Or do we now prop the preaching of the Word by gimmicks, side shows and seeker-sensitive preaching in order to win souls for Christ? Has narcissism and relativism so infiltrated the church that we let pop psychology and political correctness usurp the pulpit? Is the Bible too archaic to deal with (post)modern living problems? Where is the Word of God in our pulpit, evangelism and the pastoral ministry these days?
C.S. Lewis aptly remarked: “The charge to Peter was ‘Feed my sheep’; not ‘Try experiments on my rats’, or even ‘Teach my performing dogs new tricks.’” A cursory look at church practice today sadly reveals that many churches no longer hold to the Gospel as prescribed by the Good Physician. Instead we concoct our own remedies, palatable to the senses at the cost of the soul. We simply no longer serve it neat!
The conference theme this year will examine the place of Scripture in winning souls and pastoral care under Evangelistic Preaching & Sufficiency of Scripture in the Christian Ministry. Through these addresses we hope that the rightful place of Scripture in our church life will be reclaimed, and that as servants of Christ, we will rightly handle God’s Word – with reverence, care and to His glory. Come! Be challenged by the grandeur and glory of God’s Word in April 2006. We do look forward to fellowship with you.
The Word of the Lord is
a light to guide you, a counselor to counsel you,
a comforter to comfort you, a staff to support you,
a sword to defend you, and a physician to cure you.
The Word is a mine to enrich you, a robe to clothe you, and
a crown to crown you.
Thomas Brooks
Thomas Brooks
