Here is
a popular statement that finds great currency among the reformed people, as
well as those they consider 'arminians' -
"There
are no regenerated people walking around who are not yet converted." - that is, conversion and regeneration are co-extensive. This is the idea of the gospel regenerationists.
Is there
any truth with this bold statement? Cast your mite, copper or gold!
sing
I will
cast my first grain of rice. Just mull and chew over it, BUT please don't get
choked over this hard grain of unpolished rice.
This may
sound very strange to you, but mull and chew over it slowly.
It is
precisely that there are regenerated people walking around who are NOT yet
converted that need to be converted that the gospel ministry was instituted for
such purpose.
There
were the regenerated devout God-fearing Jews, who traveled long distances from
"out of every nation under heaven" to Jerusalem for the Pentecost
festival that needed to be converted, and were converted under Peter's
preaching.
There
was the regenerated Ethiopian eunuch moving about on his rolls-royce chariot
that needed to be converted, who came to worship God in Jerusalem, and was
reading the Scriptures with thirst and hunger, and needed to be converted, and
was converted by the ministry of Phillip.
There
was the regenerated Italian Cornelius that needed to be converted. He was a
devout and God fearing man, and was a man of prayer to boot, and he was walking
about an unconverted man, and was working works of righteousness. And God sent
Peter to minister the gospel to him to have him converted.
The
gospel ministry is the means divinely instituted to MAKE DISCIPLES of God's
children, whom He, by His free and sovereign grace and will, has directly and
immediately begotten by His own Spirit. (John 1:13).
As I
said, it may sound strange to you... but mull and chew on it. It is a HARD
grain of rice... not sand. I won't give you sand to chew and mull over!
sing
Here is
another grain of hard unpolished rice:
Apostle
Paul wrote to the Romans, whom he described as 'saints' and 'beloved of God.'
"To
all that be in Rome, beloved of God, called to be saints: Grace to you and
peace from God our Father, and the Lord Jesus Christ."
The
Apostle expressed great desire, urgency and indebtedness to preach the gospel
to them!
"I
am debtor both to the Greeks, and to the Barbarians; both to the wise, and to
the unwise. So, as much as in me is, I am ready to preach the gospel to you
that are at Rome also." Rom 1:14-15
Why so?
Could it be that these 'saints' and 'beloved of God' have not heard the gospel
before?
Supposing
these 'saints' and beloved of God' have heard the gospel and were converted,
then why such great desire, urgency and indebtedness to preach the gospel to
them? Was Paul being presumptuous, or misguided?
Remember,
Apostle Paul is not one that would build on another man's labor. He declared
solemnly, "Yea, so have I strived to preach the gospel, not where Christ
was named, lest I should build upon another man’s foundation" Rom
15:20."
From
these words, we can take it to mean that Rome was not a place 'where Christ was
named' when he wrote to them. That explains the great desire, urgency and
indebtedness to preach the gospel in Rome ALSO.
Did you
notice this simple fact? They have not heard the gospel, and they need to hear
the gospel.... BUT - BUT - BUT they are already 'saints and beloved of God'
even though they have not heard the gospel, and Apostle Paul was in great
urgency to bring the gospel to them ALSO, to convert these 'saints and beloved
of God' to the gospel truth, i.e. to make them into disciples of Jesus Christ.
These
were God's children, WALKING ABOUT, needing to be converted by the gospel ministry!
Just
mull and chew over this grain of unpolished rice... but please don't get choked
over it.
Dallas
None
whatsoever! The wind bloweth where it listeth. More rice brother, more rice. AMEN
to ALL that you have written!
Dallas
I had
this thought recently from Rom. 1:14-15; if these be saints and beloved of God,
how is it Paul speaks to them that he is ready to preach the gospel to them who
are Rome also? No doubt his desire is toward feeding the sheep and that it
never crossed his mind that he was making sheep!
sing
How are
they saints?
They are
saints because they have BEEN SET APART from their state of sin and death, in
which they were in by nature, to that of righteousness and eternal life, by
God's free grace at effectual calling. To that of righteousness by God's free
and gracious work of justification, freely applying Christ's righteousness to
the condemned, and to that of eternal life through the Spirit's free and
gracious work of regeneration.
They
were made saints, i.e. DEFINITIVELY sanctified, once for all from their state
of sin and death to that of righteousness and eternal life once for all, by the
free and sovereign act of God. All these are INDEPENDENT of the gospel
ministry.
These
DEFINITIVELY sanctified saints need the gospel ministry to for farther
sanctification - "Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts,
we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world" -
to make them PRACTICAL saints.
