I have always believed that salvation is the gift of God in eph 2;8 but this is good,
WHAT IS THE "GIFT OF GOD"?
A Study of 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." (Ephesians 2:8-9)
What is "the gift of God" which is referred to in these verses? This is a key question which must be carefully answered. There are basically two possible answers. There are many who teach that the gift of God referred to in this passage is FAITH. Others teach that the gift of God mentioned here is SALVATION.
What is "the gift of God" in Ephesians 2:8-9? Is it faith or is it salvation?
The key to understanding Ephesians 2:8-9 is to correctly identify the antecedent of the pronoun "that" [το�το]. Does the pronoun "that" (v.8) refer to faith or does it refer to salvation? There are those who say that "faith" is the gift of God and there are others who say that "salvation" is the gift of God.
View #1-Faith is the Gift of God
"For by grace are ye saved through faith; and this faith is not of yourselves, this faith is the gift of God, this faith is not of works, lest any man should boast" (in this case the antecedent of the pronoun is identified as "faith").
Most Reformed men understand the gift of God in Ephesians 2:8-9 as referring to FAITH. This raises some interesting questions. If saving faith is the gift of God, then how does the sinner receive this gift? Does he pray that God will give him the gift of faith? Does he hope that God will sovereignly bestow this gift upon him so that he can be saved? What must he do to have faith?
Reformed theology teaches that for a person to be saved, God must first bestow upon him the gift of saving faith. Before he receives this gift he must first be regenerated, because Reformed theology teaches that unregenerate sinners who are dead in sins are unable to believe.
Charles Spurgeon has given a good answer to those who insist that regeneration is necessary before a sinner can believe:
In our own day certain preachers assure us that a man must be regenerated before we may bid him believe in Jesus Christ; some degree of a work of grace in the heart being, in their judgment, the only warrant to believe. This also is false. It takes away a gospel for sinners and offers us a gospel for saints. It is anything but a ministry of free grace. If I am to preach the faith in Christ to a man who is regenerated, then the man, being regenerated, is saved already, and it is an unnecessary and ridiculous thing for me to preach Christ to him, and bid him to believe in order to be saved when he is saved already, being regenerate. Am I only to preach faith to those who have it? Absurd, indeed! Is not this waiting till the man is cured and then bringing him the medicine? This is preaching Christ to the righteous and not to sinners. [Charles Spurgeon, in his sermon, "The Warrant of Faith."]
Some Reformed men carry the idea of "regeneration precedes faith" to a ridiculous extreme. For example, R. C. Sproul and others teach that it is possible for an infant to be regenerated and not come to faith in Christ until years later. [For full documentation, see our study entitled, Does Regeneration Precede Faith?]
The view which insists that regeneration precedes faith is inconsistent with the clear teaching of the Bible. For example, John 1:12 does not say: "As many as have been regenerated, to them gave He the power to believe on His Name, even to those who have become the children of God." Instead John 1:12 teaches that those who receive Christ by faith become children of God (that is, they are born of God or regenerated). In a similar way John 20:31 says, "believing ye might have life." It does not say, "having life ye might believe" (which is what one would expect it to say if regeneration precedes faith). Numerous passages in the Gospel of John teach that LIFE (eternal life) is the result of believing in Christ (John 3:15,16,36; 5:24; 6:47; etc.). Reformed men teach that LIFE results in FAITH. The Bible teaches that FAITH results in LIFE. The Biblical position is that a sinner is regenerated the moment he believes on the Lord Jesus Christ. These issues are more fully discussed in our paper, Does Regeneration Precede Faith?
There is a variation of View #1 which is held by the esteemed Princeton theologian, Charles Hodge, as well as others. This is discussed in Appendix #1.
View #2-Salvation is the Gift of God
"For by grace are ye saved through faith; and this salvation is not of yourselves, this salvation is the gift of God, this salvation is not of works, lest any man should boast" (in this case the antecedent of the pronoun is identified as "salvation" which is the idea of the main verb "are ye saved").
This view is clearly reflected in the IFCA [Independent Fundamental Churches of America] doctrinal statement [Article IV, Section 1, Paragraph 6] which says, "We believe that SALVATION is the GIFT OF GOD brought to man by grace and received by personal faith in the Lord Jesus Christ." This well-worded statement makes it clear that salvation is the gift of God and this gift is received by personal faith. The gift is salvation; the receiving of that gift is by faith.
There is another view which is a variation of View #2 (which says that salvation is the gift of God) and for a discussion of this variation, see Appendix #2.
A Lesson in Greek
If you look at an interlinear Greek New Testament, you will see that the passage reads as follows: "For by grace ye are saved through faith, and this [το�το] [is] not of yourselves, [it is] the gift of God, not of works lest anyone might boast" (Eph. 2:8-9).
The pronoun [το�το] is a demonstrative pronoun. It points out the thing that is referred to. In gender it is neither masculine nor feminine, but it is neuter. It could be translated "this thing." In number it is singular. It refers to something, but not several things. In case it is nominative (the subject of the verb). "This thing is not of yourself, [it is] the gift of God."
What Does "This Thing" Refer To?
The Biblical expositor needs to correctly identify the antecedent of the pronoun, that is, to identify what the pronoun refers to.
Some might argue that "faith" is the nearest antecedent: "For by grace are ye saved through faith and this [is] not of yourselves" (Eph. 2:8). It is certainly true that "faith" is the nearest antecedent, but since there are a great number of cases in the New Testament where the nearest antecedent is not the correct one, we should be very careful before making this identification. There are other far more important considerations.
Here is the correct rule that Greek grammar demands be followed: Pronouns agree with their antecedent in gender and number. Their case is determined by their use in their own clause. [A Manual Grammar of the Greek New Testament by H. E. Dana and Julius Mantey, p. 125 (Section 135).]
This rule argues forcefully against the identification of "faith" as the antecedent because "faith" does not agree with the pronoun in gender. The pronoun "this" (verse 8) is NEUTER, and the noun "faith" (verse 8) is FEMININE. If Paul wanted his readers to understand the pronoun as referring to "faith," then there is no reason why he would not have used the feminine form of the demonstrative pronoun [which would be the Greek word αυτη]. This would have settled it. The verse would read, "For by grace are ye saved through faith, and this feminine thing [namely faith], is not of yourselves, it is the gift of God." If Paul had used the feminine pronoun then it would be very clear, obvious and indisputable that FAITH is the gift of God. However, Paul did not use the feminine pronoun.
Why then did Paul use the neuter pronoun? What is the antecedent? If Paul had wanted to refer to the idea contained in the main verb (the idea of being SAVED), then it would have been perfectly normal and appropriate for him to use the neuter gender. It would have been very natural for Paul to say, "For by grace ARE YE SAVED through faith and this thing that I'm talking about, namely salvation, is not of yourselves, it is the gift of God...." If Paul had wanted the pronoun to refer to the idea or concept contained in the verb, the neuter form would be the one to use. The pronoun "this thing" [το�το] commonly takes a conceptual antecedent. [Greek Grammar Beyond the Basics by Daniel B. Wallace, p. 335.]
We need to carefully think through Ephesians 2:8-9 in order to correctly identify the antecedent. We must ask, "What is Paul talking about in Ephesians 2:8-9? What is his main point?" It is obvious that Paul is talking about HOW A PERSON IS SAVED. The main idea of the sentence is found in the verb "ARE YE SAVED" [or "YE ARE SAVED"]. How is a person saved? Ephesians 2:8-9 answers this key question. Salvation is by grace. Salvation is through faith. Salvation is not of yourselves. Salvation is the GIFT OF GOD. Salvation is not of works. Paul is not giving a dissertation on faith, but he is giving a brief dissertation on salvation. SALVATION is his main subject. Faith is mentioned because you cannot answer the question "HOW IS A PERSON SAVED?" without mentioning faith. A person is saved by believing on the Lord Jesus Christ (Acts 16:31). God's gracious gift of salvation must be personally received, and it is received by faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. But the main thing that Paul is talking about in these two verses is salvation, not faith.
THE GIFT OF GOD
New Testament Usage
The Bible explains itself. We do not need to depend only on Ephesians 2:8 in order to find out what the gift of God is. There are many other New Testament passages which clearly tell us what the gift of God is. How is the expression "gift of God" used elsewhere in the New Testament by Paul and the other writers?
A study of the places where the word "gift" is used in the New Testament reveals the following:
This word is used to refer to the "gift of God" only once, and that is in the passage under consideration (Ephesians 2:8). However there are other related Greek words that are translated "gift" and these are as follows:
This word is never used of FAITH but it is used of God's gift of salvation or justification (see Romans 5:16).
χάρισμα (a gift freely and graciously given) neuter noun
Romans 6:23--the gift of God is eternal life (compare Romans 5:15-16).
This word is never used of FAITH (except in 1 Corinthians 12:9 which is speaking of the temporary gift of miracle working faith and not saving faith).
* * * * * * *
Thus, in no other place in the New Testament does the word "GIFT" ever refer to saving faith. However, we recognize that apart from God's mercy and gracious enabling and enlightenment, saving faith could not be exercised (John 6:44,65; Romans 9:16; Matthew 11:27; 16:16-17; Acts 16:14; etc.).
We have seen therefore that there are many passages in the New Testament which speak of SALVATION (or justification or eternal life) as being the gift of God, especially in Paul's writings. In light of this, it would be much safer to identify "the gift of God" in Ephesians 2:8 with SALVATION unless there were some very obvious reasons for doing otherwise. If Ephesians 2:8 speaks of faith as being the gift of God, then this is the only place in the New Testament where Paul makes such an identification.
Since the pronoun is in the neuter gender (not agreeing with the feminine gender of the word "faith"), since Paul is talking about how a person is saved (salvation is clearly the matter being discussed) and since the New Testament elsewhere refers to salvation as the gift of God, we have good reason for concluding that salvation is the gift of God in Ephesians 2:8.
"Not of works"--New Testament Usage
"Not of works, lest any man should boast" (Ephesians 2:9). What is not of works? Is Paul saying that faith is not of works or is he saying that salvation is not of works? Here again it is helpful to do a study of New Testament (Pauline) usage:
In Romans 3:20 Paul says that justification is not of works.
In Romans 3:27 Paul says that justification is not of works.
In Romans 3:28 Paul says that justification is apart from works.
In Romans 4:2,6 Paul says that justification is not of works.
In Romans 9:11 Paul says that election is not of works.
In Romans 9:32 Paul says that righteousness is not of works.
In Romans 11:6 Paul says that election is not of works.
In Galatians 2:16 Paul says that justification is not of works.
In 2 Timothy 1:9 Paul says that God's salvation and calling are not according to works.
In Titus 3:5 Paul says that salvation is not of works.
If Ephesians 2:9 means that salvation is not of works, this would be in harmony with all of these above passages. That salvation is not of works is repeatedly taught by Paul, but in no other place in the new testament does Paul ever say that "faith is not of works." Again and again Paul says that salvation (justification) is not of works, but he never says that faith is not of works. It would be foolish to say such a thing. That faith is not of works is so obvious (or as Alford says "irrelevant") that it does not need to be said. As John Eadie has said, "you may declare that salvation is not of works, but cannot with propriety say that faith is not of works." This is why men like Charles Hodge are forced to put a parenthesis in this passage: "Ye are saved through faith (and that not of yourselves it is the gift of God), not of works" [See Hodge�s commentary on Ephesians under Ephesians 2:8.] Hodge wants to make the verse say that faith is the gift of God (because this fits in well with his Reformed theology). However, Hodge knows that Paul would never say that "faith is not of works" (see Appendix 1).
The Bible repeatedly says that we are not saved by works (see the verses cited earlier). Also the Bible repeatedly says that we are saved or justified by faith (Romans 5:1; etc.). If a man is not saved by works but by faith, then faith is obviously not a work: "but to him that worketh not, but believeth..." (Romans 4:5). Faith and works do not go together. Faith is not a work. Work is something that we take credit for. Work is something that we can be rewarded for. Work is something that we can boast about. Work is meritorious. Faith is non-meritorious. A person cannot "take credit" or "praise himself" for his faith, because faith is not meritorious (deserving of reward or honor). Faith is not something that a person can boast about. Faith does not take credit for itself. Faith gives all the credit to Christ. Faith acknowledges that Christ gets all the credit and praise and honor, for He did it all! Faith is not something "good" that a man does; it is simply a recognition on the part of man that "I cannot do any good thing, and therefore I need a Saviour." Only someone totally ignorant of the gospel and of the meaning of "faith" would ever try to take credit for faith. There is no merit in the act of believing.
To say that faith is a work is totally contrary to what the New Testament teaches on salvation. Salvation is "not of works" and entirely "apart from works" (Rom. 3:28; 4:6). Those who believe are those who "DO NOT WORK" (Romans 4:5). What then do they do? They merely REST upon the finished work of Christ who did it all and paid it all!
If Ephesians 2:9 speaks of faith as being "not of works," then this is the only place in the New Testament where Paul makes such a statement. If on the other hand the verse is saying that salvation is not of works, then this would harmonize with Paul's frequent teaching elsewhere and this would be one of many verses in the New Testament which teaches this truth.
As a practical example, think of how we share the message of salvation with those who are lost. Often we tell them that salvation is not of works. All false religions teach some form of salvation by a system of works. In our sharing of the gospel we make it clear to people that salvation is not of works and there is nothing that they can do to work for their salvation or to earn favor with God. On the other hand, we do not tell the sinner: "My friend, faith is not of works. There is nothing that you can do to believe." No, faith is something that the sinner is responsible to do. The sinner is responsible to take God at His Word and to rest his all upon the WORTH (who He is), the WORK (what He has done) and the WORD (what He has said) of the Saviour. Even though faith is not a meritorious work, it is a work that man must do: "Then said they unto Him, What shall we do, that we might work the works of God? Jesus answered and said unto them, This is the work of God, that ye BELIEVE on Him whom He hath sent" (John 6:28-29). It is something that man is responsible to do, and condemned for not doing (John 8:24; 3:18).
Saving Faith
In Ephesians 2:8, faith is not the gift. Faith is how we receive the gift. Faith is the HAND OF THE HEART that reaches out and receives that which God so graciously gives. Faith is man's response to God's gracious provision and promise. Faith is taking God at His Word and resting fully on Jesus Christ, WHO HE IS, WHAT HE HAS DONE and WHAT HE HAS SAID. What is saving faith? The hymn writer has expressed it well: "Tis so sweet to TRUST IN JESUS, [what does it mean to trust in Jesus?] → just to take Him at His Word, → just to rest upon His promise, → just to know THUS SAITH THE LORD."
Some extreme Calvinists tend to speak of faith as if it is something that man cannot do. This results in a wrong understanding of man's inability. The question the Philippian jailer asked was this: "What must I do to be saved?" (Acts 16:30). Some would answer in this way: "Nothing! You can't do anything! You are dead and totally unable to respond to God until you are regenerated. You have no part in salvation. God must do it all. You cannot exercise saving faith." This answer might harmonize with one's theological system, but there is only one problem. This is not how Paul and Silas answered the question! Paul and Silas told the jailer that there was something that he could do and was responsible to do: "BELIEVE on the Lord Jesus Christ!" (Acts 16:31 and compare how Peter answered a similar question in Acts 2:37-38).
Regardless of one's theological system, Acts 16:31 is very clear. God must do the saving; man must do the believing. The saving is something that God alone must do. The believing is something that the sinner must do. God does not do the believing for man. Even William Hendriksen (who is Reformed in his theology and who believes that faith is the gift of God in Ephesians 2:8) says, "both the responsibility of believing and also its activity are ours, for God does not believe for us." Another illustration would be the account of the deadly serpents in the wilderness in Numbers 21. Should we say that the Israelites had no part in their deliverance from the deadly snakes? Of course not! Their part was to LOOK; God's part was to HEAL. They did the looking and God did the healing.
Faith is when the sinner humbly recognizes his desperate need and acknowledges that God must do all the saving. Salvation is wholly the work of god; faith is wholly the responsibility of man. Man does not contribute to his own salvation. It is the work of God. God alone must do the saving; man must do the believing (Acts 16:31). Those who are saved have only God to thank; those who are lost have only themselves to blame. God gets all the credit for man�s salvation; the unsaved man must take full blame and responsibility for his eternal damnation. The saved person thankfully says, "I�m in heaven because of God!" The lost person must truthfully say, "I�m in hell because of me." His damnation is based, not on God�s rejection of him, but upon his rejection of God (Mark 16:16; 2 Thess. 2:10,12; John 5:40).
No one will ever stand before God and say, "I am condemned because God never gave me the gift of faith." No such excuse will ever be uttered. All men are responsible to believe. All men are commanded to believe and to repent (1 John 3:23 and Acts 17:30). God says, "Look unto Me [that's faith!] and be ye saved all the ends of the earth" (Isaiah 45:22). According to 1 Timothy 2:4, God desires ALL MEN to COME unto Himself (and coming to Christ is equated with believing on Him--John 6:35). Men are responsible to believe and to come and to repent. Men are condemned eternally for their failure to do this (John 8:24; 3:18; etc.).
D.L. Moody once said, "Some say that faith is the gift of God. So is the air, but you have to breathe it; so is bread, but you have to eat it; so is water, but you have to drink it. Some are wanting some miraculous kind of feeling. That is not faith. 'Faith cometh by hearing and hearing by the Word of God.� It is not for me to sit down and wait for faith to come stealing over me...it is for me to take God at His Word."
According to the Apostle Paul, faith is "being fully persuaded [convinced] that, what He had promised, He was able also to perform" (Rom. 4:20-21). God has promised to save all those who come unto Him through Christ (Heb. 7:25), and the man of faith is fully persuaded and convinced that God will do this. Notice also that Romans 4:3 and Romans 4:5 speak of "his faith" (Abraham's faith) not God's faith. A study of the verb "believe" in the New Testament reveals that the subject of the verb is man (it is always men or persons that do the believing) and the verb is most often used in the active voice, which means that it is men, women, boys and girls who must perform the action of the verb. People must do the believing. God holds them responsible for whether or not they do this.
The IFCA doctrinal statement sums it up well: "We believe that salvation is the gift of God brought to man by grace and received by personal faith in the Lord Jesus Christ." According to this statement, it is SALVATION not FAITH which is the gift of God. This gift of God (this gracious salvation) is received in only one way: by personal faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.
What Difference Does It Make?
What is wrong with saying that FAITH is the gift of God? Does it make any real difference? What are the practical implications of saying such a thing?
I would recommend an article by Roy L. Aldrich entitled "The Gift of God." [Bibliotheca Sacra, July 1965.] The author convincingly shows that the interpretation of Ephesians 2:8 which says that FAITH is the GIFT OF GOD leads to a hyper-Calvinistic doctrine of faith, which in turn leads to an unscriptural plan of salvation. For example, Shedd says: "The Calvinist maintains that faith is wholly from God, being one of the effects of regeneration" [Dogmatic Theology, Vol. II, p. 472]. This results in a strange plan of salvation. According to Shedd, because the sinner cannot believe, he is instructed to perform the following duties: 1) Read and hear the divine Word; 2) Give serious application of the mind to the truth; 3) Pray for the gift of the Holy Spirit for conviction and regeneration [Dogmatic Theology, Vol. II, pp. 512-513].7 Arthur Pink agrees with Shedd saying that the sinner is to "ask God...to bestow upon him the gifts of repentance and faith" (The Sovereignty of God, pp. 198-199). Here is Roy Aldrich's excellent comment: "If the sinner is so spiritually dead that he cannot believe, then how can he hear the divine Word, give serious application of the mind to the truth and pray for the gift of the Holy Spirit? The extreme Calvinist deals with a rather lively spiritual corpse after all...The tragedy of this position is that it perverts the gospel. The sinner is wrongly instructed to beg for that which God is already beseeching him to receive. He is really being told that the condition of salvation is prayer instead of faith" [Bibliotheca Sacra, July 1965, p.249].
Another illustration of this is from the pulpit of Dr. John MacArthur, a very popular Bible teacher in America. Dr. MacArthur believes and teaches that faith is a gift of God. [See MacArthur�s major commentary on Ephesians, p. 61 and see also his major commentary on Romans 1-8, p. 55 and the book Faith Works, pages 24, 43, 69, 149, 185.] Such teaching has some very practical implications and it will affect the way a person presents the gospel.
If faith is a gift of God, THEN HOW DO I GET IT? Do I do nothing and hope that God will sovereignly bestow it upon me? Or, do I cry out to God and pray that He will give me the gift of saving faith? Dr. MacArthur apparently holds to this second option. At the end of one of his messages he gave a salvation appeal and said the following: "Faith is a gift from God...it is permanent...the faith that God gives begets obedience...God gave it to you and He sustains it...May God grant you a true saving faith, a permanent gift that begins in humility and brokenness over sin and ends up in obedience unto righteousness. That's true faith and it's a gift that only God can give, and if you desire it pray and ask that He would grant it to you." [Tape GC 90-21 on Lordship salvation, last part of tape, comments made during the closing invitation]
Notice carefully what MacArthur is doing. He is not telling the sinner to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ (Acts 16:31), but to PRAY and ASK GOD to grant the GIFT OF FAITH! This perverts the gospel of Christ by making the condition of salvation prayer instead of faith! Sinners are commanded to believe on Christ. They are not commanded to pray for the gift of faith.
* * * * * *
Ephesians 2:8-9 is not complicated. It was one of the first passages that I memorized as a new believer. I always understood it to mean that salvation was God�s gracious and free gift, and that faith was how we received this gift. It was not until I began reading certain theologians that I became aware of the other interpretation. May God help us not to complicate and corrupt the simplicity of the gospel message, a message so straightforward and simple that even a child can understand it.
* * * * * * *
Appendix #1
View #1 says that the gift referred to in Ephesians 2:8-9 is faith. There is a variation of this view which says that the gift of God is faith, but unlike View #1 it says that salvation, not faith, is "not of works." This is the view of Charles Hodge [See Charles Hodges� commentary on Ephesians, under Ephesians 2:8-9] and others. These men realize that Paul would never have said that "faith is not of works" (for reasons which have been already been discussed in this paper), and therefore they are forced to place an awkward and unnatural parenthesis in the middle of these verses. This view could be stated as follows:
"For by grace are ye saved through faith (and this faith is not of yourselves, this faith is the gift of God), not of works [that is, this salvation is not of works] lest any man should boast."
Hodge is a Reformed theologian and is quite comfortable saying that faith is the gift of God. He is very uncomfortable saying that faith is not of works. The reason for the parenthesis is that men like Hodge are aware of the difficulty of saying that "faith is not of works." Charles Hodge is correct in saying that salvation is not of works; he is wrong in saying that this passage teaches that faith is the gift of God.
Appendix #2
View #2, as discussed in this paper, is the view which understands the gift of God in Ephesians 2:8-9 to refer to salvation. There is a variation to this view which says that the entire salvation process (including faith) is the gift of God. An IFCA position paper states it this way: "he [the sinner coming to Christ] realizes that the totality of the salvation process is a gift of God, including the grace of God and his own choice to believe (Ephesians 2:8-9)." [This quote is taken from an IFCA position paper, November 1990, entitled, Salvation by Grace through Faith.] John Calvin also held this view. Calvin did not believe that the pronoun referred to "faith." He believed it referred to "salvation by grace through faith" (to the entire salvation process, including faith). Is salvation the gift of God? This view would answer "yes." Is faith the gift of God? This view would again answer "yes" because faith would be considered part of the totality of the salvation process. Thus, according to this view, not only salvation, but the reception of salvation ("faith") would be the gift of God.
This view confuses the gift with the reception of the gift. [Notice how Romans 5:17 makes a clear distinction between the gift and the reception of the gift.] It is interesting that the IFCA doctrinal statement, in contrast to the IFCA position paper, makes a clear distinction between the gift and the reception of the gift: "We believe that salvation is the gift of God brought to man by grace and received by personal faith in the Lord Jesus Christ." But in the IFCA position paper which was written in order to clarify "saving faith" (in light of the Lordship salvation controversy) this distinction is lost. In the IFCA position paper faith is included as part of the gift (part of the total salvation process). This leads to an obvious problem. Let me put myself in the place of the sinner. If faith in Christ is itself God's gift, then how do I receive this faith? Instead of asking, "What must I do to be saved?" I must now focus on the question "What must I do to believe?" If faith is God's gift, then how do I get this gift? Do I pray to God and ask for the gift of faith? Do I sit back and do nothing and hope that I am one of the chosen ones who will be given this gift? How do I get the gift of saving faith? It is all very confusing and it takes away from where the focus of the sinner ought to be, which is upon Jesus Christ and Him crucified.
Appendix #3
There are some who give another explanation for the neuter gender being used. Mr. Stephen Parker, for example, argues that the pronoun is attracted to the neuter gender of the word "gift," and he cites Mark 15:16 as an analogy. [See Stephen Parker�s booklet, Calvin�s Specs Examined and Re-examined, pages 9-10.] It is true that attraction does take place in Mark 15:16 as Mr. Parker correctly points out. This is one of those rare cases where the pronoun agrees with the PREDICATE when the relative clause is an explanation. Another example would be in Ephesians 6:17: "the sword (feminine) of the Spirit, which (neuter) is the Word (neuter) of God" (the antecedent is "sword" but the pronoun is attracted to the neuter gender). However, we do not really have the same thing in Ephesians 2:8. First of all, in Mark 15:16 we have a relative pronoun, but in Ephesians 2:8 we have a demonstrative pronoun [το�το]. In Mark 15:16 the verb is explicitly stated, but in Ephesians 2:8 the verb is understood (the words "it is" are in italics). The greatest problem, however, is that in Mark 15:16 the word "praetorium" comes right after the word "hall" but in Ephesians 2:8 there is a whole additional phrase which comes between "that" and "gift," and this would make attraction much less likely: "...through faith and that NOT OF YOURSELVES, it is the gift..." In other words, in Mark 15:16 there is only one word (the verb εστιν) which comes between the pronoun and the word to which it is attracted. In Ephesians 2:8 there are five Greek words which come between the pronoun and the word which Mr. Parker claims it is attracted to. This explanation seems highly unlikely, and I did not find this argument in the respectable commentaries that I consulted, even among those men who believe that the antecedent is "faith." It could also be noted that Mr. Parker is wrong when he says that the words "hall" and "which" in Mark 15:16 do not agree in number. They do agree. They are both singular in number
--George Zeller (1/80; revised 6/91, 8/98, 5/07)
The Middletown Bible Church
349 East Street
Middletown, CT 06457
(860) 346-0907
More articles under PROBLEMS WITH REFORMED THEOLOGY
Middletown Bible Church (MBC) is a long-standing, independent, fundamentalist, bible church located in Middletown, Connecticut.
Fundamentalism is strict adherence to specific theological doctrines usually understood as a reaction against Modernist theology.[1] The term "fundamentalism" was originally coined by its supporters to describe a specific package of theological beliefs that developed into a movement within the Protestant community of the United States in the early part of the 20th century, and that had its roots in the Fundamentalist�Modernist Controversy of that time.[2] The term usually has a religious connotation indicating unwavering attachment to a set of irreducible beliefs.[3] "Fundamentalism" is sometimes used as a pejorative term, particularly when combined with other epithets (as in the phrase "right-wing fundamentalists").[4][5]
Ahhhh...Protestant Reform and Calvinism Reform are way differant Donna...ya might wanna read and study up on it...Calvin wasnt Catholic or Protestant...He was a REFORMER...Period...thats the story and ima stickin to it...Be Blessed...xo
Calvinism (also called Reformed tradition, the Reformed faith, or Reformed theology) is a Protestant theological system and an approach to the Christian life.[1] The Reformed tradition was advanced by several theologians such as Martin Bucer, Heinrich Bullinger, Peter Martyr Vermigli, and Huldrych Zwingli, but this branch of Christianity bears the name of the French reformer John Calvin (Jean Cauvin in Old French) because of his prominent influence on it and because of his role in the confessional and ecclesiastical debates throughout the 16th century. Today, this term also refers to the doctrines and practices of the Reformed churches of which Calvin was an early leader. Less commonly, it can refer to the individual, biblical teachings of Calvin himself.[2] The system is often summarized in the Five Points of Calvinism and is best known for its doctrines of predestination and total depravity, stressing the absolute sovereignty of God.
The Protestant Reformation was a 16th-century split within Western Christianity initiated by Martin Luther, John Calvin and other early Protestants. The efforts of the self-described "reformers", who objected to ("protested") the doctrines, rituals and ecclesiastical structure of the Roman Catholic Church, led to the creation of new national Protestant churches. The Reformation was precipitated by earlier events within Europe, such as the Black Death and the Western Schism, which eroded people's faith in the Roman Catholic Church. This, as well as many other factors, contributed to the growth of lay criticism in the church and the creation of Protestantism.[1]
The Roman Catholics responded with a Counter-Reformation, led by the Jesuit order, which established influence over large parts of Europe such as Poland. In general, northern Europe, with the exception of Ireland and pockets of Britain, turned Protestant. Southern Europe remained Roman Catholic, while fierce battles which turned into warfare took place in central Europe.[2]
The largest of the new churches were the Lutherans (mostly in Germany and Scandinavia) and the Reformed churches (mostly in Germany, Switzerland, the Netherlands and Scotland). There were many smaller bodies as well. The most common dating begins in 1517, when Luther published The Ninety-Five Theses, and concludes in 1648 with the Treaty of Westphalia that ended years of European religious wars.[3]
On his his church�s website Mr. Zeller writes one of the silliest statements thta I have ever seen. He states:
�They also believe that a historic �Baptist succession� may be traced from John the Baptist to modern Baptist churches in which believer�s baptism and Landmark principles have prevailed.�
This statement, if it were not so serious, would be one of the funniest that I have ever seen, for there is absolutely no truth in it.
Baptists today, in no way resemble the Baptists of even a hundred years ago, let alone 400 years ago.
Heretics often make claims that the ignorant cannot grasp. They make grandiose claims to inflate their intelligence, as is obviously the case here.
Although there is much heresy associated with this man, the London Baptist Confessions of Faith of 1689 will prove that the Baptists of today, the George Zellers, do not believe as the baptists then:
London Baptist Confession of Faith
A.D. 1644
The
CONFESSION
OF FAITH,
Of those CHURCHES which are
commonly (though falsly)
called ANABAPTISTS;
Presented to the view of all that feare God, to examine by the touchstone of the Word of Truth: As likewise for the taking off those aspersions which are frequently both in Pulpit and Print, (although unjustly) cast upon them.
We can not but speake the things which wee have seene and heard.
Isai. 8.20
To the Law and to the testimony, if they speake not according to this Rule, it is because there is no light in them.
2 Cor. 1.9, 10
But wee had the sentence of death in our selves, that wee should not trust in our selves, but in the living God which raiseth the dead; who delivered us from so great a death, and doth deliver, in whom wee trust that he will yet deliver.
The lifting up of the Name of the LORD Jesus in sincerity, the poor despised Churches of God in London send greeting, with prayers for their farther increase in the knowledge of CHRIST JESUS.
We question not but that it will seem strange to many men, that such as we are frequently termed to be, lying under that calumny and black brand of Heretics, and sowers of division as we do, should presume to appear so publicly as now we have done: But yet notwithstanding we may well say, to give answer to such, what David said to his brother, when the Lord's battle was a fighting, 1 Sam. 29:30. Is there not a cause?
Surely, if ever people had cause to speak for the vindication of the truth of Christ in their hands, we have, that being indeed the main wheel at this time that sets us awork; for had anything by men been transacted against our persons only, we could quietly have sitten still, and committed our Cause to him who is a righteous Judge, who will in the great day judge the secrets of all men's hearts by Jesus Christ: But being it is not only us, but the truth professed by us, we cannot, we dare not but speak; it is no strange thing to any observing man, what sad charges are laid, not only by the world, that know not God, but also by those that think themselves much wronged, if they be not looked upon as the chief Worthies of the Church of God, and Watchmen of the City: But it hath fared with us from them, as from the poor Spouse seeking her Beloved, Cant. 5:6, 7. They finding us out of that common roadway themselves walk, have smote us and taken away our vail, that so we may by them be recommended odious in the eyes of all that behold us, and in the hearts of all that think upon us, which they have done both in Pulpit and Print, charging us with holding Free-will, Falling away from grace, denying Original sin, disclaiming of Magistracy, denying to assist them either in persons or purse in any of their lawful Commands, doing acts unseemly in the dispensing the Ordinance of Baptism, not to be named amongst Christians: All which Charges we disclaim as notoriously untrue, though by reason of these calumnies cast upon us, many that fear God are discouraged and forestalled in harboring a good thought, either of us or what we profess; and many that know not God encouraged, if they can find the place of our meeting, to get together in Clusters to stone us, as looking upon us as a people holding such things, as that we are not worthy to live: We have therefore for the clearing of the truth we profess, that it may be at liberty, though we be in bonds, briefly published a Confession of our Faith, as desiring all that fear God, seriously to consider whether (if they compare what we here say and confess in the presence of the Lord Jesus and his Saints) men have not with their tongues in Pulpit, and pens in Print, both spoken and written things that are contrary to truth; but we know our God in his own time will clear our Cause, and lift up his Son to make him the chief cornerstone, though he has been (or now should be) rejected of Master Builders. And because it may be conceived, that what is here published, may be but the Judgement of some one particular Congregation, more refined than the rest; We do therefore here subscribe it, some of each body in the name, and by the appointment of seven Congregations, who though we be distinct in respect of our particular bodies, for convenience sake, being as many as can well meet together in one place, yet are all one in Communion, holding Jesus Christ to be our head and Lord; under whose government we desire alone to walk, in following the Lamb wheresoever he goeth; and we believe the Lord will daily cause truth more to appear in the hearts of his Saints, and make them ashamed of their folly in the Land of their Nativity, that so they may with one shoulder, more study to lift up the Name of the Lord Jesus, and stand for his appointments and Laws; which is the desires and prayers of the condemned Churches of Christ in London for all saints.
Subscribed in the Names of seven Churches in London.
That God as he is in himself, cannot be comprehended of any but himself,1 dwelling in that inaccessible light, that no eye can attain unto, whom never man saw, nor can see; that there is but2 one God, one Christ, one Spirit, one Faith, one Baptism;3 one Rule of holiness and obedience for all Saints, at all times, in all places to be observed.
II.
That God is4 of himself, that is, neither from another, nor of another, nor by another, nor for another:5 But is a Spirit, who as his being is of himself, so he gives6 being, moving, and preservation to all other things, being in himself eternal, most holy, every way infinite in7 greatness, wisdom, power, justice, goodness, truth, etc. In this God-head, there is the Father, the Son, and the Spirit; being every one of them one and the same God; and therefore not divided, but distinguished one from another by their several properties; the8 Father being from himself, the9 Son of the Father from everlasting, the holy10 Spirit proceeding from the Father and the Son.
III.
That God hath11 decreed in himself from everlasting touching all things, effectually to work and dispose them12 according to the counsel of his own will, to the glory of his Name; in which decree appeareth his wisdom, constancy, truth, and faithfulness;13 Wisdom is that whereby he contrives all things;14 Constancy is that whereby the decree of God remains always immutable;15 Truth is that whereby he declares that alone which he hath decreed, and though his sayings may seem to sound sometimes another thing, yet the sense of them doth always agree with the decree;16 Faithfulness is that whereby he effects that he hath decreed, as he hath decreed. And touching his creature man,17 God had in Christ before the foundation of the world, according to the good pleasure of his will, foreordained some men to eternal life through Jesus Christ, to the praise and glory of his grace,18 leaving the rest in their sin to their just condemnation, to the praise of his Justice.
IV.
19In the beginning God made all things very good, created man after his own20 Image and likeness, filling him with all perfection of all natural excellency and uprightness, free from all sin.21 But long he abode not in this honor, but by the22 subtlety of the Serpent, which Satan used as his instrument, himself with his Angels having sinned before, and not23 kept their first estate, but left their own habitation; first24 Eve, then Adam being seduced did wittingly and willingly fall into disobedience and transgression of the Commandment of their great Creator, for the which death came upon all, and reigned over all, so that all since the Fall are conceived in sin, and brought forth in iniquity, and so by nature children of wrath, and servants of sin, subjects of25 death, and all other calamities due to sin in this world and forever, being considered in the state of nature, without relation to Christ.
V.
All mankind being thus fallen, and become altogether dead in sins and trespasses, and subject to the eternal wrath of the great God by transgression; yet the elect, which God hath26 loved with an everlasting love, are27 redeemed, quickened, and saved, not by themselves, neither by their own works, lest any man should boast himself, but wholly and only by God of28 his free grace and mercy through Jesus Christ, who of God is made unto us wisdom, righteousness, sanctification and redemption, that as it is written, He that rejoiceth, let him rejoice in the Lord.
VI.
29This therefore is life eternal, to know the only true God, and whom he hath sent Jesus Christ.30 And on the contrary, the Lord will render vengeance in flaming fire to them that know not God, and obey not the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ.
VII.
The Rule of this Knowledge, Faith, and Obedience, concerning the worship and service of God, and all other Christian duties, is not man's inventions, opinions, devices, laws, constitutions, or traditions unwritten whatsoever, but only the word of God contained in the Canonical Scriptures.31
VIII.
In this written Word God hath plainly revealed whatsoever he hath thought needful for us to know, believe, and acknowledge, touching the Nature and Office of Christ, in whom all the promises are Yea and Amen to the praise of God.32
IX.
Touching the Lord Jesus, of whom33 Moses and the Prophets wrote, and whom the Apostles preached, is the34 Son of God the Father, the brightness of his glory, the engraven form of his being, God with him and with his holy Spirit, by whom he made the world, by whom he upholds and governs all the works he hath made, who also35 when the fullness of time was come, was made man of a36 woman, of the Tribe of Judah, of the seed of Abraham and David, to wit, of Mary that blessed Virgin, by the holy Spirit coming upon her, and the power of the most High overshadowing her, and was also in37 all things like unto us, sin only excepted.
X.
Touching his Office,38 Jesus Christ only is made the Mediator of the new Covenant, even the everlasting Covenant of grace between God and Man, to39 be perfectly and fully the Prophet, Priest and King of the Church of God for evermore.
XI.
Unto this Office he was foreordained from everlasting, by the40 authority of the Father and in respect of his Manhood, from the womb called and separated, and41 anointed also most fully and abundantly with all gifts necessary, God having without measure poured the Spirit upon him.
XII.
In this Call the Scripture holds forth two special things considerable; first, the call to the Office; secondly, the Office itself. First, that42 none takes this honor but he that is called of God, as was Aaron, so also Christ, it being an action especially of God the Father, whereby a special covenant being made, he ordains his Son to this office: which Covenant is, that43 Christ should be made a Sacrifice for sin, that he shall see his seed, and prolong his days, and the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in his hand; which calling therefore contains in itself44 choosing,45 foreordaining,46 sending. Choosing respects the end, foreordaining the means, sending the execution itself,47 all of mere grace, without any condition foreseen either in men, or in Christ himself.
XIII.
So that this Office to be Mediator, that is, to be Prophet, Priest, and King of the Church of God, is so proper to Christ, as neither in the whole, nor in any part thereof, it can be transferred from him to any other.48
XIV.
This Office itself to which Christ was called, is threefold, of49 a Prophet, of50 Priest, and of51 a King: this number and order of Offices is showed; first, by men's necessities grievously laboring52 under ignorance, by reason whereof they stand in infinite necessity of the Prophetical office of Christ to relieve them. Secondly,53 alienation from God, wherein they stand in need of the Priestly Office to reconcile them: Thirdly, our54 utter disability to return to him, by which they stand in need of the power of Christ in his Kingly Office to assist and govern them.
XV.
Touching the Prophesy of Christ, it is that whereby he hath55 perfectly revealed the whole will of God out of the bosom of the Father, that is needful for his servants to know, believe, and obey; and therefore is called not only a Prophet and56 a Doctor, and the57 Apostle of our profession, and the58 Angel of the Covenant; but also the very59 wisdom of God, and60 the treasures of wisdom and understanding.
XVI.
That he might be such a Prophet as thereby to be every way complete, it was necessary that he should be61 God, and withal also that he should be man; for unless he had been God, he could never have perfectly understood the will of God,62 neither had he been able to reveal it throughout all ages; and unless he had been man, he could not fitly have unfolded it in his63 own person to man.
XVII.
Touching his Priesthood, Christ64 being consecrated, hath appeared once to put away sin by the offering and sacrifice of himself, and to this end hath fully performed and suffered all those things by which God, through the blood of that his Cross in an acceptable sacrifice, might reconcile his elect only;65 and having broken down the partition wall, and therewith finished and removed all those Rites, Shadows, and Ceremonies, is now entered within the Vail, into the Holy of Holiest, that is, to the very Heavens, and presence of God, where he forever liveth and sitteth at the right hand of Majesty, appearing before the face of his Father to make intercession for such as come to the Throne of Grace by that new and living way; and not that only, but66 makes his people a spiritual House, an holy Priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifice acceptable to God through him; neither doth the Father accept, or Christ offer to the Father any other worship or worshippers.
XVIII.
This Priesthood was not legal, or temporary, but according to the order67 of Melchizedek;68 not by a carnal commandment, but by the power of an endless life;69 not by an order that is weak and lame, but stable and perfect, not for a70 time, but forever, admitting no successor, but perpetual and proper to Christ, and of him that ever liveth. Christ himself was the Priest, Sacrifice and Altar: he was71 Priest, according to both natures, he was a sacrifice most properly according to his human nature:72 whence in the Scripture it is wont to be attributed to his body, to his blood; yet the chief force whereby this sacrifice was made effectual, did depend upon his73 divine nature, namely, that the Son of God did offer himself for us: he was the74 Altar properly according to his divine nature, it belonging to the Altar to sanctify that which is offered upon it, and so it ought to be of greater dignity than the Sacrifice itself.
XIX.
Touching his Kingdom,75 Christ being risen from the dead, ascended into heaven, sat on the right hand of God the Father, having all power in heaven and earth, given unto him, he doth spiritually govern his Church, exercising his power76 over all Angels and Men, good and bad, to the preservation and salvation of the elect, to the overruling and destruction of his enemies, which are Reprobates,77 communicating and applying the benefits, virtue, and fruit of his Prophesy and Priesthood to his elect, namely, to the subduing and taking away of their sins, to their justification and adoption of Sons, regeneration, sanctification, preservation and strengthening in all their conflicts against Satan, the World, the Flesh, and the temptations of them, continually dwelling in, governing and keeping their hearts in faith and filial fear by his Spirit, which having78 given it, he never takes away from them, but by it still begets and nourisheth in them faith, repentance, love, joy, hope, and all heavenly light in the soul unto immortality, notwithstanding through our own unbelief, and the temptations of Satan, the sensible sight of this light and love be clouded and overwhelmed for the time.79 And on the contrary, ruling in the world over his enemies, Satan, and all the vessels of wrath, limiting, using, restraining them by his mighty power, as seems good in his divine wisdom and justice to the execution of his determinate counsel, delivering them up to a reprobate mind, to be kept through their own deserts, in darkness and sensuality unto judgment.
XX.
This Kingdom shall be then fully perfected when he shall the second time come in glory to reign amongst his Saints, and to be admired of all them which do believe, when he shall put down all rule and authority under his feet, that the glory of the Father may be full and perfectly manifested in his Son, and the glory of the Father and the Son in all his members.80
XXI.
That Christ Jesus by his death did bring forth salvation and reconciliation only for the81 elect, which were those which82 God the Father gave him; and that the Gospel which is to be preached to all men as the ground of faith, is, that83 Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the ever blessed God, filled with the perfection of all heavenly and spiritual excellencies, and that salvation is only and alone to be had through the believing in his Name.
XXII.
That Faith is the84 gift of God wrought in the hearts of the elect by the Spirit of God, whereby they come to see, know, and believe the truth of85 the Scriptures, and not only so, but the excellency of them above all other writings and things in the world, as they hold forth the glory of God in his attributes, the excellency of Christ in his nature and offices, and the power of the fullness of the Spirit in its workings and operations; and thereupon are enabled to cast the weight of their souls upon this truth thus believed.
XXIII.
Those that have this precious faith wrought in them by the Spirit, can never finally nor totally fall away; and though many storms and floods do arise and beat against them, yet they shall never be able to take them off that foundation and rock which by faith they are fastened upon, but shall be kept by the power of God to salvation, where they shall enjoy their purchased possession, they being formerly engraven upon the palms of God's hands.86
XXIV.
That faith is ordinarily87 begot by the preaching of the Gospel, or word of Christ, without respect to88 any power or capacity in the creature, but it is wholly89 passive, being dead in sins and trespasses, doth believe, and is converted by no less power,90 than that which raised Christ from the dead.
XXV.
That the tenders of the Gospel to the conversion of sinners,91 is absolutely free, no way requiring, as absolutely necessary, any qualifications, preparations, terrors of the Law, or preceding Ministry of the Law, but only and alone the naked soul, as a92 sinner and ungodly to receive Christ, as crucified, dead, and buried, and risen again, being made93 a Prince and a Saviour for such sinners.
XXVI.
That the same power that converts to faith in Christ, the same power carries on the94 soul still through all duties, temptations, conflicts, sufferings, and continually whatever a Christian is, he is by95 grace, and by a constant renewed96 operation from God, without which he cannot perform any duty to God, or undergo any temptations from Satan, the world, or men.
XXVII.
That God the Father, and Son, and Spirit, is one with97 all believers in their98 fullness, in99 relations,100 as head and members,101 as house and inhabitants, as102 husband and wife, one with him, as103 light and love, and one with him in his inheritance, and in all his104 glory; and that all believers by virtue of this union and oneness with God, are the adopted sons of God, and heirs with Christ, co-heirs and joint heirs with him of the inheritance of all the promises of this life, and that which is to come.
XXVIII.
That those which have union with Christ, are justified from all their sins, past,105 present, and to come, by the blood of Christ; which justification we conceive to be a gracious and free106 acquittance of a guilty, sinful creature, from all sin by God, through the satisfaction that Christ hath made by his death; and this applied in the manifestation of it through faith.
XXIX.
That all believers are a holy and107 sanctified people, and that sanctification is a spiritual grace of the108 new Covenant, and effect of the109 love of God, manifested to the soul, whereby the believer is in110 truth and reality separated, both in soul and body, from all sin and dead works, through the111 blood of the everlasting Covenant, whereby he also presseth after a heavenly and Evangelical perfection, in obedience to all the Commands,112 which Christ as head and King in hits new Covenant has prescribed to him.
XXX.
All believers through the knowledge of113 that Justification of life given by the Father, and brought forth by the blood of Christ, have this as their great privilege of that the new114 Covenant, peace with God, and reconciliation, whereby they that were afar off, were brought nigh by115 that blood, and have (as the Scripture speaks) peace116 passing all understanding, yea, joy in God, through our Lord Jesus Christ, by117 whom we have received the Atonement.
XXXI.
That all believers in the time of this life, are in a continual warfare, combat, and opposition against sin, self, the world, and the Devil, and liable to all manner of afflictions, tribulations, and persecutions, and so shall continue until Christ comes in his Kingdom, being predestinated and appointed thereunto; and whatsoever the Saints, any of them do posses or enjoy of God in this life, is only by faith.118
XXXII.
That the only strength by which the Saints are enabled to encounter with all opposition, and to overcome all afflictions, temptations, persecutions, and trials, is only by Jesus Christ, who is the Captain of their salvation, being made perfect through sufferings, who hath engaged his strength to assist them in all their afflictions, and to uphold them under all their temptations, and to preserve them by his power to his everlasting Kingdom.119
XXXIII.
That Christ hath here on earth a spiritual Kingdom, which is the Church, which he hath purchased and redeemed to himself, as a peculiar inheritance: which Church, as it is visible to us, is a company of visible120 Saints,121 called and separated from the world, by the word and122 Spirit of God, to the visible profession of the faith of the Gospel, being baptized into that faith, and joined to the Lord, and each other, by mutual agreement, in the practical enjoyment of the123 Ordinances, commanded by Christ their head and King.
XXXIV.
To this Church he hath124 made his promises, and given the signs of his Covenant, presence, love, blessing, and protection: here are the fountains and springs of his heavenly grace continually flowing forth;125 thither ought all men to come, of all estates, that acknowledge him to be their Prophet, Priest, and King, to be enrolled amongst his household servants, to be under his heavenly conduct and government, to lead their lives in his walled sheepfold, and watered garden, to have communion here with the Saints, that they may be made to be partakers of their inheritance in the Kingdom of God.
XXXV.
And all his servants are called thither, to present their bodies and souls, and to bring their gifts God hath given them; so being come, they are here by himself bestowed in their several order, peculiar place, due use, being fitly compact and knit together, according to the effectual working of every part, to the edification of itself in love.126
XXVI.
That being thus joined, every Church has127 power given them from Christ for their better well-being, to choose to themselves meet persons into the office of128 Pastors, Teachers, Elders, Deacons, being qualified according to the Word, as those which Christ has appointed in his Testament, for the feeding, governing, serving, and building up of his Church, and that none other have power to impose them, either these or any other.
XXXVII.
That the Ministers aforesaid, lawfully called by the Church, where they are to administer, ought to continue in their calling, according to God's Ordinance, and carefully to feed the flock of Christ committed to them, not for filthy lucre, but of a ready mind.129
XXXVIII.
That the due maintenance of the Officers aforesaid, should be the free and voluntary communication of the Church, that according to Christ's Ordinance, they that preach the Gospel, should live on the Gospel and not by constraint to be compelled from the people by a forced Law.130
XXXIX.
That Baptism is an Ordinance of the new Testament, given by Christ, to be dispensed only upon persons professing faith, or that are Disciples, or taught, who upon a profession of faith, ought to be baptized. [Added in later editions: "and after to partake of the Lord's Supper."]131
XL.
The way and manner of the132 dispensing of this Ordinance the Scripture holds out to be dipping or plunging the whole body under water: it being a sign, must answer the thing signified, which are these: first, the133 washing the whole soul in the blood of Christ: Secondly, that interest the Saints have in the134 death, burial, and resurrection; thirdly, together with a135 confirmation of our faith, that as certainly as the body is buried under water, and riseth again, so certainly shall the bodies of the Saints be raised by the power of Christ in the day of the resurrection, to reign with Christ. [The word Baptizo, signifying to dip under water, yet so as with convenient garments both upon the administrator and subject, with all modesty.]
XLI.
The persons designed by Christ, to dispense this Ordinance, the Scriptures hold forth to be a preaching Disciple, it being no where tied to a particular Church, Officer, or person extraordinarily sent, the Commission enjoining the administration, being given to them under no other consideration, but as considered Disciples.136
XLII.
Christ has likewise given power to his whole Church to receive in and cast out, by way of Excommunication, any member; and this power is given to every particular Congregation, and not one particular person, either member or Officer, but the whole.137
XLIII
And every particular member of each Church, how excellent, great, or learned soever, ought to be subject to this censure and judgement of Christ; and the Church ought with great care and tenderness, with due advice to proceed against her members.138
XLIV.
And as Christ for the139 keeping of this Church in holy and orderly Communion, placeth some special men over the Church, who by their office are to govern, oversee, visit, watch; so likewise for the better keeping thereof in all places, by the members, he hath given140 authority, and laid duty upon all, to watch over one another.
XLV.
That also such to whom God hath given gifts, being tried in the Church, may and ought by the appointment of the Congregation, to prophesy, according to the proportion of faith, and so teach publicly the Word of God, for the edification, exhortation, and comfort of the Church.141
XLVI.
Thus being rightly gathered, established, and still proceeding in Christian communion, and obedience of the Gospel of Christ, none ought to separate for faults and corruptions, which may, and as long as the Church consists of men subject to failings, will fall out and arise amongst them, even in true constituted Churches, until they have in due order sought redress thereof.142
XLVII.
And although the particular Congregations be distinct and several Bodies, every one a compact and knit City in itself: yet are they all to walk by one and the same Rule, and by all means convenient to have the counsel and help one of another in all needful affairs of the Church, as members of one body in the common faith under Christ their only head.143
XLVIII.
That a civil Magistracy is an ordinance of God set up by God for the punishment of evil doers, and for the praise of them that do well; and that in all lawful things commanded by them, subjection ought to be given by us in the Lord: and that we are to make supplication and prayer for Kings, and all that are in authority, that under them we may live a peaceable and quiet life in all godliness and honesty.144
XLIX.
The supreme Magistracy of this Kingdom we believe to be the King and Parliament freely chosen by the Kingdom, and that in all those civil Laws which have been acted by them, or for the present is or shall be ordained, we are bound to yield subjection and obedience unto in the Lord, as conceiving ourselves bound to defend both the persons of those thus chosen, and all civil Laws made by them, with our persons, liberties, and estates, with all that is called ours, although we should suffer never so much from them in not actively submitting to some Ecclesiastical Laws, which might be conceived by them to be their duties to establish which we for the present could not see, nor our consciences could submit unto; yet are we bound to yield our persons to their pleasures.
L.
And if God should provide such a mercy for us, as to incline the Magistrates' hearts so far to tender our consciences, as that we might be protected by them from wrong, injury, oppression and molestation, which long we formerly have groaned under by the tyranny and oppression of the Prelatical Hierarchy, which God through mercy hath made this present King and Parliament wonderful honorable, as an instrument in his hand, to throw down; and we thereby have had some breathing time, we shall, we hope, look at it as a mercy beyond our expectation, and conceive ourselves further engaged forever to bless God for it.145
LI.
But if God withhold the Magistrates' allowance and furtherance herein;146 yet we must notwithstanding proceed together in Christian communion, not daring to give place to suspend our practice, but to walk in obedience to Christ in the profession and holding forth this faith before mentioned, even in the midst of all trials and afflictions, not accounting our goods, lands, wives, children, fathers, mothers, brethren, sisters, yea, and our own lives dear unto us, so we may finish our course with joy: remembering always we ought to147 obey God rather than men, and grounding upon the commandment, commission and promise of our Lord and master Jesus Christ, who as he hath all power in heaven and earth, so also hath promised, if we keep his commandments which he hath given us, to be with us to the end of the world: and when we have finished our course, and kept the faith, to give us the crown of righteousness, which is laid up for all that love his appearing, and to whom we must give an account of all our actions, no man being able to discharge us of the same.
LII.
And likewise unto all men is to be given whatsoever is their due; tributes, customs, and all such lawful duties, ought willingly to be by us paid and performed, our lands, goods, and bodies, to submit to the Magistrate in the Lord and the Magistrate every way to be acknowledged, reverenced, and obeyed, according to godliness; not because of wrath only but for conscience sake. And finally, all men so to be esteemed and regarded, as is due and meet for their place, age, estate and condition.148
LII. [sic]
And thus we desire to give unto God that which is God's, and to Caesar that which is Caesar's, and to all men that which belongeth unto them, endeavoring ourselves to have always a clear conscience void of offence towards God, and towards man. And if any take this that we have said, to be heresy, then do we with the Apostle freely confess, that after the way which they call heresy, worship we the God of our Fathers, believing all things which are written in the Law and in the Prophets and Apostles, desiring from our souls to disclaim all heresies and opinions which are not after Christ, and to be steadfast, unmovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, as knowing our labor shall not be in vain in the Lord.149
1 Cor. 1:24.
Not that we have dominion over your faith, but
are helpers of your joy: for by faith we stand.
Psalm 74:21, 22:
Arise, O God, plead mine own cause. Remember how the foolish man blasphemeth Thee daily. O let not the oppressed return ashamed, but let the poor and needy praise Thy name. Come, Lord Jesus, come quickly.
:bouncy:...Boy or Boy...the Calvinist Reformers sure on the War Path...See how they Post all kinds of words from who ever to Back up there Free Will Ways while Smackin down People and Teachers of the Word believing in God~Jesus~HolySpirit that dont Agree with them or come UNDER thier Submission while telling all the people they be Wrong and have No Free Will or Choice...Now thats a Fine...Fine Example of a Couple of Free Wills Run RIOT...:ROFL:...xo
