JESUS EXPLAINS THE NEW BIRTH BUT SHE DIDN'T

 

The following is an open letter I sent to an author featured on the "Townhall" website. Her credits comprise a lengthy list including: "being a media producer and conservative political/religious writer. She is a regular op-ed contributor to Townhall, The Hill, RealClearPolitics, National Review, Washington Examiner, RealClearReligion, PJ Media, RedState, Breitbart, Daily Caller, The Daily Beast, and more."

The title of her article is "Jesus Explains the New Birth." My letter is in response:

 

I read with interest your recent column in Townhall about being born again and Jesus' explanation of it. You hit on a vital topic as recorded in John 3. There are several things you mentioned concerning Jesus' explanation of the subject that bear examination that I would like to point out.

In discussing the new birth, you wrote, "With this rebirth, one can be redeemed after turning away from sin in the mind and body while trusting Jesus as their personal Lord and Savior." As I've read John 3 many times, there is something that troubles me and that is the requirement, "one must turn away from sin in mind and body" as being necessary for the new birth. I find it problematic for the following reasons:

1) I'm not able to turn from sin;

2) the authors or speakers I've read or heard who make turning from sin in mind and body a requirement for salvation have not been able to turn from their own sins just ask their wives or husbands; they and I and you (if we're honest) still sin;

3) in the next chapter, Jesus converses with a promiscuous/adulterous woman and yet, He never tells her that she must turn from those sins in mind and body to receive the living water, i.e. the new birth,. He's offering her.

4) in Jesus' illustration to Nicodemus, he cites the serpent on the pole incident in which each one must only "look" to be saved. They did and were delivered and then later rebelled against the Lord. They could not turn from sin in mind and body;

 

5) in the Gospel of John, the book on which you based your article, faith alone as a requirement for being born again is stated 100 times. John states no requirement of turning from sin.

 

6) John says he wrote the book for an evangelistic purpose, that his that readers "might believe that Jesus is the Christ the Son of God and that by believing, you might have eternal life." He doesn't make the impossible demand that one turn from his sins.

 

7) placing a demand to "turn from one's sins" is to say, "Clean up your life and then believe, and then you can be born again" which is injecting works into salvation and Paul writes that we are saved by faith apart from works; (Romans 3:28 & 4:6)

8) when Paul reminds the Corinthians of what the gospel is, he says nothing about turning from sins but conditions being born again on faith alone that Jesus is God; that Christ died for our sins; and that He rose from the dead (I Cor. 15:3-4) He says nothing about turning from one's sins.

 9) then, there is everyone's favorite verse, John 3:16, so familiar there's no need to quote it except to point out that turning from sin is absent from verse 16, saying only "whosoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life."

10) leaving the Gospel of John, Genesis 15:6 is consistent with the New Testament in that "Abraham believed God and it was counted to him for righteousness." Abraham didn't turn from sin as evidenced by the fact that he later lied about his wife, a lie which put her in danger in a pagan king's harem. Then there was his infamous plan to have a child by Hagar.

11) Jesus didn't tell Nicodemus to turn from his sin. The word "sin" does not occur in John 3.

You wrote on the subject of the new birth because you rightly believed it to be of vital importance. I find that to be the case with Paul because he called the gospel of "first importance." In Galatians 1, Paul says that a "gospel" of faith + works is no gospel at all. 

 

Therefore, a gospel of works has never resulted in a single new birth and never will. There is no good news in a "gospel" of faith plus works. It is my hope that you will search the Scriptures to see "f these things be true. A search of the  Scriptures will result in the fact that salvation is conditioned on faith alone in Christ alone apart from works. .

Yours truly,

Dr. Michael D. Halsey

CALVINISM'S TWO MONSTER'S

 

 

"We may rest assured that God would never have suffered any infants to be slain except those who were already damned and predestined for eternal death." - John Calvin, Harmony of the Law, Vol 2, "Judicial Supplements", Comments on Deut ch 13.

Wait. a. minute. O, me. Can you wrap your mind around that statement? John Calvin is saying that when a baby dies, that's a sure and certain proof that he's one of the non-elect and therefore he wakes up in hell and will be there forever. That's what he is saying, and, as one author commented, "I don’t say this lightly, but that honestly is the most horrific and disgusting theological doctrine I’ve ever heard in my life" What a cold-as-stone-statement that is. Would you say that to grieving parents? Who would put that on a sympathy card? Would you say that to the mourning mother that her baby is in hell for the good pleasure of God and for His glory?"

One perceptive author writes, "Once we dismiss the pleasantries of Calvinism, the only reason some are in heaven and some are in hell [babies included, according to Jon Calvin]  is because it pleased God for them to be there. Notwithstanding the weak and misleading arguments to the contrary by many Calvinists, . . .Calvin refers to this cold, inescapable reality as the product of God’s wish, pleasure, and counsel."

The infant never had a chance, not one single opportunity to look up at the sky and think,"Who created this majestic precision of the universe? I'd like to know Him; I never had an opportunity to hear the gospel. This isn't fair. What kind of a God would do such a thing to me!"

Oh, wait a minute. There are Calvinists who would disagree and say, "No. God doesn't consign a baby to hell." As one wrote: "But could it be that somehow Christ's atonement did pay for the guilt for these helpless ones throughout all time? Yes, and therefore it is a credible assumption that a child who dies at an age too young to have made a conscious, willful rejection of Jesus Christ will be taken to be with the Lord."

But wait another minute. He said "willful decision" didn't he? According to his Calvinism, such a decision can't be "willful" because, in eternity past, God predetermined that he would reject Christ or accept Christ. 

But wait another minute.He wrote that the infant is incapable of trusting Christ (and rightly so). But that creates a monster problem for the Calvinist. According to Calvinism, in eternity past God unconditionally chose some to go to heaven and some (billions and billions and billions) for His good pleasure and glory to go to hell. 

Those billions in hell had no say, no choice in the matter. They are "dead" in trespasses and sin and are, all of their lives, incapable of trusting Christ and all of that was decided by God in eternity past, so says the Calvinist.

So the monster problem is, the infant had no choice; the adult who lives a full life has no choice either. One just lived longer with no choice than the other. Neither one had any control over the situation.So how could it be said that the infant goes to heaven and the adult does not since both never had a choice according to Calvin. Can anybody say, "Inconsistent?" Can anybody say, "Contradictory?"

Roger Olson, professor of Baylor's Truett Theological Seminary, writes, "In spite of their best efforts to avoid it, the 'good and necessary consequence' of their [the Calvinists'] soteriology—TULIP—is that God is morally ambiguous if not a moral monster."

LORDSHIP SALVATION: DO NOT LISTEN TO THESE PEOPLE

 The following statements come from various advocates of the Calvinistic position of Lordship salvation (the position that saving faith includes a vow of commitment, surrender, submission, and turning from sin to following Christ in obedience to His commands). This in direct opposition to the biblical "Faith alone in Christ Alone." I will give the name of the person to whom the quote is to be attributed so that you may be forewarned to beware of such teachers and authors. 

Here's what the Lordship Salvationists declare:

"The only thing that makes you acceptable to God is a pattern of obedience to the Word of God that is the product of repentance and genuine faith in Jesus Christ and truly abandoning your life to obedience to His lordship." John MacArthur

"We are not born again if we aren't living differently than if we weren't. People who claim to be born again but don't change aren't saved. I think if you don't believe in Christ as your financial advisor, you aren't saved." John Piper 

"Salvation for sinners cost God His own Son; it cost God’s Son His life, and it’ll cost you the same thing.” John MacArthur

"The astonishing idea is current in some circles today that we can enjoy the benefits of Christ's salvation without accepting the challenge of His sovereign lordship.Such an unbalanced notion is not to be found in the New Testament." James Montgomery Boice 

"Evangelists say, it takes only 5 minutes [to become a Christian]. NO my friends, it will take your life." Paul Washer

"You cannot cling to sin and to the Savior at the same time." John MacArthur

"In our own presentation of Christ’s gospel, therefore, we need to lay a similar stress as Christ did on the cost of following Christ, and make sinners face it soberly before we urge them to respond to the message of free forgiveness.” J. I. Packer

"Faith is essential for salvation. But we must be absolutely clear on what we mean when we speak of “salvation by faith.” There are various kinds of belief or faith, and not all are linked to salvation. In the New Testament, faith means more than intellectual belief. It involves trust and commitment." The Billy Graham Evangelistic Association

"I talked about the young man’s need to surrender his whole life, his future, his ambitions, his relationships, his possessions, and everything he was to God. Only if he was prepared to do this, my friend explained, could Christ begin to work effectively in his life." Anonymous

"One thing that marks the difference between a true believer and a false believer and that is a pattern of living, eager submissive obedience to the Word of God." John MacArthur

"Saving faith must be obedient faith." James White (This fellow has other problems as we'll see next week. Serious problems.)

"You need to believe that Jesus is God and that He died for your sins, committing your whole life to Him in sacrifice and serving Him as Lord." John MacArthur

"Submission to the will of God, to Christ’s lordship, and to the guiding of the Spirit is an essential, not an optional, part of saving faith" John MacArthur.

"These, then, are the essential elements of the gospel: the sin of all men, the death of Christ on the cross to pay for those sins, the resurrection of Christ to provide life everlasting for those who follow Him, and the offer of the free gift of salvation to all. gotquestions.org (Following Him is a discipleship truth, not a part of the gospel)

"Saving faith is a placing of oneself totally in submission to the Lord Jesus Christ"John MacArthur

"If you have true faith that faith will immediately , necessarily and inherently produce the fruit of sanctification." R. C. Sproul

"Faith alone saves but the faith that saves is not alone." David Guzik (This statement is a logical fallacy.)

"To define saving faith apart from feeling slash emotions, slash  affectations of glad dependence, fervent acclamation, pleased submission, centered resting, thrilled treasuring, eager reverence, heartfelt adoration, is futile." John Piper.

"Repentance is an old fashioned word which means to confess and forsake you sins because you don't want to be a hypocrite and say, 'I believe but I still lie and steal." Ray Comfort

"It's the doers who are saved. The gospel is a call to discipleship." John MacArthur 

"There are two things you must do to be saved. You must repent. Turn from all sins, no more lying, no more lust, no more blasphemy and trust in Jesus. You shouldn't let foul words come out of your mouth" Ray Comfort ((He often proclaims these words with a bull horn to passersby.)

The fallout from lordship salvation has serious repercussions:

1. Works become part of the definition of faith. (but, Romans 3:28)

2. It robs the believer of his assurance of salvation. (How much submission, obedience are enough?)

3. It produces confusion.

4. It takes the focus off the finished work of Christ and puts the spotlight on the performance of the believer.

5. It is a "gospel" that has yet to save anyone. (The message of a lordship salvationist is not good news.)

6. Children cannot be saved. (But, Acts16:32)

7. It's multitude of requirements are impossible to attain, such as "turn from ALL your sin." Even the erroneous evangelist hasn't done that. (I Jn. 1:10 was written to believers.)

8. In reference to the demand of "commitment," how many times has a believer "committed," "had to commit again, then again and once more and once more? The thief on the cross didn't "commit," didn't make Christ his financial advisor, didn't

How Paul's answer to the question of "How to be saved," we read, "“Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household.” Acts 16:31)

In the conversation with the woman at the well in John 4 about salvation, see if you can find a verse in which Jesus tells her to stop living with a man who was not her husband. Let me know when you find the verse.

I close with, "Now I make known to you, brethren, the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received, in which also you stand, ² by which also you are saved, if you hold fast ^[a]the word which I preached to you, unless you believed in vain.

³ For I delivered to you ^[b]as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, ⁴ and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures^{." That's it; faith alone.}