God’s Conditions and Your Confidence
Every day as I sit at my desk writing sermons and doing various tasks for the church, there is a plaque above my desk that says, “IT IS WELL WITH MY SOUL.” This was a gift years ago after I made comments about my love for the song that inspired the plaque. Almost 20 years ago, I was in Jerusalem at the place where the author of the song lived for a time. Horatio Spafford experienced great tragedy in his life which led to the authorship of this song. Many of you know the story which I do not have space to explain here. The part of his life I am interested in for this article is known as cultish behavior. Spafford and a group of followers moved to Jerusalem to enter a life of communal living trying to emulate the first church at Jerusalem before its dispersion in the first century.
Though Spafford’s methods were wrong and he misinterpreted scripture, he was the father of special charitable endeavors still operated by his descendants in Jerusalem. These charitable works began at the place we visited now known as the American Colony Hotel. It is well known as a neutral site for meetings between worldwide diplomats. If I could add my touch to the story, this result contributes to the living legacy of the hymn. For it to be well with our soul, we must have the peace of Christ living in us by faith in His gospel.
Looking at the plaque and considering my studies for Sunday Afternoon Confession class, spurred my thoughts today. At the time of writing, we are discussing chapter 3, “God’s Decree.” This section underscores the deepest of my thoughts on how and why I am a Christian. It emphasizes understanding of God and the reason I often say that understanding God’s Decree establishes a different worldview from the majority of Independent Baptists. Denial of this section affects proper understanding of nearly every part of Bible doctrines. To show how it overshadows our confidence in God’s salvation to ensure it is well with our soul, I take you further into the confession to section 17.2, “The Perseverance of the Saints.” Quoting the venerable authors: “This perseverance of the saints does not depend on their own free will but on the unchangeableness of the decree of election, which flows from the free and unchangeable love of God the Father. It is based on the efficacy of the merit and intercession of Jesus Christ and union with Him, the oath of God, the abiding of His Spirit, the seed of God within them, and the nature of the covenant of grace. The certainty and infallibility of their perseverance is based on all these things.”
You can see what I mean that by striking God’s eternal immutable decree, the foundation of this section and the logic of it crumbles. Now we must look for another foundation which if not God puts the onus on the only other party. This is human will which clearly by scripture is impossible. Though most among Baptists who reject the Decrees do not understand what they do to the Bible’s assurances of salvation, they do in fact create a different worldview in which man is the ultimate purpose of the creation rather than the glory of God.
I remember years ago upon becoming pastor of the church, I began to preach our Statement of Faith. I leaned in hard on the premise that everything that happens in the world is for the glory of God. The prevailing opinion at the time was that everything that happens in the world is foremost for the salvation of man. A church member came to me amidst these discussions to say, “I have never heard preaching like this. I never knew the glory of God is ultimate.” Thus, there is a clash of worldviews. My eyes light up when I think of this.
The first four chapters of the Confession lay the groundwork. First, “The Holy Scriptures.” What is our source of information about God? Second, “God and the Holy Trinity.” What is the essence of God and who is His person? Third, “God’s Decree.” Is everything determined by God? And then fourth, “The Creation.” This is the implementation of God’s Decree. We dare not make mistakes here. Semantics are not at stake. Clear biblical thinking undergirds the understanding of the entire purpose of life.
Pastor V. Mark Smith