MEANS: For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.” Romans 1:16. Stirred up in my mind by those thoughts which I posted about the great commission, and the fact that my wife and I ended our bible reading the other night with this particular verse, I thought I would attempt some remarks in relation to this passage, especially since my thoughts are going to run contrary to most. This passage of scripture as used by some as a proof text to somehow imply that “the gospel of Christ,” the “gospel of your salvation” as we read in one place, Ephesians 1:13, (as it sets forth that ONE in whom your salvation resides,) is “the power of God” to the unbeliever, or an instrument / means in regeneration (‘regeneration’ as commonly understood in the theology of man) those that are dead in trespasses and sins, as is commonly taught, I believe to be an error.
Lurking beneath this faulty premise is a notion that perhaps those of the calvinistic persuasion (who ‘shipwreck’ their own ‘faith’ by contending for gospel regeneration, a position that is inherently contradictory and cannot possibly be true if the sinner is totally depraved, or dead in sin) would be reluctant to admit, which is that those who could be saved, given the appropriate means, might just be the elect of God, and these chosen individuals would be condemned to ‘hell’ unless the Gospel is communicated to them.
It all comes down to preaching! It all comes down to some man that God has raised up in order to be the regenerating agent of quickening dead sinners. Those who want some part as necessary instruments in man’s spiritual resurrection from the grave of total depravity, and who see themselves as an integral and indispensable component in this scheme of disciple making. These will make much of what they call ‘saving faith,’ which comes as no surprise, for in order to remain faithful to their calvinistic scheme they can’t use such conditionalistic terminology such as decisional regeneration, as this implies human effort, and the free will of man, so have of necessity shifted everything over to what they now call faith, because after all it’s the gift of God. But this is nothing more than a “theological smokescreen” in order to facilitate their importance, and mask their Arminianism.
The Bible does not recognize decisional or faith regeneration! In fact, contrary to what some of these in the gospel regeneration camp would assert the Gospel is NOT for the REGENERATION of sinners. Sovereign instantaneous regeneration is a direct and immediate work of GOD, through His Spirit based on the finished work of Christ, without any use of ‘means’ as they are called, as the word of Christ goes forth conquering those to whom it is sent {‘to you is the word of this salvation sent,’ Acts 13:26,} being capacitated by grace to receive the word with ‘all readiness of mind.’ Acts 17:11. ‘I will give them a heart to know me, that I am the LORD.’ Jeremiah 24:7.
Once we are brought to the realization that forging new believers is completely out of our hands, and we have nothing to do with making christians, then do we begin to see that the Gospel is for the CONVERSION of the elect, so that they might know those “things that are freely given to them” by God in Christ, I Corinthians 2:12, that they may lay hold upon the “hope of eternal life” Titus 1:2, and be instructed in the manner of their “holy faith,” Jude 1:20, as a delineated by Christ in the scriptures, Luke 24:45, and come to find everything in HIM, (for in CHRIST “dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily,”) from HIM, (“ for all the promises of God in him are Yea and in him Amen unto the glory of God,”) and unto HIM to whom “be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. Amen.” Ephesians 3:21.
A recap of the last few thoughts would be that the preaching of the Gospel is not in order to save sinners, but it’s to glorify CHRIST in the manner of how he saves sinners. The gospel only gives light, not life, as no man is ever quickened or given life by the gospel. Men are not made alive by believing or understanding the gospel, but the fact that they believingly embrace the “grace of Christ,” Galatians 1:6, as delineated by the “Spirit of truth,” (“whom the world cannot receive,” John 14:17,) in the gospel evidences the fact that such have been given life, and are already in the way of Christ. This life is by a divine infusion of light by the spirit of Christ, (“we know that the Son of God is come, and hath given us an understanding,” I John 5:20,) in order to be capacitated to believe “the record that God hath given to us eternal life,” and the fact that “this life is in his SON.” I John 5:11. The ‘gospel’ and the ‘word’ are clearly distinct, I Peter 1:25, and it is through the dissemination of the gospel that the ‘word’ is revealed and “life and immortality” are brought to light. II Timothy 1:10. Simply put the gospel is the method whereby God has deemed fit to enlighten and inform his people of that which Jesus Christ has accomplished on their behalf. “And we know (the knowledge of the gospel as the fruit of Divine quickening) that the SON of GOD is come and hath given us an understanding, that we may know him that is true, and we are in him that is true, even in his Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God, and eternal life.” I John 5:20. MPJ