111. John Piper & DG: “You are not saved through faith alone. Be killing your sin.” ?!?

#reformed #reformedtheology #finalsalvation

For the full Heidelcast episode go here:

William Perkins on Justifying Faith:

Things only become more problematic when we consider the second point of Edwards's divergence, his twofold justification. Edwards posited something quite different from earlier Reformed formulations that characterized the "orthodox second justification" as the evidence or effect of the first justification. He argued that God considered a believer's perseverance in his justification: "For though a sinner is justified on his first act of faith, yet even then, in that act of justification, God has respect to perseverance, as being virtually in that first act; and 'tis looked upon as if it were a property of the faith, by which the sinner is justified.” (144) According to Edwards, God factors the believer's perseverance in his justification, albeit a virtual perseverance. In other words, God takes the believer's perseverance into account even though he has not yet persevered it is virtually present. By contrast, the Westminster Confession does not locate the efficacy of the believer's perseverance in his own efforts but in the immutability of God's decree, the efficacy of Christ's merit, and the abiding presence of the Spirit (17.2).

Other complications arise in his explanation of the role of works in justification. Edwards wrote, "Our act of closing with and accepting of Christ is not in all respects completed by our accepting him with our hearts till we have done it practically too, and so have accepted him with the whole man: soul, spirit, and body." In other words, a person's justification is incomplete until his faith gives birth to works: "Indeed, as soon as we had done it in our hearts, the first moment our hearts had consented, we should be entitled in some sense; but we should not look on fulfillment of the condition as being all respected, till we had also actually done it. (145) In Edwards's scheme, faith is the naturally fit component to justification, and hence it is nonmeritorious. Nevertheless, unlike the earlier Reformed confessional tradition, Edwards cannot claim that justification is sola fide in the historic sense but only according to his redefined doctrine of faith, a doctrine that conflates faith, works, and love.

(144)Jonathan Edwards, "Miscellanies," no. 729, "Perseverance," in The Works of Jonathan Edwards, vol. 18, The Miscellanies: 501-832, ed. Ava Chamberlain (New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 2000), 354.

(145) Jonathan Edwards, "Miscellanies," no. 996, "How We Are Justified by Works," in The Works of Jonathan Edwards, vol. 20, The Miscellanies: 833-1152, ed. Amy Plantinga Pauw (New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 2002), 324-25.

J. V. Fesko, The Ground of Religion in The Doctrine on Which the Church Stands or Falls m, ed. Matthew Barrett, 730.

[peterchen]

Dr Clark is so sharp in explaining this

[MrKC]

Thank you for uploading this, God has delivered me from the burdensome Christianity preached by MacArthur and Piper, through R Scott Clark, Theocast, and the Reformers.

I'm 1689

[peterchen]

That sounds like also what Arminians say about faith as instrumental to save people. The view sounds similar to NPP.