Excerpt #2: “False Reformation”; Chapter 2
This is the Achilles heel of the Reformation false gospel. When salvation is linear (a chain), there are only two choices: work your way into heaven via raw effort because the standard is my good works outweigh my bad works, or the standard is perfection according to the law, but Christ obeys it perfectly for me via my faith alone. The Reformers picked the latter.
To the contrary, in the parallel gospel, there is NO STANDARD to maintain. The righteousness of God has been deposited to our account in full. There is NOTHING to maintain, it is “FINISHED.” Sanctification operates on a totally different plane albeit a life colored by the reality of the new birth, and becomes one with the finished work at the resurrection. We can plainly see from the substantial data presented thus far that the Reformed gospel is not finished—it progresses towards the end of the chain. And, we are in the middle, and therefore a participant in justification in some way or another, and that is not only a really bad idea—it’s a false gospel. Keep in mind that it is the Reformers who call salvation a “chain,” it is their term.
Paul's Passing Thoughts 
Reblogged this on Clearcreek Chapel Watch.
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Paul, would you go as far to say that sanctification eventually shows whether justification happened at all? Isn’t that what all the “fruit/tree” talk is about?
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Lydia,
No. It’s an indication to ourselves and others concerning life decisions, communication, and assurance of salvation, but the Scripture makes it clear that we never really know where a person stands eternally by outward behavior. Sure, safe to assume Hitler wasn’t a Christian, but to definitively say, “Hitler is burning in hell right now” is not our place. Probably true, but not our place. Remember in the parable where the angels ask the Lord if He wants them to collect all of the tares for burning? Christ said no, you could get the tares mixed up with the wheat–wait till I sort them out at the harvest; ie, second coming. So, if angels can’t tell by outward behavior, we sure as heck can’t either. Depending on our fruit, it may be time for self evaluation, and we don’t allow people with bad fruit to become elders etc. Neither would I give someone with bad fruit assurance of their salvation–I would simply say I didn’t know. People with bad fruit shouldn’t be counting their heavenly chickens before they are hatched. But in the final analysis, we don’t know. Now, we MUST remember that the book of 1John states that WE can KNOW about ourselves. It also states that we can doubt our salvation when we are in fact saved. Bottom line: when we work hard at our sanctification, we usually have assurance. When we work out what God has worked in, we are comforted by the experience of the fruit, and I also think the Holy Spirit testifies as well. But with Calvinism, you have to be careful how you work in sanctification because it could effect your “just standing.” It’s clearly sanctification by faith alone because sanctification “links” justification to glorification. So, it makes faith alone a work to maintain our “just standing.” It’s a doctrine that is in the process of destroying millions of lives.
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‘So, if angels can’t tell by outward behavior, we sure as heck can’t either. Depending on our fruit, it may be time for self evaluation, and we don’t allow people with bad fruit to become elders etc. Neither would I give someone with bad fruit assurance of their salvation–I would simply say I didn’t know. People with bad fruit shouldn’t be counting their heavenly chickens before they are hatched”
Well, this is easily worked around by redefining what is sin. And this is exactly what is done. Not obeying your leader is heinous sin. Protecting molesters is not.
So I am wondering why bother with sanctification? If I can be saved and not seek holiness and to please God at some point in my walk and show no outward fruit, then what is the point? If one cannot tell the Christians from the world except for their ministry titles. What exactly can we expect from being Born Again or “New creatures in Christ” if the outward self never changes?
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Lydia,
To glorify God and live out the gospel through our lives. A changed heart will want to do that. However, many just simply struggle, and not only that, most pastors don’t now how to properly counsel from the word.
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Plus how in the world does anyone have the right to be “fruit inspectors”? How much is enough?
What is the level to determine this fruit? This is a reason Paul would always address the churches he wrote with the expectation that they were his brethren, even when they were doing some pretty awful things. I was always taught that the Laoidicean church was a nonbelieving church but now I see that that was not right teaching.
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“We manifest good works because the righteous are not spiritually insane. ”
I totally agree with this. I would love to see an example of spirtually insane.
“Love is shown by works, in large part. Works aren’t part of salvation because works don’t make you innocent of the law. Innocence makes you innocent of the law. But contributing to our existence and reality does not end with believing. Since we live with the understanding of good and evil, our belief in Christ MUST be revealed by what we do. And I don’t mean “must” as in obligation. I mean must as: if we aren’t liars, or hypocrites, or insane, we will do good; we will love. And it will be US doing it.”
YES!!! We go back to LOVE.
“To glorify God and live out the gospel through our lives. A changed heart will want to do that.”
Totally agree with this, too
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“What is the level to determine this fruit? This is a reason Paul would always address the churches he wrote with the expectation that they were his brethren, even when they were doing some pretty awful things. I was always taught that the Laoidicean church was a nonbelieving church but now I see that that was not right teaching.”
That makes me squirm a bit. Is there a difference between a false teacher like Driscoll and a pew sitter who is having sex with his step mother when it comes to fruit? So, what is the level of fruit inspection that is acceptable?
I tend to think many of the letters were written precisely for the purpose of recognizing and dealing with bad fruit situations.
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It is interesting to me how Paul seems to separate the church body though from the false teachers and prophets. They are in a class all their own. Paul states that false teachers and prophets would eventually show their true colors. 1 John 1:19 states this quite well. I was just saying that it is not the business of the pastor or elders (or anyone else for that matter) of a church to go in and determine those that are Christs and those who are not. My friend just went through a similar situation in a church where many are leaving and the pastor is now saying that those who are leaving are in grave sin and possibly not believers, whereas my friend is leaving because of false teaching. We can determine false teachers and prophets because of what they teach and believe- big difference.
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“I was just saying that it is not the business of the pastor or elders (or anyone else for that matter) of a church to go in and determine those that are Christs and those who are not.”
totally agree. It has become more and more obvious they are the ones we should be inspecting! How did CJ Mahaney get by with it all for so long? Or even Driscoll with his very public words? Where is discernment? Wisdom?
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Well it is becoming quite clear that there are some “pastors” in these congregations who are not what we think they are and are possibly infiltrators trying to pervert the church. They are willfully deceiving to cause divisiveness and to pull away some from the truth.
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Lydia –
CJ has gotten away with it for so long because “the Church” was left out of the equation. The ones left to discern were “equals” (other elders). These equals were all close friends and relatives whose livelihoods ALL depend on being “in the good” with CJ. It is a closed system where the believers in the pews have no say, are not to discuss anything, and are not “schooled” enough to discern (so the powers to be tell them). None of this is how Scripture instructs believers (in the pews or not) to live and act.
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