March 4, 2007

• John Piper: Do You Agree with him?

  

  JP says that unbelievers must maintain a certain level of morality to preserve their “potential” of being saved,

   “When Is Saving Repentance Impossible? … there is a spiritual condition that makes repentance and salvation impossible … there is a situation where repentance and pressing on to maturity is impossible … The prospect exists that you and I who believe we are chosen and called and justified might slide into a slow process of indifference and hardening and eventually fall away and reject Christ and put him to an open shame. We may actually come to a point where there is no return, because we have been forsaken utterly by God … Oh, how it should put you on an urgent pursuit of mercy this morning!” {1}

  Piper says that all unbelievers have the “potential” to be saved. However, if the unbeliever does not maintain some level of morality, then the unbeliever forfeits their ““potential”” to be saved. In other words, the only unbelievers that can be saved are the ones who have maintained a certain level of morality.

  For example, if an unbeliever joins a church but then slides into a “slow process of indifference”, then they forfeit their “potential” to be saved. And if a person is not in an “urgent pursuit of mercy”, then they forfeit their “potential” to be saved. Piper would say that: God put the image of God in them – they had their “potential” – but they didn’t try to use the light they had in them.

  Notice in the quote below – Piper talks about the “potential” for all unbelievers to be saved, as long as they maintain a certain level of morality –

  “… we should feel a desire for the salvation of the unbelieving because they were made in the image of God and THEIR POTENTIAL TO LIVE FOR HIS GLORY IS THERE AS LONG AS THEY LIVE ON EARTH. It is a far greater tragedy when a person dies without Christ than when a dog dies without Christ. When a person dies without Christ, THE POTENTIAL of the image of God is gone forever. All the glory that could have been will never be. If they had only believed, they could have shone like the sun in the kingdom of God. And while they live, they may yet believe. And O how we should desire it! THAT THE IMAGE OF GOD MIGHT SHINE TO HIS GLORY!” {2}

  So unbelievers have “the potential” to be saved – “they were made in the image of God and their potential to live for his glory is there as long as they live on earth”.

  Indeed, an unbeliever having the image of God = the potential for that unbeliever to be saved (according to JP). That means that if all unbelievers did NOT have the image of God in them, then they could NOT all have the potential to be saved. However, since all unbelievers are in the image of God (according to Piper), he thinks that they all have the potential to be saved. Of course, they can only be saved if they maintain a certain level of morality. (If they fall below a certain level of morality, Piper says the unbeliever reaches a “spiritual condition that makes repentance and salvation impossible).

  For example, Piper tells his congregation that if they commit certain sins, they will lose the opportunity of ever being saved.

  “.. there is a hardening against God that goes over the line and can no longer repent.  … There are “sins,” “encumbrances” and “single meals” that we need to be renounce. I invite you to take a moment and seek God’s insight into what they are in your life. Write them on the leaflet of the worship folder, commit yourself to this renunciation, pray for God’s grace in a time of need, and symbolically drop them in the receptacle on your way out. … THE COMMANDS OF GOD ARE NOT GIVEN TO US SO THAT WE MIGHT GET GOD TO ACT FOR US. They are given to us so that we might trust that – even in our hardest times – God is already at work for us to accomplish the very things he commands us to do. I am designing to bring about your holiness in all your pain . . .” {3}

  My comment: I suppose if they had not written on the “leaflet of the worship folder … and symbolically dropped them in the receptacle”, they would have been taking a step towards “the spiritual condition that makes salvation and repentance impossible.”  The act that kept them from the state where “repentance is impossible” is their abstinence from certain sins.

  Clearly, this is salvation by works. The book of Romans says the Law was designed that “offence (sin) might abound”. And because sin abounded, that meant that Christ could come and obey the Law for his people – “by the obedience of One shall many be justified” (Rom 5:19).  So Christ imputes this righteousness to hiss people (and that’s the purpose of the Law – to condemn the elect, that Christ might do everything necessary to save them, without them lifting their finger).

  But Piper turns the Law into a scheme whereby unbelievers who abstain from certain sins still have “the potential to be saved”. Whilst other unbelievers – who maintain a lower level of morality – reach a “spiritual condition that makes salvation and repentance impossible”. So, according to Piper, there are two groups of unbelievers – 1) those that still have the potential to be saved because they maintain a certain level of morality and 2) those that have lost “the potential” to be saved, because they feel below a certain level of morality.

  Now, for the first group – the group that still have the potential to be saved – conversion for them, is when their “potential” is completed. Indeed, Piper says that unbelievers are already a bit “like God”, so conversion is “coming to yourself” (realising the “god” in you, I suppose?). Perhaps Piper’s next catchphrase will be “conversion is when you become a little more like God”.  He says,

  “When you are alienated from God you are always alienated from yourself. … You were made by God in the image of God for God. These are the three main things about your identity as a human being; YOU ARE made by God, LIKE GOD, for God. Therefore CONVERSION IS “COMING TO YOURSELF” as well as coming to God.”{4}

  ANOTHER IMPLICATION: Piper’s whole idea – that unbelievers already know God “deep down” even without the Bible – has serious implications. Because if God communicates with unbelievers outside of the Bible, wouldn’t God also do extra-biblical revelation with believers?

  If Piper is right (and God puts his “voice” in unbelievers’ consciences), then wouldn’t God lead believers extra-biblically too? Yes, according to Piper, who writes,

  “Right now I am praying for a friend who grew up in a Christian home …  but is now repudiating his faith and is actively pursuing the lust of the … I don’t know if this is temporary or not. I am still hopeful that it is temporary and so I am interceding for him. There may come a time, however, when the SPIRIT WILL DIRECT ME to use that energy in praying for someone else.” {5}

  What ever happened to “Sola Scriptura”? You know, the teaching that the Holy Spirit does NOT communicate outside the Bible? How can someone say the Holy Spirit “directs them” outside the words of Scripture?

  Surely, it is not a coincidence – Piper says that God communicates with unbelievers by means other than the Bible (apparently, God puts his “voice” in their conscience). And then Piper also says that God with “direct” him when to change his prayer schedule. So Piper holds the views that God communicates extra-biblically with 1) believers and 2) unbelievers. The two views stand or fall together.

  It’s sad. Because Piper says that God’s truth is in both believers and unbelievers – he also says that the truth in the believer cannot give the believer comfort that he is saved. Indeed, the truth is a common, useless thing, according to Piper. (I say “useless”, because Piper says you can have the truth in you, and still not believe. Unbelievers can “suppress” the truth in them, according to Piper. In other words, God’s truth can be overpowered by the will of man, JP implies.)

  And since the truth is a common, useless thing in Piper’s teaching, this forces him to make humility and love, the grounds of assurance of salvation. The truth cannot be the grounds of assurance of salvation, since unbelievers already have it in them. Therefore the assurance of salvation must be based on your humility and love.

  Piper writes,
  ==== “The evidence that the Holy Spirit presents to our own spirits and to the community is first of all the EVIDENCE OF LOVE. The Spirit puts within us a HUMBLE HEART of love and so gives EVIDENCE of his presence and power…. === {6}

  
  === Assurance will diminish in the presence of concealed sin…We must often wait patiently for the return of assurance.” === {7}

  Is it any wonder that Piper’s assurance is “diminished” when he sins grievously?

  Notice from the quote above that he is basing his assurance on his humility and love. It’s his “humble heart” that proves to him he is saved. This means that when he sins grievously — for example, showing a lack of humility — his “proof” has disappeared, and he loses his assurance. In other words, Piper has made his assurance dependent on his works, and will have doubts about his salvation whenever he realises how far his works fall short of God’s Law.

  There is a major problem with basing our assurance on our works. If we have to base our assurance on our works, the more we come to understand the Bible, the less assurance we will have. How ironic!! Because the more we understand the demands of God’s law, the more we will see how far short we fall of it. And if we are basing our assurance on our works, we will LOSE OUR ASSURANCE as we see more and more how much our works fail to meet the requirements of the Law.

  Don’t get me wrong. It is true that all believers experience love and humility. However, these are not the basis of assurance. In fact, believer obeys God of THANKS and gratitude. They obey because they already know God saved them! And HOW do they know he has saved them? Because they believe the facts of the Gospel. Indeed, if belief is sufficient proof we are saved, and believers are sealed at all times as believers, then we will never doubt our salvation. The belief in the Gospel will always prove to us we are saved.

  Or was Paul wrong when he said in Colossians 2:2 that they should be COMFORTED because they UNDERSTOOD? Aren’t we to base the evidence our salvation on our belief of the truth? The Apostle also said to the Roman believers, may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace IN BELIEVING” Rom 15:13. Why did the Romans have peace and joy? How did they know they were saved? What evidence proved to them, they were saved? It was their belief of the truth!! They were to have their peace and joy “IN BELIEVING”. Paul says NOTHING about finding their peace and joy in their good works.  And to the Hebrews, he said, “let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance OF FAITH, our hearts having been sprinkled from an evil conscience” Heb 10:22. Why were Hebrews to draw near to God? Was it because they looked at their works? No!!! The reason they knew they were saved was by their BELIEF. They were assured because of their FAITH.

  We are at a crossroads. Shall we follow Piper down a road that destroys assurance of salvation? He is teaching that…

  1) The lost can believe the Gospel
  2) Belief in the Gospel cannot prove to us we are saved
  3) So we must base the evidence of salvation on our works

  Now, is it any coincidence that Piper has doubted his salvation in the past?

  On the other hand, there is an alternative view to Piper which says

  1) The lost possess no knowledge of God (they hear but do not believe)
  2) Therefore, belief of the truth proves to the believer he is saved
  3) Thus, the believer loves God out of thanks and gratitude, knowing even before he does his good works, that God has saved him.

  This is the only view that guarantees the assurance of salvation that the Bible says all believers have. The Scripture says that believers are “not being moved away from the hope” and are “holding fast the boldness”. In fact they have assurance “from the beginning to the end”. Their belief proves to them at all times that they are saved.

  “But Christ as Son over His house, whose house we are, IF TRULY WE HOLD FAST THE BOLDNESS and rejoicing of the hope firm to the end.” Heb 3:6. “For we have become partakers of Christ, if truly we hold the BEGINNING OF THE ASSURANCE FIRM TO THE END” Heb 3:14  “he reconciled [you] … if indeed you continue in the faith GROUNDED and SETTLED and not being moved away from the HOPE of the gospel” (Col 1:21-23)

  And John 3:33 says that people who receive the testimony of God have “set to their seal that God is true”.

  So if belief is sufficient proof we are saved, and believers are sealed at all times as believers, then we will never doubt our salvation. The belief in the Gospel will always prove to us we are saved.

  Remember, the unregenerate possess no knowledge of God (they hear but do not believe), so if you believe the Gospel, it is IMPOSSIBLE for you be a lost person.

  Isaiah 1:3 and Jeremiah 8:7 says that animals have more recognition of their environment, than the unregenerate do about God. Deep down, the unregenerate do NOT believe in the True God. They say in their hearts, “there is no God”, that is, they do not believe in the Just God and Savior. Also, the Galatians were “not knowing God” but after their conversion were “knowing God”. Can a man go from knowing nothing about God at one point in time — then when he realises who the True God is — can he doubt he has been converted? Surely, you could never doubt you have been converted, after having such a radical change of mind !

  Can somebody standing in broad sunlight doubt they are in the light? 2 Corinthians 4:6 says the light of Christ shines into the believer’s heart. So a believer can never doubt his salvation, since you cannot be in the light and not know it. Doesn’t Hebrews 3:4-14 say that all believers “HOLD FAST THE BOLDNESS and rejoicing of the hope firm to the end” and that they “hold the BEGINNING OF THE ASSURANCE FIRM TO THE END” ?

  If you cannot perceive Christ in your mind, you are not saved (2 Cor 13:5). After all, believers never thirst for everlasting life (John 4:14). Think about it. If a believer doubted their salvation, they would be thirsting for salvation. But Christ said believers NEVER thirst, so believers never doubt their salvation. Moreover, all believers have EQUALLY PRECIOUS FAITH WITH THE APOSTLES (2 Pet 1:1). Since the Apostles never doubted, neither will believers today. Anyone who doubts is “unstable in ALL his ways”, and “cannot expect anything from God” (Jam 1:6-8). If you doubt God’s promise you are calling God a liar (1 John 5:10).

  CONCLUSION

  We need a clear definition of what faith is. To say that faith in Christ is having the words of the Gospel abiding and believed in your mind is easy to understand.   Again such a definition makes it easy for believer to know that they have faith. They simply examine whether or not they believe the facts of the Gospel. (By the way the Bible does define faith this way in Hebrews 11:3 faith is simply assurance / a conviction, in 1 John 5:10 it is receiving the testimony of God, in John 3:33 it is being certain what God says is true, in John 17:3 it is having the knowledge of God and Christ, in 2 John 9 it is having the doctrine of Christ, in John 8:32 it is having the knowledge of the truth, in 1 John 5:20 it is hearing and believing the Gospel)

  If we held to this view, we would always be infallibly assured of our salvation. Because we would think “I believe the words of Christ, therefore I am hearing Christ, and I am a believer.”

  Our belief in the facts of the Gospel would prove to us we are saved! And we would never doubt we are saved, because since we believe at all times, the proof would always be there.

  Note — For the definition of the Gospel — http://Godnoliar.com/gospel.htm

  And — Does 1 John teach assurance by works — http://Godnoliar.com/1john.htm

  Check out the Psalms Project too — http://psalms.pbwiki.com

  References

  {1} http://www.desiringgod.org/ResourceLibrary/Sermons/ByDate/
  1996/971_When_Is_Saving_Repentance_Impossible/
  {2} http://www.desiringgod.org/ResourceLibrary/Sermons/ByDate/
  1986/473_My_Hearts_Desire_That_They_Might_Be_Saved/
  {3} http://www.desiringgod.org/ResourceLibrary/Sermons/ByDate/
  1996/970_Let_Us_Press_On_To_Maturity/
  {4} http://www.desiringgod.org/ResourceLibrary/Sermons/ByDate/
  1995/921_Coming_to_Yourself_and_Coming_to_The_Father/
  {5} http://www.desiringgod.org/ResourceLibrary/Sermons/ByDate/1985/494_Our_Father_Hears_Us/
  {6} www.desiringgod.org/ResourceLibrary/Sermons/ByDate/
  1985/488_Test_the_Spirits_to_See_Whether_They_are_of_God/
  {7} www.desiringgod.org/…/TasteAndSee/ByDate/
  1999/1134_Helping_People_Have_the_Assurance_of_Salvation/
  

  • 10:38 pm
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