Introduction
The salvation of the LORD, which He offers to all mankind is secured by believing in Christ as Savior (Acts 18:4-8). To this one requirement no other obligation can be placed on the unbeliever (Ephesians 2:8). Any addition would nullify “the power of GOD” to save and wreck total havoc on this essential doctrine of Scripture, which clearly defines salvation as by grace alone (Romans 3:20). By the very nature of all that is accomplished in salvation, if it is to be produced at all, it must be GOD’s doing alone. This is so, because salvation is the eternal display of His sovereign power to save by grace (Romans 5:21), those who by Divine right deserve judgment instead (Ephesians 2:3); and no human hand can be allowed to mar this wondrous opus of the Creator (Hebrews 7:17-28). It is rightly affirmed by all who comprehend the extent of GOD’s grace that even the least amount of human collaboration added to the work of salvation, other than faith, as a means of securing GOD’s favor is simply ludicrous and the height of human pride (Romans 2:23).But even when the supernatural character of salvation is recognized, it is possible to encumber our intended message of grace, where the lone human responsibility is faith, with various human works; in which case we preach a “different/another gospel,” thus our message, no matter how sincere we are, becomes ineffectual to all who are in desperate need of salvation. “Another” gospel can be defined as one that targets self-gratification. It is a “gospel” that offers another Jesus who can benefit you in the flesh by denying the cross. To the church at Philippi, Paul wrote, “(For many walk, of whom I have told you often, and now tell you even weeping, that they are the enemies of the cross of Christ...” (Philippians 3:18). It is the purpose of this article (and subsequent ones) to clarify the doctrine of Divine sovereign grace by showing that the infinite and eternal GOD alone in able to accomplish salvation. The practical bearing of this truth is that the message and method of would-be soul-winners, if they are to fulfill their parts in Christ’s unfinished business in the world, must be in complete agreement with the tenets of grace. There must be no attempt at conforming grace to the human ideal, which says, mankind through good thoughts, purposes and deeds can please GOD and cause humanity to move towards achieving its own salvation (Genesis 3:6). An endeavor such as this has already resulted in disaster for the human race and recycling the effort will only produce continued pain and suffering (Genesis 3:16-18; Romans 5:12-15).
Must I First Repent?
The first “different gospel” to be considered is the imposition on the unbeliever that repentance is prerequisite to belief in Christ as Savior. While true repentance is essential, too often repentance is conceived of as a separate act on the human-side for salvation. And what a ridiculous assertion this is shown to be, when one stops to consider the impossibility of requiring that the crystal methamphetamine addict quit his habit before he can believe in Christ and be saved! What of others, mixed up in the endless variety of human sins,—everyone is a sinner—do all have to repent of whatever their sins are before believing in Christ? How can those who have harmed others repent; can the murder or rapist undo their crime? They cannot! But are they then excluded from salvation? Not if GOD has chosen them to be saved (1 Corinthians 1:21; 2 Thessalonians 2:13) .
Salvation by sovereign grace through faith establishes a Christian in what he has become: a new creation--“For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them” (Ephesians 2:10; cf., 2 Corinthians 5:17)--which is the condition of the one now in Christ, for whom everything is new. While the final and complete transformation of the believer is future, the work of renovation starts at the moment one first believes; and not prior to belief. The transforming of the new believer is the sanctifying work of the Spirit--a cleansing, so to speak--that takes place in believers and guarantees their safe-keeping and maturity. In this endeavor, on the human-side, though confession and repentance of personal sins are required, these acts are accomplished only as the believer submits to the Spirit and utterly relies on Him. This work of the Spirit in the believer continues unceasingly until the moment the Christian is brought home to heaven conformed to the image of Christ (Ephesians 1:14). But at the onset where a unbeliever repents and becomes a "new creation;" the repentance spoken of is not the need in the unbeliever to first cleanse himself and then to believe. The true Gospel knows nothing of a self-purging by the unbeliever as a means toward achieving GOD’s grace.
At this juncture, the biblical meaning of repentance is beneficial: in every instance in the Bible where the word repentance is used it means a change of mind. With regard to the wrong definition of repentance, it is a common practice to read into this word the idea of heart-felt sorrow. There is no reason why sorrow should not accompany repentance or lead to repentance, but the sorrow, whatever it may be, is not repentance. In 2 Corinthians 7:10, we read that “sorrow that is according to the will of God produces a repentance,” that is, it leads on to repentance; but the sorrow is not to be confused with the change of mind, which it may serve to produce. The New Testament call to repentance is not an urge to self-condemnation, but is a call to a change of mind which promotes a change in the course being pursued. When the Philippian jailer asked: “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” From the context it is clear that this man was truly sorry for his treatment of the apostles in his custody, but he was informed by Paul and Silas, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household.” They then instructed the jailer and all in the household in the ways of the Lord, then as a show of their belief in Christ the jailer “was baptized, he and all his household” (Acts 16:30-33). In essence, Paul and Silas asked the jailer and those of his household to quit their current confidence in temporal, non-eternal things for safety and security and to trust in the true GOD.
Essential Repentance
Significantly, while the demand for repentance from past sins prior to salvation is absent from Scripture the relation of repentance to believing is essential, but it is wrongly added as a separate requirement for salvation; i.e., that one needs to quit their previous life-style before they can be acceptable to GOD and saved by Him. Conversely, too often, when it is asserted—as it is here—that repentance is not to be added to belief as a separate requirement for salvation, it is assumed that repentance is not necessary to salvation. But this is a wrong assumption too. I already stated, repentance is essential to salvation and none can be saved apart from repentance, but it is included in believing in Christ for salvation and it cannot be separated from it. In every instance where repentance is related to the unbeliever, for Jews or Gentiles alike, it means to either return to or begin belief in the true GOD (cf., Acts 2:28; 3:19; 5:31; 8:22; 11:18; 13:34; 17:30; 19:4; 20:21; 26:20).
To believe on Christ is one act. It is not turning from sinfulness to sinlessness; but rather turning to GOD from idols. To turn to Christ from all other confidences is one act and in that one act repentance is included: “you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God” (1 Thessalonians 1:9). This text provides no comfort for those who contend that people must in remorse turn from sins as a first act and afterwards as a second and separate act, turn to belief in GOD. The text recognizes but one act—“turned to God from idols”—and that is the act of faith that produces repentance unto salvation.
Only GOD Saves
Repentance, therefore, is a change of mind, which is included in believing, because no one can turn to Christ from loyalty in an idol—be it from religion, self, wealth, etc.—without a change of mind. This change of mind is the work of the Spirit (Eph 2:8). As those who are amenable to the Word of God will confess, the essential preparation of the heart, which the Holy Spirit accomplishes in the unsaved, prepares them for an intelligent and voluntary acceptance of Christ as Savior. And this change of mind, by Spirit-illumination, to Christ from dumb idols is all the repentance a spiritually dead individual is capable of (John 16:8-11). The unsaved that come under this influence are given the clear understanding concerning one sin, namely that “they believe not on me;” this is the only sin the unbeliever must repent of and it is accomplished at the moment one believes.
In the coming weeks, I will supplement this writing with other examples of how humans works are subtly added to GOD’s grace. No matter how trivial an addition of works to GOD’s grace seems it is rightly called: “a different gospel,” which is not “the gospel of your salvation” (Galatians 1:6; Ephesians 1:13) and therefore, void of the saving power of GOD. No one is saved by works. Therefore, the Gospel preacher must adhere to proclaiming the true Gospel; to preserve it from being made to depend upon any degree of human responsibility other than saving faith in Christ; because grace plus anything else is not grace and only by grace is anyone saved! That is the simplicity of faith.
Concluding Thought
“The Gospel is not a call to repentance, or to amendment of our ways, to make restitution for past sins, or to promise to do better in the future. These things are proper in their place, but they do not constitute the Gospel; for the Gospel is not good advice to be obeyed, it is good news to be believed. Do not make the mistake then of thinking that the Gospel is a call to duty or a call to reformation, a call to better your condition, to behave yourself in a more perfect way than you have been doing in the past.
“Nor is the Gospel a demand that you give up the world, that you give up your sins, that you break off bad habits, and try to cultivate good ones. You may do all these things, and yet never believe the Gospel and consequently never be saved at all.
“Over and over and over again in the New Testament we read of the Gospel. It is the Gospel not a Gospel. People tell us there are a great many different Gospels; but there is only ONE. When certain teachers came to the Galatians and tried to turn them away from the simplicity that was in Christ Jesus by teaching “another Gospel,” the apostle said that it was a different gospel, but not another; for there is none other than the Gospel. It is downright exclusive; it is God’s revelation to sinful man” (Harry Ironside, What Is The Gospel, Electronic media, http://www.gotothebible.com/HTML/whatisgospel.html).
