“Grace” in the Westminster Standards
Seth Stark
Ruling Elder, Communion Presbyterian Church
Reformation OC Conference 2011
October 28, 2011
INTRODUCTION
Grace.
What does it mean? To whom is it imparted? On what basis does God
extend it? What are the benefits of being the object of God’s grace?
GRACE: Defined
Grace is a free act of God, whereby He extends His love toward His elect in Christ.
2 Timothy 1:9, “who has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace which was given to us in Christ Jesus before time began,”
Ephesians 1:4, 9, “just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love,...having made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His good pleasure which He purposed in Himself,”
Ephesians 1:5, 11, “Having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will...In Him also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestined according to the purpose of Him who works all things according to the counsel of His will,”
John 6:37, 39, “All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will by no means cast out....This is the will of the Father who sent Me, that of all He has given Me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up at the last day.”
Acts 13:48, “Now when the Gentiles heard this, they were glad and glorified the word of the Lord. And as many as had been appointed to eternal life believed.”
False
systems of theology teach that God’s election is based on a foreseen
faith and/or repentance or some other good work, and based on that
foreknowledge, God elects those who would believe.
Grace cannot be based on foreseen faith.
Ephesians 2:8, “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God,”
Ephesians 2:10, “For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.”
Ephesians 1:4, “just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love,”
2 Peter 2:1, “elect
according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, in sanctification of
the Spirit, for obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ:
Grace to you and peace be multiplied. ”
Grace cannot be based on good works.
Romans 11:4-7, “But what does the divine response say to him? “I have reserved for Myself seven thousand men who have not bowed the knee to Baal.” 5 Even so then, at this present time there is a remnant according to the election of grace. 6 And if by grace, then it is no longer of works; otherwise grace is no longer grace. But if it is of works, it is no longer grace; otherwise work is no longer work. 7 What then? Israel has not obtained what it seeks; but the elect have obtained it, and the rest were blinded.”
Acts 5:31, “Him God has exalted to His right hand to be Prince and Savior, to give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins.”
Romans 9:16, “So then it is not of him who wills, nor of him who runs, but of God who shows mercy.”
Ephesians 2:9, “not of works, lest anyone should boast.”
Grace cannot be based on any other thing in the creature.
1 Corinthians 4:7, “For who makes you differ from another? And what do you have that you did not receive? Now if you did indeed receive it, why do you boast as if you had not received it?”
Romans 9:21, “Does not the potter have power over the clay, from the same lump to make one vessel for honor and another for dishonor?”
Our Confessional Standards affirm these truths in many places.
Westminster Confession of Faith 3.5
Those
of mankind that are predestinated unto life, God, before the foundation
of the world was laid, according to His eternal and immutable purpose,
and the secret counsel and good pleasure of His will, has chosen, in
Christ, unto everlasting glory,[9] out of His mere free grace and love,
without any foresight of faith, or good works, or perseverance in
either of them, or any other thing in the creature, as conditions, or
causes moving Him thereunto;[10] and all to the praise of His glorious grace.[11]
Westminster Larger Catechism
Q. 71. How is justification an act of God’s free grace?
A.
Although Christ, by his obedience and death, did make a proper, real,
and full satisfaction to God’s justice in the behalf of them that are
justified;291
yet in as much as God accepteth the satisfaction from a surety, which
he might have demanded of them, and did provide this surety, his own
only Son,292 imputing his righteousness to them,293 and requiring nothing of them for their justification but faith,294 which also is his gift,295 their justification is to them of free grace.296
Q. 72. What is justifying faith?
A. Justifying faith is a saving grace,297 wrought in the heart of a sinner by the Spirit298 and Word of God,299
whereby he, being convinced of his sin and misery, and of the
disability in himself and all other creatures to recover him out of his
lost condition,300 not only assenteth to the truth of the promise of the gospel,301 but receiveth and resteth upon Christ and his righteousness, therein held forth, for pardon of sin,302 and for the accepting and accounting of his person righteous in the sight of God for salvation.303
Q. 73. How doth faith justify a sinner in the sight of God?
A. Faith justifies a sinner in the sight of God, not because of those other graces which do always accompany it, or of good works that are the fruits of it,304 nor as if the grace of faith, or any act thereof, were imputed to him for his justification;305 but only as it is an instrument by which he receiveth and applieth Christ and his righteousness.306
GRACE: BENEFITS
Having established what Grace is, and on what basis it is applied to the elect, let us examine the effects of Grace on those to whom it is given.
EFFECTUAL CALLING is a work of God’s Grace
John 5:25, “Most assuredly, I say to you, the hour is coming, and now is, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God; and those who hear will live.”
Ephesians 1:18-20, “The eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that you may know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, 19 and what is
the exceeding greatness of His power toward us who believe, according
to the working of His mighty power 20 which He worked in Christ when He
raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places,”
2 Timothy 1:8-9, “Therefore
do not be ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, nor of me His prisoner,
but share with me in the sufferings for the gospel according to the
power of God, 9 who has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace which was given to us in Christ Jesus before time began,”
Romans 8:30, “Moreover whom He predestined, these He also called; whom He called, these He also justified; and whom He justified, these He also glorified.”
2 Thessalonians 2:13-14, “But
we are bound to give thanks to God always for you, brethren beloved by
the Lord, because God from the beginning chose you for salvation through
sanctification by the Spirit and belief in the truth, 14 to which He called you by our gospel, for the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
JUSTIFICATION is a work of God’s Grace
Romans 3:24, “Being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus,”
Acts 13:38-39, “Therefore let it be known to you, brethren, that through this Man is preached to you the forgiveness of sins; 39 and by Him everyone who believes is justified from all things from which you could not be justified by the law of Moses.”
Ephesians 2:7-8, “that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. 8 For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God,”
ADOPTION is a work of God’s Grace
1 John 3:1, “Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us, that we should be called children of God! Therefore the world does not know us, because it did not know Him.”
Ephesians 1:5, “having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will,”
Galatians 4:4-5, “But
when the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of
a woman, born under the law, 5 to redeem those who were under the law, that we might receive the adoption as sons.”
SANCTIFICATION is a work of God’s Grace
1 Corinthians 6:11, “And such were some of you. But you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus and by the Spirit of our God.”
2 Thessalonians 2:13, “But we are bound to give thanks to God always for you, brethren beloved by the Lord, because God from the beginning chose you for salvation through sanctification by the Spirit and belief in the truth,”
BEING KEPT BY GOD is a work of God’s Grace
1 John 3:24, “Now he who keeps His commandments abides in Him, and He in him. And by this we know that He abides in us, by the Spirit whom He has given us.”
Jeremiah 31:3, “The LORD has appeared of old to me, saying: ‘Yes, I have loved you with an everlasting love; therefore with lovingkindness I have drawn you.”
1 Corinthians 1:8-9, “who will also confirm you to the end, that you may be blameless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 God is faithful, by whom you were called into the fellowship of His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.”
Jeremiah 32:40, “And I will make an everlasting covenant with them, that I will not turn away from doing them good; but I will put My fear in their hearts so that they will not depart from Me.”
1 Peter 1:5, “Who are kept by the power of God through faith for salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.”
WE ARE KEPT FOR THE PURPOSE OF DOING GOOD WORKS which is a work of God’s Grace
Ephesians 2:10, “For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.”
John 15:4-5, “Abide
in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless
it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me. 5 I am
the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing.”
Ezekiel 36:26-27, “I
will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will take
the heart of stone out of your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. 27 I
will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will keep My judgments and do them.”
APPLICATION
Our election is based purely on God’s grace in Christ to us, from before time began. Those who are the objects of God’s grace are called, justified, adopted, sanctified, and kept for the purpose of doing good works, which themselves are gifts from God. What then do we contribute to our own salvation? Not. A. Thing.
Sola Gratia!
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