Children of God By Obedience.
To be God's children in spiritual relation and union we must be regenerated or born again. This is a rule to which there are no exceptions. Just as being born of the flesh constitutes us children of the flesh, and, therefore, fleshly, so being born of the Spirit constitutes us children of God, and, therefore, spiritual as to the inner man, the part changed in regeneration. That this is the work of the Spirit alone is plainly taught in God's word wherever this work is referred to. In no instance is it ascribed to man's agency in whole or in part. Creation and resurrection are no more the work of God, independent of means and human efforts, than is the work of regeneration.But we ought to be the children of God in practice also. This is our privilege and our duty. In this way we are afforded such evidences of our sonship as to strengthen and comfort us. We are by this means enabled to claim the relation of sons through the proofs we have of our acceptance with him in service. All God's children are given power to become the sons of God manifestly in obedience. Thus it is said of the Jews who received Christ that "to them gave he power to become the sons of God." John i. 12. The ones to whom this power was given were those who had believed on his name. Those who had believed on his name had been "born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God." The order here given is: 1. To be born of God. 2. To believe on his name. 3. To receive him. 4. Power given to become the sons of God. Power was not given to those who were born of God to become his sons by being born of him. This would be an absurdity. They were his sons by being born of him, and power must have been given them to become his sons in some other sense. The only other sense in which they could become his sons, is in a manifest sense by obedience. The Greek word (exousia) here rendered power, signifies authority, license, privilege, right. The same word is in Hebrews xiii. 10, where it is said, "We have an altar, whereof they have no right (exousian) to eat which serve the tabernacle." Also in Revelations xxii. 14, "Blessed are they that do his commandments that they may have right (exousia) to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city." Then Christ give those who received him, who believed on him, who were born of God, the authority or right to become, manifestly, the sons of God. They had the privilege of coming out from the world practically, and claiming the sacred relation of sons and heirs of God.
It is not intimated anywhere in the Bible that any one is given the privilege of being born again, because in this he is perfectly passive. It is not a work to be done by him, but a work to be done for him and in him. But those who have been born of God are given the privilege to become the sons of God actively. They are not passive in this but active. If they were as passive in obedience as in regeneration it would be improper to exhort them to be obedient. They are never exhorted in the Bible to be regenerated, but they are frequently exhorted to be obedient. This shows that in their obedience they are active and not passibve. Whatever this salvation may be called, "time" salvation or "common" salvation, it is certain that it is conditional, for there are commandments to be obeyed in securing it, and the right or privilege is given to God's children to obtain it. To perform the conditions we must have the Spirit of God and his grace in our hearts, but it is possible to have his Spirit and his grace and live in disobedience. This is so self-evident that it needs no defense. In Ephesians iv. 1, the apostle exhorts the saints to "walk worthy of the vocation wherewith they are called." By doing this they save themselves from the consequences of walking unworthily, yet they have no right to glory in what they do, or boast of it, or look with disdain upon others. Paul said, "But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection; lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway." I. Corinthians ix. 27. He here speaks of what he himself did, and of what the consequences of his not doing it would be. Was there not a salvation in this to him? Could he say of that salvation, "Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his own mercy he saved us?" If not, then he shows a distinction between the salvation obtained by keeping his body under subjection and that bestowed unconditionally through the mercy and grace of God.
In Colossians iii. 1, an exhortation is given to those who are risen with Christ to "seek those things which are above." To do this we must be actively employed. There can be no reason assigned for their being commanded to do it if it is not something for them to do. Again, it is said, "If ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit to mortify the deeds of the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live." Romans viii. 13. A kind of living is here conditioned upon our mortifying the deeds of the body. Of course this has to be done through the Spirit, but every one that has the Spirit does not do it. If they did there would be no need of the warning. God's children are also exhorted in Romans xii. 1, 2 to "present their bodies a living sacrifice, holy, aceptable unto God, which is their reasonable service," and to "be not conformed to this world." This is not something to be done for them, as regeneration is, but something required of them.
We need grace to enable us to render acceptable service to him. "Let us have grace, whereby we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear." Mere formal service, void of the grace of God, is a vain display. We are continually dependent upon God's grace that we may obey him in acceptable spiritual service. Yet that grace does not move us in a compulsory way so as to make it impossible for us to be disobedient. We are not mere machines, controlled as an engine is controlled by steam. If we were we would not be to blame for not doing our duty, and not being to blame we would not be chastened for disobedience. But let us see what the Lord says, "If my children forsake my law, and walk not in my judgments, and if they break my statutes, and keep not my commandments; then will I visit their transgressions with the rod, and their iniquities with stripes." Psalms lxxxix. 30-32. He does not inflict stripes upon them with the rod for not doing what they could not do, or for doing what they could not avoid doing. It is because they forsake his law. May we have grace to serve him, and may we not receive that grace in vain.
J. R. D.
Copyright c. 2005. All rights reserved. The Primitive Baptist Library.
