Duty-Faith
by
A. W. Pink
Arthur Pink's early writings reflected the highest of
high-Calvinist opinion. Some have suggested that Pink was flirting with (or even
embraced) a kind of hyper-Calvinism. Certain hyper-Calvinist tendencies
certainly marred some of his earlier works. For example, Pink's well-known and
mostly helpful book on the sovereignty of God originally included material
(later edited out of the Banner of Truth edition) denying that God loves all His
creatures—particularly the reprobate.
According to Pink, God's hatred for non-elect sinners
allows for no disposition toward them that can properly be called
"love." Pink's denial of the love of God toward the reprobate set him
at odds with Calvin, Flavel, Charnock, Manton, and most of the Puritans.
But in Pink's later ministry, he encountered a virulent strain of
hyper-Calvinism, promoted by the "Gospel Standard" churches in
England. The Gospel Standard articles of faith deny that it is the duty of
every sinner to repent and believe in Christ. In this article, Pink argues
against the "Gospel Standard" error, pointing out that if God commands
all sinners to repent and believe in Christ, then faith is their duty and
unbelief is a sin. In support of this position Pink cites many writers
who, ironically, would have differed with Pink on the love of God for the
non-elect. (One is tempted to point out that if the more mature Pink had simply
reexamined his own position on God's love in the
same way he urged his readers to evaluate the "duty-faith"
controversy—by Scripture, not bare "reason"; and by considering the
wisdom of our Puritan forebears—Pink himself might have abandoned his
insistence that God's demeanor toward the reprobate must be utterly
devoid of any kind of love.) Notice also that Pink, quoting Calvin,
affirms an important truth denied by many later Twentieth-Century
hyper-Calvinists: that divine mercy is offered to all, indiscriminately,
in the gospel.
From Studies in the Scriptures, Vol. 15, no. 5 (May 1936)
Duty-Faith
It is the bounden duty of all who hear the Gospel to savingly trust in
Christ, otherwise their rejection of Him would be no sin. Many of our
readers will be surprised to hear that this self-evident truth is denied
by some who are, otherwise, sound in the Faith. They reason that it is
"inconsistent" to call upon the spiritually dead to perform spiritual
duties. A certain denomination in England have the following among their
Articles of Faith: "We deny duty-faith and duty-repentance—these terms
signifying that it is every man's duty to spiritually and savingly
repent and believe (Gen. 6:5; 8:21; Matt. 15:19; Jer. 17:9; John 6:44,
65). We deny also that there is any capability in man by nature to any
spiritual good whatever. So that we reject the doctrine that men in a
state of nature should be exhorted to believe in or turn to God (John
12:29, 40; Eph. 2:8; Rom. 8:7, 8; 1 Cor. 4:7). Therefore, that for
ministers in the present day to address unconverted persons, or
indiscriminately all in a mixed congregation, calling upon them to
savingly repent, believe, and receive Christ, or perform any other acts
dependent upon the new creative power of the Holy Spirit, is, on the one
hand, to imply creature power, and, on the other, to deny the doctrine
of special redemption."
As some of our readers have imbibed this error, we are anxious to be of
help to them. We have therefore decided to follow the article by John
Newton on "Ministerial Address to the Unconverted" in the March issue
by
first giving brief quotations from the writings of the Reformers and
Puritans, to show how the framers of those [Gospel Standard] Articles of
Faith departed from the path and policy followed by so many eminent
saints of God who preceded them.
"The mercy of God is offered equally to those who believe and to those
who believe not, so that those who are not Divinely taught within are
rendered inexcusable" (John Calvin—1552—"The Eternal
Predestination of
God" p. 95). "A slight acquaintance with Paul will enable anyone to
understand, without tedious argument, how easily he reconciled things
which they pretend to be repugnant to each other. Christ commands men to
believe in Him, yet His limitation is neither false nor contrary to His
command when He says 'No man can come to Me except it were given him of
My Father.' Let preaching therefore have its force to bring men to
faith" (Calvin's "Institutes" Book 3, chap. 18, par. 13).
"The first part then of Christianity is the preaching of repentance, and
the knowledge of ourselves... A man, therefore, is made a Christian not
by working but by hearing; wherefore, he that will exercise himself to
righteousness must first exercise himself in hearing the Gospel. Now,
when he hath heard and received the Gospel, let him give himself to God
with a joyful heart, and afterwards let him exercise himself in those
good works which are commanded in the law" (Martin Luther—1540—on
Galatians, pp. 104 and 185).
"When we meet with a precept, we should simply endeavour to obey it,
without enquiring into God's hidden purpose.... Notwithstanding God's
predestination is most certain and unalterable, so that no elect person
can perish, nor any reprobate be saved, yet it does not follow from
thence that all reproofs and exhortations on the part of God, or prayers
on the part of men, are useless" (J. Zanchius—1562—"The Doctrine
of
Absolute Predestination," pp. 49 and 120).
"With the promises there is joined an exhortation or command to believe,
which is more general than the promise; because the promise is only made
to believers; but the commandment is given to believers and unbelievers
also. For the elect are mingled with the wicked in the same assemblies,
and therefore the ministers of the Gospel ought indiscriminately to
exhort all and every one to repent." "In very truth, if thou goest
forth
of this world being no repentant sinner, thou goest damned to Hell:
wherefore delay not one minute of an hour longer, but with all speed
repent and turn unto God" (W. Perkins—1595—Vol. 1, p. 379; Vol. 2, p.
692).
"Let us be stirred up to repent immediately. Doth not God now warn you?
Is it not dangerous living one hour in a state that we would not die in?
May God justly strike us on the sudden? Do but purpose to live in sin
one quarter of an hour; may we not be taken away in that quarter?" (R.
Sibbes—1620—Vol. 6, p. 212).
"We are expressly commanded to believe, and that upon the highest
promises, and under the greatest penalties. This command is that which
makes believing formally a duty. Faith is a grace as it is freely
wrought in us by the Holy Spirit, the root of all obedience and duties,
as it is radically fixed in the heart. But as it is commanded it is a
duty; and these commands, you know, are several ways expressed, by
invitations, exhortations, propositions" (John Owen—1650—Vol. 14, p.
223).
"I say there is no simulation at all of God in this: that which He
proposeth is but this; 'Whosoever believeth shall be saved, and
whosoever believeth not shall be damned.' He sends His ministers to
preach this, and to beseech them to believe, and to be reconciled unto
God, yea, all they meet with." "He commands them to preach
promiscuously
unto all, persuade all, exhort all, unto faith and repentance" (W.
Twisse—1653—"The Riches of God's Love" pp. 73 and 169).
"My counsel (to his unsaved hearers) is this: Stir up your souls to lay
hold on the Lord Jesus and look up to Him, wait on Him from whom every
good and perfect gift comes, and give Him no rest till He hath given
thee that jewel faith" (Thomas Brooks—1653—Vol. 1, p. 144).
"This condition of faith and repentance is suited to the consciences of
men. The law of nature teaches us that we are bound to believe every
revelation from God when it is made known to us; and not only to assent
to it as true, but embrace it as good." "Our rejection of Christ, and
the way of His appointing, is a high contempt of God.... It is a 'making
light' of a rich feast of God's providing" (S. Charnock—1660—Vol. 3,
pp.
68 and 469).
John Bunyan (1675) in his "The Heavenly Footman"; or a
"Description of
the man that gets to Heaven," which is addressed to "All the slothful
and careless people," being an exposition and application of "So run
that ye may obtain" (1 Cor. 9:24), closes with, "If thou cost not know
the way, inquire at the Word of God; if thou wantest company, cry for
God's Spirit; if thou wantest encouragement, entertain the promises. But
be sure thou beginnest betimes; get into the way, run apace, and hold
out to the end, and the Lord give thee a prosperous journey."
"Preach the Gospel to every creature: yet this is not the Gospel to be
preached—that God hath promised to save every creature; though upon
promulgation of them, it becomes the duty of every one to come to
Christ, and a command is laid upon men to do it" (T. Goodwin—1680—Vol.
8, p. 245).
"Fire burneth where it meeteth with matter combustible, but a reasonable
creature needeth to be exhorted to perform acts agreeable to his
principles" (T. Manton—1670—Vol. 19, p. 247).
"It is our duty to endeavour what is impossible by our own endeavours to
attain—so sin has made it; to avoid all sin, to perform perfect
obedience, to love with all the heart" (David Clarkson, associate pastor
with John Owen—1682—Vol. 2, p. 131).
"But you will say, if unregenerate men be dead men, to what purpose is
it to persuade them to arise and stand up? This difficulty is solved in
this very text (Eph. 5:14): though the duty is ours, yet the power is
God's" (J. Flavell—1680—Vol. 2, p. 423).
"It is the known duty of a sinner under the Gospel to turn to God
through Christ; and it is also declared in the same Gospel that none can
of themselves turn to God and believe in His Son without the help of
special efficacious grace; it must hereupon be a man's duty also to pray
for that grace which may enable him thereto" (J. Howe—1690—Vol. 2, p.
346).
"This (Gospel) call contains the command of faith by which all men
without exception, to whom God vouchsafes the same, are enjoined to
believe in Christ, in that way and manner which is revealed in the
Gospel: 'look unto Me and be ye saved all the ends of the earth': Isaiah
45:22" (H. Witsius—1690—Vol. 3, p. 353).
"Neither will this assertion make it a vain thing to preach the Gospel
to natural people, and to exhort them to true repentance and faith in
Christ for their conversion and salvation" (W. Marshall—1692—"The
Gospel
Mystery of Sanctification," so highly commended by James Hervey, p.
121).
"And even not coming to Christ, and believing in Him in this spiritual
manner, when He is revealed in the external ministry of the Word, as
God's way of salvation, is criminal and blameworthy, notwithstanding
men's want of both will and power" (John Gill—1735—"The Cause of
God and
Truth," p. 87).
We could add quotations from others, but the above are from
well known, representative, sound, Calvinistic divines; several of them high
Calvinists. Yet their holding firmly to the spiritual inability of the
natural man, to unconditional election, particular redemption, and the effectual
call of the Spirit, did not tie their hands in preaching the Gospel freely,
pressing upon their hearers their responsibility, and calling upon them to
repent and believe.—A.W.P.
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