Tags
antinomianism, Calvinism, Gospel, Gospel Coalition, new calvinism, Sanctification, Tullian Tchividjian
Or… Jesus + Nothing = Everything….unless we’re discussing sanctification
More new Calvinism error. I declare, when will people learn that if it’s a new teaching, it’s probably wrong? Seriously. Tchividjian’s error is an old one and the same error found in most, if not all, new Calvinists. It is antinomianism… to the core.
From Compass:
In carefully reading “Jesus + Nothing = Everything” it becomes clear that a failure to adequately distinguish our sanctification from justification can result in a kind of theoretical view of how we relate to God and how we think God relates to us. We can begin to wrongly assume that what we do today has little or no bearing on our relationship with God. Tchividjian writes, “Jesus won for me, I was free to lose” and “Jesus succeeded for me, I was free to fail” (p.24). Throughout the book Tchividjian encourages us to remove our attention from what we do in sanctification. He writes, “I think too much about how I’m doing, if I’m growing, whether I’m doing it right or not” (p.174). He tells us such thinking is wrong and will only make us “neurotic and self-absorbed” (p.174). After all, in Christ, he tells us, “it’s all said and done” (p.174).
Such advice is far from the biblical exhortations we find in Ephesians 5 to “Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is” (vv.15-17); and “Walk as children of light (for the fruit of light is found in all that is good and right and true), and try to discern what is pleasing to the Lord” (vv.8b-10).
Related articles
- Our Work in Sanctification
- Preaching the Gospel to Yourself
- The Reformed Downgrade: Exposing New Calvinism
- Book Review: ‘How people Change’ by Paul David Tripp & Timothy S. Lane
- The Grace Boys
- Four Phases of Sanctification
Very timely for me as i was asked about the possibility of using this book as a small group resource. Thank you.
That fella has been the cause of much trouble since he “took over” Coral Ridge. It’s disappointing but not surprising that his theology is messed up. It’s the reverse of Rome, but just as dangerous.
Aaaaaaamen!
He’s right. The equation is Jesus + nothing.
If anything needs to be added to Jesus and His work on the cross for the ungodly…then why even go to the cross.
He could have lined us all up and compared how er are ‘doing’.
No…it really is Jesus plus nothing. If the Holy Spirit isn’t capable of making us into the kind of people that He wants…then it surely isn’t going to happen because we’ve buckled down and gotten serious about God.
God is the only One who is serious about us, and He’s declared us righteous for Jesus’ sake.
That’s the gospel (by the way).
Thanks.
You’re right, as long as your talking about justification. But when it comes to sanctification, you are no longer passive. You have work to do, and you’ve been commanded to do so. Bad root, bad fruit, good root, good fruit.
Pastor Joel,
I am confused, in the article, the statement is made that a person is in the family through faith(justification) and that they do not have to perform to stay in the family. That performance is only about pleasing God, or being in relationship with Him. But then here, you state “bad root, bad fruit, good root, good fruit”. If bad fruit (failure to perform) is truly an indicator of a bad root (not being in the true root, ie NOT in the family) then performance is more than just about relationship. You elevate performance to the level of proof of “real salvation” making a psuedo works based salvation that is impossible to support. BTW, can you give me a verse and reference on the “bad root, bad fruit, good root, good fruit”?
“For no good tree bears bad fruit, nor again does a bad tree bear good fruit, for each tree is known by its own fruit. For figs are not gathered from thornbushes, nor are grapes picked from a bramble bush. Luke 6:43, 44.
Justification… sanctification… glorification… Faith. It’s all given to the individual by God… hence this is why it is referred to as a gift. All Christians are sanctified in Christ.
It is the reverse of Rome…. Thank God for that one.
Are you saying then that you have no duty to mortify remaining sin in your life?
Absolutely… we do it (actually it is a work that God does in us) through repentance (changing ones mind about themselves… that we are sinners in need of God’s grace).
What Tullian is preaching isn’t a “new teaching” but rather a recovery of the Gospel.
Try to comfort the dying with your message of “examine your life to see if you’ve performed enough to convince yourself of your worthiness.” If they measure their life against the Law of God the only answer is a resounding “No”… that is unless you’re a Pharisee and think you’ve fulfilled what God wants which in that case would nullify the cross of Christ.
The “Good News” is really “Good News.”
Mitchell, you are dealing with justification, I am not. In sanctification, the believer is not passive. Yes, salvation is all of grace, but that does not mean you were saved to live lawlessly and without works. Works will not save you, but you will not be saved without them for the simple reason that Scripture declares believers to have been created for good works. See Ephesians 2:10. Justification is a one-time, instantaneous declaration from the throne of God regarding our legal status before Him. it is not a process. it is never again repeated. Viewing justification as a process is Roman Catholic doctrine. Justification is not sanctification brother. To view our sanctification as being without good works, or to view obedience to NT commands as unecessary is antinomian to the core. Have an outstanding day.
The Holy Spirit kills sin, not me. It is ALL by God’s grace, justification AND sanctification. What you are teaching here is synergistic sanctification which is not what the Bible teaches. Seriously, this is grace 101.
Are you saying you do not have to obey at all? Live a lawless life? If you are, that’s antinomian.
“failure to adequately distinguish our sanctification from justification can result in a kind of theoretical view of how we relate to God and how we think God relates to us. We can begin to wrongly assume that what we do today has little or no bearing on our relationship with God”
Artificially bifurcating justification/santification as if they were not both part and parcel of the concept of salvation is just as dangerous if not more so. Nearly everywhere that the words sozo or soterio are used in scriptures, they encompass more than simply a point in time, once and done salvation. Nearly all of the contextual uses of these words translated as salvation or saved encompass the past, point in time salvation, the present day salvation from the power of sin in our lives, the present delivery from the consequences of our sin, and the future deliverance to a fully restored state. The idea of salvation emcompasses what we traditionally would classify as justification, santification, and glorification. Jesus himself in the book of John, repeatedly states that slavation, complete salvation in all three tenses comes only from belief in Him, not from works. Paul echoes this njumerous times in Romans, and Ephesians, and Galatians. There are different aspects of our relationship to God, but once we believe in Jesus our standing before God is secure, we are declared righteous, and since we did not work to earn it, we cannot work to keep it.
FedEx,
President,
Men of Praise Motorcycle
Great response FedEx!
Do you two hold to the idea that one should “let go and let God”, regards sanctification?
We are raised from spiritual death in our justification (stage one of salvation). We work, by the power of the Holy Spirit, to do good and mortify sin in our sanctification (stage two of salvation). We stand in the imputed righteousness of Christ before His Judgment Seat, having our works judged, and being declared righteous, and welcomed into our rest by nothing other than the blood and testimony of Jesus (glorification, or stage three of salvation). Anyone who has no good deeds is one who is saved, a passing through fire.
Manfred,
I would say that my belief is more closely associated with what the author of the above article says he believes. I am saying that All aspects of salvation from beginning to end are without any work on our part. But, just as the author states, we cannot please God without obedience (works). It is then about having a pleasing relationship with God, and not in any way about our eternal standing before God. What I am trying to expose is the disengenuity of saying on one hand that it is all about pleasing God and not about salvation, then saying on the other hand that failure to produce good (enough) fruit is evidence of a bad root (ie not being in Christ). You cannot have it both ways, either it is entirely without works, or works are a necesary evidence of “true” salvation. I am just asking for enough intellectual honesty to admit this.
I disagree.
I believe what the Bible says about it.
“He who began a good work in you will bring it to completion.”
Good fruit, bad fruit. Which one of us is in a position to judge or know? None of us can know the heart or the true motivations. So, “we walk by faith and not by sight.”
And this understanding keeps us off the religious ladder-climbing project that the Roman Catholic Church is involved in, as well as many Evangelicals. It avoids the despair, and or the self-righteousness that goes along with trying to sanctify ourselves.
Salvation (the act of justification) is by grace alone through faith alone (both gifts from God). But faith that saves is not alone – that is, one who made a new creature in Christ will evidence his new nature by doing good works. This is the message of James chapter 2, in commenting on Abraham’s saving faith – “You see that faith was active along with his works, and faith was completed by his works.” This is the reality – being justified by God, we are baptized into His Spirit, Who works in the Christian, “both to will (or want to) and to work for His good pleasure.” The Christian cannot do good deeds apart from the Holy Spirit, but the Christian will do good deeds, because he is a new creature in Christ!
Amen. Looks like it’s you and me against the world Manfred.
Pastor Joel,
It is just you and Manfred against a few fellow believers, not against the World. I am not against you or Manfred. In fact, as brothers in Christ, I am for you, I am hoping that one day you along with me and all other believers will come to fully know and understand the depth of God’s grace, love and holiness, and that one day we may all rejoice together at his coming.
FedEx,
President,
Men of Praise Motorcycle Ministry
The key is IN CHRIST. It is all by grace. All of it.
Perhaps John Owen can explain it better: http://www.jesus.org.uk/vault/library/owen_mortification.pdf
Pastor-Servant Said:
Pastor Joel,
It is just you and Manfred against a few fellow believers, not against the World. I am not against you or Manfred. In fact, as brothers in Christ, I am for you, I am hoping that one day you along with me and all other believers will come to fully know and understand the depth of God’s grace, love and holiness, and that one day we may all rejoice together at his coming.
Pastor-Servant, as I told my Son-In-law your above post is very grace filled because you except a fellow human being as a brother simple based on their Faith Alone In Christ Alone + nothing. With sadness we must realize in conversations like this the sentiment is not as gracious back to a believer like yourself. If in any way you are seen to have bad fruit…any…you are in the bad root (LOST). Remember what is said above. “For no good tree bears bad fruit, nor again does a bad tree bear good fruit, for each tree is known by its own fruit. No room for any bad fruit. In my heart I know that the only pure fruit is that of the Holy Spirit that lives in me and He is for sure from the good tree. As for my flesh nothing dwells good there. The problem I see in trying to judge good and bad fruit in works is we often mix up the two. God Bless
Which of the Ephesians 5 verses do you think Tullian disagrees with?
Do you think he would not agree with the writer of Hebrew and say we need to pursue holiness without which we will not see the Lord?
If you think he agrees with both authors and with the Holy Spirit might you not then be misunderstanding the whole of what he is saying? After all, it seems that many misunderstood Paul’s teaching on grace and accused him of teaching let us sin so that grace may abound.
“The Christian cannot do good deeds apart from the Holy Spirit, but the Christian will do good deeds, because he is a new creature in Christ!”
Exactly! The Christian DOES because of Christ. Christ is the driver. He gets ALL (or should, at least) the credit for any good work that we do. Apart from Him “all our righteous deeds are filthy rags”.
I do believe it’s a matter of emphasis.
When we emphasize Christ, love and freedom grow. When we emphasize the law (that which we should, ough, and must be doing), that can only make us worse (as St. Paul tells us). He even goes so far as to call the 10 Commandments “the ministry of death.”
So, yes, we will do good works….they follow as a natural outflow of Christ in us. But we cannot put our finger on any of them and say ‘that was a Christian work, and that was not’ (because even atheists and pagans are capabale of doing those exact things).
Anywho, great topic. Lots of great comments from both sides. Thanks, very much for allowing dissenting voices here on this blog. Brothers and sisters in Christ often have disagreements with some of these matters in the Christian faith.
Steve, glad you see it. The point we are trying to make is not works apart from Christ will save us, but that commands of Scripture are to be obeyed by the Christian and to be zealous for good works. New Calvinists often teach that Christians should repent of any good works in sanctification, that Christ has done all good works for us in regard to our sanctification and therefore we need do nothing, not even works towards the mortification of our own sins. This, of course, is a falsehood. Thanks for your comment.
Pastor Joel,
I am neither Calvinist or neo-Calvinist, so I cannot speak to either of these, but I can say that I do believe that works matter. But just like the article you cite above, I believe that works are not what determines whether we are in or our of the family, only faith in the person and work of Jesus Christ can determine this. When we begin to say “you don’t have works, or enough works, or the right works to really be in the family” I think we cross a line. I do believe that we can never reach our full potential as bearers of God’s image nor can we experience full deliverence from the power of sin and its consequences without obedience to His commands.
FedEx,
President,
Men of Praise Motorcycle Ministry
Joel, Please clarify, are you saying that Tullian and other “neo-Calvinsts”
* teach that Christians should not obey the commands of Scripture and they teach
* that Paul was wrong when he told Titus that Christ gave himself for us to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for himself a people for his own possession who are zealous for good works?
Is that what you are really saying?
Nonsense. Please see comment policy.
Joel Taylor,
We still disagree on how this all happens.
Many seem to believe it is a cooperative effort that accomplishes these things. We believe it is God, and God alone who makes it happen. He doesn’t need our help in justification, or sanctification.
Aside from the St. Paul quote about God completing in us what He started, there are even places in Scripture that place sanctification ahead of justification in the sentence, ie; God sanctifies and justifies us.
Like I said earlier, it’s a matter of emphasis. We believe that your way put people on the religious ladder climbing project, and our way helps people to trust in the things that God has done for us, is doing for us, and will yet do for us, more thoroughly, and thereby keeps us from despair, and or self-righteousness.
Thanks, my friend.
PS- There’s plenty of commands for us to keep, in Scripture that we haven’t got a chance of keeping because of our selfish desires.
Such as, “Be pefect as your Father in Heaven is perfect.”
I always remind my Christian buddies that they (we) ought be going to the prisons on weekends, or the nursing homes, instead of watching football.
These words of law condemn us and expose us, and show us our great need of a Savior.
Once you get grace then you will understand the works righteousness and self salvation projects many Christians undertake.
Once you get biblical grace, the real thing, you’ll understand why many, like Apostle Paul, make it their ambition to please God.
Wow. We can’t please God. Jesus is the only One who did and continues to in the life of the sinner. It is ONLY because of HIS righteousness that covers us that anything pleases God. You are teaching heresy here, my friend.
2Co_5:9 So whether we are at home or away, we make it our aim to please him.
2Ti_2:4 No soldier gets entangled in civilian pursuits, since his aim is to please the one who enlisted him.
Heb_11:6 And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.
“Real freedom in “the hour of temptation” happens only when the resources of the gospel smash any sense of need to secure for myself anything beyond what Christ has already secured for me.”
Tullian
Joel Taylor wrote:
We’re not sanctified merely by realization, unless we include the realization that we’re about to “get slapped upside the head,” as we used to say, if we don’t shape up. Realization, mortification, vivification, study, prayer, discipline, and consistent attendance at public services are all necessary ingredients in a successful and fruitful approach to the Christian life.
Wow, may I quote you? Paul
You can quote the author of that statement, of course, but it’s not me.
Because of Christ, God is pleased with us before we start the day.
We are declared righteous for Jesus’ sake. And it’s not because of anything that we do or don’t do. Sanctification is the same thing. It’s just another side of the same coin.
St. Paul openly admits in Romans chapter 7 how well he was doing at doing what he ought, and what he ought not.
But then goes on to thank God for doing what he, a poor sinner could never do.
Anyway, I think it’s very liberating, and it actually strengthens my faith in Christ, and not the other way around.
You just declared the very problem, confusing justification with sanctification – they are definitely not the same thing.
They may not be…but God is handling them both just fine.
I honestly have nothing substantial to add, I just yearned to be No. 37.
What???? I’m so sorry, but Jesus + nothing DOES = everything in sanctification too! I do NOT sanctify myself, God does. Justification AND sanctification are monergistic. I depend on God’s grace alone to be made holy. Sanctification too is by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone. I do good works BECAUSE I am being sanctified by God, not to sanctify myself.
I would encourage you to look up the definition of ‘antinomianism’, for that is what you are my friend.
Seriously? You pull out that canard? How on earth am I an antinomian? It is by grace I am able to obey. Are you perfectly sinless now? What you are suggesting here is Arminianism. Semi-Pelagianism. You are not teaching reformed teaching here.
Joel, question for ya: some folk say sanctification is synergistic some shy away from that word because of its misuse with justification. Would you call sanctification synergistic? If not, how would you describe this process?
From the Larger Catechism of the Westminster Confession of Faith
Question 75: What is sanctification?
Answer: Sanctification is a work of God’s grace, whereby they whom God has, before the foundation of the world, chosen to be holy, are in time, through the powerful operation of his Spirit applying the death and resurrection of Christ unto them, renewed in their whole man after the image of God; having the seeds of repentance unto life, and all other saving graces, put into their hearts, and those graces so stirred up, increased, and strengthened, as that they more and more die unto sin, and rise unto newness of life.
Question 77: Wherein do justification and sanctification differ?
Answer: Although sanctification be inseparably joined with justification, yet they differ, in that God in justification imputes the righteousness of Christ;in sanctification his Spirit infuses grace, and enables to the exercise thereof; in the former, sin is pardoned; in the other, it is subdued:the one does equally free all believers from the revenging wrath of God, and that perfectly in this life, that they never fall into condemnation; the other is neither equal in all, nor in this life perfect in any, but growing up to perfection.
Question 78: Whence arises the imperfection of sanctification in believers?
Answer: The imperfection of sanctification in believers arises from the remnants of sin abiding in every part of them, and the perpetual lustings of the flesh against the spirit; whereby they are often foiled with temptations, and fall into many sins, are hindered in all their spiritual services, and their best works are imperfect and defiled in the sight of God.
Carter, If that was an answer to my question, thanks but no thanks. I know what that and my own confession (1689 LBC) say on the topic. I am interested in Joel’s answer.
I’m new to this argument but I think what we’re failing to realize here are the fact that there are two types of sanctification. Definitive and Progressive…Definitive in that we are as sanctified through Christ as we are ever going to be…and progressive being the good works we do though Christ for the building up of the church first to the needy (poor, sick, immature) christians, and so on. We must also look at what constitues a good work, for while we are still in the flesh do we not still battle our sin nature. Is not even our ‘good works’ tainted with sin? I don’t think he’s wrong, he’s just looking definitive sanctification.
Amen and amen, John. This is what the Bible reveals and Reformed folk see in the Ordo Salutis.
Wait….wait for it….
Even Paul anticipated being labeled antinomian, so that’s good company to be in! Interestingly enough, Paul answers antinomianism with, not law, but gospel!
Here’s a great little article on this subject: http://www.whitehorseinn.org/blog/2011/01/27/the-fear-of-antinomianism/
Pastor Taylor,
In your view, is it never possible for someone who believes that sanctification is monergistic to be anything but antinominian?
Yes, it is possible. Lack of knowledge regarding the truth can certainly be a case.
Joel, did you even listen to Tullian’s series on this? He is preaching against moralism but not against morality. How can you people not see it? None of these guys are antinomians. This is utterly baffling to me.
I wouldn’t be surprised to find that history would show us that accusations of antinomianism come from those who could equally be charged with neo-nomianism – and vice versa. The bible holds God’s sovereign grace and man’s responsibility in wonderful balance. We are prone to mess that balance up one way or the other. Worse still, we tend to over-react to correctives since correctives, by their very nature, emphasise the other side of the coin.
Scripture is clear: in progressive sanctification man must work to obey, mortify the flesh, etc. Yet, even so, it is God who is at work in Him (Phil 2:12-13) sanctifying Him (1 Thes 5:23). Whilst there is a very real danger that some abuse grace and use it as a licence to sin, as Paul cautioned against, and therefore we do exhort one another to make every effort and use the numerous scriptural warnings that those who do not produce fruit in keeping with repentance shall not inherit eternal life, yet there is also arguably even greater danger of legalism and dead orthodoxy if we do not root all the scriptural imperatives in the indicatives of the gospel and remind people that they are not saved by grace but kept by their own efforts. The gospel is *not* I obey, therefore I am accepted. It is I am accepted, therefore I obey. Our efforts to put to death whatever is sinful in us are not earn God’s favour but because we have God’s favour. Man’s sinful nature being what it is, if we preach obedience without the gospel, self-righteousnes will follow. For no matter what our doctrines, *functionally* we will resort to basing our feelings of justification on our sanctification as Richard Lovelace wrote.
Tullian is a false teacher. His statements about the Christian life simply don’t match up with scripture. I would suggest that people start reading their Bible daily, including Old Testament readings daily. Pay attention to what God requires of those who have faith, not what Tullian or any other person says about it. There is no way that you will believe that Tullian is an orthodox, Christian teacher if you read your Bible daily and let it be the filter for your views.