THINGS THAT BOTHER ME: I'M REFORMED BUT... PART I

Recent events have compelled to me to put these views into writing.

Initiates into the Reformed Faith
Our God is forever to be praised for His gracious sovereignty by which He continues to reveal the glorious depths of His truth to our people. Our hearts should overflow with incessant gratitude for His divine delight in disclosing the deep mysteries of His Person and work, especially in the message, mission and ministry of Jesus Christ, to those that are blind babes. The fact that many of us are the undeserving, privileged recipients of God's objective, ab extra Self-disclosure, a revelation that attains its highest significance in the divine redemption of sinners justly deserving death, is at once humbling and self-abnegating. Why? Because His divine choice originates solely in His eternal purposes which are founded upon (the immutable purpose and pleasure of) His will. Yes, we are experiencing the influx of a growing number of initiates into the Reformed tradition… soli Deo gloria, to the glory of God alone.

What is even more revealing is that, in spite of my fleshly anxiety to see an acceleration in this growth, the undeniable reality is that it is a process over which I have no control and which, in fact, requires "time, times, and half a time," figuratively speaking, of course. Its duration will quite likely extend beyond my fleeting lifetime. My ardent desire to see our people leave the dried and blanched deserts of non-Reformed affiliations, especially those that are of the Word Faith, Prosperity and garden-variety Arminian brands, to feed on the lush and verdant pastures of the Reformation thought, cannot hasten their exit. It’s all of God Who alone has the sovereign power to remove the scales from their eyes and to part the waters of doubt and ignorance that they may step onto the environs of wholesome nourishment.

Our task at this time is to be fervent in prayer, vigilant in seeking divine appointments for sharing our faith, and faithful in establishment “deliverance ministries” [we’re not sheep-stealers, we’re sheep-deliverers] to recognize and receive them when the Lord sends them in our direction. Our constant petition should be that God will continue to open up the eyes of all of His elect, more and more, to the manifold riches and wisdom of His grace which are so robustly and consistently captured in what is known as Reformed Theology. Amen.

So much for those that are being constantly initiated into the faith. But ..

What about Those Already Professing to Be Reformed?
But what about those who claim to be already grounded in Reformed thinking? What about those of us who believe we have a clear grasp of the faith once for all handed down to the saints? What are the responsibilities of those who have already tasted the goodness of the Lord as superbly protected and promoted by the Reformed Faith? Further, what is the impact of Reformed thinking on those of us who are already in Reformed denominations such as the PCA, ARP, EPC, and so on?

Yet further, what are the duties of those who are members of independent, non-connectional Reformed churches, for example, our Baptist brothers and sisters? Are we striving to apply Reformed teaching to all areas of our corporate and private lives? Are we constantly employing the maxim ecclesia reformata, semper reformanda (the Reformed church is always reforming) in all facets of our lives? Are we earnestly striving to bring every thought captive to this all-embracing rubric? Since Reformed Theology is a theistic worldview, should we not be about the business of diligently seeking to submit all areas of our lives to its principles? Or, are we satisfied to be quasi-Reformed, that is, Reformed in our acceptance of the minimal Five Points Of Calvinism without seeking to apply the entire body of truth to our views of the sacraments (Sacramentology); the nature, purpose, constitution, leaders, etc., of the church (Ecclesiology); to our liturgy, worship, and preaching; and lastly, to our evangelism and discipleship? Are we taking up the challenge to be semper reformanda, if in fact we are the ecclesia reformata?

The theological buck does not stop with an initial embrace of the Five Points but of necessity must continue to expand and to be extended to all areas of our lives, including sports, the arts, education, economics, politics, and the like. To fail to do so is to fall into the Reformed But… sindrome (sic).

Next issue: Some examples of the Reformed But… mindset.