This interview with Nicodemus is Can he enter the second time into his

particularly interesting, as being our mother's womb, and be born." To this

Lord's first contact with the purest and rejoinder, two exrreme interpretations
most intelligent Judaism onUs day. The have been given. He first altlibutes the
vOiceofProphecyhadbeensHentthrough utmost obtuseness of intellect to
four hundred years, but is now heard Nicodemus,astaldngChlist'swordinits
again: and h e J ~ h ruler, convinced by exact literalness. The second, regarding
the miracles of Christ that He was at least thisasincredible, amibutesto Nicodemus
a teamer sent from God, hastens to the a perfect comprehension of our Lord's
oracleforlight. ThenaLUreofhisinquiri.es parabolic style, whim he simply retorts
isnmphysical, but moral-tbat is tosay,
not a change in the organic structure of
the soul, nor an addition to the
complement of its faculties--but a
spiritual change wrought in its affections
andtastesanddesiresbythepowerofthe
Holy Ghost, and leading directly to acts
of holy obedience. This is clearly the
meaning of the phrase, "born of water."
ThisistheeJementofcleansing, profusely
is easily gathered from the
conversation between the
two. The cry had rung out
from the banks of the Jordan,
"the kingdom of heaven is at
hand;" and this "master in
Israel" would learn thenalUre
of that Idngdom, howitstood
affected to the ancient system
of Moses, and what were
Christ's personal relations to
the same.
JesushoweveranticipateS
hispupil,andanswersdirectly
tohishiddenthought."Rabbi,
we know that thou an a
teamer come from God; for
no man can do these miracles
that thou doest, except God be with :"
sum is the courteous introduction with
whim the interview is opened. But our
Lord cuts through all verbiage at once in
his reply, "verHy, verHy I say unto thee,
except a man be born again, he cannot
see the kingdom of God." As though he
had said, "you would ascertain what is
thenature of this Idngdom of the Messiah:
understand then that it can be known
only by participating in its blessings." A
German writer has quaintly, but truly
said: "the ldngdom of God is nothing
intowhimamancanthink,orinvesligate,
or study, or read, or hear, or talk, or
discuss himself-man can only
experience his way into the Idngdom of
God." The fundamental prerequisite,
therefore, our Lord teaches to be "the
newbinh."
Nicodemusstaggersatthemystery-
"how Calla man be born when he is old?
used under the old
economy as the symbol
of purity, and incor-
porated for the same
reason in the New
Testament Ordinance of
Baptism. To be "born of
water," then, according
to the fixed impon of the
symbol, is simply to be
. born again to holiness of
: . hean and life.
,_This. doctrine of "the
new birth", though
. myste!'i0us, is an ele-
:me1l(ary Christian truth,
placed by the great
Teacherin the front of all
in his dilemma. It might perhaps be His utterances. It is represented in
paraphrasedthus:"yourequirealtogether Scripture under other forms of
too much-it is morally as impossible expreSsion, equal in their emphasis.
for the fully formed thought or cl.!aracter Sometimes it is called a creation: "for we
toreverseitself,togobacktothebeginning are His workmanship, created in Christ
andfashionitselfanew,asitisphysically Jesus unto good works." (Eph. 2: 11) It
impossible for anadultto rerum into the is termed a 'resurrection: "lfuit like as
womb and be born a second time." Christ was raised from the dead .by the
Between these lies an intermediate glory of the Father, so we also should
opinion: that Nicodemus, surplised by walk in newness of life." (Rom, 6:4,5). It
the unexpected and startling assertion of is styled a quickening: "and you hath He
Christ, answers confusedly and quickened, who were dead in trespasses
foolishly-or else with craft, to draw and sins," (Eph.2:1) It is compared by
from Him a fuller explanation of His theprophettotheconversionofflintinto
meaning. Whatever may have been his flesh: "a new hean also will I give you,
design in asldng the question, our Lord, and a new spiritwill I putwithin you; and
inreafiinningthestatement,coupleswith I will take away the stony hean out of
it a sufficient exposition of its impolt: your flesh, and I will give you a hean of
"vetily, verHy I say unto thee, except a flesh. " (Ezek. 36: 26) These co-ordinate
man be born ofwaterandofthespilit, he expressions cenainly imply a change
calUlOt enter into the Idngdom of God." which is radical, pervading, trans-
The explanatory words, here added, fomting-acl.!angeasgreatinthefucullies
cJ.earlyindicate that the change required and movements of the soul, as that
8 ~ THE COUNSEL of Cbalcedon ~ February, March 1993
experienced in the body when a infant is
bom into the world; or when a corpse is
raised from the tomb. This change our
Lord declares to be indispensable to
salvation in His kingdom.
The subject naturally divides into
these two questions: What is the new
binh? and Why is it so necessary to our
salvation? The answers to both will
exhaust this discourse.
I.What,thenisittobebomagain? A
question of surprising difficulry, the
moment we pass beyond a
generaldescrlptionandat1empt
a scientific definition. An
illustration ortwo will perhaps
sufficiently indicate the
embarrassment. Herethenisa
corpse before us, perfect in its
structure, symmetrical in
feature and form, complete in
the ligaments which bind pans
together, covered with a
network of nerves and sinews
through which it should be
capable of sensation and of
motion. What is lacking?
Nothingbutlife-thelifewbich
should vitalize the whole. But
what is life? All, who shall
answer? Itevadesresearch. Theanatomist
has never taken it up on the point ofhis
scalpel, as he does the tissue or the cell,
with the joyful discovelY, 'see, here it is.'
Hemaydescribetheconditionson which
it depends; he may enumerate the signs
of its presence; hemayrecounttheresults
which it can accomplish. Butwhatitisin
itselfthemostadvancedsdencehasnever
been able to pronounce, and probably
will never be competent to disclose.
Now it is just this mystery of life
which we encounter, in discussing the
question of "the new birth"-a mystery
by so much the greater, as the spiritual
life ismore hidden and delicate than the
natural. Precisely the same difficulry
meets us in the exposition of the oDe, as
of the other. It is easy enough to say that
spiritual life depends, as the condition,
uponcommunionwithGodfromwhom
alone it is derived-and that Us certain
fruit will be a holy obedience to the will
< ,
of God. But this description of the life is
not the exhibition of it in Us primary
essence. On this account, the tteatises
which undenake the discussion of this
topic are laid d.own wiw. the most
profound disappointment. Theydescribe
"the new binh" on its negative, rather
thanitspositiveside. Theytellabundantly
what it isnot; but fail to point out exactly
whatitis. Thedefectisnoteasilysupplied.
Still, analogies have been suggested,
which do appear to throw light upon the
nature of the change in "the new birth."
For example, we speak of one man as
constirutionally irascible or malignant,
andofanotherasconstitutionallyamiable;
intending this to inrimate a tendency in
the two, to the class of actions which are
defined by these temlS. The soul is the
same in both as to its original structure,
having the same faculties, and under the
operation of the same general laws. But
the prevailing disposition, which lies
back of all these natural fuculties and
qualifies their action, is different in the
'two men. Thisinnerprindple, whatever
it be, which enthrones itself as a ruling
power within the soul, controlling its
affections and detennining its acts, may
be as difficult to seize and define as the
prindple which we call the life. Yet no
expositionofhumancharacterorconduct
is satisfactory, which does not signalize
it. In the abstract, as a thing to be
metaphysically understood and
expressed, the one is as difficult as the
other; in the concrete, as a daily fuct
thrusting itself upon the observation,
bothareequallypracticaland tangible. It
wouldbeaqueerdescriptionofmanthat
should make no reference to the
mysterious principle oflife residing, we
know not where nor, how, within the
frame-infonning every pan,
so that without its pervading
influence every limb would lie
passive and be incapable of
fulfilling any function. Equally
deferovewouldbe any analysis
ofman'sspiritnalnature, which
did not find seated in the midst
of its faculties the hidden and
prevailing disposition that
controls every manliestarion
and gives complexion and
character to every act.
But let us abandon these
abstractandmetaphysicalfomlS
of expression for illustrations
moreeasilyunderstood. When
we speak of the nature of the
lion, or of the lamb, of the tiger, of the
bear,orofthedog,40wemeananything
more than the haflitual disposition of
these animals which determines their
character and conduct Knowing this,
we can pronounce beforehand what their
behavior will be under given
circumstances. !nUke manner we speak
of a holy nature in the saint, and of a
wicked nature in the sinner; meaning by
thisa holy or sinful prindpledominating
in the one and in the other, determining
their actions and giving them moral
character in the eye of the law.
Thus when God in the first instance
created man, He not only created the
soul with all its faculties of memory,
judgmem, conscience, hean and will,
necessary to constitute him a responsible
andirnmonalbeing; butHeplaced within
that soul, in the bosom of all its powers,
February, March 1993 TIlE COUNSEL of Chalcedon 9
"
.'
a holy disposition which should preside
overthewholeas theprincipleofspiritual
life, manifesring itself'in holy exercises
and acts of obedience, Thisptinctplesin
has destroyed. The soul remains in its
srructnrewhatitwasbeforetheFal1. The
same fac:ultiesre!Illl!n to the sinner, which
are necessary to him as man. He could
not be divested of one of these, without
being divested of respOnsibility, and
without being thrown in a different
category from that whichhewas created.
TIle fundamental dispOsition, however
has been changed. The
sinner into spiIituallife by restoring the
lost plinciple of holiness. The man, who
is "born again," finds that he is "born of
the water and of the Spirit"; since under
the new disposition which has been
implanted, the whole character is toned
to acts of purity and obedience.
let us take another illustration. Two
meu look together upon the same
landscape: the one, with the "dull,leaden
eyeofanox"-theother, with the keenest
appreciation ofits beauty. What precisely
makes the difference the two? Bodl have
soul finds itself attracted; and in its
contemplation there is conscious and
ineffable delight. In this experience the
sinner cannot share, simply from the
insensibilitywhichmustalwaysattachto
spiritual death.
Hence it appears that the change,
which is wrought in regeneration, is not
a physical change upon the substance of
the soul, alteringitssrructure orenlarging
the number of its faculties; but it is a
moral change, in the implanting a new
and holy disposition which, by the
principle of holiness has been
supplanted by that of sin;
which henceforth, as the
regulative principle, moves the
man in a direction forbidden
Illn the new birth, the HolySpirit
restores this lost principle of
holinessj which, ;s, from the be-
constitution of our being, will
direct and qualify all the future
exercises of the man. Thus he
will see with a new light in the
understanding, will feel with a
new direction in the affections,
and will choose with a new
powerinthewill. Holinesshas
been restored to its original
. supremacy in the soul; the
usurpation oEsin has ceased;
by God's law.
In the new birth, the Holy
Spirit restores this lost
pririciple ' 6T holineSS; which
is, from the beginning, the
principle of spiritual life in
'. ginning, the principle of spiritual
. life inman. Hence the propriety
of the technical phrases under
which His work is described."
marr. Hencetheproprietyofthetechnica1
phrases under which His work is
described.
He "quickens" those "dead in
trespasses and sins"; because the
restoration of holiness, as a ruling
principle in the soul, is the restoration of
its true and rea1life. Of course, its power
is at once displayed in the holy acts
which it prompts; and the change is
visible in the character and life of the
believer. It is jUst as though God should
supernaturally change the original
disposition of the tiger into that of the
Lamb, manifesting itself in a
corresponding change in the
characteristic acts of the two. Or, itisjust
like dle graft which infuses a new virtue
into the tree, qualifying the fruit it shall
hereafter produce, without altering the
texture or displacing a single fiber in
trunk or limb. So the etemal Spirit,
movinguponandthroughallthepowers
of the human soui without infringing
their liberty of action, "quickens" the
the same physical and mental o r g n ~
izarion - they have the same eyes, the
same faculties of thought and will- the
perceptions of sense are exacdy the same
in both. What then is the difference?
Simply this: one has sensibiliry and taste,
the other has not. It may be an original
or an acquired faculty; but it explains the
fact that in the same drcumstances and
with identically the same sensations, one
has the feeling of beauty which tl).e other
has not. The possession of this aesthetic
principle by the one, orits absence in the
other, qualifies the exercise of soul as to
the appreciation of natural beauty. In
like manner, there is SUdl a thing as
moral beauty; in accordance with that
exqUisite epithet of David's in several of
hisPsalms,whenhespeaksof"thebeauty
of holiness." cPs. 27:4, 50:2, 60:17, and
110:3) But this requires a holy taste for
its discernment; which is possessed by
the renewed in healt, because implanted
by dle Holy Ghost in "the new birth."
There is a ready appreciation of the
loveliness that is in God, to which the
10 ~ THE COUNSEL of Olalcedon t- February, Mardi 1993
and the whole character puts
on the livery of the power which it obeys.
TIlls transformation is effected by the
Holy Spirit, in a direct exercise of
supernatural and gracious power. Yet it
is accomplished in a way perfectly
congruous with man's rational nature-
by illumination ofthemind, purification
of the affections,. and dire cd on of the will.
The great perplexity is in reconciling the
essential activity of man's spirit with that
degree of passiveness necessary to the
receptionofanewprindplefrom without.
Undoubtedlythesoulisactive;wecannot
conceive it to be otherwise. Neither in
this world, nor in that to come, is this
necessary activity ever remitted. Yet,
from the nature of the case,maniswholly
passive in regeneration- not so much
the agent as the patient-not the subject
who acts, but the object which is acted
upon. How shall we reconcile the
amazing paradox? How shall we trace
the activity so essential to spirit, in the
very moment when it is . the passive
redpient of an inIluence by which its
wholecharacteristransfonned? Perhaps every act, and which is brought at once TIle other is a change in our actual
an analogy drawn from one of Mr. character, whereby we are sanctified for
Coleridge's acute distinctions, so Second, the Holy Spirit is the author of God's.service and presence. TIle two are
characteristic of his subtle genius, rnay this change; who yet aa:omplishes it in distinguishable in thought, though
help to clear up the apparent perfect hamlony wim the fundamental inseparablyconnectedinexperience. By
contradiction. "Inattention,"hesays, the laws of our spiritual economy, never the logic of grace, the fonner draws the
mind is passive- receiving impressions interfering with that spontaneity which latter after it by necessary consequence;
from wimout: "in thought, it is active- is essential to responsibility. It is rather forwhen God takes the sinner into favor,
producing from itself." And yet is there His office to enlighten the mind, topurge if this he not wholly delnsive, He must
not intense activity in the eagemess with the affections, and to maguetize the will; render himalso capable ofitsenjoyment.
which these external ,.-___________________ ---, All God's judgments are
impressions are taken up aa:ordingto tmth; and He
by the mind? Must not "Salvation involves two elements-- candecrarenornanblessed
powerbe exerted to ahigh deliverance from the guilt. and then whoisnotapartakerofHis
degree, in simply holding from the power of sin . ... The one is a grace. If the sinner is
the mind in that receptive chan.ge in our legal state . whereby we released from condem-
condition which is the . . . nation, it is bemuse a real
peculiarmarkofattention? pass from the condemnation of the righteousness has been
All me anguisb of mental law and are justified before God. The reckoned to him as his
discipline lies just in tllis, other is a change in our actual char- own; and if, being
to gain that mastery over aaer.. whereby we tlF<. e sanctilied For righteous, he is to lie upon
our'ownfacultieSwhichis ,.' I' the Divine bosom, then
necessary to the acquisition God's service and presence. The two must his impurity, as well
. or to me reproduction of are distinguishable in thought. though as his guilt, be removed-
lmowledge. This illus- inseparably connected in experience." lest God be deffied. Hence
tration will serve to show the two are presented in
that activity may not be '-------------------'-------' their close conjunction,
intemlitted, but may be called to its sothat,wimthepowerofanewlife,man throughout the SCriptures: "there is
highest exertion, whilst yet we are the shall himself cling to God as the sum of therifore now no condemnation to Nlem
passive reCipients of a new power alllmowledge, of all holiness, of all , which are in Qllistjesus, WhoWa1kllotafter
communicated to us from witllout. Just blessedness and love. Third, that while fill flesh, butafter the Spirit." (Romans 8: l-
as this mighty river, which girdles our tlrrough every change in his experience 5) "For if we have bfel! planted together in
city, rnay be instantly arrested in its flow the sintllr is perfectly conscious of his the likeness of His aduh, we shall be also ill
and turned back in its course- and essential activity, yet in "me new birfu" the likeness of His resurrection; knowing
there will be only a metaphysical point of he is that passive recipient of a new life, this, that our old man is crucified with Him,
timeatwhichitswatersarenotinmotion: justasincreationorasintheresurrection tlmt the body of sin mightbe destroyed, that
so the whole current of the sinner's of the dead from the tomb. hencejortJtwesl1OU1dlwtservesin." (Romans
thought and feeling may suddenly be II. But I pass from this abstmse and 6:5,6)
turned from the world to God- and difficult dleme, to the asseltion in the
whilst he is entirely passive in the text of the absolute necessity of the new
supernatural change, mere will not be an binh: "velily, velily r say unto thee, except
instant in which he is not conscious of a man be bom again he caJUlot see illl
the fulness of his activity and Kingdom of God."
responsibility before God. 1. The dominion of sin can only thus
Gathering up these thoughts into be broken. Salvation involves two
distinct propositions, we reach tlrree elements- dehverance from me guilt,
conclnsions: First, that in "the new and then from the power of sin. TIle one
birtll" a supernatural change is wrought isa relative change-the other, an actual.
upon the whole nature of the sirmer, in The one is a change in our legal state,
the transformation of that inner wherebywepassfromthecondemnation
disposition which givescolorand tone to of me law and are justified before God.
Such is the constant testimony of
Scripture, that where the guilt of sin has
been cancelled through that mighty
solvent, the atoning blood of Christ-
there the power of sin must also be
broken, and its dominion must be
ovenhrowninthe human heart This, of
course, is accomplisbed in our
sanctification, which must have its
beginning in the ''new bilth". Just as in
mathematics you conoeive of the point
before you conceive of the line, and yet
the point loses itself immediately in the
February, March 1993 t THE COUNSEL or CbaIcedon t 11
"
, I
I
!
[
linewhichitgenerares-sotheprinciple
of spiritual life implanted in the new
binh, moves forward from that pOint;
and in its grand progression marks out
the broad, blessed line of a holy life,
through which we grow in meetness for
the presence and glOlY of our Father
above. The power of sin is first broken,
when weare bomanewintothekingdom
of God. Holiness is then planted in the
genn; which will, in the completeness of
its growth, finally expel sin and destroy it
in its being no less than in its dominion
and power.
2. "The new birth" is indispensable to
obedience and good works. Hereliesthe
precise distinction between morality and
religion-two things which men so
CUllOUSly and obstinately confound. The
moralist does a thousand right thingS,
compelling thereby the approbation of
the good. But he does them from natural
considerationsofprbpriety or prudente,
and makes his own judgment the
Standard or law. Plainly there is no
obedience, until it is rendered in
conformity with the will of another-in
deference to his authority and honor,
and under the impulse of a constraining
personal affectiort Our Saviour, you
remember, resolves all the obedience
which God approves into the single
prindp\e oflove; "thou shalt love the Lord,
thy God, with all thy heart, and wid1 all d1Y
soul, and with all thy mind; this is Ole first
andgreat commwu:lmi:nt And the secondis
like unto ~ thou shalt love thy neighbor as
thyself. On these two commal1dments hang
all the law andtheprophets." (Matt. 22:37-
39) "Love," declares the Apostle Paul in
his comprehensive style, "love is the
fulfilling oj the law: (Romans 123: 10)
Evidently there can be no love, except it
be directed to a person; who, ifhe should
stand in the relation of a ruler, must
present his authority as the object of our
regard. Obedience, therefore, is more
than outward confonnity, in life and
conduct, to the letter of the law; it is the
homage which our whole inner nature
renders to the will and glory of God.
Before the sinneris competent to this, he should have onesolitarymembercJinging
mustbecalledfromdeathtolife. Spiritual to Him, who is "dead in trespasses and
life is the necessary antecedent of true sins"? No; He who covers us with His
obedience, just as natutallife is the lighteousnessbecauseofourunionwith
amecedent ofbreatll and motion. Him in law, will also quicken us with His
Look at Lazarus "bound hand and life that we may be one with Him in fact.
foot with grave_clothes." Can the dead Intlleconjunctionofthetwo, llremystical
stir? Can that motionless breast heave Christ becomes an object most beautiful
withmightyresolves? Canhecomeforth to the lllOught; in their severance, an
whilst the great stone, rolled against the objectso hideous that we shut it out from
mouth of the tomb seals him up to ,the mind as blasphemy.
darlmess and despair? Only let Him Consider too that the Holy Spirit is
speak who is "the Resurrection and the the bond of this union. But what a
life" -let Hint, whoholdsinHishands contradiction, iliat He who is ilie
the keys of death and hell, utter the word Quickener- whose name indicates His
"Lazarus,come{orth"-andbehindthe function as the giver of life- should
banier of rock the Almighty Quickener dwell in a healt lllat is dead! It is only
breathes once more into those decaying necessary to put ilie terms of ilie
nostrils the breath of life. So when the proposition together, to see that they are
same immortal I<ing . .shall, from His mutually destructive. The great promise
throne of power, utter the same "corne of our ascending Lor dwasthatHe would
forth" to thesinner dead in transgressiOn' send "the ComJorter, tl1at He may abide
and guilt;<the Holy. GbQst ,willbreathe , <with you Jorever. J o h n 14: 16) And the
into him thespirituallifewhic!t will burst instant He enters the soul however dead
thecruel.fetters,and"c,reatehimanewin insin,itbecomesinstinctwithlifewhich
ChristJesus unto good works." thispresence breathes. Whetherthen we
3. "Thenewbirth" is necessary to an look at union with Christ, on the one
livingunion with Christ. Thisis the exact hand-or the indwelling of the Spirit, on
pivot upon which our salvation turns. the other, wough which the union is
However complete the redemption accomplished- we see the necessity of
wrought by our adorable substitute, it is the new birth. "Except a man be bom
altogether foreign to us until it becomes agam, he cmmot see the kingdom of
ours by identification with its author. God. "
But this union is two-fold, in law and in 4. "The new birth" isindispensable to
fact. It is legal when, in ourjustification, fellOWShip willl God. Need I say that this
the law reckons to us the work of] esus is the original instinct, and the high
Christ; on which ground alone we are prerogative of every rational creature?
absolved from condemnation and are Just for this, my hearers, you and I were
accepted before God. It is vital when we born, to hold fellowship with God! And
are made partakers of ilie life whim is thereareobscureyeamingsforthisinthe
"hid with Christ in God." (Col 3:3) hidden depths of every human heart. If
"Because 1 live, " says Christ, ye shaIllive the ears were only open to hear them,
also. (John 14:19) "As the living Father there are solemn voices of the soul
had1 sent me, and I live by dle Fail1er; so he continually crying out for God. Every
tl1at eateth nle, even he shall live by 111." earthly love, by which life is sweetened,
(John 6:57) is witness to the truth that the heart
It is necessary that we should live, if which loves the finite can find its
united with Christ. Can anything more satisfaction onlyin me love of theinfinite.
monstrous be conceived than that the Everythoughtis a sparkascendingto the
living Lord, who has purchased life for Great Mind, of which all otherminds are
His people through His own sufferings, bom Every movement of discontem is
12 ~ TIlE COUNSEL of ChaIcedon f- February, March 1993
the soul'sscorn of thatwhich is "seen and
temporal." Every aspiration ofambition
is the flutter of the wing which would
mount into the !ace of the sun.
Itisthegreat discoveryofgracewhich
makes one wise forever, to learn tbat God
only is the all-sufficient good. "There be
many that say, who will show us any good?
Lord, liftthou up the lijltoJ thycoWltenance
upon us. (Ps 4:6) But we must be like
God, to hold communion with Him:
"Can two wall< together, except filey be
agreed?" (Amos 3:3) To ti1is end, the
Saviour's utterance holds true: "except a
man be born again, he cannot see the
Kingdom oj God."
5. "The new birth" is
absolutely necessarY to the
enjoyment ofheaven. This
completes the idea of
salvation, as being
deliverance from the guilt,
the stain, and the being of
sin; beginning in justi-
fication, carried forward in
sanctification, and ending
inourtranslationtoheaven.
Could we but look into
God's lexicon, we should
see not the difference, but
the identity, between the
grace and the glory- the
twowordswhichliesonear
together in the dictionary of
the gospel. Grace is gloryin
its beginning-itis glory in theseed and
in the genn. Glory is grace in its ripe
fruitage; it is the light shining through aU
the graces of the believer, bursting at
length into the full splendor ofJehovah's
blessedness and joy upon the Mount of
God, which is to be the Mount of the
soul's transfiguration forever.
If then we are to see the light of that
"upper day" -if we are to lookuponthe
!ace of God's throne, and to hathe our
spirits in the glory of His presence-,- the
beginning point is in the new biI1h,
where we first experience "Ou grace oj
God that bringeth salvation The elecuic
circuit is not complete, except the two its slumber disturbed by any dream of
poles be put in connection. We must such a mystery. Yet it is clear tilat, if a
first Im6w that as grace, which in the end religion is to be devised for a sinner, tl1is
we are to lmow as glory. It is in the new new spiritual birth is on of the great
birth we first come to the knowledge of wants to be provided for. The absence,
holiness of God, which is to be the light therefore, of such a docuine in any
and joy of the soul forever. Well may the religious system, is suffident to couvictit
tJuth return upon us in the double of inlposture; whilst the prominence
emphasis of our Lord's testimony, "velily, assigned to it in the Sacred Scriptures,
vmly I say unto thee, except a man be bom proves their divine origin; and thesystem
again, he Call1Wt see the Kingdom oj God." of grace which they reveal, isshown to be
In the application of this subject, lam a safe foundation for a sinner's hope.
constrained, first, to call your attention Were I then driven to the last defense of
to the apologetic value of this doonne of Christianity, I would plant myself upon
the new biI1h. Let it be observed that this declaration of the Saviourinthe text,
and stake the issue upon it.
If the Gospel be the only
system that provides for the
regeneration ofman deadin
sin, thenisittheonlyreligion
that comes from God, and
the only religion which is
suited to our case.
In the second place, I
reason that, as "the new
bilth COIlles from God, so
every sinner is thrown in
absolute dependence upon
God. And again-because
this "new biI1h"is from God,
every sinner ntay hope to
experilince it through the
working of His grace and
power. It is a two-edged
doctrine cutting through
Christianity is dle only religion of which presumptionontheoneside,andthrough
thisuuthconstitutesa part. Heathenism, despair on the other-like the sword of
in all its fonus, knows nothing of it; nor the Cherubinl, turning every where as it
yet any of the subtle and dreamy guarded the way of the tree of life. Hear
theosophies of the East. Both ntay have the universal proclamation, "ye must be
thetrceremoniesofablutionsymbolizing bomagain!" Ifanyofyou, like the proud
the notion of puIiry, as their altars and builders upon the plain of Shinar, are
sacrifices sbadow fonh the idea of layingresolveuponresolve, reform upon
expfution. But in none of their liturgical reform, constructing a tower of refuge
rites, nor in their dogmas of religious from the coming deluge of Jehovah's
laidl, is the hint breathed thata soul dead wrath-learn how vain it is! Except a
in sin can be born again in the image of man beBORN AGAlN, he cannot see the
God. Deism has no place forsuchatruth kingdom of God. The Divine life must
in its narrow creed. Rationalism, in its come from above: the creative power
thousand Protean disguises, never had must be exetted again, as it was at the
February, March 1993 ~ TIlE COUNSEL of Chalcedon ~ l3
first; the voice that wakes the dead must
call the sinner from his spirimal grave.
If, under a sense of tllis dependence,
you fold your hands and say "what can
we do," I will tell you this: you can hope
abundantly in the power and goodness
ofIiim who ha2 the life to give, because
He is HimseU the life. Wonderfull my
hearers, wonderful that our hope should
come right up from the bottom of our
despair! Wonderful, that our life should
spring out of the body of our death! Dead
insin, and therefore helplessly dependent
upon God-who,just as soon as we feel
this, turns His face and says to us, live.
Cry outto HIm, 0 sinner! Cry, as you
never cried before! Cry, as the wild
eagle cries when hungry for its prey!
Cry, as the young lion wheu he makes
the forest tremble with his roar! He,
"whoprovidethfortheravenhisfood,"
may hear your wail of anguish, and
open for you the prison doors and give
youlifeoutofdeath. Oh, when did the
orphan's cry ever fall upon the ear of
the great Father above, without his
drawing the wanderer to His hosom,
and saying "this my SOli was dead and
is alive again, was lost and is found!"n
*"You must be horn again. **
JiJ:::: 8CCC8
Southern California Center for Christian Studies
Instructor: Dr. Greg L. Bahnsen
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H TIlE COUNSEL of Chalcedon February, March 1993