Cause and Effect

5 July 2014

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The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit. John 3:8
dominos

We have already seen that the new birth is not something we accomplish by an act of will or motion. The new birth is something that happens to us. The Holy Spirit works by His own sovereign power without man's help or means and raises us to spiritual life from our condition of death in trespasses and sins.

I should also note here that the new birth occurs the same way for every child of God. Some are not born with the means of prayer or preaching and others not. All are born again the exact same way. The believer is born again the same way as the infant who dies pre-born or the person who never had the ability to understand any form of human communication.

Belief does not cause the new birth nor is our faith instrumental in bringing it about. Our faith is given to us whenwe are born again. Therefore, it cannot be a cause or an instrument in it. Further, we are not born again when we believe the gospel. The new birth makes it possiblefor us to be a believer!

Before we are born again, we are only natural creatures operating with natural understanding. We cannot understand spiritual things.

"Which things also we speak, not in the words which man’s wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual. But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned." 1st Corinthians 2:13-14

We don't understand spiritual things just because we study better than other people. That was the very problem with the doctrine of Nicodemus and the Pharisees. We can only understand spiritual things after the Holy Spirit begins dwelling in us in the new birth.

Just like you can only see the effects of wind, you can only see the effects of the new birth. Our belief is an effect, not a cause.

"Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life." John 5:24

Belief is an evidence that person already has (hath) everlasting life. Their belief is proof that they have already passed from a state of spiritual death to being spiritually alive by the new birth.

Belief in the gospel of Jesus Christ is not the cause of eternal salvation or of the new birth. However, it is probably the clearest evidence that a person has been saved by the sovereign grace of God. But the scriptures do point to other evidences as well.

"Then Peter opened his mouth, and said, Of a truth I perceive that God is no respecter of persons: but in every nation he that feareth him, and worketh righteousness, is accepted with him." Acts 10:34-35

"We know that we have passed from death unto life, because we love the brethren." 1st John 3:14a

Tags: grace, harmony_of_the_gospels, jesus, john, new_birth, nicodemus, regeneration

Welcome

Brentwood Hills Primitive Baptist Church is a community of believers working together to transform our lives to the image of Jesus Christ. We believe it is our duty and privilege to live the gospel of the doctrines of grace in such a way as to edify the families within our church and other children of God in our community. Through regular worship based on strong Biblical principles, fellowship, admonishment, and outreach, we glory in the grace of the sovereign God working in our lives thereby showing the Spirit of God in the world.

Brentwood Hills was organized in 1906 in Fort Worth, Texas as Laodicea Primitive Baptist Church. You can find much of the history of the church, as well as other churches here: Primitive Baptist History Database

We identify ourselves as an old-line Primitive Baptist church. If you read our Articles of Faith, you’ll see that we hold to such doctrines as the inspiration and inerrancy of the Bible. We recognize the King James Version (KJV) as the only English translation worthy of being called the Bible. We believe in salvation solely by the grace of a sovereign God. We believe that Jesus Christ, the only begotten Son of God, came to the earth to do the will of His Father, which was to deliver from the sentence of death all those the Father gave Him before the world began. We believe that Jesus fully satisfied the Father by atoning for all the sins of all His people. In time, we believe the Holy Spirit comes to each person that belongs to Jesus and regenerates them. Then (and only then) can anyone have faith, which is a fruit of the Spirit, by which you are able to believe the glorious gospel of Jesus Christ. Whether or not you ever hear the gospel, or believe it if you did hear it, or obey it if you did believe it, rest assured that Jesus will remain forever faithful to you because, if He died for you, He will never deny that you belong to Him.

We believe that everyone for whom Christ died will without fail be raised again from the dead to a glorified life. Even if we are alive when He returns to raise the dead, we shall be changed to a glorified life. All the Redeemed will meet the Lord in the air. Then He will take us to Heaven and there we shall forever be with the Lord. The wicked will be raised at the same time as the righteous, but the wicked shall go away into everlasting punishment along with Satan and his angels. Until that glorious day when Christ returns to raise the dead, He has provided a place for His people to find rest for their souls. This place is the Church. Jesus Christ set-up His church on this earth before His death on the Cross. The church is there for those of His people who have come to believe that God saved them by His Son, Jesus Christ. To believe that Christ “paid it all” gives believers the strongest motivation to serve Him. Once enlightened to this glorious truth, then the child of God should feel an obligation to become and remain an active member of the His church. To serve the Lord in His church makes for one of the great blessings to experience this side of Heaven. It fulfills you to serve in His church and it gives your life purpose and meaning.

Living in Liberty

Elder Bryce Lowrance

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