Spiritual Disciplines VS Reformed Theology ( Part 3) | Theocast

Welcome to Part 3 of Spiritual Disciplines. Up to this point, we have been told by specifically

Don Whitney in his book Spiritual Disciplines that the only way to Christian maturity is through spiritual disciplines.

We're going to compare that to the Reformers and the Bible. Stay tuned. Hi, I'm Jon Moffitt.

I'm the pastor of Grace Reformed Church and host of Theocast. This is Ask Theocast where we answer your questions from a

Reformed and pastoral perspective. So this is Part 3. If you've not heard the first two,

I would encourage you to go listen to them. We talk about where spiritual disciplines come from. We do book reviews of the most popular books today that are written on it.

And now we're going to look at the scriptures and the confessions to see what historically has been the answer to how do we grow to be more like Christ.

That is what spiritual disciplines is getting at. We all ask that question, right? What is sanctification or the process becoming more godly, more like Christ?

What does that look like? And throughout the ages, there's been several answers. It seems like the most famous answer has been spiritual disciplines, but that's not been the historical answer as it relates to our understanding of scripture.

And we're going to look at history to help us then interpret or see the lens of the mistakes that have been made.

And then we'll finally look at the Bible to answer the question, how do we act more like Christ?

So we're going to begin by looking at the confessions. You can compare this with the

Westminster Confession, which is the Presbyterian Confession. We're going to be specifically looking at the 1689 and Chapter 17.

And then we're going to also look at another chapter as it relates to good works. But in Chapter 17, it talks about the the saints.

And the reason why I want to go to this specific chapter is it's related to what spiritual disciplines get tripped up on.

Basically, what does the Christian life look like after salvation? What are we doing?

What are we looking to? The way it's been presented to me when I was first growing up, if you've grown up in evangelicalism or fundamentalism, once you're saved,

God did His work. Now it's your job to do your work. And here are all the ways in which you now discipline yourself.

And we're going to, of course, look at Galatians where Paul talks about that. Let me read this to you. It says, as relation to how we should see our relationship to God and the progress or the process by which we go from salvation to glorification or from the moment we become reborn in Christ and the moment

He takes us home. Chapter 17 .1 says this, those

God has accepted in the beloved, effectually called and sanctified by the Spirit and given the precious faith of His elect can neither totally nor finally fall from a state of grace.

They will certainly preserve in grace to the end and be eternally saved because the gifts and callings of God are irrevocable.

Therefore, He still brings about and nourishes in them faith, repentance, joy, love, hope, and all the graces of the

Spirit that lead to immortality. So the Reformed have always believed that not only our faith, but the way in which we are sustained in our faith is by grace alone, by the power of the

Spirit. It is not by our own work. So we don't preserve ourselves or keep ourselves saved by our own works.

Even though many storms and floods arise and beat against them, yet these things will never be able to move the elect from the foundation and rock to which they are anchored by faith.

The felt side of the light and love of God may be clouded and obscured from them for a time through their unbelief and temptation of Satan, yet God's still the same.

They will certainly be kept by the power of God for salvation, or they will enjoy the purchase process.

So the foundation of our faith has always been we are saved by faith and we are also preserved, and I will argue here in a minute, sanctified by faith in the work of Christ, not by performing external actions like spiritual disciplines.

Let me go on to this next point. It says this, point two, this perseverance of the saints does not depend on their own free will but on the unchangeableness of the decree of election.

You can say that spiritual disciplines really do play into the concept of your free will, meaning the decisions that you make about disciplining yourself and whatever the list is.

The reformers have always taught, no, it's not based upon what you are doing, but it says this, on the unchangeableness of the decree of God, which flows from the free and unchangeable love of God of the

Father. It is based on the efficacy and of the merit and intercession of Jesus Christ and union with Him, the oath of God and the abiding of His Spirit, the seed of God within them and the nature of the covenant of grace.

The certainty and infallibility of their perseverance is based upon all of these things. So every single part of our hope is always pointed to outside of us, the work of Christ, our connection to God, which is also union in Christ is what that means.

So there's a list of verses that are given here. We're going to look at one specifically, but you can go to the confession and see where they make the argumentation from these verses.

This is where Paul even has, this is not new, this idea that I'm saved and now I sanctify myself by working hard.

This is not a new concept at all. Paul is dealing with it in the Galatians chapter two, verse three. He says this, let me ask you only this, did you receive the

Spirit by works or sorry, by works of the law or by hearing with faith?

Are you so foolish having begun by the spirit? Are you now being perfected by the flesh?

He is arguing that they are going back to the law and works of the law to sanctify themselves or to preserve themselves or to grow in the more likeness of Christ.

And he's saying you're foolish for doing that because the way in which you begun is the way in which you will continue, which is by faith in Christ.

It is not by works of the flesh. Philippians 1 .6 is another good passage to look at.

I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion on the day of Jesus Christ. Began meaning our birth in Christ, finish meaning

Christ is going to finish what he has begun. So those are some helpful just overviews.

One of our confession, this has been held to for hundreds of years now. This is the conclusion that we have come to that many men have fought for and have seen clearly taught in scripture as an example.

Now the question is, but John, if you hold that perspective, then what is the purpose of good works and where do the good works come from?

Let's answer that question. There's a whole chapter on it called good works chapter 16.

And let me read you a couple of paragraphs because I think it's going to be helpful in understanding the nature between good works and our sanctification, our growth in Christ.

Good works and our standing before God and how the two match together. So it says this, good works are only those works that God has commanded in his holy word.

Works that do not have this warrant are invented by people out of blind zeal or on a pretense of good intention and are not truly good.

This is a great quote from the writers of the confession because it is so easy to see something as good or as holy or instituted by the church and assume that as I do this, or if I discipline myself to do this, then this is what

God will use to make me more godly. And the writers of the confession saying, which

I agree and Paul says in Colossians when he argues with, it has the appearance of wisdom, but it's of no help.

He's talking about man -made laws, requirements. We can say a lot of the lists that are there in and of themselves aren't sinful, but they are not good works that are promised according to scripture to be that of acceptable in the eyes of God, or you could say to sanctify oneself.

So, let's just be as a good example. It also says this, their ability to do good works does not arise at all from themselves, but entirely from the spirit of Christ to enable them to do good works that they needed in addition to the graces they have already received, salvation, an actual influence of the same

Holy Spirit to work in them to will and to good for his good pleasure, quoting Paul right there. So, even if we do good works, we cannot take credit for them because those good works are the result of the spirit in us.

Nevertheless, point six, believers are accepted through Christ and thus their good works are also accepted in him.

Okay, so yes, our good works matter and yes, they are accepted, but they are always accepted based upon Christ and not our actual works.

I love this next section. This acceptance does not mean our good works are completely blameless and irreproachable in God's sight.

Instead, God views them in his son so he is pleased to accept and reward that which is sincere, even though it is accomplished by many weaknesses and imperfections.

You will never have God accept your good works based upon them alone.

They're always based upon Christ. Okay, now what we want to do is look at scripture.

First of all, our good works and our progress is not based upon our own effort. The spirit is the one who perseveres us to the end.

Secondly, when we do good works, those good works are not accepted on the merit of our own actions because they're not perfect.

Those are also by faith trusting in Christ. Then what is the Christian life and sanctification for and about?

This is what we're going to look to scripture here to then answer the final question and really both of these paragraphs are taken from these sections that we're going to look at, which is

Ephesians 4. Let me just slow down. I only have a few minutes left, so I want to say this before I read this section.

What people are looking for, how and what am I supposed to be doing? How do

I become more like Christ? How do I fight against my sin? How do I not be tossed about by everyone of doctrine?

How do I not be tripped up to believe false teachers? Paul specifically gives us the answer of what the

Christian life looks like. The beginning of Ephesians 4, he says, walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called.

He's saying you've been called into the family of God, you've been adopted, and this is how you are now to act, with meekness and gentleness and patience, eager to maintain the bond of peace.

He immediately draws you out post -salvation. He draws you into the body of Christ.

Later on in the chapter, he says this about the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit gave the apostles, the prophets, evangelists, and shepherds and teachers to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ until we all attain the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the

Son of God, catch this, to mature manhood to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, so that we are no longer be children tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by everyone of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness and deceitful schemes.

Did you hear what he said there? He's talking about where our sure faith is. We are growing to maturity.

It's crazy. So much so that we aren't tossed about, and we're not falling for the human cunning, or we have talking heads who are really smart and sound great, but we're not going to fall for their theology because we've been trained well in Christ.

Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into Him, into the head.

How are we to grow, Paul? He says we're to grow up. This is what we're talking about, right? Spiritual disciplines is the means to spiritual growth.

Spiritual disciplines is the means to maturity, but Paul doesn't say that. He says this.

Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into Him, into His head, from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love.

The Reformed belief has been, and the confessions have taught, and the argument comes here clearly from Ephesians—we're going to look at a couple more passages—that the way in which we grow into the knowledge and maturity of Christ is through the means that God has given us, which is the preached word, the local community, the body functioning as it should through fellowship, through singing, through sacrament—we're going to learn here very soon—which is the

Lord's table, and baptism, which are also reflections of God's word, visibly and tangibly held, preaching, leading us back to the gospel.

Paul makes such a clear argument here that our growth is not an individual pursuit by discipline.

If you're going to discipline yourself, which it does require, by the way, the Christian life requires a lot of discipline.

For me to love sinners, I have to be disciplined through meekness and joy and patience and kindness, and to actually function, as Paul says here, like when the body functions properly, which means

I have to discipline my schedule and my finances and my time to make sure that I'm a part of the body. So a lot of where we place our discipline, which is inwardly,

Paul points it the other way. Discipline yourself for the sake of the church, where growth is found.

Let me read to this to you as well. Hebrews 10 .23 and following it says, Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful, and let us consider how to stir one another up to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together as the habit of some, but encouraging one another all the more as we see the day drawing near.

Our confession of hope immediately drawn into encouraging one another, because that is the way in which we find hope.

He even says earlier in Hebrews 3 .13, but exhort one another every day, as long as it is called the day, that none of you be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.

So the way in which we grow, the way in which we fight sin is a community. We're gathered together around God's word.

It's not just fellowship, eating and drinking together and talking about life, but it's

God's word in community, using it, encouraging one another. I mean, we are even told,

I don't have it on here, but we're even told to sing it to one another. So this is why we actually sing in church.

But one last exhortation that your good works matter in 1

Thessalonians 5 talks about why our good works matter, and it says this, 1 Thessalonians 5 .9,

for God has not destined us for wrath, but to attain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, who died for us so that whether we are awake or asleep, we might live with them.

Therefore, encourage one another and build one another up just as you are doing. We ask you, brothers, to respect those who labor among you and over you in the

Lord and admonish you and esteem them very highly in love because of their work.

Be at peace among yourselves, and we urge you, brothers, to admonish the idle, encourage the fainthearted, help the weak, be patient with them all.

So yes, your good works matter, but they matter in encouraging, sustaining, and building one another up.

So is there discipline in the Christian life? Yes, but that discipline is not you in solitude.

It's not you doing these outward actions, thinking that if I do this, I will be more like Christ or I'll be matured.

The Word of God does the exact opposite. It points us towards something outside of ourselves.

One, our faith in Christ. Two, our hope in Christ. Three, the body of Christ centered around the Word of God and the sacraments.

This is what historically has been known as the means of grace. We believe, and it's what's been taught through the historic confessions and Reformed theology, is that the means of grace, the public teaching and preaching of God's Word, the sacraments, the

Lord's table, and baptism, and prayer corporately gathered together through fellowship is how we grow in Christ.

So if you want to discipline yourself, make sure that you're setting aside anything that would be distracting you from those means.

Hopefully that was encouraging. If you have a follow -up question or you have a comment, we do our best to read all those in reply.

If this was helpful, please hit that like button and make sure you subscribe and hit the notification bell for our next video.

Down below, I will provide a couple of other resources that are related to sanctification, what does it look like to grow, and we also have a free e -book that explains a little bit more about what

I've been talking about, ordinary means of grace and confessions. It's called Faith vs. Faithfulness or Primer on Rest. You can find that down below.