The Spirit and the Word

It seems like it’s now a cool thing to label oneself a “Calvinists,” or better yet “Reformed,” at least in my circle. Some would go so far as to label themselves something to the effect of Baptistic-Charismatic (not Charismaniac)-Calvinistic-Dispensational-Evangelical-Historically Fundamental-Reformed-Christian or some other complex fusion of sorts, which by the way reminds me of the “kamikaze” drinks we use to blend together at the nearby liquor store’s or fast food stand’s beverage fountain (Coke + Diet Coke + Dr. Pepper + Mountain Dew + Slice + Hi-C = Kamikaze), but as long as “Calvinists” or “Reformed” is in there, it’s cool.

I think part of the reason is that most of the coolest (and I mean THE coolest) theological giants are in the Calvinist/Reformed tradition. John Calvin, John Knox, Francis Turretin, John Owen, William Perkins, Jonathan Edwards, W.G.T. Shedd, Louis Berkhof, Cornelius Van Til, John Gerstner, J.I. Packer, R.C. Sproul, the guys at the White Horse Inn (I have to mention the WHI because I absolutely love listening to those guys!) just to name a few. Then there are those who are heavily Calvinistic though not affiliated with any particular Reformed denominations, such as John MacArthur (can you think of a better Bible teacher?), John Piper (can you think of a better preacher?), Albert Mohler, Mark Dever, C.J. Mahaney, Wayne Grudem, Thomas Schreiner, Mark Driscoll, etc. I’d be lying to you if I said that I have no desire to be affiliated with those guys and to label myself “Reformed,” or at least “Calvinist.” I’d also be lying to you if I said that I don’t first consult and prefer to read those guys over anybody else on any given day. I mean these are the guys that continue to show me the infinite and unfathomable greatness of God; these are the guys that exalt the Lord Jesus Christ and the cross and make me want to love Him even more for who He is and what He’s accomplished on the cross on behalf of the wicked elect.

Now, there are the purists who would never deem an individual like me as “Reformed,” or even a “Calvinist” (Click Here! To read “How Many Points” by Dr. Richard A. Muller), primarily because I differ on some matters (e.g. baptism), regardless of the fact that I agree with the Reformed on most, and I mean most, of their theologies. For crying out loud, it is one of my dreams to study at a Reformed seminary! Yet, I don’t think we can blame them for their puritanical frame of mind. After all, I wouldn’t consider the Local Church “Baptists” just because they baptize adults. Even so, there are many individuals like myself who, and many who are much more advanced than I both in theological prowess and ministerial ripeness, are as close to being Reformed as any sovereignly-and-monergistically regenerated child of God can be (which is really all who are saved).

Anyhow, I can’t believe I said all this just to quote a couple of paragraphs from another Reformed systematic. Well, here it is anyway:

"The Reformed church, however, insists that the salvation of men is always under the direct, sovereign governance of God, that salvation is always directly from the Lord, and therefore, that the Holy Spirit must beat witness, immediately and directly, by and with the Word in men’s hearts if they are to respond in repentance and faith to the Word of God… In short, the Reformed position on the efficacy of the Word as a means of grace is that, even though the Bible is the very Word of God, it is rendered efficacious as a means of special grace, not intrinsically or automatically, but only by the immediate and direct attendant working of the Holy Spirit in the hearts of its readers and hearers. The Reformed church emphasizes that the imparting of spiritual life is ever sovereignly with God the Spirit who is the Giver of life. That is to say, where and when the Spirit effectually works in human hearts by and with the Word of God (and only there and then), the Word is irresistibly efficacious as a means of grace in the salvation of lost men and the building up of the saints in faith" (Robert Reymond, A New Systematic Theology of the Christian Faith, p.916).