It Shall Prosper

I have often been asked why I so frequently write against the notion of the Well-Meant Offer of salvation to all of humanity (WMO). My answer is that this belief is among the very most prevalent errors in Christendom today. The WMO distorts the nature of the gospel message and in so doing posits a God who contradicts his own testimony regarding election (Ephesians 1:4-5), particular redemption (John 17:2), and the purpose of the gospel (II Timothy 1:10). The prophet Isaiah wrote...

Regeneration Precedes Faith: What Others Mean vs What PBs Mean.

The new birth is an incredibly important Christian doctrine. When it comes to having a proper understanding of our eternal salvation, few doctrines provide as much explanatory power as the bible's teaching on the new birth. Nowhere is this more true than when the new birth is represented on a timeline along with the exercise of faith. Since both the new birth and the exercise of faith are events in time, it follows that there are only three possible timely relationships between the two.

A Journey Round MacArthur's Park

MacArthur's Statement

I recently stumbled across the following quote which appeared in the first release of Hard to Believe, by John MacArthur.

The Offering of Salvation

In a recent dialog with another believer, I was endeavoring to prove the bible's position that the gospel is not a well-meant offer of salvation to all of humanity. In that conversation I made the following statement:

Exercises in Right Division (Acts 2:40)

STATEMENT ONE:  In reference to the work of man’s eternal salvation, the Lord Jesus Christ stated, “with men this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.” (Matthew 19:26)  

STATEMENT TWO:  Yet in his sermon on the day of Pentecost we find the apostle Peter telling men “Save yourselves from this untoward generation.” (Acts 2:40)

Steve Lawson - The Narrow Way to Life - Biblically Examined

This short excerpt from Steve Lawson speaking on the topic of the narrow gate is a good example of how Lordship Salvation theologians violate numerous fundamental sovereign grace precepts when they interpret scripture. Those precepts are:

1. Repentance is commanded and therefore an act of obedience, and any act of obedience is a work of righteousness. (Matthew 3:2)
2. We are saved “not by works of righteousness which we have done.” (Titus 3:5)
3. All of the requirements of eternal salvation were met by Christ, not by us. (Hebrews 1:3, II Timothy 1:9)
4. Man in his natural state is incapable of receiving spiritual truth (I Corinthians 2:14) and unable to respond based on spiritual deadness (Ephesians 2:1). 

A closer look at Lawson's statements on what is meant by the strait gate is helpful in pointing out how Lordship Salvation theology violates the aforementioned sovereign grace precepts.