Jul 18
23
Sovereign or Superior Grace?
Many, I have found report to believe in Sovereign Grace. They speak of
their love for a God who sovereignly elected a people, a Christ who
sovereignly atoned for those particular people alone, and a Spirit who
sovereignly and successfully regenerates the same chosen people. In
their confessions, they boldly and uncompromisingly speak of the
“doctrines of grace” as gospel truth. Using scripture, reason, and
history, they can debate their position quite convincingly. They seem to
stand firm in their belief that ‘Salvation is of the Lord’. They write
eloquently about the old paths and gather for Bible conferences to
promote a restoration of sound doctrine. I am sure you can tell by my
tone thus far that I believe there to be a fly in the ointment. There
is, and it stinks to high heaven. The truth is that many of these
supporters of “Sovereign Grace” really only believe in a superior grace.
Their refusal to declare a man-centered, works religion as soul damning
heresy tells me that what they mean by sovereign is really only
superior. Their belief that a person can know the Lord Jesus Christ
through the ministry of a lie tells me that what they mean by sovereign
is really only superior. Their unwillingness to renounce their
experiences in arminianism as bogus tells me that what they mean by
sovereign is really only superior. Words are only as good as the
definitions we attach to them. If salvation is only by the sovereign
grace of God in Christ Jesus, then truly no lie can be of the truth.
Many “sovereign gracers” need to repent of two things. The pride of
thinking that they have superior truth when really they have not known
the Truth at all, and the fear of separating themselves from less
fortunate “brethren” who are really not brethren at all. -Greg Elmquist.