Revised Jan 22, 2004
Revised Oct 6, 2004
The New Covenant; The New Heart.
Saint or Sinner...
If Christianity could be represented by one single word it would be the word; Change.
Repentance is a change of mind; or a change of heart, for the two are used interchangeably in Scripture.
Natural born men as they come into the world are God's natural enemies by nature.
Eph 2:3 Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others.
When God saves men He changes them so that they are no longer what they were by natural birth. They are now different in their nature, their deepest self that constitutes their personal identity. Such a change is the result of the New Birth. The Bible speaks of it in terms of the 'heart' which God removes and replaces with a New Heart. This is so because the heart of the natural man hates his Maker and the focus of his entire existence is to rebel against God and eradicate Him from his life altogether.
Let's begin at the beginning. The fall resulted in bringing the entire race of Adam's sons into the bondage and slavery of sin which is manifested in that which is described above. All men by nature hate God and want nothing to do with Him. We see this in such passages as;
Ge 6:5 And GOD saw that the wickedness of man [was] great in the earth, and [that] every imagination of the thoughts of his heart [was] only evil continually.
Heart is a reference to the essential nature of the human being, who in this case is nothing but evil. Another;
Ge 8:21 And the LORD smelled a sweet savour; and the LORD said in his heart, I will not again curse the ground any more for man's sake; for the imagination of man's heart [is] evil from his youth; neither will I again smite any more every thing living, as I have done.
Here we are told that evil is from one's youth. But lest we think that this will allow some to be born free of such evil...
Ps 51:5 Behold, I was shapen in iniquity; and in sin did my mother conceive me.
This verse traces man's depravity all the way to his conception.
Ps 58:3 The wicked are estranged from the womb: they go astray as soon as they be born, speaking lies.
Some might charge that I am simply 'proof texting'. Let those who do so produce Biblical evidence to the contrary of what is being said here. Another;
Job 15:14 What [is] man, that he should be clean? and [he which is] born of a woman, that he should be righteous? Another;
Pr 22:15 Foolishness [is] bound in the heart of a child; [but] the rod of correction shall drive it far from him. Another;
Isa 48:8 Yea, thou heardest not; yea, thou knewest not; yea, from that time [that] thine ear was not opened: for I knew that thou wouldest deal very treacherously, and wast called a transgressor from the womb.
But the signature verse is...
Jer 17:9 The heart [is] deceitful above all [things], and desperately wicked: who can know it?
This is signature because men who claim to know the truth use it to 'prove' that a Christian is still basically wicked... in his heart... in his very nature. See the article on Indwelling Sin.
The burden here is to show three things;
1. Wickedness is found deep within the heart of the unregenerate.
This has already been shown.
2. Heart is said to identify the person himself in his deepest self
and nature. It is what he is.
3. Regeneration is the removal of the old wicked heart and the creation
of a new heart.
The Bible clearly and unequivocally speaks of two
kinds of people;
Those who are subjectively and personally wicked and...
Those who are subjectively and personally righteous.
Psalm 1:6 For the LORD knoweth the way of the righteous: but the way of the ungodly shall perish.
The natural born man is, subjectively, in his deepest self, ungodly; wicked; depraved; a God hater. He is a sinner by nature.
Ro 8:7 Because the carnal mind [is] enmity against
God: for it is
not
subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be.
8 So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God.
When God saves a man does He leave him in such an ominous condition ? Or does He... Change him ? I said that Christianity is a religion of change. Is there any change in salvation and if so is such a change only theoretical, or 'positional' as many like to say ? Or is there an Actual, Subjective change that takes place within the person himself ? In order to answer this we look in the OT at the prophecies of the New Covenant which is the context within which God has committed Himself to rescue His people through the work of His Only Begotten Son, the Lord Jesus Christ.
Jer 31: 31 Behold, the days come, saith the
LORD, that I will
make a new covenant
with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah:
32 Not according to the covenant that I made with their
fathers in the day
[that] I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt;
which
my covenant they brake, although I was an husband unto them, saith
the LORD:
33 But this [shall be] the covenant that I will make with
the house of
Israel; After those days, saith the LORD, I will put my law in their
inward
parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they
shall be my people.
34 And they shall teach no more every man his neighbour,
and every man his
brother, saying, Know the LORD: for they shall all know me, from the
least
of them unto the greatest of them, saith the LORD: for I will forgive
their
iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.
We could spend months on this passage but for our purpose we simply note one main element of the New Covenant; that of God putting His law in their inward parts, and writing it in their hearts. This prophecy is interpreted for us in the book of Hebrews as finding its fulfillment in the "better covenant" of vs 6.
Heb 8:6 But now hath he obtained a more excellent
ministry, by how
much
also he is the mediator of a better covenant, which was established
upon
better promises.
Heb 8:7 For if that first [covenant] had been faultless, then
should no place have been sought for the second.
So much for covenant theology's false doctrine of "one covenant, two administrations". This passage teaches TWO covenants, not one. But to our main point;
Heb 8:10 For this [is] the covenant that I will make
with the house
of
Israel after those days, saith the Lord; I will put my
laws into their
mind, and write them in their hearts: and I will be to
them a God, and
they shall be to me a people:
Heb 10:16 This [is] the covenant that I will make with them after those
days, saith the Lord, I will put my laws into their
hearts,
and in their
minds will I write them;
I cite the verses in order to point out how that 'heart' and 'mind' are used interchangeably. So when the Bible speaks of the 'heart' it really means the mind of man. The question now is, does God put His laws into the same old wicked heart one comes into the world with ? The answer is found in one more OT prophecy of the New Covenant;
Ez 36: 25 Then will I sprinkle clean water upon you,
and ye shall be
clean:
from all your filthiness, and from all your idols, will I cleanse you.
26 A new heart also will I give you, and a new
spirit will I
put
within
you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I
will give
you an heart of flesh.
27 And I will put my spirit within you,
and cause you to
walk in my
statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do [them].
Notice in vs 26 a most astounding statement. One of the elements of the New Covenant is that God is going to perform spiritual surgery on His people. He is going to do a spiritual "heart transplant" and He says that He will remove, or take out the old, stony heart, which is wicked through and through and will give them a new heart which is...
Some say the New Heart is just as wicked as the old was. This is a travesty on the power of God in the gospel. Why would God give His people a New Heart that can produce nothing but wickedness and then expect them to walk in holiness and kill sin? Why would God transplant one wicked heart with another that is just as wicked? Such would be self-defeating. Should a surgeon remove a defective heart only to replace it with one that is just as defective?
Others say... 'yes I do have a New Heart but because I also have the flesh I am still, by nature, wicked and depraved.' This obscures both the nature of a Christian and the doctrine of sanctification. They say such things as "It's all God and no me" with respect to both justification and sanctification. They are forced to say such for their view that a Christian is still wicked by nature despite the New Heart prevents them from saying that anything good could possibly come from a true believer at all. This unavoidably leads to the "let go and let god" heresy that destroys human responsibility. They tell Christians that they are hypocrites, self righteous, self seeking idolaters by nature. They do this by equating the flesh with nature, something the Bible never does, and leave folks in a state of confusion. They say believers are "God haters in their flesh". They further tell people that a true believer cannot keep the law of God, because even though regenerate they are still "wicked in their flesh". Such is in clear opposition to the teaching of Scripture that believers are those who love God, not 'hate' Him, and keep the commandments.
1Jo 5:2 By this we know that we love the children of
God, when we
love
God, and keep his commandments.
1Jo 5:3 For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments:
and his commandments are not grievous.
If this is not true of you then you are not a Christian.
1John 2: 3 And hereby we do know that we know him,
if we keep his
commandments.
4 He that saith, I know him, and keepeth not his
commandments,
is a liar, and the truth is not in him.
5 But whoso keepeth his word, in him verily is the love
of God perfected: hereby know we that we are in him.
Those who say they are Christians but cannot keep the commandments are no Christians at all. They are liars who are void of the truth.
As well, those who would jettisen the law completely by the mis-use of the doctrine that "we are not under the law but under grace" fail to understand the proper place of the law in the Christian life. Such a view ends in antinomianism.
When God writes His laws on the hearts of His people He does not write them on old wicked hearts. He gives them New Hearts and a New Spirit and causes them to delight in and walk in His statutes and commandments. The new born man is, subjectively, in his deepest self, righteous; pure; a lover of God. He is a saint by nature. The result is, whereas he once hated God and was not subject to the law of God, he now loves both God and His law and walks in the commandments. The law of God is now his chief delight.
Regeneration produces a Change in human nature that is no less than miraculous. God takes a sinner who is wicked by nature and changes him into a saint who is righteous... by nature.
Mt 7:18 A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither [can] a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit.
Mt 12:33 Either make the tree good, and his fruit good; or else make the tree corrupt, and his fruit corrupt: for the tree is known by [his] fruit.
The analogy is quite obvious. Unless a person is basically 'good', which is to say using Biblical terminology, righteous, it is utterly impossible for him to do anything good. That means he cannot believe the gospel or repent or cultivate holiness of life... nothing good at all. Is this referring to the Heart which identifies one's essential personal identity ?
Luke 6; 43 For a good tree bringeth not forth
corrupt fruit;
neither
doth a
corrupt tree bring forth good fruit.
44 For every tree is known by his own fruit. For of thorns
men do not gather figs, nor of a bramble bush gather they grapes.
Here we are again with the analogy of the tree. Was Jesus Christ, the Son of the living God, the One True interpreter of Truth who is in and of Himself Truth Personified, referring to the human heart by the use of the analogy of a tree ?
45 A *good* man out of the
*good* treasure
of
his *heart* bringeth forth that which is *good*; and an evil man out of
the evil treasure of his heart
bringeth forth that which is evil: for of the abundance of the heart
his
mouth speaketh.
I love stars; don't you ?
One for *good* measure ! The parable of the soils;
Luke 8:15 But that on the good ground are they, which in an *honest and good heart,* having heard the word, keep [it], and bring forth fruit with patience.
An honest and good Heart. Prophecy
fulfilled. We have
already
cited Hebrews.
So we see that there are really two kinds of people in the world;
those who are of Jeremiah and possess hearts that are deceitful above
all
things and desperately wicked. Such people are yet lost and in their
sin.
And those who are of Jesus Christ and possess renewed hearts that are
good,
honest and righteous. Hearts that love God and keep His
commandments.
These are the saved; the elect of God; the righteous of the
earth.
We now come to the power house passage that sums all this up and gives us direct statements as to what a Christian is by nature... and it's not 'wicked'.
1John 3:1 Behold, what manner of love the Father
hath bestowed upon
us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world
knoweth
us not, because it knew him not.
2 Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not
yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we
shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.
Sons of God. Can a son of God be wicked by nature ?
4 ¶ Whosoever committeth sin
transgresseth also the law:
for sin is the
transgression of the law.
5 And ye know that he was manifested to take away our sins;
and in him is no sin.
6 Whosoever abideth in him sinneth not: whosoever sinneth
hath not seen him, neither known him.
There is a sense in which Christians do not sin. Remember the tree and the word 'cannot'.
7 Little children, let no man deceive you: he that doeth righteousness is righteous, even as he is righteous.
This text, in conformity to the rest of the context, as well as the rest of the Bible states in no uncertain terms what a Christian IS by nature and it is astounding.
Whenever you see the words "even as" in the Bible you can account the 'even' as the top line and the 'as' as the bottom line... of an equal sign. This verse is telling us that the doing of righteousness is an indication that the doer is, himself, in himself, righteous. Not wicked... righteous. Not depraved... righteous. Not an idolater... righteous. Not a hypocrite or a failure but RIGHTEOUS. And the doer is righteous in the exact same way that the Lord Jesus Christ is also righteous and that can only mean... Subjectively so. That is to say that a believer, one whom God has regenerated, is one who is no longer a wicked and depraved sinner by nature but is now righteous... by nature. He is a person whom God has... Changed.
But why should it be so astounding? Did not the blessed Son of the Living God purchase untold spiritual blessings for all His people on the cross ? Is it such an amazing thing for God to change the nature of His own creatures from evil to good?
He who does righteousness IS righteous, even as... = He is righteous.
Is this the false doctrine of sinless perfection ? One could easily play word games and make it so but to do so is to destroy the Word of God for the Holy Spirit testifies in many places that Christians will continue to sin until physical death claims them.
Is this the false doctrine of so-called 'inherent righteousness' ? Again one could play fancy word games and make it so. But 'inherent' means that which is innate, inborn; that which belongs to one by reason of one's natural birth. To say one is inherently righteous is false doctrine.
8 He that committeth sin is of the devil; for the devil sinneth from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil.
If a believer sins is that an indication that he is 'of the Devil' ? It cannot be referring to the mere activity of sinning for all Christians actively sin. It can only be referring to what the context affirms, or rather denies, that sin in the Christian proceeds from his essential nature. It does not. It cannot because the Christian is righteous in his essential being and in that sense he cannot sin.
Anyone who sins as that sin proceeds from his essential nature is indeed of the Devil because it is indicative of a state of unregeneracy. And so John continues;
9 Whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin; for his seed remaineth in him: and he cannot sin, because he is born of God.
Can anyone deny that John is saying here that in a real sense, sin for the Christian is... Impossible? Then let him give the true meaning of this passage.
The righteousness of God's people is not inherent. It is subjective and it is derived as a result of the New Birth. It comes about by the creative activity of Almighty God within the deepest recesses of His own creatures. God creates in His people, that which is the New Heart or the New Nature; that which is by nature righteous. This is what regeneration is; a creative act of God whereby He changes a wicked sinner into a righteous saint.
Eph 2:10 For we are his workmanship, created in
Christ Jesus unto
good
works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk
in them.
Eph 4:24 And that ye put on the new man, which after
God is created
in
righteousness and true holiness.
Some say "I am not the new man; the new man is Christ in me." How can Christ then be "created". This is the Arian heresy that denies the Deity of the Son of God. It is the redeemed sinner who is the New Man in Christ.
Ga 6:15 For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision
availeth any thing,
nor
uncircumcision, but a new creature.
Col 3:10 And have put on the new [man], which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him:
""You're proof texting Jay !""
I know... Isn't it wonderful ! Ü
2Co 5:17 Therefore if any man [be] in Christ, [he is] a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.
The Christian is a new creature... or rather a New Creation. Glory !
************************** OBJECTIONS ************************************
Objection;
~~~ Eph 4:22 That ye put off concerning the former conversation the
old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts;
See-e-e ! We are commanded to 'put off' the old man. I am still the 'old man'. That means I am still a sinner by nature.
Answer;
He who makes such an objection shows that he either neglected to look
up the tense of the verb 'Put off" or deliberately did not say that it
is the Aorist tense which is generally rendered in the past in English.
This would then be in perfect conformity to the parallel which is also
Aorist and is translated as past tense;
Col 3:9 Lie not one to another, seeing that ye *have put off* the old man with his deeds;
But we recognize that all this is really figurative language which can be understood as having the meaning... 'Do not go on living as if you were still the old man; put that off.' In other words, be what you are. Delight in God..
Ps 1:2 But his delight is in the law of the
LORD; and in his
law doth he meditate day and night.
Ps 40:8 I delight to do thy will, O my God: yea, thy law is
within my heart.
Ps 112:1 Praise ye the LORD. Blessed is the man that feareth the
LORD, that delighteth greatly in his commandments.
Objection;
Matt 7:11 If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts
unto your children, how much more shall your Father which is in heaven
give good things to them that ask him?
See-e-e! Matthew 7:11 says that Christians are evil.
Answer;
This is an actual objection given by a man who believes the following;
"Jim likes to quote verses which say that the Christian is righteous,
blameless, and
a keeper of the law. As I've said before, the Christian is indeed all
of these things in the objective sense. And the Christian also has a
subjectively
different behavior than that of unbelievers, such that they do good
things
pleasing to God and obey His commands. But since the Christian
still
commits sin, he is still a subjectively evil person, and he will remain
this way until he is delivered from his body of death at
glorification."
Such a view results in several absurdities, not the
least of which
it
has the Lord Jesus Christ contradicting Himself by teaching that a true
Christian is evil in one place, but good in another. It also
contradicts
the Apostle John who wrote, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit,
that
a Christian is righteous, not evil. Let us see what further absurdities
this man's view leads to. Notice his statements that the Christian "is
still a subjectively evil person,"... and that "the Christian
also
has a subjectively different behavior than that of unbelievers, such
that
they do good things pleasing to God and obey His commands."
This is saying that a person who is still evil by nature, can "do good
things pleasing to God and obey His commands." In other words, the
objector
believes that a subjectively evil person is able to engage in
subjectively
good behavior. It is easy to see how this contradicts the teaching of
the
Lord Jesus Christ when He says;
Mt 7:18 A good tree *cannot* bring forth evil fruit, neither *can* a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit.
The objector says an evil person can do good. Jesus
Christ says the
exact opposite. Who should we believe ?
Further, Peter said;
1Pe 1:22 Seeing ye have purified your souls in obeying the truth
through the Spirit unto unfeigned love of the brethren, see that ye
love one another with a pure heart fervently:
Is Peter's pure heart 'subjectively evil'?
And Paul said;
2Ti 2:22 Flee also youthful lusts: but follow righteousness,
faith, charity, peace, with them that call on the Lord out of a pure
heart.
Is Paul's pure heart 'subjectively evil'?
1Cor 2:16 But we have the mind of Christ.
Is the mind of Jesus Christ, that Christian's have, *subjectively evil*
? That's the conclusion we must come to if we adopt this objector's
false
doctrine of the nature of a child of God.
What then does Matt 7:11 mean when Christ said, "If you, being evil..."? The objector assumes that Christ was describing Christians by his statement "Matthew 7:11 says that Christians are evil." The word 'Christian' is found nowhere in the verse, neither the context of the passage, nor the book, neither in the entire NT with but two exceptions in the book of Acts and 1 Peter! Neither is the word 'believer' found in the passage. The question must then be asked... to whom was Jesus Christ speaking?; and the answer, according to context, is clear. He was speaking to disciples and not to 'Christians'! There is a difference folks. A 'disciple' is not necessarily a true, regenerate Christian. The gospel of John is clear when it says;
Joh 6:60 Many therefore of his disciples, when they
had heard this,
said, This is an hard saying; who can hear it?
64 But there are some of you that believe not. For Jesus knew
from the beginning who they were that believed not, and who should
betray
him.
Clearly we see there were those called 'disciples' who were unbelievers! And so...
Joh 6:66 From that time many of his disciples
went back, and
walked
no more with him.
Joh 8:31 Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him,
If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed;
Obviously these 'disciples' were not true, regenerated Christians. So when Jesus told His 'disciples' that they were 'evil' in Matt 7:11, was that meant to teach that true, regenerate Christians are still evil ? Obviously not otherwise the Bible contradicts itself. The objector further believes;
"It should be quite obvious to all of us now that Jim is in total agreement with the unregenerate man who stood in the temple and thought "God, I thank thee, that I am not as other men are, extortioners, ***unjust***, adulterers, or even as this publican." "
We see here that this man believes that a Christian is, among other wicked things, ***unjust***. Notice how he strongly emphasizes this particular characteristic. Yet Paul says that Christians are no longer unjust.
1Co 6:9 Know ye not that the unrighteous [or unjust] shall not inherit the kingdom of God?... and such *were* some of you.
The objector believes he still *is* unrighteous. He believes he is still "subjectively evil". Therefore he believes he is still unregenerate and lost in his sin. That would explain why such attacks are leveled against the plain teaching of the Word of God.
Re 22:11 He that is unjust, let him be unjust still: and he which is filthy, let him be filthy still: and he that is righteous, let him be righteous still: and he that is holy, let him be holy still.
*******************************************************************************
A saved person is no longer a sinner by nature. He is a SAINT and the two do not and cannot exist together. Sinner and saint are like water and oil... they don't mix. To say one is both a sinner and a saint at the same time you might as well say he is both alive and dead at the same time but the Bible clearly teaches that the old man has been -crucified- and -buried- with Christ. Rom 6. A sinner then is one who is wicked by nature whereas a saint is one who is righteous... by nature.
Now read carefully; the fact that a Christian is subjectively righteous by nature has NOTHING TO DO with the ground of his salvation... which is the righteousness of God in Jesus Christ in the gospel! Subjective righteousness is the same as every other blessing Jesus Christ has purchased for His people by His death on the cross... it is a spiritual blessing that all the elect enjoy when God saves them in time; just like faith and repentance. Eph 1:1-3ff The blunder Arminians make is that they think their faith and repentance are the basis upon which God saves. They are not. They are blessings Christ earned for us and are gifts given to the elect that INDICATE that one has been born of God.
Now go find all the righteous people in the Bible. Here are two for starters;
Lu 1:5 There was in the days of Herod, the
king of Judaea, a
certain
priest named Zacharias, of the course of Abia: and his wife [was] of
the
daughters of Aaron, and her name [was] Elisabeth.
6 And they were both righteous before God, walking in all the
commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless.
There's tons more. God's people are called righteous people all over the Bible. They are never called wicked; at all.
Heb 11:4 By faith Abel offered unto God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, by which he obtained witness that he was righteous, God testifying of his gifts: and by it he being dead yet speaketh.
Who hath ears...