This past week in our Roots 101 class, we discussed the doctrine and beliefs of Roots Church. Part of what we cover in this session are the Doctrines of Grace, aka Calvinism or Reformed Theology. It is always a challenge trying to sufficiently explain these doctrines in the limited time, while at the same time, not devoting SO much time to this that it seems like they are the most important, or only, doctrines we care about.
And this experience recalls a tension I feel when it comes to these doctrines, and how to best lead, teach and structure our church. On the one hand, I don’t think our unity as a church ought to include agreement on these things. For one, there can be some complexity to aspects of the Doctrines of Grace, such that I don’t expect every believer to work through and land in a settled position. Personally, it took me two+ years of diligently studying Scripture as well as other writings to land in a fairly settled position. Additionally, faithful Christians have disagreed on these things for centuries.
We desire to be a Christ-centered church, and as such, desire to keep the bounds of unity centered on our confession of Christ as Lord and Savior, as revealed in God’s Holy Word.
On the other hand, I have found the Doctrines of Grace SO helpful in magnifying “the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ” (2 Cor. 4:6). Personally, wrestling through these doctrines (and for most people, they require some wrestling!) has given me a view of God as bigger, greater, more glorious, more worthy, more satisfying than I had. And I’ve seen this happen fairly consistently to those who’ve come to similar convictions.
This is not to say God doesn’t lead people to such an expansive view of himself in other ways—I believe he does, and witness that in our own church—but seeing God’s sovereignty over all things, including salvation, seems to consistently produce a humble awe and joy at the glory of God.
As I’ve reflected on this lately, I’ve come to this conclusion (which I’ve said to a number of you recently): Our great hope, desire and prayer is that you would come to behold the glory of God in greater measure, to see him more clearly and accurately than you do, to be rid of all suggestions that he is in any way small, weak, bound and controlled by something other than his good will, unable to fully accomplish his purposes, unworthy of your complete worship, love and devotion.
This is the tip of the spear, if you will, of what we’re about. This, I think you can see, is a topic that comes up in our preaching and teaching and counseling on a regular basis (as we’ve gone through Ephesians, how many times have you been reminded of that repeated phrase in chapter 1: “…to the praise of his glory…”, and other like phrases?!).
You have likely heard the J.I. Packer quote I use frequently (and those in Roots 101 just heard it), where he compares the old, true gospel with a new, man-centered “gospel”:
Its (the old, true gospel) center of reference was unambiguously God. But in the new gospel the center of reference is man. This is just to say that the old gospel was religious in a way that the new gospel is not. Whereas the chief aim of the old was to teach people to worship God, the concern of the new seems limited to making them feel better. The subject of the old gospel was God and his ways with men; the subject of the new is man and the help God gives him. There is a world of difference.
This is the heart of what we want for Roots Church. In fact, according to a biographer, this was the heart of none other than John Calvin’s own life, to “set before [man], as the prime motive of his existence, zeal to illustrate the glory of God” (John Dillenberger, quoted in John Piper, 27 Servants of Sovereign Joy, 102). And as a Reformed theologian has said, the “all-embracing slogan of the Reformed faith is this: the work of grace in the sinner is a mirror for the glory of God” (Geerhardus Vos, quoted in John Piper, 27 Servants of Sovereign Joy, 102).
And so, agreement on the Doctrines of Grace is not the point (of the spear, or otherwise!). However, I am quite convinced that the Doctrines of Grace can push us in this direction. So even though we don’t make these doctrines a “closed-handed,” first order doctrine (and have no desire to), I am not willing to say that all “open-handed,” second-order doctrines don’t really matter. Everything we find in Scripture should matter to some degree! And of the doctrines that I would put in this second category, I would say that the Doctrines of Grace are near the top in “mattering” in their potential to greatly affect your view of God and walk with God. Hence the tension noted at the outset.
What is my point in saying all of this? Part of it is just to help you understand the role that such second-hand doctrines play in the church: they are not doctrines you have to fully understand or agree with to be an active and vital and cared for member of this church; and yet they are not doctrines we find unimportant, and never care to talk about. I think we have to have more categories than just “salvation issues,” on the one hand, and unimportant, meaningless issues, on the other.
Another point in my saying this is to encourage you to see the glory of God, and your increased beholding of the glory of God, as the red-hot center of God’s will for us, and because of that, of our desire for you, and this church.
And lastly, I would just put before you the suggestion that devoting some time to considering the Doctrines of Grace—or the various things that Scripture says about the nature of God’s sovereignty, particularly in salvation—can be very fruitful, and lead to a great view of the glory of God.
To that end, I’ll leave you with some suggested resources if you choose to do so:
The Westminster Confession of Faith, chapters 2-6, and 8-18 (free online)
The sermons I preached on October 13 (Providence) and October 20 (Election). Audio available on our website, Apple podcasts, or Spotify.
J.I. Packer’s Evangelism and the Sovereignty of God (the first book I recommend on the topic; short, very readable, and we have multiple copies in the church library)
R.C. Sproul’s Chosen by God (also very readable, in Sproul’s typical engaging way)
Kevin DeYoung’s Grace Defined and Defended: What a 400-Year-Old Confession Teaches Us about Sin, Salvation, and the Sovereignty of God
John Piper’s Five Points: Towards a Deeper Experience of God’s Grace