We may join Whitefield, moving casually back and forth from new birth to justification!  Isn’t that timely for the proclamation of the gospel? Aren’t people much more conscious that their lives need changing than that they need forgiveness? Don’t they yearn more deeply for transformation than for justification?

What should we think about the Great Awakening’s change from the Reformation’s emphasis on Justification to its own focus on New Birth?

Charles Finney thought that it meant rejecting imputation and justification, but why did he think this was necessary? Jonathan Edwards and George Whitefield preached about new birth, but didn’t feel the need to go as far as Finney in negotiating Reformation soteriology.

Couldn’t it be true, that the gospel is properly expressed both ways?

The heart of the Christian faith is Jesus Christ and what he has done for his people, that he has justified them once and for all. But isn’t it just as much true that he is also our sanctifier? Isn’t it the liberating and redemptive work of Christ that not only justifies us but also changes us?

Personally, I question inserting the Johannine emphasis on regeneration into the Pauline ordo salutis. But if we are willing to do this, we should be aware of that there is a major correction we need to make. The “priority” of regeneration does not mean “in time” or “in our experience.” In John Murray’s words, that would be a “theological monstrosity.” Thnking about the priority in that way has led to people delaying trusting Christ and waiting for spiritual change first. They “pray for a new heart” instead of immediately trusting Jesus. They “prepare for grace” instead of simply believing. But, Jesus Christ died for sinners, not for the prepared. “Just as I Am”, is a clear and solidly gospel-centered hymn. (Norman Pettit discusses this in his book, “The Heart Prepared.”)

Can you tell the difference between Johannine regeneration and Pauline sanctification? We think of the first as occuring “before” faith, and the other “after.” But not only does “before” need clarification, so does “after.” Sanctification doesn’t begin “after”, but when faith begins. Don’t we “receive Christ as savior and lord?” Is there a problem with ‘the sinner’s prayer’ being, “forgive me and change me, Jesus?”

Possibly because some Calvinists have spoken of the difficulty of attaining assurance, which rests upon evidence of transformation, dispensationalists have tended to deny any “Jewish” self-evaluation of transformation as undercutting the gracious character of the gospel. But, by now most have backed off from that, and “lordship evangelism” is welcomed by all.

Everyone understands that trust in Christ is the backbone of sanctification, but if sanctification is “after” justifying faith, shouldn’t there be a second stage of faith, a Keswick second blessing? But, you don’t need to go there if trust in Jesus as our sanctifier is there at the beginning. In other words, second blessing theology isn’t necessary. Instead, we trust Christ for change not just once, but every hour. This active trusting is critical to our ongoing battle with sin.

If indeed regeneration and sanctification are both about transformation, then I think we can learn from the Reformation, and not replace it so quickly. Previously, Roman Catholic theology had taught that justification was not so much about the imputed righteousness of Christ as much as it was about God’s graciously overrating the minimal righteousness we already have. He gave us gracious credit for the direction of our hearts. That was “gracious”, but it minimized the need for Christ!

Catholic theology reaffirmed that position over against the Reformation in its Canons of the Council of Trent, which I encourage you to read, especially Canons IV, VII, XI-XVI. (see: http://www.reformationhappens.com/works/trent-justification/)

If we recognize together that we heartily affirm just what Trent rejects about sanctification, then we can and should do the same with regeneration. We may join Whitefield, moving casually back and forth from new birth to justification!

Isn’t that timely for the proclomation of the gospel? Aren’t people much more conscious that their lives need changing than that they need forgiveness? Don’t they yearn more deeply for transformation than for justification? It’s certainly not that we will leave out and overlook the cross and God’s justification of the ungodly – but that we will come to it from another horizon.

We may now proclaim the gospel again with Whitefield and Edwards, announcing to all: as you come to understand how much you need to be changed, and you see how much your heart fights against that change, then you are ready to receive Jesus’ vigorous offer of his forgiveness. Wherever your need lies, there is your Savior, standing ready to forgive and change you.

D. Clair Davis, a PCA Teaching Elder, is a former professor of church history at Westminster Seminary in Philadelphia and is now a Professor and Chaplain at Redeemer Seminary in Dallas, Texas.  This article first appeared on the Reformed Communion website and is used with permission. [Editor’s note: the original URL (link) referenced is no longer valid, so the link has been removed.]