The doctrine of the effectual call, also known as the new birth, as presented in John 1:12-13 and John 3:1-8. It contrasts the general call of the gospel with the internal, divine work of regeneration, emphasizing that this new birth is a creative act of God in which humanity is purely passive. The message details how regeneration affects the intellect, will, and emotions, transforming a person from spiritual death to spiritual life, and concludes by highlighting that this divine work is the key to understanding all other doctrines of salvation and assures believers of God's faithfulness in their spiritual journey.
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Continuing our study tonight in the great doctrine of the redemption of our Lord, we dealing primarily with the effectual call of the believer. Now, I hope everyone here has page three tonight. Pages one and two, by the way, are here on the front seat. So you have to listen to the choir tonight. I'm ready to preach. I like that. So pages one and two are here if somebody needs one, and there's some in the vestibule there if you need to pick one up.
We are dealing with the doctrine of the effectual call of the child of God. Last week when we looked at page two, we dealt with the general call or the external call. And tonight we're dealing with the internal call or the effectual call. And I'd like you to turn for our Bible reading to the Gospel of John chapter one. They're all the way on the top, brother. When it's Bible doctrine we put them on the top. John chapter one and we'll read verse twelve.
but as many as received him. And that word, but, is a conjunction of contrast, in contrast to the verses ten and verse eleven. He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not. He came unto his own, and his own received enough. And here are two verses which describe the total depravity of man. In spite of who Christ was, in spite of the Old Testament prophecies, made to his own, he was not received. But in contrast to that, we read, But as many as received him, to them he gave power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name, which were born, not of blood, nor the will of the flesh, nor the will of man, but of God.
And here we have the first reference to the new birth in the New Testament. And the reason that they received him in verse twelve is because of verse thirteen they were born of God and therefore they had a desire to receive him chapter three of John John chapter three and we shall read the first eight verses there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus a ruler of the Jews again this is a contrast to the closing verses of chapter two In the original text there were no chapter and verse divisions.
And in the end of chapter two we learn that verse twenty-three, now when he was in Jerusalem at the Passover in the feast day, many believed in his name when they saw the miracles which he did, but Jesus did not commit himself unto them because he knew all men and needed not that any should testify a man for he knew. What was in man? There was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews. The same came to Jesus by night and said unto him, Rabbi, we know that thou art a teacher come from God, for no man can do these miracles that thou doest except God be with him.
Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto you, unto thee, except the man be born again, or born from above, he cannot see the kingdom of God. Nicodemus saith unto him, How can a man be born when he is old? Shall he enter the second time into his mother's womb and be born? Jesus answered verily, verily, I say unto thee. Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Marvel not that I said unto thee, ye must be born again. The wind bloweth where it willeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth, so is everyone who is born of the Spirit.
Now may the Lord bless the reading of his words. Let us pray. Father, in the precious name of thy dear son, having opened thy precious word, we now would ask you to graciously open our hearts. and our eyes, that we may experience what the psalmist long for when he prayed, Open thou mine eyes, that I may behold wondrous truths out of thy law. And it is with open thy eyes we pray, by virtue of the new birth, that we approach the holy text of Scripture in order that we may be fed. Feed us with the good things of your word, and we'll thank you in Jesus' name.
Amen. Now when we speak of the internal or the effectual call of the believer, we are speaking about the new birth. And the new birth is what our Lord spoke Nicodemus about, and it becomes the first doctrine that is openly taught in the Gospel by John. You'll notice a second sentence in the introduction on your paper. The Greek word for regeneration, and this is the word that theologians place upon the doctrine of the new birth. The Greek word for regeneration is found twice in the New Testament, in Matthew, and in Titus, chapter three, and verse five.
Now, it is only in Titus that it refers to the beginning of a new life. in the believer in Titus it says by the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit and that is in contrast to the works of man for if you study Titus three verse five it says not by works of righteousness which we have done but according to his mercy he saved us by the washing of regeneration, and the renewing of the Holy Spirit, which He shed on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Savior, etc.
Now, the idea of this beginning is expressed in three Greek words in the New Testament, which means to beget, to beget again, or to bear or give birth. Now, we've read a number of these from the Gospel of John. John one thirteen which were born not of blood nor the will of the flesh nor the will of man but of God and of course the verses in John chapter three so we're going to turn and read the others first John excuse me first Peter chapter one in verse twenty three first Peter one twenty three and then we want to read the verses from the first epistle of John for they are so important First Peter one, twenty-three we read, Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible by the word of God, which liveth and abideth forever.
Here we have the thought to beget of being begotten by the word of God. Now first John chapter two and verse twenty-nine. And here we read of those who have been begotten of God. And John, in his first epistle, he tells us why he has written it in verse thirteen of chapter five, that we may know that we have eternal life. And John was writing to combat the Gnostic error of the first century, especially that error that is known as docetism.
The Dosetti were very active in the days of the Apostle John. Verse twenty-nine, if we know that he is righteous, ye know that everyone that doeth righteousness is born of God, or has been begotten of God. In other words, to accomplish righteousness on planet Earth, the new birth is necessary. Notice chapter three in verse nine. Whosoever is born of God. Here we have the thought of having been begotten by God. Whosoever is born of God does not practice sin.
And that is the word, the better word for commit sin. If you put it into the context that you have in the first chapter concerning walking in the light, etc. So here the thought is again being begotten of God. Notice chapter four and verse seven. Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God, and everyone that loveth is born of God and knoweth God. Chapter five and verse one, whosoever believeth that Jesus is the Christ is born of God, and everyone that loveth him that begot, loveth him also that is begotten of him.
And then, of course, verse four, you have the thought, for whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world. And this is a victory that overcometh the world, even our faith. And then, of course, verse eighteen, when we read, we know that whosoever is born of God, sinneth not. But he that is begotten of God, here we have both thoughts. Born of God, begotten of God, sinneth not, or keepeth himself, and that wicked one toucheth him not.
Now, in James chapter one in verse eighteen, the word means to bear or bring forth. And in James one eighteen we read of his own will. Speak out he us by the word of truth that we should be a kind of first fruit of his creation. Now it means to bear or to bring forth and the product of that bearing or bringing forth is a creation. For we read in Ephesians two verse ten we are his workmanship an emphasis on his we are his workmanship created in Christ Jesus unto good works and in second Corinthians five seventeen we read if any man be in Christ he is a new creation old things are passed away behold all things have become new now when you think of creation There isn't a one person here who can create anything.
It is impossible for us to create anything. We had no part in the old creation that is spoken of in Genesis one. And we part in the new creation, which is spoken of in second Corinthians five. Ephesians chapter two and verse ten and of course in Galatians chapter six and verse fifteen which is a extra special verse because it lays stress upon this new creation Galatians chapter six verse seventeen or verse fifteen excuse me where we read for in Christ Jesus neither circumcision availeth anything nor uncircumcision but a new creation so when our Lord said to Nicodemus you must be born again and when our Lord stressed in John one that we're born not of blood nor the will of the flesh nor the will of man but of God he was stressing that
most important activity of God which results in a new creation the new birth now I want you to notice in the introduction on your paper the next sentence therefore we say that regeneration or the new birth is a creative act of God and is therefore a work in which man is purely happy and if you want to see The man who is fleshly bristle, you quote that to him, and you stress the fact that the new birth, that a person is totally passive in the new birth.
In your first birth, you were totally passive. You had nothing to do with it. In fact, you can't even remember when you were born. Your parents had to tell you what your birthday is, and there's some of us would like to forget it. You see, we were born the first time naturally, and we were totally passive in that birth. And in spiritual birth, we are totally passive. Now, the religion is. The man who talks about his activity and his work.
You see, he'll gristle with anger when you tell him that the new birth that's spoken of in the Word of God, it teaches that it is not a flesh. It is not of the will of the flesh. It is not of the will of man. It is not of blood. But it is of God. you see and there is no place for human cooperation when it comes to the new birth it stresses the fact that salvation is holy of God now in teaching the doctrines of regeneration and the truth of the doctrines of salvation I believe that the new birth if we can get people to see What regeneration is, they will have no difficulty with the other doctrines of salvation.
It is regeneration to me that is the key to it all. For if we see that regeneration is totally of God, that man is passive in regeneration, then we behold the workings of God on behalf of man. In other words, the next paragraph in the introduction, the creative work of God produces a new life in virtue of which man made alive with Christ shares the resurrection life and can be called a new creation or a new creature. Therefore, if any man be in Christ, he is a new creation.
Old things are passed away. Behold, all things are become new. There are multitudes of people who hear the general call of the gospel. It goes forth daily. But it is this internal work, this effectual call that is so important that our Lord stressed with Nicodemus. He said, except a man be born from above, he cannot see the kingdom of God. In other words, it's no need to shine a light in a blind man's eye. He still can't see it.
See, I had a friend up north. His name was Amos Wolfe. He was totally blind. I've told this story before. He was totally blind. Yet Amos could go anywhere in the city he wanted to go. If you told him to go to the judge's chamber in the courthouse at Easton Cumberland Street, he could walk from his home way out on Lehman Street about a mile and a half. And he'd go right up, and he'd go right to the judge's chambers. Without asking anybody, he'd cross the street. He was one of the most remarkable blind men I've ever seen. But one night, he walked from... Now, Mr. Adams will know about this. He walked from Pine Grove to Tremont.
You know to go from Pine Grove to Tremont, you have to go over the mountain. And he did it at night. A long walk. Some woman said to him, My, weren't you afraid to do it at night? And he answered, It's always night to me. I tell you, that really touched me. But you see, our Lord said, To see the kingdom of God, you have to have eyes to see. And in the book of Proverbs, we read the seeing eye and the hearing ear. The Lord is the maker of them both. That's what the hymn writer meant when he wrote that last stanza of the last hymn we sang tonight.
His grace has planned it all. His grace has planned it all. His mind but to believe. And that believing gives me the personal consciousness of the divine work, which is known as justification by faith. The new birth is of God. Justification... is by faith. So a person to have that desire, I thought tonight as Brother Sutton and I were in the prayer room and praying together, he told the Lord again how he put him under conviction in Revelation twenty verse fifteen.
And the thing is this, who gave him the desire to ask God to save him? You see, the new birth produces faith and the desire to be saved. See, I was born a long time naturally before I ever became conscious of the fact that I was here. Same is true with you. Same is true with you and how gracious the workings of God on our behalf. Now let us define regeneration. And you'll notice the definition that I have number one is the one found in systematic theology by Berkham.
And regeneration is that act of God by which the principle of a new life is implanted in man. And the governing disposition of the soul is made holy. That's why Paul could write to the Corinthians and say, Therefore, if any man be in Christ, He is a new creation. All things are passed away. There's a new disposition in the soul. This is why the person who is born of God desires to be fed. With the food of God, he desires spiritual food. The second definition is a bit simpler than that.
In other words, regeneration is the instantaneous change from spiritual death to spiritual life. Regeneration, therefore, is a spiritual resurrection. Ephesians two tells us we were dead in trespasses and sin, and therefore we need spiritual life. It's the beginning of a new life, and it is God who regenerates. Now, regeneration is not only an act of God, but it is an act of His almighty power. No one can regenerate themselves. The mighty power of God is necessary in regeneration.
Therefore, regeneration is a spiritual change brought in man by the Holy Spirit, by which he becomes the possessor of a new life. Now, I want you to notice the nature of regeneration, and we want to view it negatively for there are misconceptions that need to be avoided. And there are many misconceptions today about regeneration. The word being born again is used in so many ways, even in wicked ways in our day. People call a lot of things being born again.
But friends, in this day, we need to stress that which is truth from the Word of God. I want you to know, notice a few things. Regeneration is not a change in the substance of human nature. Nothing new physically is implanted in man. It is nothing new physically that's implanted in man. And now notice these. It is not a change in one or more of the faculties of the soul, as for instance of the emotional life. by removing the aversion to divine things.
In other words, this is what some evangelicals conceive of regeneration. Oh, he's now walking in a better path than he was. You see, that's not regeneration. Now the person who's regenerated is going to walk in a new path because he had a new beginning and he has a new end. His end is glory. But it's not a change that he's wrought in man if a man drinks heavily and beats his wife and then he stops drinking. And he might send his children to Sunday school. You see, there are many who will say, well, he's a new man.
But if he hasn't been born of God, it's still the old flesh. And there is not a bit of difference. He's on the broad road to a lost eternity. And notice, furthermore, nor is it a change in the intellect by the illumination of the darkened mind by sin. As the rationalists see it, oh, I got a little new light on that subject now. And the rationalists just say, oh, it's just seeing things now in a new light. No, that is not regeneration. Remember, when a person is regenerated, born of God, they do see things in a new light.
But we mean something else than the rationalist means when he says it. And this is why in our conversation with these people, we must stress what we believe so that they know where we stand on the doctrine of the new birth. You see, regeneration affects the heart. Understood in the scriptural sense of the word, when the Bible speaks of the heart of man, with a heart man believeth unto righteousness, it's speaking of the central, the all-controlling organ of the soul. The whole inner being of man.
That's why in John seven, our Lord said, if any man come to me, him that cometh to me, And he that, if any man thirst, let him come unto me and drink. He that believeth on me, as the Scripture has said, out of his innermost being, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water. And the Greeks understood the inner part of man to be the seed of the soul. And that's what we're talking about. You see, notice C in your papers. Regeneration is not a complete or perfect change of the whole nature of man so that he is no more capable of sin as taught by John Wesley and today's perfectionist.
See, John Wesley taught that it's possible to be sinlessly perfect. See, none of us are that. No one born of God is sinlessly perfect. we still have that old Adamic nature. And we are told to walk in the light as he is in the light. Now notice A and B, which throws a bit of a light on that. This does not mean that it does not in principle affect the entire nature of man, but only that it does not constitute the whole chain.
that is wrought in man by the operation of the Holy Spirit. The whole change wrought in man is not the new birth, because following the new birth is sanctification, growth in grace, and in the knowledge of the Savior. Now, when I was born as a baby, just a few years ago, when I was born of a baby, I had all my members. I had my ears. I didn't get them ten years later. I had my eyes, I had my feet, I had my fingernails, I had toenails, I had everything that goes with it. But they all needed to develop.
When a person is born of God, they're born a complete new creation, and they need to develop. Therefore, we are exhorted in the last verse of Second Peter, but grow in the grace and in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. We need to develop. And that development is the process known as sanctification. And usually we look at sanctification as a work of the Spirit of God. Now the new birth is a work of the Spirit of God. But so is sanctification. So... we need to see the work that each of these does in relation to our spiritual life.
Now let us notice a positive characteristic. A positive characteristic of regeneration. Regeneration A consists in the implanting of the principle of the new spiritual life in man, in a radical change. of the governing disposition that moves in a Godward direction. In other words, before a man he saves, he does not move toward God. That desire for God springs out of the new birth. You know, there used to be a hymn in the hymn book we used before.
I wish we were in this one. One or two I wish we were in this one that aren't. Well, more than one or two. But anyway... It's that him I sought the Lord, and afterward I knew it was he that was seeking me. That person knew the truth that we're preaching tonight. Now I want you to notice what it does, A, B, and C on your paper. It changes the intellect. Notice First Corinthians chapter two in verse fourteen. I'll never forget this verse.
I was trying to date a girl one time, and I was poking with her on the telephone. And we were discussing the scriptures, and I argued with her. I didn't date her, by the way. And I quoted this verse, but I couldn't tell anybody where it was. And I said to my dad, I said, Dad, where's that verse that says, The natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God. Oh, he said that's First Corinthians two, fourteen. My, isn't it nice, would you have a concordance so handy in a member of the family? And I'll never forget my dad for telling me that verse. Notice how it affects the intellect. But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness unto him.
Neither can he know them, for they are spiritually discerned. But in contrast to this, He that is spiritual judges all things, yet he himself is judged of no man. The word for judge there, a better word would be discerneth all things, yet he is discerned of no man. In other words, the intellect of a person who is born of God changes from not being able to receive the things of God to being able to receive the things of God. What a change, and this is a truth. Now notice, second Corinthians, chapter four, verse six. Two Corinthians four and verse six, where we read, for God who commanded the light to shine out of darkness.
And this could have reference to the old creation. Back in Genesis one, he commanded the light to shine out of darkness. And in working on us, in the old creation he did it, in the new creation he does it. For in our darkened mind, he commanded the light to shine out of darkness, has shone in our heart to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the faith of Jesus Christ. Notice B. It not only moves in a God's word direction in changing the intellect, but B, it changes the will. Psalm one hundred, ten verse three. God says, my people shall be willing in the day of my power.
My people shall be willing in the day of my power. Now, what did Israel in Egypt do to enable their emancipation from Pharaoh's hand and from his land? What did Israel do? What did they accomplish on their own? Nothing. What did God accomplish for them? Complete deliverance. And when we consider the fact that the Old Testament shows and manifests that glorious doctrine that we have in the news, you see, Israel constituted nothing toward their redemption.
from Egypt. It was God who did the work. They followed on, but who made them willing? Who made them willing to do it? It was God. My people shall be willing in the day of my power. And the day of his power was manifest at the Red Sea in particular. And I tell you, they were glad to go over with mountains on either side and the Egyptian army behind them. my people shall be willing in the day of my power. And of course Philippians two thirteen it is God who worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure. And then in second Thessalonians three and verse five and of course Hebrews thirteen twenty one and I'll let you look those up on your own time.
Notice it affects the feelings and the emotions. The new birth affects the feelings and the emotions. Psalm forty-two, verses one and two. Two precious verses. As the deer, the heart, panteth after the water brook, so panteth my soul after thee, O God. The person who has been born of God has a desire for spiritual food. This is one of the things that I miss today in easy believism. Where is the desire among the many who profess to be saved?
Where is their desire for genuine spiritual food? They that do hunger and thirst after righteousness shall be filled. And of course, first Peter one eight. Oh, what a text. Whom having not seen. we love. A.W. Tozer said Christians are strange people. They talk every day to someone they've never seen. And they profess to love someone that they haven't seen. Now if a person goes around talking and nobody can be seen, you know what they think of them.
But every day a Christian does it. We do it not only in the daytime, at nighttime too. You see. And we profess to love someone that we've never seen. Whom having not seen we love? Yet though now we see him not yet, we rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory. We come away for a time of blessing, and we're rejoicing in someone that we've never seen. That's a child of God. This is a change that is wrought by the new birth. We have to move on. Notice B. It is an instantaneous change of man's nature, affecting at once the whole man, intellectually, emotionally, and morally.
Therefore, if any man be in Christ, he is a new creation. Notice C. It is a secret and inscrutable work of God that is never directly perceived by man. We read in John three, the wind bloweth where it willeth. You can't see the wind, but you see the effect of the wind. When the hurricane came through a year or two ago, and I drove down to South Carolina, I tell you, you can sure see the effects of the wind.
It's there. You see, we can perceive the effects of regeneration like we perceive the effects of the wind. Now notice, the change may take place without the person being conscious of it momentarily. In other words, the day you were born, you weren't conscious of it. Born physically, you weren't conscious of it. your parents had to tell you whether there was snow on the ground or whether it was warm by telling you when you were born. And if you were born in January, you said, was it snowing the day I was born?
Or if you were born in April or May, what kind of a day was it? So you see, it may not affect this moment terribly, but now notice these. What we are conscious of is the result of regeneration. We do very consciously trust Christ by faith, which is the result of regeneration. You see, that day that we said, yes, I believe you, Lord, that was the result, not the cause, of a work of God in the heart.
With a heart man believes unto righteousness, and with a mouth confession is made unto salvation. I tell you what this will do when it's understood and rejoiced in. It will cause us to rejoice in proclaiming the gospel. For we know that where a desire for God is produced in the soul, he that hath begun a good work will complete it. in the day of Jesus Christ. It delivers us from all sorts of anxieties concerning the proclamation of the gospel and what God is doing in the world.
I'm going to have one illustration and I'll be finished. A number of years ago, my favorite Bible teacher, Dr. Donald Bray-Barnhouse, was traveling in Africa. And he went from so various mission stations. And he was on one mission station where the effectual call of God was very evident. God had saved a good number of people on that mission station. He went to another mission station where they had labored for years and had not seen one convert. And they were down. And when he got there, these people said to him, I bet you think we're out of the will of God.
You might as well tell us. You just came from over there, and they mentioned, said, all the blessing those people have seen, we haven't seen a one. And you'll probably tell us we're out of the will of God. They were very discouraged. And Dr. Bonhaus turned to them, and this is what he said. He said, after you've been in glory for ten thousand years, Will you meet anyone there who was not chosen in Christ before the foundation of the world? They said no. He said, Now if God has chosen many in the region of that mission station and hasn't been pleased to choose any in this one, that's not your fault.
God calls you to be faithful where you're at. And he will do the calling. Now we have to be careful that we are faithful in presenting Christ. And faithfulness in presenting Christ will eventually bring the blessing. And the time came that those people saw the blessing. But you see, it removes from us. the reason why many are discouraged, and we behold whom, the glory of God, in that gracious call, that effectual call that brings justification and eventually glorification.
Now let's pray. Father, we thank you for your grace, and we thank you for the truths of your grace. Your grace has planned it all. Saved by His grace, by His grace alone. Yes, we shall sing around the throne, saved by His grace alone. Take this word now, and bless it to every heart. For the Lord Jesus' sake, amen.