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William Kelly (1821-1906)
“Every believer is regarded by God as alive from the dead, to bring forth fruit (not works) unto God (the fruit or works of the Spirit are by the Spirit through the believer; thus the believer is controlled by the Spirit in His fruit—NC). The law only deals with a man as long as he lives: never after he is dead. “For ye died, and your life is hid with Christ in God” (Col 3:3). That is not at all what is said of us after a ‘second blessing . . . or any other step of imaginary perfection. We begin with it …I am identified with Christ dead and risen. It is no longer the Law (or law of sin for Gentiles—NC) dealing with me to try if it can get any good out of me. I have relinquished all be receiving the Lord Jesus, and I take my stand in Him dead and risen again . . . as one alive from the dead, to yield myself to God.
“The Gospel supposes that, good and holy and perfect as the law of God is, it cannot in any way make the old nature better: neither is it the rule of life for the new nature. The old man is not subject to the law (Rom 8:7), and the new man does not need the law. The new creature has another object before it, and another power acts upon it, in order to produce what is lovely and acceptable to God—Christ the Object, realized by the power of the Holy Spirit.”
Kelly further states, “Some good men who in grievous error would impose the law as a rule of life for the Christian mean very well by it, but the whole principle is false because the law, instead of being a rule of life, is necessarily a rule of death (2Co 3:7) to one who has sin in his nature (must be sinless to keep the law in the right spirit and character—NC), Far from a delivering power, it can only condemn such: far from being a means of holiness (is only moral goodness between men—NC), it is in fact, the strength of sin (1Co 15:56 – it gives sin the right to condemn because it shows the wrong - Jhn 15:22, 24—NC).
Cyrus Ingerson Scofield (1843-1921):
“Most of us have been reared and now live under the influence of Galatianism (any works of the flesh which hinders, i.e. delays but not prevents spiritual progress—NC). Protestant theology is for the most part thoroughly Galatianized, in that neither the law nor grace is given its distinct and separate place as in the counsels of God, but they are mingled together in one incoherent system.
The law is no longer, as in the divine intent, a ministration of death (2Co 3:7), of cursing (Gal 3:10), or conviction (Ro 3:19), because we are taught that we must try to keep it, and that by divine help we may (supposedly—NC). Nor can grace, on the other hand, bring us blessed deliverance from the dominion of sin, for we are kept under the law as a rule of life despite the plain declaration of Romans 6:14—“For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace.”
How sad to realize that while Calvinism so effectively refutes Arminianism in the real realm of justification, its Covenant theology fails the believer in the realm of sanctification just as badly as does Arminianism (Christians are not in a covenant with God but are recipients of the Covenant of Redemption – Heb 13:20, 21, which is between the Father and the Son, and are eternally “sanctified” Heb 10:14—NC).
“Every believer is regarded by God as alive from the dead, to bring forth fruit (not works) unto God (the fruit or works of the Spirit are by the Spirit through the believer; thus the believer is controlled by the Spirit in His fruit—NC). The law only deals with a man as long as he lives: never after he is dead. “For ye died, and your life is hid with Christ in God” (Col 3:3). That is not at all what is said of us after a ‘second blessing . . . or any other step of imaginary perfection. We begin with it …I am identified with Christ dead and risen. It is no longer the Law (or law of sin for Gentiles—NC) dealing with me to try if it can get any good out of me. I have relinquished all be receiving the Lord Jesus, and I take my stand in Him dead and risen again . . . as one alive from the dead, to yield myself to God.
“The Gospel supposes that, good and holy and perfect as the law of God is, it cannot in any way make the old nature better: neither is it the rule of life for the new nature. The old man is not subject to the law (Rom 8:7), and the new man does not need the law. The new creature has another object before it, and another power acts upon it, in order to produce what is lovely and acceptable to God—Christ the Object, realized by the power of the Holy Spirit.”
Kelly further states, “Some good men who in grievous error would impose the law as a rule of life for the Christian mean very well by it, but the whole principle is false because the law, instead of being a rule of life, is necessarily a rule of death (2Co 3:7) to one who has sin in his nature (must be sinless to keep the law in the right spirit and character—NC), Far from a delivering power, it can only condemn such: far from being a means of holiness (is only moral goodness between men—NC), it is in fact, the strength of sin (1Co 15:56 – it gives sin the right to condemn because it shows the wrong - Jhn 15:22, 24—NC).
Cyrus Ingerson Scofield (1843-1921):
“Most of us have been reared and now live under the influence of Galatianism (any works of the flesh which hinders, i.e. delays but not prevents spiritual progress—NC). Protestant theology is for the most part thoroughly Galatianized, in that neither the law nor grace is given its distinct and separate place as in the counsels of God, but they are mingled together in one incoherent system.
The law is no longer, as in the divine intent, a ministration of death (2Co 3:7), of cursing (Gal 3:10), or conviction (Ro 3:19), because we are taught that we must try to keep it, and that by divine help we may (supposedly—NC). Nor can grace, on the other hand, bring us blessed deliverance from the dominion of sin, for we are kept under the law as a rule of life despite the plain declaration of Romans 6:14—“For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace.”
How sad to realize that while Calvinism so effectively refutes Arminianism in the real realm of justification, its Covenant theology fails the believer in the realm of sanctification just as badly as does Arminianism (Christians are not in a covenant with God but are recipients of the Covenant of Redemption – Heb 13:20, 21, which is between the Father and the Son, and are eternally “sanctified” Heb 10:14—NC).
