"Dead Men Walking" and Dr. Jerry Vines

Dr. Jerry Vines points out in his anti-Calvinist sermon from First Baptist Church, Woodstock, Ga., that we Calvinists refer to the spiritual death mentioned in Eph.2:1 as meaning man without Christ is utterly incapable of doing anything about his spiritual condition, including choosing to be saved. Dr. Vines' observation is correct. But Dr. Vines' counter-argument, that if this is really true and dead men can't do anything then it must be true that dead men can't sin, fails to see the very opposite truth taught in the Ephesians passage.

Paul reminds the believer that at one time in that believer's history that believer was indeed "dead to" or "in trespasses and sins." It was in the sphere of spiritual death and in the sphere of trespasses and sins that the unbeliever "once walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience." The unbeliever according to the Word of God, is the walking dead. And furthermore, we all were at one time "dead men walking." "Among whom also we all once conducted ourselves in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, just as the others." Brother Vines fails to recognize that as dead men walking and utterly unable to right ourselves spiritually, not only could we sin but sin is all we could do.

Notice that Paul, who declares our previous spiritual condition as being dead, says at the same time that we also "walked." And notice also that Paul says that these same dead people "once conducted ourselves" and were "fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind." So spiritually dead men can walk, conduct, and fulfill. But this walking and conducting and fulfilling are all done while the unbeliever is dead in trespasses and sins. This paints a dramatic and sobering picture of the true spiritual condition of man apart from the grace of God found only in Jesus Christ who Himself can only be found by the grace of God first giving that unbeliever life that he might then be enabled to see and enter the kingdom of God.

Human beings who are dead in trespasses and sins go about their lives like there is absolutely nothing wrong with them; why, some even believe in God and go to church and do good deeds and have wonderful families. Some, on the other hand, are scoundrels and thieves and druggies and sexually immoral and liars and gossips and so forth. But the doers of good deeds and the good family people without Christ are equal spiritually to the scoundrels they look down on. But to both groups this is just the way life is; this is normal life as far as they know. They are blind to their true spiritual condition because they cannot see. And they will not see until the gospel is proclaimed to them and God by His grace at that time draws them to His Son and gives them life that they might see the "light of the gospel of the glory of Christ." And in their deadness, in their darkness, God commands the light to shine "to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ" (2Cor.4:1-6). It is impossible to be saved any other way than by the grace of God the Father commanding His light to shine in the hearts of unbelievers who are dead in trespasses and sins and who can do nothing but sin. It is the commandment of God that the light shine and it is the grace of God that He commands the light to shine in the heart of His elect that they might be saved. "But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellence of the power may be of God and not of us" (2Cor.4:7).

Yes, it is true, Dr. Vines, that we Calvinists emphasize that we are Calvinists in part because Calvinism gives all the glory to God for our salvation. But we are Christians solely due to His grace. We are saved by faith alone, through grace alone, in Christ alone, for God's glory alone, through the preaching of His word alone. Dead men can sin, Dr. Vines, and sin is all they can do. It is their sphere of living. It is their sphere of existence. And the spiritually dead can never rise above that sphere in which they live. Jesus Christ was the only man who could raise Himself from the dead. He is the only man who can now raise anyone from the dead.

Arminianism is one of the many great heresies perpetrated upon the world. And those pastors and preachers and teachers and evangelists who preach the man-centered heresy of Arminianism are guilty of heresy. They are like the Pharisees and Sadducees of old who were going to hell themselves and were simultaneously leading others to hell with them while blocking the way of truth from others. If preachers convince the lost that the decision is theirs and that they can indeed make that decision for themselves and by themselves, their empty professions of faith, their vain walks down to the altar, their signing of salvation cards, their getting baptized and joining the church, are all for naught as these deceived listeners focus on their decision rather than on the grace of God demonstrated on the cross. These deceived people have heard a false gospel that denies the true nature of man, the holiness of God, and the One who said that He and He alone is "the Way, and the Truth, and the Life." And those preachers have deceived the lost into believing a lie are responsible for that damnable heresy and will follow their deceived followers into eternal damnation.

A "modified-Calvinist" is no Calvinist at all. Whether one leaves out the "t" or the "u" or the "l" or the "i" or the "p," one is being inconsistent in his theology and in his assessment of human nature. That one is being inconsistent in his definition of sovereignty and unbiblical in his understanding of man's so-called free will. The more we attribute to man the more we take away from God. The more we exalt the sinner the more we lessen the holiness of God. The more power we grant to the free will of man the more we lessen the need for a Savior. If man, lost and dead in his trepasses and sins, can indeed be just as responsible for his own salvation as God is, and this is what our being able to decide or not implies, then man is in essence, co-redeemer with Christ; He did His part, now I can do mine, or not. The gospel is then reduced to an option, a "take it or leave it" proposition. Does this sound like the gospel to you? Does this sound like the Biblical presentation of the cross to you? "But of Him you are in Christ Jesus, who became for us wisdom from God-and righteousness and sanctification and redemption-that, as it is written, He who glories, let him glory in the Lord" (1Cor.1:30-31).

Tag: Calvinism