What Was Involved in Our Coming to Christ?

Two lessons ago we looked at how God’s intention to save His people is rooted in the agreement of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit from all eternity to save a chosen people and in the predestination and election of that people to Himself.  In the previous lesson we examined how God brings us to the point of accepting the salvation He wrought for us through the crucifixion of Christ, through raising Christ from the dead, and through sending the Holy Spirit at Pentecost.  The fact that God chose a people for Himself from all eternity raises the question as to what that means experientially for the individual Christian.  Understanding this requires examining the nature of regeneration, effectual calling, faith, and conversion.

Handout and Lecture Notes for Lesson 6

Handout for Lecture 7

How is Christ’s Work Able to Apply to Us?

Without a full biblical understanding of how salvation works, the natural human tendency is to assume that it applies to us by inspiration or by the affirmation of faith.  Our salvation, however, was ordained by the Triune God from all eternity in His foreknowledge of His people and His predestination and election of them unto Christ.  Our union with Christ, therefore, is of central importance in our salvation.

God’s actions in eternity lays the groundwork for how He worked out salvation in history.  This is rooted in the pactum salutis, that is, the agreement between the three Persons of the Trinity, Father,  Son and Holy Spirit, to bring about the salvation of God’s people.  This agreement necessarily consists of God’s foreknowledge and predestination to election in Christ.  God’s predestination of a people to be elected in Christ does not depend on anything that they did, but solely upon His free grace alone.  Because of God’s foreknowledge and predestination, we have assurance that our salvation rests in His promises alone, not in our decisions.  We also have assurance that all those elected by God will come to salvation; none will be lost.  This should be a comfort to believers. 

Handout and Notes for Lesson 5

Prep for Lesson 6

What Did God Do to Accomplish Our Salvation?

Salvation is commonly seen as just the work of atonement and forgiveness of sin, but the work of salvation which God has wrought includes not only the crucifixion of Christ Jesus, but also His resurrection and the outpouring of the Holy Spirit upon God’s people on the Day of Pentecost.  Thus, all three Persons of the Godhead are involved in the work of salvation, making it a truly Trinitarian activity.  Understanding this lays the groundwork for explaining how this applies to us as Christians. To see this on the level of practical experience, we can look at the Apostle Paul’s conversion experience on the road to Damascus.

Paul’s experience pointed to the crucifixion of Christ, His resurrection, and the outpouring of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost as the essential acts of salvation.  For Paul, the grace He experienced after encountering Christ could not have been possible if Christ had not paid the penalty for sin at the cross.  The crucifixion changes our position before God.  The resurrection of Christ enables our new life and gives us a Mediator with the Father.  And through the outpouring of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, God brings us into continual communion with Christ, renovating us to conform to His image.  Indeed, this idea of our union with Christ is essential to understanding how the work that God did applies to us and moves us to the fulfillment of God’s purposes for us. 

Handout and Notes for Lesson 4

Handout for Lesson 5