Thus far in our discussion of the doctrine of repentance we have asked and given an answer to several questions. In our first article we asked: What is repentance? Is repentance obligatory for all men? In re­lation to that we asked the question does God confront every man who ever lived with the demand to repent. In our last article we treated the question is the demand of God that all repent just or not.

In this article we are going to treat the question: Is the demand of God that all men every- where repent expressive of His deter­minate will? You recall that I warned, in our first article, that the going could get a little rough at this point. So, let us go slowly.

Maybe I could take this same question and putting it in different words ask: “Does God will that which He demands of all those who come under the preaching of the gospel?” Or, “Does God will the repentance of all those who hear the preaching of the gospel, repent and believe?”

Thorny questions. Yet questions which have often times troubled my soul. Maybe you too have been troubled with similar questions.

In answer to the question then we say, first of all, that the demand of God that the sinner repent is seriously made. God’s call to re­pentance is unfeignedly made. God does not address the sinner through the preaching of the gospel “with tongue in cheek!” God does not mock the sinner. It is not so that if one repents that God will not receive such a repentant sinner. God in the preaching of the gospel brings a just demand, in all ser­iousness declared, to the guilty sinner and assures him that the repentant sinner is pleasing in His sight. God is serious. He means what He says. Jesus Christ, The Preacher, (Mark 1:14) assures the repentant sinner of just this seriousness of God in His demand that the sinner repent. Jesus said, “and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out!” (John 6:37b) In the Old Testa­ment we read: “For thou, Lord, art good, and ready to forgive and plenteous in mercy unto all them that call upon thee.” Psalm 86:5. In the demand that the sinner repent God is serious and He reveals what is pleasing to Him. Listen to the fathers of Dordrecht; “As many as are called by the gospel are un­feignedly (seriously) called…” Canons III and IV, article 8. Those that repent God will graciously receive into the sphere of His love and fellowship. God does not mock the sinner.

In the second place we can look at this question, does God will what he demands, from another view point. We must not forget that the preaching of the Word and the de­mand that the sinner repent stands in a definite relationship to the sovereign, un­changeable counsel of God. What is that re­lationship between God’s counsel and the demand that the sinner repent? It is one of means. There is a means and there is an end or goal. The preaching of repentance is the means to the realization of the decree of predestination including election and re­probation. God wills the salvation of some persons through Christ Jesus and He wills eternally the damnation of others to be ac­complished in the way of their own sin and rebellion. The preaching of the demand of repentance is the means whereby God, on the one hand, infaillibly saves His people chosen in Christ unto salvation. On the other hand, the same preaching of repentance is a means whereby God’s purpose of reproba­tion is accomplished in some persons who are hardened in their sin in the rejection of the truth of the Word of God. God’s just demand they refuse to heed.

Let me pause a moment to give scriptural proof for the doctrine of predestination. With respect to the doctrine of election I will just sight the classical passage of Eph. l:3-5a, where we read: “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ: According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and with­out blame before him in love having pre­destinated us unto the adoption of children . .” We could sight many more passages that teach explicitly the doctrine of election.  But what about reprobation, is there scrip­tural warrant for the doctrine of uncon­ditional reprobation sovereignly determined by the just, most holy God of the heavens and the earth? Note, first of all, that wherever in scripture election is taught there re­probation is implicitly taught. But scripture also explicitly teaches the doctrine of re­probation. The apostle Peter, when describ­ing the disobedience of some persons who refused to heed the demand of the gospel, says: “but unto them which be disobedient the stone which the builders disallowed, the same is made the head of the corner, and a stone of stumbling, and a rock of offense, even to them which stumble at the word, being disobedient: whereunto also they were appointed.” (1 Peter 2:7-8) They were appointed unto a present stumbling and in the way of their own disobedience. And note Jude 4, “For there are certain men crept in un­awares, who were before of old ordained to this condemnation, ungodly men, turning the grace of God unto lasciviousness, and deny­ing the only Lord God, and our Lord Jesus Christ.” Compare also Romans 9:10-13, 20-22 and read article 15 of the first head of the Canons. We conclude that the Scripture and the Confessions teach the doctrine of the sovereign, unconditional, election and re­probation of persons all of which are dead in sin sinners by nature. So much for the pause in our discussion.

To get back to our material, we were dis­cussing the relationship that exists between the preaching of the demand for repentance and the counsel or decree of predestination. We said that the preaching of the demand for repentance is the means for the gather­ing of the Church of Christ from among men. The elect in Christ are being gathered by the preaching of the gospel of repentance. Let me point out emphatically that the gathering of the Church of Christ is the primary pur­pose for the preaching of the demand for repentance. It is to the accomplishment of that glorious purpose that the Church of Christ at any one time in history preaches the gospel through its lawfully called and ordained ministry. In obedience to the command of Christ that the Church is to teach all nations, the Church busies itself in its primary if not sole work. But we must add, that the gathering of the elect is not God’s sole purpose with the preaching of the demand for repentance. There is a subordinate purpose, but more about this later.

To proceed, we have not yet fully answered the question confronting us which is, is the demand of God that the sinner repent expres­sive of His will. We have pointed out that God is serious in His demand and will certainly receive the penitent sinner into His fellow­ship. We have shown too that God’s will is two-fold including election and reprobation. That will is not hidden but expressed. Scrip­ture declares God’s will and it reveals that God’s will is that some persons are elected unto salvation while others are rejected which rejection is accomplished in the way of their own sin.

We are now ready to go to the third part of my answer to the question, is the demand of God that the sinner repent expressive of His will. God knows who is elect and who is reprobate of those who constitute the audience that hear the demand to repent de­clared to them in the preaching of the gospel. Human preachers do not know who of their audience is elect or reprobate. They need not know. It is best that men do not know. With respect to all the hearers of the gospel the preacher simply declares the serious de­mand of God in which God justly demands re­pentance of all and promises salvation and all the benefits of salvation to those only who repent.

But God knows who it is that hears the word. And God has two different purposes to be accomplished through the means of preaching, of the demand of repentance. That demand serves as the means to the salvation of the elect in Christ, in the first place; and in the second place, that demand for repent­ance declared in the preaching of the gospel serves the purpose unto the hardening of the reprobate sinner and in the way of such hardening God accomplishes His sovereign, just, and most holy will in the reprobate. God wills the repentance of the elect and, therefore, He causes the gospel to be preached to them that hearing they may by the irresistable power of His grace repent and believe. But God does not will the re­pentance of the reprobate even though He causes the demand for repentance to be preached to them. God’s will is always in perfect harmony. We must say this re the reprobate: God wills that the reprobate be hardened in his sin and rebellion, which is accomplished by his rejection of the demand to repent.

God does not will the repentance of the reprobate and yet He causes it that the de­mand of repentance is preached to them. Why? Why does not God so work that only the elect hear the gospel. Are not the elect in Christ those who are and will be gathered by the Son of God through His Spirit and Word? Why must the reprobate hear the gospel and in particular the demand of God that he repent and believe? How are we to understand this?

First of all, there is the formal reason that God gathers His Church organically. That is the elect live in physical and societal relationships with the reprobate in this world. Not so in the world to come. An believing father can, and often times does, have an unbelieving son. Out of one family God draws some to salvation by the irresistible power of His grace, but in others of the same family God accomplishes His sover­eign will of reprobation in the way of their own sin and rebellion. This figure of the family can be expanded to be the family of the whole human race. God deals with His people chosen in Christ as they organically live with the reprobate in the world. God gathers the elect out of the fallen human race. Christ gives us a picture of that organic character of God’s work in the parable of the wheat and the tares (Matthew 13:24-30). The tares and the wheat are to live side by side in the same field under the same watering, and under the same sun light. The tares were to be pulled up and burned when they have reached full maturity as tares. The wheat (kernel) was to be gathered into the barn. The wheat are the elect be­lievers, and the tares represent the repro­bate. The same thought of organic unity is even more directly taught in scripture when the elect and the reprobate are considered as the wheat kernel (the elect) and the chaff (the reprobate). Confer Psalm 1:4, and Matthew 3:13. The farmer cannot realize a full bin of grain except in the way of growing wheat consisting organically, for a time, of wheat and chaff. So also God gathers the elect unto Himself through the preaching of the demand of repentance; elect who live for a time in this world in organic unity with the reprobate unbeliever, it is this organic character of God’s work in the gathering of His people which I call the formal reason why the reprobate must of necessity hear the demand of the gospel. The farmer in his work is a picture given by God to us of God’s own work in the gathering of the elect in Christ.

We can say more in answer to the question, “Why must the reprobate hear the gospel and in particular, the demand of God to repent?”. Then secondly, we would say that there are material reasons that can be given in answer to this question. By material we mean that God has a definite purpose re the reprobate himself as to why he must hear the demand of the gospel. As to the material reasons we would say, first of all, that God has the de­mand of repentance preached to reprobate persons in order that the depravity of man’s nature may be revealed in all its horrible depths in the rejection of the Son of God, who declared the truth of God’s Word. The depth of the depravity of man’s fallen nature is re­vealed in the unbeliever’s love of the lie and his rejection of the cross of Christ as the cross of the atonement for those chosen in Christ. (Confer Is. 6:8-9, Acts 28: 24-27, Mark 4:10-12) I will quote just one passage of scripture for your consideration: “But though he had done so many miracles before them, yet they believed not on him: That the saying of Esaias the prophet might be fulfilled, which he spake, Lord, who hath believed our report? and to whom hath the arm of the Lord been revealed? Therefore they could not be­lieve, because that Esaias said again, He hath blinded their eyes, and hardened their heart; that they should not see with their eyes, nor understand with their heart, and be con­verted, and I should heal them.” (John 12: 37-40). Secondly, by his conscious, deli­berate rejection of the truth the reprobate aggravates his judgement. It will be less tolerable for those who refuse to repent though they have heard the gospel of God’s demand for repentance, than for those who never heard the gospel (Mt. l-:20-21).

The third material reason is that, with respect to God, He has His demand preached to the reprobate in order that He may be vindicated when He casts the reprobate un­believer into Hell for having despised God’s mercy and grace revealed at the cross. And in the fourth place, God, by having the de­mand of repentance preached to many re­probate as well as the elect, all of whom are dead in sin and guilty before God, creates the circumstance wherein He reveals His sovereignty in the bestowal of “grace unto repentance” (Acts 11:18) unto some but not unto others. Of all men it is justly demand that they repent and believe, but God in his sovereignty and wisdom gives by the power of His grace the will and the spiritual ability necessary unto repentance and faith to some (the elect) and not to others (the reprobate) who being dead in sin love the lie and despise the good. For by grace are we saved through the way of repenting and believing which is a gift of God to the elect alone. A gift withheld from the reprobate. The God of Scripture is the sovereign God of Heaven and Earth, who will perform all His good pleasure.

Finally, God is pleased to have the demand of repentance preached to reprobate per­sons, who live organically in the world with the elect, in order that the elect believer may learn humility. Was not the believer by nature involved in the same ruin with the un­believer? Who made the believer to differ from the unbeliever a difference which con­sists of repentance and faith? Who did that? You? No, you and I did not make ourselves to differ from the reprobate. God freely gives to us and all the elect of all ages grace unto repentance and the faith unto believing. We have nothing of ourselves wherein to boast! (Eph. 2:8-9) But we have so much for which to be thankful. Thanks be to God, our sovereign and most gracious God, who saves some of the unworthy in order that His name may be glorified in and through them. “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ: According as he hath chosen us in him…”

But do you know that you nor I can really swallow this doctrine of the sovereignty of God! I mean now, that this doctrine is re­pulsive to our sinful nature. It leaves no room for man to boast of himself. This doctrine of God’s sovereignty will continue to be repulsive to my carnal flesh till the day I die. And yet we love that truth of the in­fallible scriptures, that God is sovereign and that He performs all His good pleasure in a most holy and just manner; we love, by the grace of God, that which by nature is repulsive to us sinners. Therefore, our prayer must be “God grant us the grace to confess, teach and preach as individuals and church of Christ the truth of thy sover­eignty.”

“O Lord, open thou my lips; and my mouth shall shew forth thy praise.”