B.B. Warfield’s “Faith and Life,” 1-13

1. We offer some observations on B.B. Warfield’s “Faith and Life” (Edinburgh: The Banner of Truth Trust, 1974), 1-13.

2. Tim Naab, a correspondent at “Exposing the False Prophets—Reformation Christians Against TBN” made an interesting comment recently. Tim has 50 years in Pentecostalism and his parents and grandparents go back to the original movement.
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3. We asked Tim about the Pentecostalist definition of “faith” in that Arminianized and Montanist world. He noted that it is “faith in one’s faith,” rather than the object of faith, Christ. This impelled this scribe to pull Warfield’s timely classic off the shelf. Warfield is a good start but we commend readers to a salutary summary of saving faith in the Wesminster Confession, Chapter 15, at: http://www.reformed.org/documents/index.html?mainframe=http://www.reformed.org/documents/westminster_conf_of_faith.html

4. Warfield develops an instructive devotional article entitled “The Cause of God” in relation to Elijah.

5. Elijah is a story of fidelity to God when apostasy and infidelity reigned in Israel. We know nothing about his background or training, but he emerges in 1 Kings before an idolatrous king Ahab and a wayward, indifferent, lawless, autonomous, defiant and self-exalting generation. Elijah appears thunderously, but he also disappears in the story to a desolate and forlorn tract of land and caves.

6. Elijah sought to awaken Israel to its demise in doctrine, worship and piety. He called for repentance, reform and renewal. Drought, fire from heaven, famine, and death for enemies of His Majesty follow Elijah’s ministry. We may well imagine something of sternness in demeanour, fearlessness, and courage. He reminds us of John the Baptist.

7. Several lessons are helpful, although we digress from Professor B.B. Warfield, the “Lion of Princeton.”

8. Following Elijah’s appearance of vigour and preaching in Israel, we find him secluded and sequestered by the brook Cherith in Jordan, fed by ravens. We find him discouraged and despairing. The tough prophet learned in suffering, as would St. Paul (2 Cor.12.1ff). In despair at the large rejection of his message, he learned that God had elected “7000 who have not bowed the knee to Baal.”

9. By Emergents’ standards like Brian McClaren, Elijah hadn’t adjusted himself to doctrinal haziness, vagueness, and uncertainty about truth. We can hear it, “C’mon Elijah, let’s just trim the sails, shall we? What’s with all the Law? And the Word of God as the `Constitution of the Church’? Please. This OT-stuff about justice and holiness is too much.” We refer the reader to the recent panel discussion hosted by Dr. Al Mohler re: Brian McClaren’s “Generous Orthodoxy.” McClaren wouldn't get any hearing from Elijah or John the Baptist.

10. By TBN standards as well as our’s we might add, Elijah had the “signs and wonders.” Unlike TBN, Pentecostalists, and charismatics, we do not believe that God ordinarily works “signs and wonders.“ Read the Bible. We are developing this in other threads. The Bible teaches that God does not work this way. We confess the words and wisdom of the Westminster Confession of Faith, chapter 5, paragraph 3, to wit, that “God, in his ordinary providence, maketh use of means, yet is free to work without, above, and against them, at his pleasure.” We’re not Protestant liberals; we believe in miracles. But God ordinarily uses means. We affirm that God has and did perform “signs and wonders” at significant junctures in redemptive history, e.g. Moses, Elijah, and the days of Christ. However, in the vast, vast, vast, vast reaches of the centuries within the Bible, God normally did not do that. Just read the Bible TBN-Pentecostalist devotees. Here these Montanists go off the deep-end, here as elsewhere. We confess the great “signs and wonders” of Elijah. But we deny that they were normative throughout subsequent months and years in Israel’s history.

11. On another front, by mega-church standards of numbers, church growth, techniques and strategies. Elijah was a “Chief-of-Failure-dom.” Elijah complains, “I, I only, am left,” as if God’s work ever rested on Elijah, techniques, and church-growth formulas in the first place. Elijah had some maturing to do. We can hear Elijah-turn-mega-growth strategist, “Lord, I didn’t have the questionnaires, demographic studies, formulas or messages tuned to `felt needs.’ I got it wrong about the idolaters.” As if God’s work was vanquished in the land by massive apostasy. As if the message had to be diluted to accommodate Ahab, Jezebel, the Baal worshippers and the idolatrous Israelites. As if there were no “elect left” and true Gospel preaching was a failure. As if God was going to fail. As if God was going to desert His sovereign covenant promises to Adam, Noah, Abraham, Moses and so many others. As if numbers mattered. We surely gain encouragement in preaching the Law and Gospel, irrespective of numbers, strategies, or responses. Elijah happened to live in "postmodern times" (what a term).

12. Some, including myself, refer to "evangellifishdom." Such pull the Pharisee trump card as their technique of avoidance when false doctrine is confronted or biblical doctrine is positively confessed. Other wild cards: "Judgment Card," "Unloving Card, and" Divisive Card" are played routinely but incorrrectly. Of course, it's true as justified sinners. We must really we see that were born apostates, are justified by Christ's grace alone, and to beat our breast like the sinner in Luke 18.9ff. We'll be doing that until we're old with gray hairs. On the other hand, we're not rolling over for these indifferentists with pietist retreats as covers for sloth, indifference or fear. In God's name, we're not doing that. We confess the faith kindly, humbly, but directly and clearly. There are "boundaries," Confessional ones. By the way, evangellifish wouldn't have the time of day for Elijah either; Elijah was divisive, judgmental, unkind, self-righteous and Pharsaical.

12. Fidelity, courage, honour and commitment. Elijah was consistent in doctrine, word and piety with Paul’s advice to Timothy in 2 Tim.4.1-5.

“1 In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead, and in view of his appearing and his kingdom, I give you this charge: 2 Preach the Word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage—with great patience and careful instruction. 3 For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. 4 They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths. 5 But you, keep your head in all situations, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, discharge all the duties of your ministry.

13. We have no choice. We cannot follow the modern cop-outs like Hybels and Warren. We cannot follow the new Liberals like McClaren. We cannot follow the Montanist Frenzysts.

14. Thank God that God is what and who He has disclosed Himself to be in “True Churches” with the true and biblical marks as such. Thank God for His fidelity to His Catholic, Confessional and True Churches, and to us, our children and grandchildren, as well as fellow-believers. We live in troubled times, but we live in the joy and confidence that God is sovereign, gracious and faithful.