Acts 17:30 and Matthew 11:21 - John Brine and Others [on duty-faith]

[Abraham Juliot]

Matthew 11:21-24
21Woe unto thee, Chorazin! woe unto thee, Bethsaida! for if the mighty works, which were done in you, had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes.
22But I say unto you, It shall be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon at the day of judgment, than for you.
23And thou, Capernaum, which art exalted unto heaven, shalt be brought down to hell: for if the mighty works, which have been done in thee, had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day.
24But I say unto you, That it shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judgment, than for thee.

Acts 17:22-32
22Then Paul stood in the midst of Mars' hill, and said, Ye men of Athens, I perceive that in all things ye are too superstitious.
23For as I passed by, and beheld your devotions, I found an altar with this inscription, TO THE UNKNOWN GOD. Whom therefore ye ignorantly worship, him declare I unto you.
24God that made the world and all things therein, seeing that he is Lord of heaven and earth, dwelleth not in temples made with hands;
25Neither is worshipped with men's hands, as though he needed any thing, seeing he giveth to all life, and breath, and all things;
26And hath made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth, and hath determined the times before appointed, and the bounds of their habitation
27That they should seek the Lord, if haply they might feel after him, and find him, though he be not far from every one of us:
28For in him we live, and move, and have our being; as certain also of your own poets have said, For we are also his offspring.
29Forasmuch then as we are the offspring of God, we ought not to think that the Godhead is like unto gold, or silver, or stone, graven by art and man's device.
30And the times of this ignorance God winked at; but now commandeth all men every where to repent:
31Because he hath appointed a day, in the which he will judge the world in righteousness by that man whom he hath ordained; whereof he hath given assurance unto all men, in that he hath raised him from the dead.
32And when they heard of the resurrection of the dead, some mocked: and others said, We will hear thee again of this matter.




"With Respect, Sir, to what the Author [the Baxterian] observes of all Men being commanded to repent , it intends a forsaking of Idolatry, and embracing the Worship of the true God alone (Acts 17:30,31). F3 The Distinction of natural and evangelical Repentance, of common and special Faith, which he before allowed, he now denies, and demands Proof that John the Baptist uses the Distinction, when he preached Repentance; I think, Sir, I may demand of him to prove that this Distinction, cannot take Place in his Discourses, since it is evidently found in Scripture; and if he is not able to give Proof that his Scope and Design, will not admit of this Distinction, however positive he may be, of being in the Right, at least, it is possible he may be in the wrong. I beg leave to observe to you, Sir, that our Saviour manifestly speaks of Repentance, when evangelical Repentance is not intended. The Place I now refer to is Matthew 11:21, they would have repented long ago in Sackcloth and Ashes . Upon no Scheme can Repentance here mean evangelical; it cannot upon the Calvinistical Scheme is certain, this is so evident that nothing is required to evince it. Nor can it intend such Repentance upon the Arminian and Baxterian Schemes, for if God foresaw that they would have repented, in Case such Works had been done among them, he would have wrought those Works in their View to bring them to Repentance; upon the Foresight of which, he decreed the Happiness of Men, according to these Schemes, and therefore this Writer, who is no Calvinist , but a Baxterian , I should think must grant that evangelical Repentance, is not there intended; for ‘tis strange to suppose God to decree the Happiness of Men, upon Condition of Repentance and Faith, and yet determine to withhold those Means from them, which he foresees would bring them to Repentance and Faith." John Brine, A refutation of Arminian Principles

[Abraham Juliot]

"Matt. 11:20, Jesus “upbraided the cities,”—“because they repented not.” Here the Lord speaks of the Repentance He enforced as the act of cities collectively, which clearly shows that it was not individual, as is that which is unto life eternal. Isa. 27:12." -William Styles

"Acts 17:30. God commandeth all men everywhere to repent.” Often cited to prove that Spiritual Repentance is a natural duty. This assumption is founded in error. Most of St. Paul’s hearers were heathen philosophers, who had no just conception of the true God, the knowledge of whom had been hitherto restricted to the divinely chosen nation, and the few isolated Gentiles, like Ruth and others who came into contact with them. The days of their ignorance God had not sanctioned, but “winked at,” that is, overlooked, or suffered to pass without protest. But that state of things had come to an end, and He now commanded all men everywhere to repent. The time had arrived for God’s servants, in His name, to denounce and forbid the false and degrading religions of the Grecian and Roman nations, with which in the former dispensation the Jews were never authorized to interfere. The Repentance here meant is, therefore, the abandonment of idolatry." -William Styles

“If we say that the Repentance contemplated by our Lord in addressing Capernaum, etc. (Matt. 11:23) was unto eternal salvation, we must add that it is an eternal pity that the works of Christ were not done in Tyre, Sidon, and Sodom, for ‘they would have repented long ago,’ and gone to heaven for ever! It is, however, evident that our Lord meant such moral Repentance as would have stayed impending judgments, and so the offending cities ‘would have remained unto this day.’”—John Foreman.

[Abraham Juliot]

If anyone has any questions or thoughts on these texts, feel free to share.

[Robert R. Higby]

Is a command to repent the equivalent of a free offer of the gospel to the dead? The duty faith doctrine would affirm that it is.

[Abraham Juliot]

Is a command to repent the equivalent of a free offer of the gospel to the dead? The duty faith doctrine would affirm that it is.

I spoke with 2 men from the PRC and one tried to reason that God commands the unregenerate to be born again. I was shocked.

[Dahlseide]

If you've not read it already I highly recommend "Law & Gospel, the Theology of Andrew Fuller" by Geo. Ella

[Abraham Juliot]

If you've not read it already I highly recommend "Law & Gospel, the Theology of Andrew Fuller" by Geo. Ella

Are there any (united states online) distributors that you could recommend with George Ella's books... or what is the most convenient way to purchase his books online or through mailing. I have wanted to purchase dozens of his books for awhile now, but I can't find them at a convenient retail distributor.

[Abraham Juliot]

"The Place I now refer to is Matthew 11:21, they would have repented long ago in Sackcloth and Ashes . Upon no Scheme can Repentance here mean evangelical; it cannot upon the Calvinistical Scheme is certain, this is so evident that nothing is required to evince it. Nor can it intend such Repentance upon the Arminian and Baxterian Schemes, for if God foresaw that they would have repented, in Case such Works had been done among them, he would have wrought those Works in their View to bring them to Repentance; upon the Foresight of which, he decreed the Happiness of Men, according to these Schemes, and therefore this Writer, who is no Calvinist , but a Baxterian , I should think must grant that evangelical Repentance, is not there intended; for ‘tis strange to suppose God to decree the Happiness of Men, upon Condition of Repentance and Faith, and yet determine to withhold those Means from them, which he foresees would bring them to Repentance and Faith."

i like this argument

[Robert R. Higby]

Here is a link to where you can purchase the book on Andrew Fuller. It should lead to where the other books by George Ella can be obtained.

http://www.google.com/products/catal...d=0CDUQ8wIwCg#

[Robert R. Higby]

The bottom line is: the gospel is preached to the non-elect to confirm their guilt in disbelief. NOT to offer them salvation. God's Word never returns to Him void--it either results in the confirmation of election through the exercise of faith in the elect or the confirmation of reprobation through the exercise of cynical laughter at the gospel in the non-elect.