In 1937 Arthur Pink
wrote,
“The "Gospel" which is now being
proclaimed is, in nine cases out of
every ten—but a perversion of the Truth, and tens of thousands, assured
they are bound for Heaven, are now hastening to Hell, as fast as time can take
them!” 1
And
the beat goes on. Evangelicals en masse believe they will inherit eternal
life because they have “asked Jesus into their heart”, even though many know nothing of what it means to test themselves to see if their faith is genuine.
In
the past the practice of carefully examining ourselves was considered normal
and necessary in order to expose self-deceived professors and hypocrites, rebuke
worldly Christians, and assure genuine believers.
Matthew
Meade (1629– 1699), was a Puritan and contemporary of John Owen,
Bunyan, and Richard Baxter, who lived in a time when Protestantism had
spread quickly and hypocrisy was rampant.
But the diligent Puritans had no “lack of fidelity in
applying to the churches tests of fearless thoroughness.” 2 Appointed
by Oliver Cromwell to the New Chapel at Shadwell, England, Meade’s works
were held in high esteem and are still considered to be some of the greatest
writings on Christian living. “The Almost Christian
Discovered” was written as a wake-up call to devout parishioners who
believed themselves to be Christians but were not born again.
The book poses four questions giving the most attention to the first—“How far may a man go
in the way to heaven, and be almost a Christian?” Twenty ways
an unregenerate person can appear to be a Christian are explained using
Biblical examples, raising objections, and comparing the counterfeit to the
real McCoy.
1.
He may have much knowledge.
2.
He may have great gifts.
3.
He may have a high profession.
4.
He may do much against sin.
5.
He may desire grace.
6.
He may tremble at the word.
7.
He may delight in the word.
8.
He may be a member of the church of Christ.
9.
He may have great hopes of heaven.
10.
He may be under great and visible changes.
11.
He may be very zealous in the matters of religion.
12.
He may be much in prayer.
13.
He may suffer for Christ.
14.
He may be called of God.
15.
He may, in some sense, have the Spirit if God.
16.
He may have some kind of faith.
17.
He may love the people of God.
18.
He may go far in obeying the commands of God.
19.
He may be, in some sense, sanctified.
20.
He may do all, as to external duties, that a true Christian can, and
yet be no better than almost a Christian.
Passages like Hebrews 6:4-5 can be difficult
for some of us to understand and this study will help to clarify their meaning.
“For in the case of those who have
once been enlightened and have tasted of the heavenly gift and have been made partakers of the Holy Spirit,
and have tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come, an then have fallen away, it is
impossible to renew them again to repentance.” Heb. 6:4-5
For example, #15 explains how “A man may have the spirit of God, and
yet be but almost a Christian."
"Balaam had the Spirit of God given him when he blessed Israel: “Balaam saw Israel abiding in tents, and the Spirit of the Lord came upon him.” Judas had; for by the Spirit he cast out devils; he was one of them that came to Christ, and said, “Lord, even the devils are subject to us.” Saul had—“Behold, a company of prophets met him; and the Spirit of God came upon him, and be prophesied among them.”
Objection. But you will say, “Can a man have the Spirit
of God, and yet not be a Christian?” Indeed, the Scripture saith, “If any man have not the Spirit of Christ,
he is none of his;” but surely if any man have the Spirit of Christ, he is
his!
Answer. There is a having the Spirit, which is a
sure mark of saintship. Where the Spirit
is an effectual prevailing principle of grace and sanctification, renewing and
regenerating the heart: where the Spirit is a potent worker, “helping the
soul’s infirmities: where the Spirit is so as to “abide forever.” But now every
man that hath the Spirit, hath not the Spirit in this manner.”
Meade goes on to prove how this moving of
the Holy Spirit in the life of an unbeliever relates to those who commit the
unpardonable sin (Mark 3:22-30; Matt.
12:22-32)
“A man may have the Spirit
of God working in him, and yet it may be resisted by him….
A man may have the Spirit, and yet sin that unpardonable sin: he
may have the Holy Ghost, and yet sin the sin against the Holy Ghost;—nay, no
man can sin this sin against it, but he that hath some degree of it.
The true believer hath so
much of the Spirit, such a work of it in him, that he cannot sin that sin: “He that is born of God, sins not:” to wit,
that “sin unto death,” for that is meant. The carnal professing sinner, he cannot sin
that sin, because he is carnal and sensual, having not the Spirit. A man must have some measure of the Spirit
that sins this sin: so hath the hypocrite: he is said to be “partaker of the
Holy Ghost,” and he only is capable of sinning the sin against the Holy Ghost.”
This book has challenged
me on several points. Could it be possible that I am among the multitudes of religious self deceived professors who will say on the Day of
Judgement “Lord, Lord”? However, Meade makes it clear that he has no intention
of discouraging the true child of God
and it is those who will respond to such questioning with the deepest concern
for their soul. “Is it I?” was the sorrowful reaction of the disciples when Christ
declared that one of them would betray Him. God
doesn’t want His children to be burdened with doubt but desires that we have full
confidence and joy in our salvation. Furthermore,
it is this kind of scrutiny that will produce that assurance. The Scriptures themselves make it very clear
that it is possible to know that we
have been born again.
“These things I have written to you
who believe in the name of the Son of God, so that you may know that you have eternal life.”
I Jn. 5:13
Meade concludes,
“Now therefore, hath the spirit of the Lord
been at work in your souls? Have you
ever been convinced of the evil of sin, of the misery of a natural state, of
the insufficiency of all things under heaven to help, of the fullness and
righteousness of Jesus Christ, of the necessity of resting upon him for pardon
and peace, for sanctification and salvation? Have you ever been really convinced of
these things? O then, as you love your
own souls, as ever you hope to be saved at last, and enjoy God for ever,
improve these convictions, and be sure you rest not in them till they rise up
to a thorough close with the Lord Jesus Christ, and so end in a sound and
perfect conversion. Thus shall you be not only almost,
but altogether a Christian.”
____________________________________
1. Signs
of the Times – Studies in the Scriptures,
December 1937
2. Prefatory note by William R.
Williams (1850) to The Almost Christian Discovered or the False Professor Tried
and Cast, by Matthew Meade – public
domain - A free eBook is available HERE
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