Walkington's Works

A.W. was quite the useful instrument of the Lord . I trust many who view this thread realize that he was not a one-dimensional figure . Again , he has been compared to Matthew Henry by Mr. Murray . That's good company to be in .

 

Profiting From The Word

The Scriptures And Joy

We profit from the Word when we diligently preserve the balance between sorrow and joy . If the Christian faith has a marked adaptation to produce joy , it has an almost equal design and tendency to produce sorrow -- a sorrow that is solemn , [ and ] noble . ' As sorrowful , yet always rejoicing ' ( 2 Cor. 6:10 ) is the rule of the Christian's life . If faith casts its light upon our condition , our nature , our sins , sadness must be one of the effects . There is nothing more contemptible in itself , and there is no surer mark of a superficial character and trivial round of occupation , than unshaded gladness , that rests on no deep foundations of quiet , patient grief -- grief because I know what I am and what I ought to be ; grief because I look out on the world and see hell's fire burning at the back of mirth and laughter , and know what it is that men are hurrying to .

 

Gleanings In The Godhead

The Decrees Of God

Let us now consider some of the properties of the divine decrees . First , they are eternal . To suppose any of them to be made in time is to suppose that some new occasion has occurred , some unforeseen event or combination of circumstances has arisen , which has induced the most High to form a new resolution . This would argue that the knowledge of the Deity is limited , and that He grows wiser in the progress of time -- which would be horrible blasphemy . No man who believes that the divine understanding is infinite , comprehending the past , the present , and the future , will ever assent to the erroneous doctrine of temporal decrees . God is not ignorant of future events which will be executed by human volitions ; He has foretold them in innnumerable instances , and prophecy is but the manifestation of His eternal prescience . Scripture affirms that believers were chosen in Christ before the world began ( Ephesians 1:4 ) ; yes , that grace was "given" to them then ( 2 Timothy 1:9 ) .

 

Gleanings In The Godhead

The Decrees Of God

They are absolute and unconditional . The execution of them is not suspended upon any condition which may , or may not be , performed . In every instance where God has decreed an end , He has also decreed every means to that end . The One who decreed the salvation of His elect also decreed to work faith in them ( 2 Thessalonians 2:13 ) . " My counsel shall stand , and I will do all my pleasure " ( Isaiah 46:10 ) ; but that could not be , if His counsel depended upon a condition which might not be performed . But God " worketh all things after the counsel of hi own will " ( Ephesians 1:11 ) .

 

Gleanings In The Godhead

The Decrees Of God

To deny the divine decrees would be to predicate a world and all its concerns regulated by undesigned chance or blind fate . Then what peace , what assurance , what comfort would there be for our poor hearts and minds ? What refuge would there be to fly to in the hour of trial ? None at all . There would be nothing better than the black darkness and abject horror of atheism . How thankful we should be that everything is determined by infinite wisdom and goodness ! What praise and gratitude are due unto God for His divine decrees . Because of them , "We know that all things work together [ God works all things together - Rip ] for good to them that love God , to them who are the called according to his purpose " ( Romans 8:28 ) . well may we exclaim , " For of him , and through him , and to him , are all things : to whom be glory for ever . Amen " ( 11:36 ) .

 

gleanings In The Godhead

The Knowledge Of God

Now the divine knowledge of the future is not a mere abstraction , but something inseparably connected with and accompanied by His purpose . God designed whatsoever shall yet be , and what he has designed must be effected . As His most sure Word affirms , " He doeth according to his will in the army of heaven , and among the inhabitants of the earth : and none can stay his hand " ( Daniel 4:35 ) . Again , " There are many devices in a man's heart ; nevertheless the counsel of the LORd , that shall stand " ( Proverbs 19:21 ) . The wisdom and power of God being alike infinite , the accomplishment of whatever He hath purposed is absolutely guaranteed . It is no more possible for the divine counsels to fail in their execution than it would be for the thrice-holy God to lie .
Nothing related to the future is uncertain so far as the actualization of God's counsels are concerned . None of His decrees are left contingent upon creatures or secondary causes . There is no future event which is only a mere possibility , that is , something which may or may not come to pass , " Known unto God are all his works from the beginning " ( Acts 15:18 ) . Whatever God has decreed is inexorably certain , for He is without variableness , or shadow of turning ( James 1;17 ) . Therefore , we are told at the very beginning of that book which unveils to us so much of the future that it will deal with " things which must shortly come to pass " ( Revelation 1:1 ) .

 

Gleanings In The Godhead

The Knowledge Of God

It should , however , be pointed out that neither God's knowledge nor his cognition of the future , considered simply in themselves , are causive . Nothing has ever come to pass , or ever will , merely because God knew it . The cause of all things is the will of God . The man who really believes the Scriptures knows beforehand that the seasons will continue to follow each other with unfailing regularity to the end of earth's history ( Genesis 8:22 ) , yet his knowledge is not the cause of their succession . So God's knowledge does not arise from things because they are or will be , but because He has ordained them to be . God knew and foretold the crucifixion of His Son many hundreds of years before He became incarnate , and this because in the Divine purpose He was a Lamb slain from the foundation of the world ; hence we read of His being " delivered by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God " ( Acts 2:23 ) .

 

I'll only address one of your errors Ps. Instead of the weak and inaccurate ' God has predestined that believers in His Son shall be saved " , go with Holy Writ : all who were appointed [ ordained , predestined ] for eternal life believed ( Acts 13:48 ) .

 

Npetreley , you're a trip ! But so right .