Well said, Pipedude. I hereby declare you the BB's resident Finney Expert In Transit, or FIXIT. :wavey:
Charles Finney,who was he really?
Discussion in 'Baptist Theology & Bible Study' started by Plain Old Bill, Jul 30, 2007.
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John of Japan Well-Known MemberSite Supporter
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John of Japan Well-Known MemberSite Supporter
Even if you are right, though, to me it's only a small criticism of Finney. As my father used to say, "I would much rather be criticized for having standards too high than for having standards too low." :type: -
... he was a clear-headed and forthright Pelagian in his emphatic declarations that everyone is naturally able to turn whole-heartly to God once he or she is convinced that that is the right , proper , and needful thing to do . Accordingly , Finney conceived the whole work of the Spirit in conversion in terms of moral persuasion , that is , of making vivid to our minds the reasons for laying down our rebel arms and surrendering to God . Man is always free to reject this persuasion -- 'Sinners can go to Hell in spite of God.' But the stronger the persuasion is , the more likely it is to succeed in breaking down resistance . Every means , therefore , of increasing the force with which truth impinges on the mind -- the most frenzied excitement , the most harrowing emotionalism , the most nerve-racking commotion in evangelistic gatherings -- is entirely in order . ( p.293 )
This is the point at which Pelagianism betrayed Finney , and Finney's example has betrayed many since his day . Believing that it is in everyone's power to accept Christ at any moment , Finney equated the immediate response that the gospel requires of all with instant conversion on the part of all . But by making this equation he made it impossible to avoid doing damage to some souls . If one tells people that they are under obligation to receive Christ on the spot , and calls in God's name for instant decision , some who are spiritually unprepared will come forward , accept directions , 'go through the motions' , and go away thinking they have received Christ , when in reality they have not done so because they were not yet able to do so . So a crop of false conversions results from these tactics in the nature of the case . Bullying for 'decisions' can actually impede and thwart the work of the Holy Spirit in human hearts . When the evangelist takes it on himself to try to pick the fruit before it is ripe , the result is regularly false conversions and hardening . 'Quick sale' techniques in evangelism always tend to boomerang in this way ; their long-term effect is regularly barrenness . Not for nothing was one of the areas where Finney first worked later labelled 'the burned-over district' . Finneyism , which seeks to break up the fallow ground , issues rather in a scorching of the earth , a state of diminished rather than enhanced responsiveness to the gospel . ( pages 299 and 300 )
The above are from J.I. Packer's "A Quest For Godliness : The Puritan Vision of the Christian Life " . Copyright 1990 , published by Crossway Books , a division of Good News Publishers .
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