Saturday, October 18, 2008

Radmacher Addresses Hodges, COSF*

On the tuesday evening of October 7th, at the banquet of the Free Grace Alliance National Conference, Dr. Radmacher announced the winner of the Trophy of Grace for 2008: Dr. Charles Ryrie. While he was giving a speech before introducing him to the stage, Dr. Radmacher announced he was giving away a copy of a newly published book to everyone in attendance. He has written the foreword of this book, titled The Salvation Controversy, written by Dr. Michael Cocoris [1]. Among other noteworthy contributions to Free Grace, Dr. Cocoris was the succeeding pastor of the Open Door Church where Dr. J. Vernon McGee once pastored.

The following is the unabridged copy of his forewording remarks in The Salvation Controversy:

FOREWARD

As a young pastor, 52 years ago, I invited Haddon Robinson, a friend from college days, to come to our church for one of his early evangelistic meetings. Our little church was packed as he served spiritual food for both the regenerate and the unregenerate. For me, it was a life-changing experience from zeal without knowledge to a balance of enthusiastic knowledge as I listened to his careful exposition of the free grace of God (Rom 3:24) to which our people gave rapt attention.

As we spent hours together, I asked him how he learned such exposition of Scripture and he offered to show me by turning me to James 1:19-25 to develop my first expository message "How to Listen to a Sermon": The preparation before the message, the participation during the message, and the practice after the message. (Later in seminary I learned that it was an outline from Howard Hendricks.) But my appetite had been whetted and he strongly encouraged me to attend seminary again: this time at a seminary founded by Lewis Sperry Chafer where they specialized in the teachings of the grace of God.

Two faculty members in particular, Dr. Charles Ryrie and Professor Zane Hodges, were used by God to clarify what I would call justification salvation and sanctification salvation. Faith alone in Christ alone by grace alone plus nothing brings the free gift of everlasting life, the declaration of the believer's righteousness, and the regeneration of the Holy Spirit. But the stewardship of that life requires our best efforts and committment if we are to earn the rewards that Jesus Christ desires to give to all believers at the time of the Bema which will determine our capacity to magnify Christ in our reign with Him in glorification salvation. Dr. Jody Dillow has written powerfully about this in his book The Reign of the Servant Kings (Dan. 7:18, 26-27). The spread of this message was heralded worldwide though the pulpit and ministry of Dr. J. Vernon McGee of the famous Church of the Open Door and he was succeeded at that church by the author of this book, The Salvation Controversy, by Dr. Mike Cocoris. It was in his ministry at C. O. D. that Mike and I became close friends and I witnessed the clarity of both his pulpit ministry and writing skills. In 1987, when I was given the task of developing the Nelson Study Bible (now called The NKJV Study Bible), I selected 40 authors. Dr. Cocoris was one of them and all of them had only one book for which to develop study notes except for Dr. Cocoris. Over the ten year period (1987 to 1997) I found myself calling on Dr. Cocoris to rewrite and clarify the notes of several books of the Bible because of his clarity and precision as well as his practical application.

When I read the manuscript of The Salvation Controversy I encountered the same skills that I have found in his other books as well as The Nelson Study Bible (now called The NKJV Study Bible). One very helpful clarification that brought joy to my heart related to the ongoing discussion that we are experiencing among free grace students and writers. We who are united in our belief about faith alone in Christ alone plus nothing have not yet been able to come to agreement about the minimum that must be believed in order to receive everlasting life. Some believe that John 20:31 is sufficient and others believe that the hermeneutic of progress of revelation would require more such as the death and resurrection of Christ. But whatever side we may take in that issue, we all agree that we are commanded to preach the death and resurrection of Christ along with the Apostle Paul who said "we preach Christ crucified, to the Jews a stumbling block and to the Greeks foolishness, but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God" (1 Corinthians 1:23-24). On this, all free grace people are agreed.

I pray that this book will bring as much joy to your heart as it has to mine.

Earl D. Radmacher, Th. D.
President, Grace Bible Institute and Seminary of the Northwest




* COSF stands for "content of saving faith." There is disagreement concerning the amount of truth that must be understood and accepted in order to receive eternal life, once hearing the message of the good news of salvation in Christ.

[1] Cocoris, Michael G. The Salvation Controversy. Santa Monica, CA, Insights From The Word, 2008.

7 comments:

Antonio said...

Very happy that you posted this.

Your fg friend,

Antonio

Sanctification said...

Antonio,

Long time no hear, thanks for commenting....

Michele

Rose~ said...

Yes, thank you for posting this, Michelle. Radmacher sounds so reasonable. :~)

Rose~ said...

Michele. oops sorry

Sanctification said...

Rose,

The general feeling I get from just listening to Radmacher, is consistent with what is now finally in print.

Michele

Aletheia said...

There was a woman over 300 years ago who felt called to speak out, to write down, to address truth as she saw it. In her forward she wrote:

"Read in Charity, what I have written in Humility: knowing you are my elders in years, I would address my self unto you in all Christian Manners; but I dare not Flatter you, nor can I complementally crave Excuses of you: Accept it therefore from me, who can truly say, For some time I have not been mine own, the Lord having made me your Servant in this thing; but now the Truth hath (in measure) set me Free, which also made me willing to serve you, as it gave me Ability; that God might have the Glory, and ye the profit of these my Spiritual Labours."

As always lifting you up as you follow His call

A

Sanctification said...

A,

The more I go along the more I don't feel comfortable talking. I don't mind going on with JP and Kev, I could only benefit from studying.

The thing is, what if I support something now, that I am too inexperienced to realize till later that it is not helpful, or even wrong? I -have- to ask myself this question, because, I wasn't here for most of this stuff, stuff that some people have given their lives studying and interacting upon. Truly: it is foolish in comparison.

How dare I open my mouth in company like this??

There were a few things I wanted to do. I wanted to share my testimony because of the message in a bottle discussions. Also, I wanted to show that disagreement is a kind of trial that can make the overall community strengthened, not impotent. I wanted to see Dr. Radmacher's respects, respected. I wanted to make everyone's contributions worthwhile because God makes us instruments of noble purpose by faith not by theology, an important distinction. I wanted to see more grace come about amongst those who listen and think and share.

I love the non-believers so much. I do not want to be ashamed to share this precious theology with them. As a popular song on the radio sings, "oh the world is watching, oh the world does care...."

I still also desire to help with communication, if welcomed and there be no other volunteers.

Of course I have theological opinions. But I am quickly growing cold to making any kind of further influence except grace. I cannot shake myself from the growing nag, that this has to be nothing less than much further beyond my measly grip.

Besides, the only thing I really know how to do well, is be human.

Michele

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