In the ordo salutis (“order of salvation”) in
Calvinism, most models have regeneration precede (at least in the logical
order, if not temporal) both conversion and the reception of “saving faith.”
Notwithstanding this central difference between Latter-day Saint and Reformed
soteriology, Reformed theologians view (true) conversion as a work of both God and man. As Anthony Hoekema
wrote:
CONVERSION THE WORK OF GOD AND
MAN
Conversion is first of all the work of God.
Though conversion is the outward evidence of regeneration, the new life
implanted in regeneration continues to exist only independence of God. We
cannot maintain that new life in our own strength. We need to continue to be
strengthened with power through God’s Spirit in our inner being (Eph. 3:16).
Old Testament believers wanting to be
converted to God but lacking the strength to do so realized that only God could
enable them to turn back to himself: “Restore us to yourself, O LORD, that we
may return; renew our days as of old” (Lam. 5:21; cf. Jer. 31:18). The New
Testament similarly underlines this point. Jesus taught that the new life
received in regeneration can only reveal itself as we remain in union with him:
“I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he
will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing” (John 15:5). In a
startling statement which spans our entire history from the moment of the new
birth to the appearance of our Lord upon the clouds of heaven, Paul tells us
that he is confident “that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to
completion until the day of Christ Jesus” (Phil. 1:6). Surely this sovereign
work of God includes our conversion . . . We could say, therefore, that God is
the cause of our conversion.
But “cause” is a cold word which suggests
mechanically forcing somebody to do something he does not want to do. The real
situation is infinitely more complex, mysterious, existential. People, as they
later see, are moved, drawn, they are going through the process of conversion,
God’s movements may be largely hidden in events that seem quite “natural.” An
old friend turns up; you come upon a book; a disappointing job obliges you to
reexamine your goals; you discover that earning more money does not satisfy you.
(Cornelius Plantings, Jr., A Place to
Stand, Teacher’s Manual [Grand Rapids: CRC Publications, 1979], pp.
114-15).
In distinction from regeneration in the
narrower sense, however, conversion is also a work of man. In fact, both in the
Old and New Testaments, conversion is pictured more often as a work of man than
as a work of God. Abraham Kuyper points out that the Old Testament shūbh, meaning “to turn back,” occurs 74
times as a description of man turning to God, but only five times as a
designation of conversion as a deed of God; he also observes that in the New
Testament the words for conversion are used 26 times to describe conversion as
a human activity, but only two or three times to depict conversion as a work of
God (Dictaten Dogmatiek, 2nd ed.
[Kampen: Kok, 1910], Vol. 4, Locus de
Salute, p. 94).
From the Old Testament we may recall the
passage whereby the old shoemaker brought about Spurgeon’s conversion: “Look
unto me, and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth” (Isa. 45:22, KJV; cf. also
55:7). Or we may think of Ezekiel 33:11, “Turn! Turn from your evil ways! Why will
you die, O house of Israel?” New Testament passages describing conversion as a
requirement for human beings include Peter’s summons on the Day of Pentecost: “Repent
and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ so that your
sins may be forgiven” (Acts 2:38). Paul’s words to the Philippian jailer also
come to mind: “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved—you and your
household” (Acts 16:31). As Paul unfolds the precious truth of salvation by
grace, he again calls for the exercise of personal faith: “If you confess with
your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ and believe in your heart that God raised him from
the dead, you will be saved (Rom. 10:9). And in 2 Corinthians he trumpets forth
the marching orders for preachers of the gospel: “We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors,
as through God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ’s
behalf: Be reconciled to God” (2 Cor. 5:20).
In all these passages, and many more, God
calls on us to be converted, to turn to him, to repent and believe, to be reconciled
to him . . . conversion is both the work
of God and the work of man. God must convert us, and yet we must turn to him,
both are true. We should not jettison either side of the paradox. The preacher
therefore must earnestly and fervently urge his hearers to be converted,
trusting that God will enable them to do so. And when conversion does occur, he
as well as his hearers must give God all the praise. (Anthony A. Hoekema, Saved by Grace [Grand Rapids, Mich.:
Eerdmans, 1989], 114-15)
I will note that if a Latter-day Saint wrote what Hoekema wrote, many critics, including those within the Reformed faith, would argue that this is just another example of how "Mormonism" is focused too much on man and his ability and try to rob God of his glory, and so forth.
On the many
problems with Reformed theology, see:
