Regional Synod of Canada - Reformed Church in America

Pioneer Christian Monthly

Date - Oct/91

Contributor - Scott Molebean

Title - Reformation: Unfinished Business

Topic - Tender Tips

One of the favoured hymns sung in many churches begins with the words "Love divine, all loves excelling, Joy of heaven, to earth come down". The hymn is a prayer addressed to our Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ. It is a prayer which has its place in the life of God's people. It recognizes our incompleteness, especially in the fourth verse: "Finish, then, Thy new creation; pure and spotless let us be; let us see Thy great salvation perfectly restored in Thee; changed from glory into glory, till in heaven we take our place, till we cast our crowns before Thee, lost in wonder, love, and praise." Here is the implicit confession that born again believers are not yet complete. They are part of the new creation. But they are not yet pure and spotless.

What is true of the individual believer is also true of the body. that is the church, which the Lord Jesus Christ gathers to Himself (John 10:16, Heidelberg Catechism Answer 54). But this holy catholic church here on earth is not perfect. We only have to read the letters sent by the Lord Jesus to the seven churches in Asia in chapters 2 and 3 of the book of Revelation. He demands that the local church in Ephesus remember from what it has fallen, then repent, and do the works it did at first. To the church of Sardis the Lord writes: I know your works; you have the name of being alive, and you are dead. Awake, and strengthen what remains and is on the point of death, for I have not found your works perfect in the sight of God. Remember then what you have received and heard; keep that and repent (Rev. 3:1-3). Here we have the complete opposite of the prayer sung out i the hymn mentioned above. In the hymn we are asking the Lord Jesus to make us pure and spotless. Here the Lord Jesus tells local churches to clean themselves up. Both these churches have slid backwards. They have become DE-formed instead of more and more RE-formed into the image of the Lord Jesus Christ. The Lord Jesus calls on these churches, on these congregations, to RE-form their lives. He is doing that as risen, ascended, and glorified Lord, who has all authority in heaven and on earth. He points out our responsibility. We are not t-inished with simply praying for purity and spotlessness.

We are to work out this promised purity and spotlessness with fear and trembling (Philippians 2:12). How many of us are consciously and systematically at work for the REformation of our personal life, of our family life, of our church? More: how many of us are doing that with fear and trembling

Why are we called to RE-form ourselves with fear and trembling "Because," says God's word, "God is at work in you, both to WILL and to WORK for His good pleasure." RE-forming personal life, family life, and church happens when we recognize that the Lord God through the Holy Spirit is at work in us, renewing our will and enabling us to work this RE-formation. Those who ignore RE-formation grieve the Holy Spirit (Ephesians 4:30). For they begin by resisting the Holy Spirit (Acts 7:51). And they end up by quenching the Holy Spirit (I Thessalonians 5:19). RE-formation is not something in which we have a choice. The Lord God is at work in all His people both to WILL and to WORK to be REformed according to the image of His Son. So what have we done while He has been working in us all the years? Have we changed into Christ's likeness from one degree of glory to another? (11 Corinthians 3:18 ) Have we been RE-forming our personal life, our family life, our church? Or have we taken the easy way, figuring that nobody is perfect, and that the Lord has to do it all? That is where our hymn becomes dangerous: Finish then Thy new creation; pure and spotless let us be. The Holy God is at work in us to renew our will so that we will want to work out our salvation; so that we will want to be more and more RE-formed; so that we will want to be holy as He is holy (Canons of Dordt III/IV, art.16).

As we remember the Reformation we must not think that this is pure history and that we just have to harvest the fruits of it. Reformation is unfinished business, and we are the ones, together with many others, who are called upon by the Lord to will and work it today. Reforming is indeed a work that we cannot do by ourselves. Thus the prayer of the hymn is proper. But once we have beard that the Lord God IS already at work in us, we must do in faith what we have prayed for. Are you REforming today.?

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