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Summary
How does God show kindness to a fallen world, and what is the difference between common grace and saving grace? Common grace refers to God’s non-redemptive kindness extended to all creation, seen in blessings like rain, fruitful seasons, and the restraint of sin, allowing even non-believers to experience goodness and perform civically beneficial acts. Saving grace, on the other hand, is God’s redemptive work through the Gospel, transforming sinners’ hearts and leading them to salvation. The discussion highlighted that God’s benevolence, even toward the ungodly, reflects His kindness and justice. Recognizing common grace fosters a deeper appreciation for creation and the dignity of all image-bearers while emphasizing the church’s mission to proclaim the Gospel.
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Transcript
SUMMARY KEYWORDS
god, world, image bearer, fruitful seasons, grace, deserve, falls, sin, restrain, common, kindness, redemptive, gospel, man, recognize, creation, prosperity, stumble, civically, government
SPEAKERS
Pastor Jim Butler, Wim Kerkhoff, Pastor Mike Kirkpatrick
Wim Kerkhoff 00:08
The next question is, what is the difference between saving and common grace? Common versus true, saving faith?
Pastor Mike Kirkpatrick
I can start with common grace. Common Grace is God’s non redemptive kindness and goodness toward all mankind and all of creation. And so we see that Jesus does say in Matthew, is it Matthew five, that God, that the rain falls upon the just and the unjust? In fact, among the earlier questions we talked about the light of nature, but there’s also God’s goodness to this world, and rain falls from heaven. There’s fruitful seasons and full bellies. Paul actually uses the light of nature in Acts 14 as a starting point to get to the Gospel. Also in Acts 17 as well. But specifically in Acts 14 does say there have been fruitful seasons and good gifts and things that God has provided, and so common grace recognizes the non-redemptive benefits. There are things that are regulated, not regulated, but given to this world. But also, he does do some things for this world as it’s fallen. And namely, he does restrain sin as well, which I think is where First Corinthians, or sorry, Genesis, chapter nine comes in as well. So God’s goodness to common Grace is God’s goodness to this world that He made. Also His restraining of sin as well. It’s not as bad as it probably could be. And then also, this all comes from the 1924 Christian Reformed Synod that kind of outlines some of these things that are helpful, but sometimes man and a non believer can do things that are civically good. They’re not doing it to honor God or glorify God or praise God, but they’re probably doing it for themselves. But they can still pay their taxes. They can still drive the speed limit and not run someone over, and so they can do those things. And so that’s all what God is doing by way of His common kindness towards the whole world. And so then on the flip side, redemptive is God’s saving work to save sinners out of this world. And so that only comes by way of the gospel, that comes by way of the saving work of God in the hearts and lives of sinners. It comes by way of the preaching of the gospel. It comes, faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God. And so we can recognize God’s common kindness, but we also recognize that man needs to be saved from his sin, and so we can preach the gospel to them.
Pastor Jim Butler 02:39
And I think sometimes people stumble with the terminology. They say there’s no such thing as common grace, and whatever you call it, the fact that God has not obliterated the earth and thrown us all into hell indicates that there’s some kind of kindness on the part of God, in a benevolent way, to His creatures. So if the terminology common grace is, you know, that’s what I have found. What do you prefer? Well, common mercies. Okay, whatever you float your boat to communicate that the rain falls even on the ungodly. And you know, such that Asaph himself almost stumbled when he looked at the prosperity of the wicked and the difficulties of the righteous. You know, the issue, at least in his mind, was it just doesn’t seem fair. So, you know, there is a sense where God, and I think, you know, I’ve thought about this more over the last few years, some exposure to a particular medieval theologian that you know, it has helped me to pray more, for instance, during the covid time. I want God’s people, the church, to be blessed. I do. I want them to be blessed. I don’t want them to be oppressed or persecuted by the government, but I don’t want my fellow image-bearers to be oppressed or persecuted by the government, either. I don’t begrudge a man. I mean, you know, he’s in sin. He needs to repent, he needs to believe all that’s true, but I don’t want him to have a miserable life under a wretched government, because, you know, well, he’s not a Christian, he doesn’t deserve it. Well, in God’s world, there’s a lot of people who haven’t deserved many of the benefits that they’ve been given. And so I think that when we understand, you know, nature grace, common grace, special grace, I don’t know. I just think it broadens, at least it has for me, my sympathy for and my desire for the prosperity of even the non-Christian citizens here in Canada. They don’t deserve to have tyrants lording things over them. They don’t deserve to be told that they can’t play basketball during a pandemic. They don’t deserve that. And so it really has evoked in me, I think, a little bit, and it’s not like I’m Mr. Sympathetic or compassionate, but it’s caused me to reflect that, yeah, I want the church protected, but image bearer qua image bearer, that means image bearer as an image bearer. He shouldn’t be tyrannized by other image-bearers. That’s just never right.
Pastor Mike Kirkpatrick 05:28
I think it helps us appreciate creation as well, in a way that we don’t always have to bring it under apologetics. I don’t know, some people always want to, we need to defend creation, and it’s good to do that. We should defend creation, but we also need to recognize that creation, as a subject matter, falls under the doctrine of God, that God made this world. He is the Creator. We are the creature, and everything, not Him, is creature. And everything He has made has been called good. You know, certainly sin taints that and corrupts that, and makes it low. But, and, yeah, just destroys things. But at the same time, God still called it good, and He has been very good to this world to make it. He’s been good to us to give us gifts, and He’s also been good to us to restrain evil. I’d like to think that He could restrain a little bit more, but I’m not God, and He is but, but He does do all of those things, and we can recognize that without, you know, foregoing the kingdom or trying to, you know, compromising the kingdom. I think also having those two, those two terms, and understanding those lanes, you know, really help us to how we interact with the world, but also what the church is, and what our what our task is, is the church.
Wim Kerkhoff 06:42
Yep, God is good. Amen, God is good.
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