A CREC (Communion of Reformed Evangelical Churches) Response to the Obergefell Decision

A CREC Declaration | June 28, 2015 from Canon Wired on Vimeo.

You can view the statement on the website for the CREC:

http://crechurches.org/documents/statements/2015-Obergefell.php 

 

It is also permanently linked from the Documents page, under the Statements heading:

http://crechurches.org/documents/#statements 

 

Please note that a number of the phrases are drawn from the CREC memorial on "Homosexuality", which you can view on at Christ Covenant Reformed Church's website:

http://ccrchurch.org/#/about-us/memorials

Pray for the Church of Christ in the United States. May we repose in Christ and remain faithful to our Lord. Please consider these words of encouragement, from a book on prayer, by James Beeke and Joel Beeke.

It is easy to focus on the mountains surrounding us: mountains of unbelief, worldly enticements, wrong doctrinal statements and balance, and our own poor understandings and abilities. But we are also called to focus upon who God is in Christ -- One who is greater than all these mountains.

Focus upon who God is in Christ, and may "The Lord hear thee in the day of trouble; the name of the God of Jacob defend thee" (Psalm 20:1).

Church of Christ

"The Church of our text [Matt. 16:18] is made up of all true believers in the Lord Jesus Christ, of all who are really holy and converted people. . . . The members of this Church do not all worship God in the same way, or use the same form of government. Some of them are governed by bishops and some of them by elders. Some of them use a prayer-book when they meet for public worship and some of them use none. The thirty-fourth Article of the Church of England most wisely declares, "It is not necessary that ceremonies should be in all places one and alike." But the members of this Church all come to one throne of grace. They all worship with one heart. They are all led by one Spirit. They are all really and truly holy. They can all say 'Alleluia,' and they can all reply, 'Amen'" (J.C. Ryle, Holiness, 217).

Vivid Symbols

"All these ceremonial regulations, whether of food, of clothing, of agriculture, of sacrifices, were not ends in themselves, possessing intrinsic merit, but were vivid symbols of the fact that Israel was a holy nation, belonging to Jehovah, dedicated to holiness of life, to faith, and obedience, and called to exhibit the character of God here on earth" (John C. Wenger, Separated unto God, 17).

"How sad it was that the Jewish hierarchy, together with many of the people of Israel, looked upon their external separation from the Gentiles as ends in themselves and as guarantees of divine favor rather than as symbols of the spiritual relationship and condition which God requires of those who are His sons and daughters! (19)

Beware

"I want you to beware of presumption. Do not abuse God's mercy and compassion. Do not continue in sin, I beseech you, and think you can repent, and believe, and be saved, just when you like, when you please, when you will, and when you choose. I would always set before you an open door. I would always say, "While there is life there is hope." But if you would be wise, put nothing off that concerns your soul" (J.C. Ryle, Holiness, 187).

Active Membership

"Each mature Christian has, of course, the responsibility to 'test all things.' But Christian truth is a corporate possession. The church is the context within which we should expect to have wrong ideas gently corrected and right ones gently suggested, and where we in turn may contribute to the same activities. This will mean active membership in a local church and perhaps a variety of Christian groups; it should also involve careful listening to Christians of other backgrounds and periods of history" (N.T. Wright, Colossians and Philemon, vol. 12, Tyndale New Testament Commentaries, gen. ed. Leon Morris,  43).

Mighty To Save

"This is the main doctrine to be gathered from the history of the penitent thief [see Luke 23:39-43]. It teaches us that which ought to be music in the ears of all who hear it -- it teaches us that Jesus Christ is "mighty to save" (Isa. 63:1)" (J.C. Ryle, Holiness, 182).

Israel's Separation Unto the Lord

"The central blessing of the Lord to the children of Israel was not a superior biological inheritance, nor a better national home, nor any material blessing at all; it was a unique knowledge of God Himself. This knowledge rested upon the self-disclosure of God to Israel. . . . All of Israel's differences from her national neighbors were, therefore, the results of, or symbols of, her spiritual separation unto the Lord; the fact that Israel alone was God's peculiar and special treasure, His covenant people" (John C. Wenger, Separated unto God, 7 & 9).

Question

J.C. Ryle encourage Christians to look at the example of Moses; see Hebrews 11:24-26. "Such were the things that Moses refused--rank, pleasure, riches, all three at once" (J.C. Ryle, Holiness, 138).

Ryle asks, "Are you willing to give up anything which keeps you back from God?" (144)

The Way of Faith and Holiness

"The Old Testament is entirely clear, therefore, that always and ever there has been but one way to become God's child, to be acceptable to Him, and to enter into a covenant relationship with Him. That way is the way of faith and holiness" (John C. Wenger, Separated unto God, 6).

Our Sense of Salvation

"Inconsistency of life is utterly destructive of peace of conscience. . . . I bless God that our salvation in no wise depends on our own works. By grace we are saved -- not by works of righteousness -- through faith - without the deeds of the law. But I never would have any believer for a moment forget that our SENSE of salvation depends much on the manner of our living. Inconsistency will dim our eyes, and bring clouds between us and the sun. The sun is the same behind the clouds, but you will not be able to see its brightness or enjoy its warmth, and your soul will be gloomy and cold. It is the path of the well doing that the day-spring of assurance will visit you, and shine down upon your heart" (J.C. Ryle, Holiness, 121-122).

Christ the Center

"There is one more thing which is absolutely essential to growth in grace -- and that is regular and habitual communion with the Lord Jesus" (J.C. Ryle, Holiness, 94).

Covenantal Continuity

"Scripture tells us that just before the exodus the children of Israel "sighed by reason of the bondage, and they cried and their cry came up unto God by reason of the bondage" [Ex. 2:23]. The Word of God represents the kindness of the Lord in taking Israel out of Egypt and establishing them as His covenant people in Canaan as a fulfillment of God's covenant with Abraham, with Isaac, and with Jacob [Ex. 6:4-8]. This statement is very significant, for it indicates the nature of the various covenants which God made with Noah, with Abraham, with Isaac, with Jacob, with Moses, and with Christians through Christ; that is, there is a certain continuity from one covenant to the other" (John C. Wenger, Separated unto God, 5).

Growth in Grace: Private and Public Means of Grace

"One thing essential to growth in grace is diligence in the use of private means of grace. . . . private prayer, private reading of the Scriptures, and private meditation and self-examination. . . . Another thing which is essential to growth in grace is carefulness in the use of public means of grace. . . . the ordinances of regular Sunday worship, the uniting with God's people in common prayer and praise, the preaching of the Word, and the Sacrament of the Lord's Supper" (J.C. Ryle, Holiness, 92).

Major Thesis

"Since this book deals not only with the Scriptural principles, but also with their application to current ethical problems, there may be some who disagree with the author. . . . But let any minor disagreement be seen in the light of the major thesis -- that the faith of a Christian must express itself in a life that is different because it is ordered according to the Word of God" (John C. Wenger, Separated unto God, xiv).

Gotta Fight, Fight, Fight

"The principle fight of the Christian is with the world, the flesh, and the devil" (J.C. Ryle, Holiness, 53).

Holy?

"I do not ask whether you attend your church regularly -- whether you have been baptized, and received the Lord's Supper -- whether you have the name of Christian -- I ask something more than all this: Are you holy, or are you not?" (J.C. Ryle, Holiness, 45).

To Say and To Do

"This book meets a great need in Christendom at large. In a day when Christian faith is thought of pretty much in terms of verbal commitments and generalities, it calls Christian professors to a walk that fits our creeds. To be a Christian is not only to say, but to do" (John C. Wenger, Separated unto God, xiii).

Breaks the Power of Sin

"Jesus is a complete Saviour. He does not merely take away the guilt of a believer's sin, He does more -- He breaks its power. (1 Peter 1:2; Romans 8:29; Ephesians 1:4; Hebrews 12:10)" (J.C. Ryle, Holiness, 41).

Nonconformity

"Being nonconformed to the world is not a matter of rejecting science and inventions, nor is it the maintenance of a cultural status quo, nor is it difference for its own sake. One cannot be nonconformed to the world by adopting a few symbols of nonconformity while remaining carnal and unspiritual in heart. Nonconformity to the world is the natural outcome of having been born again and of being alert to the spiritual issues which confront Christian living in a given culture" (John C. Wenger, Separated unto God, ix).

Close to God

"If there is any point on which God's holiest saints agree it is this: that they see more, and know more, and feel more, and do more, and repent more, and believe more, as they get on in spiritual life, and in proportion to the closeness of their walk with God" (J.C. Ryle, Holiness, 20).

Evidence

"The Spirit never lies dormant and idle within the soul: He always makes His presence known by the fruit He causes to be borne in heart, character, and life" (J.C. Ryle, Holiness, 18).

Vital Union > Mere Formal Union

"Sanctification, then, is the invariable result of that vital union with Christ which true faith gives to a Christian. . . . The union with Christ which produces no effect on heart and life is a mere formal union, which is worthless before God. The faith which has not a sanctifying influence on the character is no better than the faith of devils. It is a "dead faith, because it is alone." It is not the gift of God. It is not the faith of God's elect. In short, where there is no sanctification of life, there is no real faith in Christ" (J.C. Ryle, Holiness, 17).

Sanctification

"Sanctification is that inward spiritual work which the Lord Jesus Christ works in a man by the Holy Ghost, when He calls him to be a true believer. He not only washes him from his sins in His own blood, but He also separates him from his natural love of sin and the world, puts a new principle in his heart, and makes him practically godly in life. The instrument by which the Spirit effects this work is generally the Word of God, though He sometimes uses afflictions and providential visitations "with-out the Word." (1 Peter 3:1) The subject of this work of Christ by His Spirit is called in Scripture a "sanctified" man." (J.C. Ryle, Holiness, 17).

How Much Christ Has Done For Us

"Once taught to live the life of faith in Jesus, and abiding in Him, we shall bear more fruit, shall find ourselves more strong for duty, more patient in trial, more watchful over our poor weak hearts, and more like our Master in all our little daily ways. Just in proportion as we realize how much Christ has done for us, shall we labour to do much for Christ" (J.C. Ryle, Holiness, 14).