Transformative Faith: Embracing the Gospel's Truths

Well, as far as I can be sure of my experience, R.C., I never really understood the gospel until I was about 18 years of age. My father was a Lutheran in the sense it was the Lutheran Church he stayed away from, and my mother from the Methodist Church, and while they were sympathetic with the gospel, they never got it over to me. [00:01:10]

Now, R.C., that’s far and away the most important half hour in my whole life. I think I was converted on that occasion. I certainly understood the gospel for the first time. It fascinated me beyond words. I had only one question then: How could I most fully serve Jesus Christ? [00:03:06]

Edwards, it seems more than anybody I’ve ever read has that interest and perception of the Spirit taking the Word to the soul, not only at conversion, but at subsequent points after conversion. And when I read his life it seems that there was almost an abundance of those sweet moments of awakening where the excellency of Christ just pervaded his spirit. [00:04:40]

But his problem was his inability to accept the clear teaching of the Bible, especially concerning the decrees of God, and this “Divine and Supernatural Light” experience which he had that he relates in his personal narrative as an experience which occurred about 20 years earlier which means that he was just around 20 years of age. [00:06:52]

I not just understood it and loved it, but it shaped my life. It determined everything. Even if I were not converted at that time, I nevertheless thought I was. I thought I was a Christian, and I thought the most important thing in my life was to propagate the gospel of Jesus Christ, and all. [00:07:46]

When you mention these modern movements; none of them have any salvation flavor to me particularly. I understand the way. My only problem is that I don’t always do it, and I don’t always apply it, and I become apathetic about it, and that sort of thing, and it drives me to my knees to ask God to forgive me and give me more grace. [00:11:00]

But the presence of God is felt more in my experience, in your experience, I think any Christian person’s experience, and it is at other times where you’re reading the Bible especially. I can hardly ever pick up my little Bible and read it without having feeling of being in the presence of Jesus Christ. [00:12:00]

When I pick up the Scriptures, I wonder how anybody could doubt that this is the Word of God, because the assurance that I have of my own redemption and of the presence of Christ and of His hand on my life comes as I’m reading the text. And – but I find that people tell me every day that they’re not sensing that. [00:15:02]

If a person’s fundamentally unhappy, I’d almost guarantee that person isn’t converted unless the individual is in some way psychically sick and needs some kind of treatment by medical experts or something like that, it is absolutely abnormal for a genuine Christian person to be fundamentally unhappy. [00:17:00]

Once God says something, and you know He says it, and so on, this ‘adiaphora,’ or things indifferent, are very, very, important. This person who eats this meat offered to idols which Paul could enjoy and so on, would destroy himself or herself in the eating of it, because he’d be violating the will of God. [00:24:36]

But even when it’s clearly understood, and God chooses some and not others, There’re very, very few people in their natural state who are not utterly outraged by that, and yet you and I know that they who are outraged by this must first of all come to understand that’s the truth of God, and if they’re outraged, the place of excess of the audience is the failure. [00:26:00]

It’s a modern, semi-sophisticated form of idolatry. I know this is something you’ve contended with all your career. Our time’s running out, Dr. Gerstner, and I just want to thank you for this opportunity for probing your mind and your experience and for being with us today. [00:26:28]