Presbyterian Presbyopia

Presbyopia starts affecting Presbyterians (and others) in the early years of their ministry or church membership, and becomes particularly noticeable at around the age of 40.  In the early years, the church is seen as so perfect that they feel a real pride in being a minister in such a perfect denomination.  Everything in the garden is rosy, and nothing but the good is recognised.  Even obvious unfaithfulness is not regarded as serious because “this is just the way we do things.”

In later years, say at about 40, our ability to see details is reduced and looking at church details causes a certain degree of strain.  The pain is a felt pain, but is seen as no more than a slight discomfort for which no action needs to be taken. 

The reality is that no one escapes presbyopia, not even Presbyterians!  Even if you've never had a previous vision problem this will eventually arrive.  Those people who are theologically or ecclesiastically short-sighted, or myopic, notice that their near vision blurs when they wear their usual ‘spectacles.’  These ‘spectacles’ (or Scripture) help them to see matters clearly, but what they see they do not like, and this also causes a level of strain in them.   The real situation stares them in the eye but they do not recognise it; indeed, some refuse to recognise what they see through their ‘spectacles,’ and decide to ‘bury their heads in the sand,’ or prefer to live away from the brightness of the light.  Staying in darkness is attractive, and that’s where many of them live – away from the light of Scripture.  Refusing to face up to what the light exposes is a sure sign of presbyopia. 

Some Presbyterians are longsighted and this is a problem that can sometimes hit them like a ‘double whammy’ - all of a sudden in their early 40’s their previously good distance eyesight starts failing at the same time as close vision becomes increasingly strained.  With this condition, they can neither see the ‘big picture’ nor the closer details.  They find themselves in a kind of constant mist or fog.  All they can recognise are mere outlines, shapes, generalities; and in these they rest content. 

This has its advantages, however, for it keeps them from becoming annoyed at what they see.  Their minds start playing tricks with them, but so long as they do not cause problems for themselves or others, they live in blissful ‘blindness.’  Pragmatism kicks in and they opt for self-preservation and future prosperity.  The reasoning goes something like this: “It’s a good job I don’t see things as clearly as once I did because then I might have to take actions that could have serious personal and family consequences.  Yes, I still use my ‘spectacles’ to help with vision, but then again I’m not always sure that what I see with them is the truth, so I just consult them occasionally and go on in my own way.” 

Such men refuse to take Scripture seriously, even though they have these ‘spectacles’ with them all the time.  But when they come into contact with other men who still have their eyesight, men who can see spiritual things clearly, these men are then treated as ‘square pegs in a round hole.’  They’re odd, obscurantists, idiosyncratic.  To protect your ministry, you stay away from such people.  Their spiritual perception is too clear and it only brings discomfort to people like us.  They make the rest of us feel so uncomfortable, uneasy, and put us ‘on edge.’  Deep down we know they are absolutely correct in what they say, but it’s too uncomfortable for us to accept and/or act upon.  What they say is right; but in a church like ours, who’s interested in what’s right!

Presbyopia is a universal condition - it will affect all of us eventually. The growing number of people in their forties and beyond generates a huge demand for proper treatment and action.  Surgical correction may even be necessary to help Presbyterian presbyopes deal with their failing vision.

Presbyterian Presbyopia Symptoms and Signs

When people develop presbyopia, they need to keep things at arm's length in order to focus properly. When doing detailed work, they may develop headaches, stress and strain, or feel fatigued. As the condition progresses and people head into their fifty’s the arms are not long enough for this trick to work so they decide to live in avoidance and denial of what they see.  Also around this time most people “give up” altogether, and become time-servers.  They haven’t that much longer to go until pension age, so they keep their heads down so as not to jeopardise their future. 

What Causes Presbyterian Presbyopia?

Presbyterian presbyopia is caused by an age-related process, though there are signs that the condition is setting in at a much younger age. It is generally believed to stem from a gradual thickening of tissue and loss of flexibility of the lens inside your spiritual eye.  It is reminiscent of sclerosis where a certain hardening of essential tissue takes place with the consequent loss of ability to perform as in earlier days.  They become ‘woody’ and adopt a formal approach, and the mind, the thinker, is the first to be affected.  Rather than think issues through, it is easier to go on the defensive, even if that entails the defence of the indefensible.  It is preferable to ‘assassinate’ the one who encourages critical thought than follow this argument.  To reject the message, it is easy to reject the messenger.  

Age-related changes take place to the detriment of the soul. With reduced ability to see the truth, the ‘eye’ has a harder time focusing on details.  In fact, it gets to the stage when they do not want to focus on details, for these are too difficult to take on board.  They’ve given their 30, 35, 40 years to the ministry, and retirement is within sight.  Just settle down now, take it easy, and your lump sum and pension are on their way.

Treating Presbyterian Presbyopia

To correct this condition, several remedies are available.  One is to take those with it into the ‘consulting room’ and seek to correct what is amiss.  This might involve a period of specialised re-training for the work of the ministry.  Obviously these sufferers are not even aware of what has happened, but those not closely caught up in their work can see more clearly what is going on.  That treatment is needed in obvious.  When ministers cannot see what is really there, they end up trying to defend the indefensible, and in so doing they only make complete fools of themselves.  Others become ‘firm’s men’ and this is a closely related condition that says, “My church right or wrong.”  But they cannot see what it is they are saying.  Others can, but not they. 

Another treatment is more radical – surgery to remove the offending condition.  No one likes this, but sometimes it is the only treatment that will save the situation.  When such a condition is left unchecked, it degenerates into something much more serious, and can be fatal.  The removal of the cause of the offense is much more effective than tinkering with it, and applying some kind of ‘band-aid’ remedy to it. 

At the end of the day, what is sought is clear sightedness in the ministers of the Gospel so that that Gospel can be preached and applied incisively to every situation.  It is the essential health of the church that is aimed at, not its destruction.  

Preaching Tour in Ireland 2013

If any Christian group or church would like my services for a preaching tour/event or for an evangelistic mission or teaching week, please contact me at jehlynch [at] gmail.com

I have experience in conducting evangelistic missions and delivering teaching weeks for groups of believers.

Perhaps it's more like an evangelistic weekend that you would like or see is needed in your church or area.

Get in touch with me for further information.

The Atonement

The intention and purpose of God in the design of the atonement is one of the most hotly debated doctrines of the Christian, that is, reformed, faith, or of true biblical religion.  It is also one of the most difficult in the whole range of Calvinistic theology.[1]  Yet it is a doctrine that lies at the very heart of the Christian Gospel and of world mission, and one that must be understood if the authentic biblical Gospel is to be declared.  When addressing this issue, scholars must be aware of the theological or spiritual arrogance that can arise and be conscious that anyone who cannot see objections to our views, would but betray the shallowness of his thinking and knowledge.[2]  

Because of our limited human understanding of God’s ways, we ought to be most cautious about being overly confident of our own viewpoints on such a controversial doctrine.  Debate on this dogma has provoked much controversy since post-reformation days, and that controversy is still a hotly debated one right into the twenty-first century.  What God’s plan for the redemption of the world[3] is (and even this is a contested phrase that was used by John Calvin (1509-1564)) finds no agreement within sections of the Christian Church and community, nor indeed (and sadly) within the Reformed Christian constituency.

But the fact that there is an ongoing discussion over this issue within reformed circles highlights one very important thing: that this crucially important and central doctrine of the Christian faith simply cannot be ignored by any who want to come to a fuller understanding of the faith.  Nor can it be ignored by any who are committed to the “Gospel of God”[4] and its propagation throughout the whole world.  Those whose deep concern is for the salvation of lost sinners know that only the death and resurrection of Christ, and a personal faith response to that atoning sacrificial death, can save their souls from eternal damnation and to eternal bliss.

---

[1]   Dabney, 1871/1985:518.

[2]   Dabney, 1871;1985:519.

[3]   Cited in A. C. Clifford, Calvinus.  (Charenton Reformed Publishing, Norfolk, 2007), 30 - Calvin’s Sermons on Christ’s Passion, p.95; Calvinus, p. 33, Concerning the Eternal Predestination of God, pp. 102, 103.  See also, Calvin’s Sermons on Ephesians, where he preaches, “...Christ is in a general view the redeemer of the world, yet his death and passion are of no advantage to any but such as receive that which St. Paul shows here.”  p.55.

[4]   Rom.1:1.

Morris and Gill on Jn 1:29.

Jesus was sacrificed for the world, that is, for the entire human family in all ages.  This is abundantly clear.  All are bought, but all do not acknowledge the purchase.[1]  This is supportive of Baxter’s soteriology as of that held by DML-J.  For the sinner to receive the benefits of the redemption purchased by Christ, God requires of him faith in Jesus Christ and repentance that leads to life.  Wesley concurs with the above, adding that the sins taken away are the sins of all mankind.[2]  Sin and the world are of equal extent, argues Wesley.  Even the elect prior to conversion are full of sin, so “sin and the world are (truly) of equal extent.” 

Gill’s exegesis (or is it eisegesis?) makes “the world” equal “the elect,” but on what grounds he does this are not given.  It is a purely gratuitous exercise, and dishonest, as Machen would say.  By the “sin of the world,” is not meant the sin, or sins of every individual person in the world, says Gill.[3].  So according to this exegesis “the sin of the world” does not mean “the sin of the world” after all.  Had John said this in 1:29, confusion in understanding basic English would not have occurred.  We would have been clear that the world, as we understand it, was not meant. 

Leon Morris understands the Cross in its comprehensiveness.[4]  John is referring to the totality of the world’s sin, rather than to a number of individual acts.  Individual acts are carried out by individuals, therefore, John is not referring to individuals either.  His reference is to “the sin of the world” in its totality.  Christ’s death on the Cross is “completely adequate for the needs of all men.”[5] 

---

[1]    The Fourfold Gospel (n.d., n.p.).

[2]    Wesley’s Notes on the NT.

[3]    Gill,

[4]    Morris, 1972:148.

[5]    Ibid.

Matthew Henry on Jn 1:29.

Matthew Henry writes on Jn 1:29: “This is encouraging to our faith; if Christ takes away the sin of the world, then why not my sin?”  Why not indeed?  The People’s New Testament views Jesus as the world’s Saviour.  Here “the world,” means “the world,” humanity, all mankind.  A. T. Robertson makes the point that “He is the Lamb of God for the world, not just for Jews.”[1]  The juxtaposition of “the world” and “the Jews” suggests that in distinction to “the Jews,” which is a particular nation, “the world” is the cosmos in all its rich universality. 

---

[1]    A T Robertson, Word Pictures of the New Testament.

J C Ryle on Jn 1:29

The words of this verse were spoken by the Baptist. The lamb of God, namely, the daily sacrifice, takes away the sin of the world, as the sacrifice did for all Israel.  In the Old Testament, the remedy was universally applicable to that particular people, Israel.  But here we have the true Lamb of God that takes away the sin of the world.  Ryle quotes Calvin approvingly when he remarks that the writer, John, “extends this favour indiscriminately to the whole human race, that the Jews might not think he had been sent for them alone.”[1]  The entire race is under divine condemnation, but the divine remedy is offer to all without exception on condition of faith, or as Calvin puts it here “by the guidance of faith.”

For him, John uses the singular number, referring to “the sin” and not “the sins” of the world.  Says Ryle,

“The expression seems to me purposely intended to show that what Christ took away, and bore on the cross, was not the sin of certain people only, but the whole accumulated mass of all the sins of all the children of  Adam.[2]

Neither Ryle nor Calvin places any restriction on the meaning and implication of the text because Scripture does not.  Believing as they do that Scripture is clear on these important matters, the natural meaning of the words is good enough for them, and therefore followed.  To limit the author’s intent is to do injustice to his thought, and both Calvin and Ryle eschewed that vigorously.  Ryle delves into the hidden purpose of God in the Cross when he mentions His intention for Christ in His death.  Clearly, it was to atone for the sins of all men, not a limited few (relatively speaking).  It was all-encompassing in its intent and limited to the “whosoever believes,” in effect. 

Ryle’s limited understanding of things divine is expressed quite honestly when he states that he rests in the inscrutableness of the divine will and purpose when the world’s sin was laid on, borne by and atoned for in Christ.[3]  It is inclusive of “all the men and women in the world.”  Repudiating the idea of “universal salvation” as a “dangerous heresy,” and “utterly contrary to Scripture,” Ryle asserts that “the lost will not prove to be lost because Christ has done nothing for them.  He bore their sins, He carried their transgressions, He provided payment.”[4]  Since He has done all that for the world, no one having been provided out of the love of God for His creatures, can be said to die without an offered and available, willing and able Saviour.[5]  Their own stubborn refusal to trust Christ is the cause of their eternal lostness, not any pre-creation decree passed by God.  As Ryle preaches, “He set the prison door open to all, but the majority would not come out and be free.”[6] 

So, for Ryle, it is the act and attitude of unbelief that damns sinners, not any insufficiency on the atonement.  “Christ’s atonement is a benefit which is offered freely and honestly to all mankind. ... the true meaning [is] that the Lamb of God has made atonement sufficient for all though efficient unquestionably to none but believers.[7]”

---

[1]    Ryle, 1869/1987:63.

[2]    Ryle, 1869/1987:61.

[3]    Ryle, 1869/1987:62.

[4]    Ibid.

[5]    Heb.7:25.

[6]    Ryle, 1869/1987:62.

[7]    Ryle, 1869/1987:62.

Christ Died For The World

Isa.53:6.

This verse is quoted very frequently by DML-J in his evangelistic sermons.  What is the context of this verse and what does it mean?  The context is the Suffering Servant of Isaiah and this individual is identified with Christ in His death by Calvin in his sermons on this passage.[1]  The Geneva Bible notes state that the punishment of the iniquity of us all was laid on Him.  Hyper-Calvinist, Dr. John Gill, in his exposition of this phrase, states quite unashamedly, “he has laid on Christ, his own Son, the sins of all his elect ones.”  Continuing, he adds, “[God the Father] ... laid on Christ, and were bore by him, even all the sins of all God’s elect...”  Further, Gill teaches,

The words may be rendered, "he made to meet upon him the iniquity of us all"; the elect of God, as they live in every part of the world, their sins are represented as coming from all quarters, east, west, north, and south; and as meeting in Christ, as they did, when he suffered as their representative on the cross ...   

Gill is clearly limiting his interpretation of this verse and restricting it to the elect only and universally, but unlike Calvin does not see it as applying to the whole world of men.  Yet, Gill quotes R. Cohana (favourably) when he says,

“...as the ass bears burdens, and the garments of travellers, so the King Messiah will bear upon him the sins of the whole world; as it is said, "the Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.”[2] 

This appears just a tad inconsistent with his own stated position, yet he included it in his comment on this verse.

Remember, Christ died for the world, which means He died for you, too.  His blood was shed for you that by trusting in Him you will be forever saved. 

---

[1]   Parker, 1976.

[2]   Apud Galatin. de Cathol. Ver. I. 10. c. 6. p. 663, and Siphre in ib. l. 8. c. 20. p. 599.