The Three Graces

05.29.09
J.A. Matteson

"And by this we know that we have come to know Him, if we keep His commandments." 1 John 2:3

Prior to conversion the disposition of a man’s heart is contrary and dead to the Spirit, “But a natural man does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually appraised” (1 Cor. 2:14). In blind antipathy the unregenerate mind recoils at the ways of the pilgrim, observing and pondering them from afar, concluding that the pilgrim’s abnormal allegiance to the man from Galilee is illogical, he is unable to offer a rational explanation for it, eventually settling upon a loose and imprecise explanation as some form of naïve servitude whereby the pilgrim is viewed as a poor sap who has forfeited his autonomy of self-determination for reasons ultimately unknown.

The inclination of the unregenerate heart is independence from his Creator juxtaposed against the design of dependence. Oblivious to the senses of the unregenerate, however, is the actual spiritual bondage to which he is enslaved, thinking himself free while in the truest sense he is a doomed prisoner of Satan, “the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelieving so that they might not see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God” (2 Cor. 4:4), and “We know that we are of God, and that the whole world lies in the power of the evil one” (1 Jn. 5:19).

Possessing a sin nature, blinded by the prince of darkness, his soul is totally polluted and utterly destined for ruin. The mind, will, and emotions of the unregenerate are broken, and like a falcon which sinks its deadly talons into its prey prior to consuming it the unregenerate are held tightly under the influence of a Satan, to do his will, whose fiendish intent is their final eternal damnation, “You are of your father the devil, and you want to do the desires of your father. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth because there is no truth in him….” (Jn . 8:44).

At the moment of regeneration the mind, will, and emotions are renewed by the influence of the indwelling Holy Spirit, and the life that was once blind, hostile, and disinclined to the ways of the Spirit now willingly desires to obey, to be and do those things pleasing to his Redeemer. The three graces of faith, hope, and love characterize the new birth and their object is Jesus Christ, “…and though you have not seen Him, you love Him, and though you do not see Him now, but believe in Him, you greatly rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory” (1 Pet. 1:8). The meditations of the redeemed life center on the person and work of Jesus Christ and how to live a life pleasing to Him, “Therefore we also have as our ambition, whether at home or absent, to be pleasing to Him” (2 Cor. 5:9), and the hallmark of a life pleasing to the Lord is one of obedience; faith and obedience are inseparable—where genuine faith exists obedience is its companion and where obedience is observed Spirit infused faith is its source. The Lord Jesus Christ inextricably links faith with obedience, “My Father is glorified by this, that you bear much fruit, and so prove to be My disciples. Just as the Father has loved Me, I have also loved you; abide in My love. If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love; just as I have kept My Father's commandments and abide in His love” (Jn 15:8-10).

False teachers abound today who present obedience to the Savior as desirable, but optional, unnecessary for salvation, when in reality obedience is a mark of a regenerate life. Salvation is by faith alone, but saving faith is never alone. These teachers are the type to which the Scripture warns, depraved men who are deceived and deceiving, and those who follow them are unwittingly consuming spiritual cyanide as the Lord attests that disobedience is lawlessness and the end of the lawless is the lake of fire as persistent disobedience is an indication of an unregenerate life, “Many will say to Me on that day, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?' And then I will declare to them, 'I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness'” (Matt. 7:22-23).

Pilgrims remain imperfect in speech, thought, and deed yet the intense desire of their heart is to obey and do those things pleasing in His sight. They do not practice sin as a willful pattern, for they cannot as His seed remains in them, and when they do sin they are grieved in spirit and repent (1 Jn. 1:9). The pilgrim sews to the spirit while the unregenerate man sews to the flesh. The pilgrim knows the Truth who is a Person—Jesus Christ, and the Truth has set him free.

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