Jonathan Edwards On Mission: Click | View Series

Jonathan Edwards sought to promote vibrant Christian faith through teaching people what the “marks,” or signs, of godly living actually are. He did so not merely because he was really smart and liked categorizing things, but because he wanted Christians to experience the joy of true Christianity and then spread that joy to others. In short, he was a missional pastor before the vodcasts and fauxhawks.

1. You Love Jesus

In his 1741 text Distinguishing Marks of a True Work of the Spirit of God, Edwards laid out a number of negative and positive signs that distinguished a true work of God from a false one. Though Edwards focused in this text on revivals more broadly, his words apply to individuals seeking to discern whether they know the Lord.

The first of these signs was a “raised esteem” for Jesus Christ. The point of this first sign is that when the Spirit moves in a person’s heart and awakens them to faith and repentance, their view of Jesus changes. The nominal believer respects Jesus, but does not reverence or exalt him. The true Christian takes delight in Jesus, a delight that is often palpable and contagious. As we serve on mission for God by promoting the gospel, we should expect to see a “raised esteem” for Jesus Christ, the author of our redemption.

2. You Hate Sin

The second sign of a “true work” is an increased hatred for sin and defeat of sinful practices.

When the spirit that is at work operates against the interest of Satan's kingdom, which lies in encouraging and establishing sin, and cherishing men's worldly lusts; this is a sure sign that 'tis a true, and not a false spirit… So that we may safely determine, from what the Apostle says, that the spirit that is at work amongst a people… and convinces them of the dreadfulness of sin, the guilt that it brings, and the misery that it exposes to: I say, the spirit that operates after such a manner, must needs be the Spirit of God (Works 4, 250-51).

This point, like the others, is both profound and simple. One of the clear signs of a work of God is increased hatred for sin. Our eyes are suddenly opened to see the dreadfulness of one’s condition. Where before one had spotted weaknesses and flaws, but always had excuses at the ready to cover up those personal blemishes, now the Spirit shows the sinner just how degraded and evil he is.

3. You Love God’s Word

The third sign of a “true work” is a love for the Bible. Edwards tied this love for Scripture not to simple literary appreciation for its contents, but to a Spirit-given hunger and thirst for the Word of God:

That spirit that operates in such a manner, as to cause in men a greater regard to the Holy Scriptures, and establishes them more in their truth and divinity, is certainly the Spirit of God... The Devil never would go about to beget in persons a regard to that divine Word, which God hath given to be the great and standing rule for the direction of his church in all religious matters and concerns of their souls, in all ages. (Works 4, 250)

Many people respect the Bible. It is known as a “holy book,” a sacred text. But few people view it as the actual word of God that God himself “has appointed and inspired to deliver to his church its rule of faith and practice” as “the great and standing rule for the direction of his church.” Where a person’s heart flames with love and holy “regard” for the Scriptures, the Spirit has worked.

4. You Love Truth

The fourth sign that marked the presence of a “true work” was a heightened love for truth and the things of God.

An awareness and responsiveness to divine truth was a clear signal that the Lord had moved in human hearts. So where people came to see “that there is a God” and that he is “great” and “sin-hating,” and that they themselves have “immortal souls” and “must give account of themselves to God,” the Spirit was working true conversion.

Edwards rightly noted that the Spirit does not lead believers into error. Therefore, when we hear news of conversion, whether mass or individual, we need to listen for resonances of the truth in the testimony of the convert. Do they love the truth more? Do they love God more? Do they subscribe to sound doctrine, and root their faith in it? Missional Christians seek to hate sin and to lead others to do the same.

5. You Love Believers

The final positive sign in Edwards’s taxonomy of the Spirit’s “true work” was love for one’s fellow Christians.

Many people who profess Christ lose their footing on this final point. They may well appreciate fellow church members and contribute in some way to their well-being, but they have not been filled by the Lord with a holy love for fellow Christians, and thus they do not serve them. True conversion will cause stable couples to take in young Christians hungry for discipleship. It will lead Christians to give generously to missionaries and fellow believers (see 2 Corinthians 8). It will drive older believers to spend time mentoring younger ones (see Titus 2).

In the end, the way one cares for one’s fellow members says more about our testimony of conversion and our understanding of gospel mission than we might initially think. True Christians serve their fellow members out of love, as a response to the grace of Jesus.

(Adapted from Chapter Three of Jonathan Edwards on True Christianity from The Essential Edwards Collection)

Question: Which of these “marks” of true Christianity most stands out to you? Which do you need to cultivate in living a missional life as Edwards did? Tell us on our Facebook page.

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Jonathan Edwards On Mission: Click | View Series

The Most Famous Sermon in American History

Several years after his sermon on saving faith in Jesus Christ, Edwards preached the most famous sermon in American history, “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God.” In his homily, he sought to sweep all false views of hell and leave his hearers with biblical images that would drive them to faith in Christ.

Edwards diagnosed the presumptuousness of the unredeemed human heart in words designed to scorch away its natural narcissism.

Were it not that so is the sovereign pleasure of God, the earth would not bear you one moment; for you are a burden to it; the creation groans with you; the creature is made subject to the bondage of your corruption, not willingly; the sun don’t willingly shine upon you to give you light to serve sin and Satan; the earth don’t willingly yield her increase to satisfy your lusts; nor is it willingly a stage for your wickedness to be acted upon; the air don’t willingly serve you for breath to maintain the flame of life in your vitals, while you spend your life in the service of God’s enemies.

God’s creatures are good, and were made for men to serve God with, and don’t willingly subserve to any other purpose, and groan when they are abused to purposes so directly contrary to their nature and end. And the world would spew you out, were it not for the sovereign hand of him who hath subjected it in hope. (Works 22, 410)

Pursuit of Conversion

Having laid out in great detail the agonies of hell and the frailty of human existence, Edwards summoned his hearers to the mercy of Christ while they could still grasp it. He modeled godly shepherding in his preaching on saving faith, which he did throughout his ministry. The pursuit of conversion—the cornerstone of missional faith—was always on his mind. He knew that he was responsible for the spiritual well-being of his people and that this role necessitated that he publicly articulate biblical truth for the health of his people and also for the salvation of some who thought themselves converted.

For Edwards, truth and doctrine were not minor matters, mere footnotes of the Christian faith that believers arranged as they saw fit. If he and his fellow ministers tinkered with these truths, Christians would grow weak and worldly. Their minds would grow confused, their hearts weak, and men and women would spiritually suffer even as God lost glory due to him.

If churches held fast to truth, however, and preached it passionately and vigorously, Christians would flourish and stand firm in their faith. They would taste the rich blessings of theological confidence and spiritual hope. Unbelievers would see this distinctive way of life and question their beliefs and behaviors. Though embattled, the church and its members would remain faithful and fruitful. God, observing and orchestrating these events from his throne, would gain glory. This is what can happen when a pastor preaches with purpose and passion, the Spirit moves, and men and women join him on mission in the name of Jesus.

To be continued.

(Adapted from Chapters Five and Six of Jonathan Edwards, Lover of God from The Essential Edwards Collection)

Question: How do you think preaching hell relates to being a missional Christian? Do we emphasize it enough in our churches? Let us know what you think on our Facebook page.

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This is the first of a short series of posts adapted from a new 5-volume book series entitled The Essential Edwards Collection.

A Man On Mission

What do you know about Jonathan Edwards (1703-58)? Maybe you remember him as the guy who stared grimly at you from your high school textbook, “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God,” and all that. Maybe you like Edwards, have read some of his writing, and generally appreciate him.

Many of us haven’t had either the time or energy to delve deeply into his body of work, which totals 25 foreboding volumes in the Yale Works of Jonathan Edwards series. Edwards—or, as he is known in academic circles, “The Dude”—was a brilliant man, America’s greatest philosopher, and a longtime pastor in colonial Massachusetts. What we may not fully comprehend about the man was just how passionate he was for reaching people with the gospel of Jesus Christ. Long before our day, wearing killer knickers and a starchy white wig, Jonathan Edwards was passionately, relentlessly on mission for God.

Only By Faith

In 1734, the pastor preached offensively. He wished to clarify the substance of saving faith in Jesus Christ for his congregation so that they might find salvation. Edwards believed that certain members of his flock had either deceived themselves about their spirituality or had misunderstood the nature of saving faith and the new birth due to unbiblical teaching on the doctrine of justification by faith alone, and he thus set out to win them to a vibrant understanding of this teaching that would nourish Christians and rescue unbelievers.

Edwards maintained that it is faith in Christ alone that “justifies, or gives an interest in Christ’s satisfaction and merits, and a right to the benefits procured thereby, viz., as it thus makes Christ and the believer one in the acceptance of the Supreme Judge. ‘Tis by faith that we have a title to eternal life, because ‘tis by faith that we have the Son of God, by whom life is” (Works 19, 158).

As articulated here, faith in Christ had the crucial effect of uniting Christ and the believer, once separated by a chasm of sin and unbelief. This was a crucial point. His sermons on justification helped, he thought, “to establish the judgments of many in this truth” and also “to engage their hearts in a more earnest pursuit of justification” (795).

To be continued.

(Adapted from Chapters Five and Six of Jonathan Edwards, Lover of God from The Essential Edwards Collection)

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