The Holy Spirit and the Nature of Sonship
The Holy Spirit is essential for experiential salvation, changing a man's disposition from sin to righteousness, and making him a son of God.
G.W. North emphasizes the profound relationship between the Holy Spirit and the nature of sonship, focusing on the resurrection and the concept of justification through faith. He explains that justification is a divine act that transforms a sinner into a righteous being, made possible solely by God's grace and the work of the Holy Spirit. North highlights the necessity of faith in receiving salvation, asserting that while God provides grace, it is man's responsibility to believe. He further elaborates on the importance of spiritual parentage, stating that true sonship comes from being born of God, which is central to the gospel Paul preached. Ultimately, the sermon underscores that the Holy Spirit is essential for experiential salvation and the transformation of one's nature.
Text
In this verse Paul is informing us concerning the relationship of the Holy Spirit to the nature of sonship, and, as before, is still majoring on the fact of the resurrection. Chapter three has been given up to the great truth of justification, showing that it is: (1) by grace, (2) from sin, (3) free, (4) through redemption, (5) by faith in His blood, (6) to declare His righteousness. Having done this, he then writes a whole chapter illustrating faith from the lives of two patriarchs: Abraham, Israel's founding father, and David, Israel's greatest king. Paul knew the great importance of this, for where faith is lacking or weak breakdown always occurs. There is no weakness or shortcoming on God's side; He has done everything He could be expected to do and more besides for our salvation. Salvation is provided for men as a free gift from God upon the condition that they exercise faith to receive it; apart from faith no man can be saved. On God's side it is by grace entirely, on man's side it is by faith alone; it could not be simpler. We must 'believe on Him that raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead; who was delivered for our offences and was raised again for our justification'.
This wonderful justification is entirely the work of God. It is the one and only way He can make and declare a man righteous in His holy presence before all the holy angels in heaven. Justification of sinners is a major event in heaven for many reasons; not the least of these is that a sinful man has believed God and through the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ has been changed in disposition from sin to righteousness. Great as is this miracle of love, it could not have been brought to and wrought in any man apart from the person and work of the Holy Spirit. He is as vital to the work of experiential salvation as is the Lord Jesus Christ to the provision of it. It is utterly impossible to change a man's disposition without changing his nature, for man is always disposed to do the thing that is natural to him. Nature and behaviour are fundamental to all God's creatures; fundamentally behaviour is determined by nature and nature is determined by species or family. God the Father created and named every family in heaven and earth, and set the behavioural patterns of each according to His will and according to the kind of life; the kind of life He predetermined is common to the species. Basically nature is decided by parentage, so also is form, and although habits and behavioural patterns may be developed or refined to some extent within the species, the species cannot be fundamentally changed thereby; everything is predetermined by nature.
In common with all other species, human beings need training; whether this training is voluntary or involuntary it is good and necessary for everybody. Whether or not we are aware of it, cultural disciplines affect us all to some extent, but none of these can change the nature of a species. This is specially true in spiritual things; spirits cannot be created, neither do they evolve -- they are fathered; spiritually every one of us is born of a genitive father, and there is no crossing of species; all God's sons are born directly of Him. The gospel Paul preached to the Romans and everyone else was a gospel of sonship. Speaking of himself to the Romans he opened his epistle with these words, 'separated unto the gospel of God concerning His Son'. At the time of writing he was a son of God commissioned to preach that gospel to every creature under heaven that they may become sons of God too. The epistle is particularly about sonship. He therefore refers to the joint nature with Jesus Christ, which all the Sons of God share with Him.
Sermon Outline
- I. The Relationship of the Holy Spirit to Sonship
- A. The Holy Spirit is vital to experiential salvation
- B. The Holy Spirit changes a man's disposition from sin to righteousness
- II. The Nature of Sonship
- A. Sonship is determined by parentage
- B. Spirits are fathered, not created or evolved
- III. The Gospel of Sonship
- A. The gospel preached by Paul was a gospel of sonship
- B. All believers are sons of God, sharing in the joint nature with Jesus Christ
Key Quotes
“Salvation is provided for men as a free gift from God upon the condition that they exercise faith to receive it; apart from faith no man can be saved.” — G.W. North
“It is utterly impossible to change a man's disposition without changing his nature, for man is always disposed to do the thing that is natural to him.” — G.W. North
“Spirits cannot be created, neither do they evolve -- they are fathered; spiritually every one of us is born of a genitive father, and there is no crossing of species;” — G.W. North
Application Points
- Faith is essential for salvation, and without it, no man can be saved.
- The Holy Spirit is vital to changing a man's disposition from sin to righteousness.
- Sonship is determined by parentage, and all believers become sons of God through faith in Jesus Christ.