The work of the Holy Spirit - pagina 391

CONVERSION OF ALL THAT COME point souls are often led astray. "

Your conversion

is

It is

351

heard repeatedly these days. life which

not a momentary act, but an act of

and wo to the man who fails for a single day to be converted anew." And this is altogether wrong. Language should not be so confounded. Tho the child grows for twenty years after he is born, and before he attains maturity, yet he is born but once, and neither conception r\ov pregnancy before it, not growth

repeats itself constantly

after

it,

The

is

:

" birth."

called

boundary should be respected also in this instance. It is true that conversion is preceded by something else, but that is called not " conversion," but " regeneration" and " calling"; and so there is something following " conversion," but that is called " sanctification." No doubt the word " conversion" may also be applied fixed

to the return of the converted but backslidden child of God, after

the example of Scripture

;

but then

it

refers not to the saving

act of conversion, but to the continuance of the

work once be-

gun, or to a return not from death, but from a temporary going astray.

In order to discriminate correctly in this matter, to notice the four/old use of the 1.

"Conversion," in

its

word conversion

their evil works.

necessary

widest scope, signifies a forsaking of

wickedness and a disposition to morality. of the Ninevites that

it is

in the Scripture.

God saw

In this sense

it is

their works, that they turned

This does not imply, however, that

all

said

from these

Ninevites belonged to the elect, and that every one of them was saved. 2.

"

Conversion," in

its

limited sense, signifies saving conver-

"

Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts, and let him return unto the Lord, and He will have mercy upon him, and to our God, for He will abundantly pardon." " conversion " signifies that, even after it has be3. And again, come a fact in our hearts, its principles must be applied to every relation of our life. A converted person may for a long time consion, as in Isa.

Iv. 7

:

tinue to indulge in bad habits and ungodly practises, but gradually

opened

and then he repents and forsakes So we read in Ezek. xviii. 30: "Repent and turn yourselves from a/i your transgressions." 4. Lastly, "conversion" signifies the return of converted persons to their first love, after a season of coldness and weakness in his eyes are

for the evil,

the one after the other.

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