The work of the Holy Spirit - pagina 35

BY PROFESSOR VVARFIELD And

we pause

if

to ask

why

xxxv

the formulation of the doctrine of

the work of the Spirit waited for the Reformation and for Calvin, and why the further working out of the details of this doctrine and its

enrichment by the profound study of Christian minds and meditation of Christian hearts has come down from Calvin only to the Puritans, and from the Puritans to their spiritual descendants like the Free Church teachers of the Disruption era and the Dutch contestants for the treasures of the Reformed religion of our own day, the reasons are not far to seek.

There

is,

in the first place, a regular

order in the acquisition of doctrinal truth, inherent in the nature of the case, which therefore the Church was bound to follow in its gradual realization of the deposit of truth given it in the Scriptures and by virtue of this the Church could not successfully attack the task of ;

assimilating and formulating the doctrine of the until the foundations

more fundamental

had been

doctrines.

laid firmly in

And

work

of the Spirit

a clear grasp on yet

there are, in the next place,

which leave no or only a meager place for the work of the personal Holy Spirit in the heart; and in the presence of these constructions this doctrine, even where in part apprehended and acknowledged, languishes and falls out of the interest of men. The operation of the former cause postponed the development of the doctrine of the work of the Spirit until the way was prepared for it and this preparation was complete only certain forms of doctrinal construction

;

The

at the Reformation.

tarded where in

it

has not

operation of the second cause has re-

stifled

the proper assimilation of the doctrine

many parts of the Church until to-day. To be more specific. The development

of Christianity in the apprehension of the

—as

of the doctrinal system Church has actually run

—

have run through a regular was absorbed in the contemplation of the objective elements of the Christian deposit, and only afterward were the subjective elements taken into fuller conFirst of all it was the Christian doctrine of God that sideration. forced itself on the attention of men, and it was not until the doctrine of the Trinity had been thoroughly assimilated that atthrough

and

it

theoretically should

logical course.

First, attention

was vigorously attracted to the Christian doctrine of the God-man and again, it was not until the doctrine of the Person of Christ was thoroughly assimilated that attention was poignantly

tention

;

ness

;

and only

after that

—

man's need and helplesshad been wrought fully out again could

attracted to the Christian doctrine of sin

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