The work of the Holy Spirit - pagina 277

:

THE NEO-KOHLBRUGGIANS God

resenting the image of

237

as something without which

man

re-

This places righteousness and holiness mechanically outside of us, while the organic connection between that imag^ and our own being, which once existed and ctight to exist, is the very

mains man.

thing that must be maintained.

And

yet, let it not

be thought that Dr. Bohl has any inclination

we

see aright, his deviation, psychologically ex-

toward Rome.

If

plained, springs from an entirely different motive. It is a well-known fact that Dr. Kohlbrugge has contended, with a glorious ardor of faith, against the reestablishing of the Covenant of Works in the midst of the Covenant of Grace and has re:

introduced us with stress and emphasis to the completely finished

work

of our Savior, to

Hence

this

the child of

God

which nothing can be added.

preacher of righteousness was compelled to

make

Of course, outside of teas outside of Christ. no difference between a child of God and a gpodless

remember what he Christ, there is

Then

one heap; as the ritual of the Lord's Sup" That we seek our life out of ourselves, in Jesus Christ, and thereby acknowledge that we lie in the midst of death"; as also the Heidelberg Catechism confesses: That I have grossly transgressed all the commandments of God. person.

all lie in

per so beautifully confesses

:

and kept none of them, and am still inclined to all evil." If we see aright. Dr. Bohl has tried to reduce this part of the truth to a dogmatic system. He has reasoned it out as follows " If

a child of God has his

life

outside of himself, then

Adam, who

was a child of God. must also have had his life outside of himself. Hence the image of God was not in. but outside of. man." And what is the mistake of this reasoning? This, that the child of God remains a sinner until his death, and is only fully restored after his death.

While

in

Adam, before

Then only complete redemption his

fall,

there

was no

sin

;

hence

is his.

Adam

could never say that in himself he lay in the midst of death.

With all the earnestness of our hearts we beseech all those who with us possess the treasure of Dr. Kohlbrugge's preaching carefully

to

notice

this

deviation.

If

the younger

Kohlbruggians

should be tempted to misunderstand their teacher in this respect, the loss would be incalculable, and the breach in the

Confession would be lasting; since the whole confession of the truth.

it

Reformed

touches a point which affects

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