The Moody Handbook of Theology: Then and Now

There's an eye-opening article in the May/June 2018 edition of Grace In Focus that's titled "Moody: Then and Now" by Shawn Lazar.[1] The article compares and contrasts the doctrine of salvation as presented in the 1989 edition of The Moody Handbook of Theology with the newer 2014 edition of the book, and shows how the "Revised and Expanded" Moody Handbook of Theology appears to have subtly added works to saving faith![2] This is seen in several instances; for example, the 1989 edition says: "The issue of the terms of salvation is important because the purity of the gospel is at stake. What are the terms of salvation? Is salvation something in addition to faith? The issue is critical because Paul pronounced anathema on anyone who preached a gospel contrary to what he had preached (Gal. 1:8-9)."[3] But in the 2014 edition, the question about adding works to faith is changed so that it now reads as follows: "The issue of the terms of salvation is important because the purity of the gospel is at stake. What are the terms of salvation? Is intellectual assent to the gospel all that is required? The issue is critical because Paul pronounced anathema on anyone who preached a gospel contrary to what he had preached (Gal. 1:8-9)."[4] The question about "intellectual assent" shifts the focus away from the original question which was about adding works to faith, a topic that the editors of the newer edition apparently do not want to discuss. And why not? Could it be because they are guilty of adding works to faith as a requirement for salvation? Furthermore, the 1989 edition was quite clear in saying that intellectual assent to the gospel is not all that is required for salvation. Under the heading "Biblical View", the 1989 edition correctly stated: "Many passages of Scripture affirm that man's only responsibility in salvation is believing the gospel (John 1:12; 3:16, 18, 36; 5:24; 11:25-26; 12:44; 20:31; Acts 16:31; 1 John 5:13, and so forth). But what is faith? What does it mean to believe the gospel? Faith may be succinctly defined as 'confiding trust.' John's use of the word faith is similar to Paul's use in describing faith as believing 'into Christ.' For John, faith 'is an activity which takes men right out of themselves and makes them one with Christ.' Saving faith, however, is not mere intellectual assent to a doctrine; it involves more than that."[5] Thus the 1989 edition was clear on the definition of saving faith, and clear on the fact that faith apart from works is all that is required for salvation. Whereas the 2014 edition subtly implies that adding works to faith is also required for salvation.

Another significant difference to notice between the 1989 edition and the 2014 edition is that, in the 1989 edition, the number one false view of the conditions for salvation was "Repent and Believe." The 1989 edition correctly pointed out that biblically, repentance is part of believing in Christ, not a separate condition for salvation. But amazingly, in the "Revised and Expanded" 2014 edition of the book, the number one error in salvation is "Believe only"! Shawn Lazar correctly points out: "Did you notice the number one heresy in the new edition? Is it salvation by works? Nope. Is it legalism? Nope. Is it sacramentalism? Again, no. The number one heresy is to believe only. Faith alone is the number one error in salvation according to the 2014 edition of The Moody Handbook! Let that sink in."[6] 

LORDSHIP SALVATION CREEPS IN

There's something else very important to notice about the newer edition that reveals why the doctrine of salvation was changed. Take a close look at the front cover of the 2014 edition. Who wrote the foreword to the book? It says: "FOREWORD BY DR. JOHN MACARTHUR". By way of contrast, the foreword to the 1989 edition of the book was written by Dr. J. Dwight Pentecost, a friend of Free Grace Theology. Unlike J. Dwight Pentecost, John MacArthur is no friend of Free Grace Theology. Instead, he promotes what's called Lordship Salvation. MacArthur has a different understanding of justification by faith alone from what Free Grace Theology teaches. This is no doubt why the 2014 edition of The Moody Handbook of Theology has removed the question, "Is salvation something in addition to faith?" because this question draws attention to the fact that the Lordship view of repentance is something in addition to faith! Of course, MacArthur and his followers say they believe in justification by faith alone, but like so often happens, they redefine the terms. MacArthur and other Lordship Salvationists redefine words like faith and repentance so as to make them include all kinds of things! For example, to MacArthur and other proponents of Lordship Salvation, the word faith is redefined to mean surrender, commitment, obedience, and perseverance in good works. Similarly, they redefine the word repentance to mean not simply a change of mind or heart, but instead they say it means turning from every sin (or at least a willingness to do so), accompanied by a deep sorrow for sin, and a radical change of life (meaning change of lifestyle) for the better. MacArthur even says: "An immoral, ungodly person who supposedly accepts Jesus but never changes his lifestyle is not a Christian. To say that a person can come to Christ without making a break from the world is a lie. That kind of thinking will send more people down the broad road to destruction rather than the narrow way to salvation (Matt. 7:13-14). There must be a change of lifestyle!"[7] But is this really how a person is saved?

WHAT DOES THE BIBLE SAY?

The Bible says, "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved" (Acts 16:31). Biblical repentance (a change of mind) is part of believing, so when people believe on the Lord Jesus Christ for salvation, they have repented! Thus, "believe only" for salvation is true, and what's more, it is given as the sole condition for salvation over 115 times in the New Testament! For example, in the Gospel of John, written in order that "you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in His name" (Jn. 20:30-31), the verb "believe" is given as the one and only condition for salvation approximately 90 times: John 1:7, 1:12, 1:50, 2:11, 2:23, 3:15, 3:16, 3:18, 3:18, 3:36, 3:36, 4:21, 4:39, 4:41, 4:42, 4:48, 4:50, 4:53, 5:24, 5:38, 5:44, 5:46, 5:47, 5:47, 6:29, 6:30, 6:35, 6:36, 6:40, 6:47, 6:64, 6:69, 7:5, 7:31, 7:38, 7:39, 7:48, 8:24, 8:30, 8:31, 8:45, 8:46, 9:18, 9:35, 9:36, 9:38, 10:25, 10:26, 10:37, 10:38, 10:38, 10:38, 10:42, 11:15, 11:25, 11:26, 11:26, 11:27, 11:40, 11:42, 11:45, 11:48, 12:11, 12:36, 12:37, 12:38, 12:42, 12:44, 12:46, 12:47, 13:19, 14:1, 14:10, 14:11, 14:11, 14:12, 14:29, 16:9, 16:27, 16:30, 16:31, 17:8, 17:20, 17:21, 19:35, 20:8, 20:25, 20:29, 20:29, 20:31, 20:31. Now compare this with the word "repent" which is never even used once in John's Gospel! This is not to say that the lost don't need to repent, they do, it's just that repentance is part of believing in Christ! This biblical truth is affirmed in the 1989 edition of The Moody Handbook of Theology, which says: "Repent and believe. Repentance should not be understood as a separate condition of salvation for believing in Christ. If repentance is cited as a condition of salvation in terms of feeling sorry for one’s sins, then it is a wrong usage of the term. It should not be understood as a separate step in salvation. Acts 20:21 indicates that repentance and faith should not be seen as separate items in response to the gospel but together they signify belief in Christ. To believe in Christ is to change one’s mind about Christ and trust Him alone for salvation."[8] Even J. D. Greear (a Calvinist) has said: "Biblical belief, or 'faith,' includes a volitional aspect as well. When Jesus called the crowds in Mark 1 to 'repent and believe' (Mark 1:15), He was not adding a second component to belief, but clarifying what real belief entails."[9] Greear goes on to say "that repentance and faith are, in their essence, not two separate acts, but one, two sides of the same coin."[10]

If "believe only" for salvation is false, then we might as well throw away the entire Gospel of John and take the apostle Paul's response to the Philippian jailer out of the Bible. In response to the question, "What must I do to be saved?" (Acts 16:30), the apostle Paul in Acts 16:31 gives only one condition: "Believe"! In the words of the great evangelist D. L. Moody: "Do nothing, only believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved."[11] 

References:

[1] Shawn Lazar, "Moody: Then and Now," Grace In Focus (May/June 2018): pp. 45-47.

[2] Paul Enns, The Moody Handbook of Theology (2014 edition), pp. 344-345.

[3] Paul Enns, The Moody Handbook of Theology (1989 edition), pp. 342, emphasis added.

[4] Paul Enns, The Moody Handbook of Theology (2014 edition), pp. 344-345, emphasis added.

[5] Paul Enns, The Moody Handbook of Theology (1989 edition), p. 343.

[6] Shawn Lazar, "Moody: Then and Now," Grace In Focus (May/June 2018): p. 46, emphasis his.

[7] John MacArthur, "Off with the Old, On with the New, Part 2" (Grace To You), https://www.gty.org/library/study-guides/193/the-portrait-of-a-new-life

[8] Paul Enns, The Moody Handbook of Theology (1989 edition), pp. 330-31.

[9] J. D. Greear, Stop Asking Jesus Into Your Heart (Nashville: B & H Publishing Group, 2013), p. 40.

[10] Ibid., p. 70. Furthermore, Greear affirms that repentance is essentially a change of mind: “Repentance is, in its essence, a Spirit-generated change of mind.” (J. D. Greear, Stop Asking Jesus Into Your Heart [Nashville: B & H Publishing Group, 2013], p. 68.)

[11] D. L. Moody, J. B. McClure, Editor, Anecdotes and Illustrations of D. L. Moody, p. 156.