Charles > Charles's Quotes

“The Holy Spirit does not lead us into error but into the pathways of truth. The Spirit, with this special concern, has not failed and will not fail in this mystery of God-breathed Scripture.”
― G C Berkouwer

“Scripture ... does not derive its authority from the fact that we use it, not even when we use Scripture in faith.”
― G C Berkouwer

“In Scripture the election of God ... does not come out of works but out of grace. God's electing plan prepares the way of salvation in which man learns that salvation is obtained only as a divine gift an never as an acquisiton because of good works.”
― G C Berkouwer

“Dilemmas always are a source of polarization. We quickly move over to simplistic either-or’s … in which the fulness of truth is torn apart. And in the atmosphere of false polarities, we often stop listening to each other’s words. With this, irritation and pique poison the theological discussion. But it is striking and, at the same time, reassuring that the clear intent of the gospel comes through even in the midst of theological polarization, especially when all the parties intend to be faithful to the gospel.”
― G C Berkouwer

“Faith is decisively determined by the object of faith, namely, God and His Word. This does not ... imply that Scripture ... derives its authority from the believer's faith: this idea is already rendered untenable by the very nature of faith, which rests on and trusts in the Word of God.”
― G.C. Berkouwer

“It is not enough that I hold an inspired book in my hands. I must have an inspired heart ... Revelation is the ground upon which we stand. Revelation tells us what to believe. The Bible is the book of God and I stand for it with all my heart. But before I can be saved, there must be illumination, penitence, renewal, inward deliverance.”
― A W Tozer

“The gospel does not leave unchanged the person who does not listen and remains disobedient ... unbelief can lead only to progressive hardening of the heart.”
― G C Berkouwer

“In the cross, the Christian has seen the special Providence of God. He has,in forgiving and regenerating grace, experienced Providence in his heart. From this new,positive experience in his own life, he looks out over his entire existence and over the whole world, and sees there the leading of God’s fatherly hand.”
― H. Bavinck

“The great theologians from Paul and Augustine to G. C. Berkouwer and Karl Barth ... have been able to explain what the faith does not mean as well as what it means.”
― D G Bloesch

“Evil in man is radical, so much so that it cannot be overcome by human power.”
― G C Berkouwer

“We can hardly say that the Pharisees had an accurate ‘knowledge’ of man when they pointed to the sins (the real sins) of publicans and sinners. This judgment, which separated knowledge of man from self-knowledge, was as nothing in God’s eyes. The Jew did not have a better understanding because he was able to judge the heathen. In the sphere of abstract morality this could possibly be said, but this is not Biblical morality - O man, who judgest others!”
― G C Berkouwer

“Man does not have the power to begin by himself any change in spiritual things ... There is no limit or boundary within human nature beyond which we can find some last human reserve untouched by sin.”
― G C Berkouwer

“The jubilation of God's salvation corresponds to man's very real condition of lostness ... In Scripture, there is never any mention of a relativizing of sin since any such relativizing of sin would also automatically relativize the unspeakably wonderful nature of salvation.”
― G C Berkouwer

“Hardening can never be broken by man in his own power. There is no other therapy that can bring about a change except the divine healing in Christ and the superior power of the Spirit.”
― G C Berkouwer

“The confession of the church touching Jesus Christ can never be a knowledge such that, with it, the church can elevate itself above the world. It is precisely within the church that people will have to remind themselves that this knowledge is a gift and a miracle which did not arise out of flesh and blood.”
― G C Berkouwer

“It is the marvel of the work of the Holy Spirit that those who really respond to the proclamation of reconciliation claim no merit whatsoever for that response, but rather find the essence of their joy in God, who reconciled us unto himself.”
― G C Berkouwer

“The change which takes place when we trust Jesus Christ is not only a change in our view of Christ. Through Christ, we look differently at both God’s creation and our own circumstances.”
― G C Berkouwer

“Man, in and by the salvation of God, is delivered from the tenacity of the egocentric and commences to sing of the glory of God. It is this salvation that opens doors and windows toward God’s handiwork.”
― G C Berkouwer

“In the doctrine of Providence, we have a specific Christian confession exclusively possible through faith in Jesus Christ. This faith is no general, vague notion of Providence. It has a concrete focus: ‘If God is for us, who is against us? He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not also with him freely give us all things?’ (Rom.8:31, 32).”
― G C Berkouwer

“Everything is really said in an unobtrusive phrase, in Christ ...Faith is not added as a second, independent ingredient which makes its own contribution to justification in Christ... faith does nothing but accept, or come to rest in the sovereignty of His benefit ... we are not acceptable to God because of the worthiness of our faith. Grace is exclusively and totally God’s.”
― G C Berkouwer

“Faith looks away from itself to Christ ... sola fide (by faith alone) and sola gratia (by grace alone) ... mean the same thing ... let the sound of sola fide-sola gratia ring in the life of the Church. Let it be a warning against the pride of the treacherous heart.”
― G C Berkouwer

“In sanctification, there is never, under any circumstances, any room for self-pride or self-praise.”
― G C Berkouwer

“The grace of God is never the cause for glorying in one’s own power ... Perseverance is always opposed to false self-confidence.”
― G C Berkouwer

“Worthy partakers are those who confess their sins in self-abhorrence, humiliation, faith in God’s promises, and gratefulness of heart. This is the ‘worthiness’ that belongs to the Lord’sSupper. It is not at all meritorious in nature, but is in complete harmony with what is signified and sealed in the Lord’s Supper. It is a worthiness that coincides with a confession of‘unworthiness’ and with trust in the salvation of God.”
― G C Berkouwer

“When the concept of error in the sense of incorrectness is used on the same level as the concept of erring in the sense of sin and deception, we are quite far removed from the serious manner with which erring is dealt in Scripture … as a swerving from the truth and upsetting the faith (2 Tim. 2:18).”
― G C Berkouwer

“Lord, will those who are saved be few?” ... Jesus’ answer seems so noncommittal, so evasive ... Strive to enter by the narrow door (Luke 13:23f.) ... this evasiveness is only apparent ... This is the answer to this question ... this question has been answered, once for all time.”
― G C Berkouwer

“We do not have to choose between this world and the world to come, because the purpose of God embraces both”
― S H Travis

“On the route of faith and action, along with hope, we see that the gospel we believe is far removed from the picture of a future without bearing on the present, a heavenly hope without concern for the neighbour and his world.”
― G C Berkouwer

“Grace is at work even in fallen man ... to bend partially back in the right direction those human powers and endowments which were man left to himself would be wholly perverted.”
― G C Berkouwer

“Common grace ... an imperfect solution ... does centre our attention on the gracious act of God in protecting man’s corrupt and apostate nature from total demonization.”
― G C Berkouwer