Shortly after coming to hold to a reformed soteriology, a friend commented to me in passing, that he would have more respect for those within the Reformed / Calvinistic camp if they showed more respect towards those of other theological positions. At the time, I brushed this comment aside, attributing it to a feeling of resentment which was targeted towards those who hold to the doctrines of grace. I was also a little naive. I was still enjoying the honeymoon. How could someone who, holding to such a strong view of grace and low view of man’s ability, look down on someone who held a different position? Well, I was wrong. The honeymoon is over. Unfortunately the reformed superiority complex seems to be alive and well.

Sola Gratia! Those of us who would take upon ourselves the label “reformed” will be the first to say “Amen!” We attribute our salvation to grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone! That is a glorious Biblical truth. One for which I would make every effort to persuade another believer to adopt. The pages of scripture clearly reveal God’s initiative to rescue a people for himself; a people that could do nothing for themselves; who were dead, and needed to be brought back to life before they could exercise belief or trust in Christ. This is a work of Divine intervention. Listen to Paul’s charge to the church at Ephesus:

And you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience— among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind. But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved— and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them. – Ephesians 2:1-10 ESV

I appeal to this truth not only because I believe that it is the teaching of sacred Scripture; but also because of the humility and doxology that this produces in the life of a true believer in Christ. It is only when we realize that our salvation is all of grace and all of divine initiative do we then cry out, Soli Deo Gloria – to God alone be the glory!

Yet, there seems to be a disconnect in the way we apply this truth in our dealings with others, especially those within the Body of Christ. It’s as if the grace which is extended to us goes no further. For the Holy Spirit to overcome our natural autonomous disposition is a work of grace in it’s self. For many of us, this theological shift came about through much study and travail. However, we must never ignore the ministry of the Spirit in guiding us into this truth. If it were not for the role of the Spirit, all of our pursuits towards a robust understand of scripture would be in vain.

As I stated before, this does not mean we should shy away from confrontation in the name of peace. We must be ready to offer a defense for what we believe to be the clear teaching of scripture in regards to the natural condition of man’s will and the sovereignty of God in salvation. But coming to this conclusion does not mean we ought to think of ourselves as superior to our brothers and sisters who have not reached the same conclusion. We have not been given the right to treat others with contempt and disrespect in any situation.

How sinful it is, that we would hold ourselves in a higher regard than others because our understanding of scripture. We must learn to engage in such polemics with love and grace. I would contend that there is a vast difference between being assertive in an argument and speaking arrogantly towards another believer. Before we condescend with a tone of superiority, let us take heed to the fact that in our fallen state, God first had to condescend to us in complete superiority.

We are wholly dependant. We have been given a great gift that we did not deserve. We have been rescued for no other reason than God’s good pleasure. If we believe that this is true, we should make every effort to make that evident in our lives! There is absolutely nothing in us that gives us any right to think we are superior over another. Let that create in us a heart of gratitude and thanksgiving, not of arrogance and contempt. Let our dependence be a humble reminder to us, lest we forget!