In the secret recesses of the mind the process of conversion may be a very gradual one. There may be a thousand circumstances and a variety of influences all conspiring to bring a man to that point when the radical change that makes him a child of God fully born is effected. He may come up slowly to the point of complete surrender; he may be drawn to the Savior by gradual approaches; he may for days, and weeks, and months be nearing the point when he can say:

      All this is a fact confirmed by individual experience in hundreds, yea, thousands, of instances. It is not everyone who is conscious of such an experience. In some the entire work seems to be compressed into a few hours. Suddenly there is wrought a consciousness of sin; suddenly guilt begins to rest upon the conscience; in a few moments many men pass from a thoughtless state of mind in which they were wholly devoid of any gradually forming purpose to become believers, into a state of most serious concern, deep penitence, and then faith, freedom and joy. But in many instances the conscious experience is very different, and perhaps in very nearly all cases is the real fact different from the conscious experience of a sudden effecting of the whole work. For often men may not be aware of all that has passed within them tending toward spiritual life. And the reasonable presumption is that before actual conversion, before the point is reached when a man may be said to be a new creature, there is a gradual tendency toward and approach to that point.

      This does not conflict with the commonly received view that regeneration is an instantaneous work. There is a point at which a man ceases to be a sinner, a child of the Wicked One, and at which he becomes a saint, a child of our heavenly Father. We cannot well conceive of this change from the former to the latter relationship other than an instantaneous one. So there is an instant when the work in him begins, an instant when the Spirit begins to strive with him, an instant when conviction begins, an instant when he resolves to return; but between these instants and that in which a man is really changed more or less time may intervene. During this intervening time in various ways a man may, and doubtless does make some progress toward the Father's house.

      But now that the change has been wrought, complete in its nature, there should follow it a life of progress toward perfection of Christian manhood. Such as the unmistakable representations of Scripture. Paul not only grew constantly, but purposely. He made efforts to grow. Of himself he says: "Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended (to have laid hold upon), but this one thing I do: forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus." And in another place, including himself among those whom he exhorted, he said, "Let us go on toward perfection." The duty is growing is also forcibly set forth by Peter. He says, "Wherefore laying aside all malice, and all guile, and hypocrisies, and envies, and all evil speakings, as new-born babes, desire the sincere (unadulterated) milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby." Many other representations of a similar character are scattered through the Scriptures.

      But this growth or progress is the divine life is not a progress out of sin and toward sanctity. It is the growth of the new man in Christ Jesus. It is the growth of the born babe, perfect as to nature, toward the full stature of manhood. Sin pertains to the character, and not to the nature. It is taken away wholly when we are made new creatures. Temptations may yet assail us; depravity yet remains in us, and its power is yet painfully realized; imperfections will mark our lives; but sin is no more in us, for only he that sinneth not is born of God. That is, the sin-purpose is entirely gone, and instead thereof there is a new heart, created in righteousness and holiness.

      In order that we may grow we must make positive efforts to grow; we must do positive things. We need to feed on the sincere milk of the word. The truth has not all been received into the mind before or at conversion. It requires but limited knowledge of the truth that a man may be converted. We are not to believe the truth and the whole truth in order to be saved. We are to believe into Christ. And a man may be very ignorant and yet know enough to believe into Christ. The body of religious truth to be believed in order to life is marvelously small. John says: "Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ has been begotten of God." And Jesus says: "He that believes on the Son has everlasting life." This "on" is really "into." Now how much truth we need to know to believe "into the Son" we need not stop to inquire; but evidently not very much. There is, therefore, a vast amount of room to "add to our knowledge." And if we would grow, make progress in this new life, we must increase in knowledge, and that largely by positive efforts."

      Hence, there is no duty more emphatic than the proper reading of the word of God. And the condition of all growth in spiritual things is this increase in knowledge in some way or other. Space does not now permit us to dwell upon this duty of reading the Bible, but we shall return to it in a subsequent paper.

      Daily private prayer is also an important condition of progress. The Savior insisted much more on this duty than he did on the duty of public or social prayer. And, indeed, it may well be questioned whether this root of all prayer is not essential to true public prayer. Above all, in spiritual things, it is insisted upon that everything must spring out of the heart. All that is simply outward is of itself valueless before God. "The root of the matter" must always be in us. And he who has not the root of prayer, a real personal communion with God in the closet, doubtless brings an artificial or a dead tree into the garden of the Lord when he prays in public.

      But neither reading nor prayer can be depended on as sufficient to insure growth. True Bible reading and true prayer are largely motors. They will not remain alone. Otherwise they are dead. They have faith as their life, and faith, when alive, will have works just as sure as a live tree will have leaves in the summer. Hence we not only must do, but we will do. There will be active obedience to the revealed will of God in whatever way and form it is required of us. A man must not indulge the hope of the Christian who can refuse to do and to obey the will of God as revealed to him. And his only inquiry invariably is: "How would the Lord have me act?" His Christian rules must be taken solely from the guide that heaven has given him. But that guide, in all doing and not doing, he must follow. Nay, not must: that guide he will follow.

      Reading, praying and doing carry with them all else that promotes growth. He who reads as he should, who prays truly, and who does the whole of his Father's will as thus learned will grow. The time will come when he will be a perfect man, and no longer a child, in Christ Jesus. "Let us go one unto perfection."

[The Church Advocate 40 (June 30, 1875): 4.]

      Christian H. Forney's "Progress After Conversion" was first published in The Church Advocate, Vol. 40, No. 9 (June 30, 1875), p. 4. The electronic version has been transcribed from a copy of the article printed from a microfilmed edition of the newspaper held by the State Library of Pennsylvania. Thanks to Adams Memorial Library for arranging for the interlibrary loan, and to St. Vincent College Library for the use of its microfilm reader/printer.

      Inconsistencies in spelling, capitalization, punctuation, and typography have been retained; however, corrections have been offered for misspellings and other accidental corruptions. Emendations are as follows:

            Printed Text [ Electronic Text
 -----------------------------------------------------------------------
 p. 4:      act." [ act?"
 

      Addenda and corrigenda are earnestly solicited.

Ernie Stefanik
Derry, PA

Created 4 June 1999.
Updated 13 July 2003.