Hostile And Evil Blind Beggars With Swords

Adrian Rogers explains in a sermon: "Jesus is God’s Answer to Man’s Darkness: John 20:30": “Spiritual blindness makes beggars of us all. ... The blind need more than light in order to see. ... I used to think, as a young preacher, that what you had to do to get people saved is just to tell them how to be saved. Just turn on the light. But it doesn’t matter how much light there is, or the person is blind because he cannot see it. It takes more than light, it takes sight. And a person who is blind cannot see the light, no matter how strong the light is or how pure the light is. It takes more than preaching to get people saved. That’s the reason I frequently say to you, I can preach truth, but only the Holy Spirit can impart truth. That is the reason why we must be a praying church. That’s the reason you must be a spirit filled soul winner. That is the reason that we must have the anointing, because we are dependent upon God to open blinded eyes to the Gospel of Jesus Christ. It takes more than light, it takes takes sight. We need to understand that nobody can be argued into the kingdom of heaven. Nobody can be educated into the kingdom of heaven. I’m not against letting the light shine. You must let the let shine. You must preach. But remember, there is another dimension.”

Rogers drafted the statement : "Only the grace of God can bring man into His holy fellowship and enable man to fulfil the creative purpose of God" for the 2000 BF&M. When he says the Holy Spirit imparts truth, he means an illumination that prevents the sinful nature of man from hindering free choice. He insist that the Holy Spirit does a pre-supernatural work, modifying the depraved nature of the sinner, which if responded to affirmatively, leads to a supernatural regeneration. The new believer can testify to his acceptance and self effort of turning from sin to Christ. The esteem of the believer remains in tack and humankind is not offended!

In Christ's day a blind man had no usefulness other than to sit by the roadside begging for alms. A blind beggar has lost his self esteem and is not self hindered from being obnoxious in crowds, crying out for alms. Yet his daily survival depends on crying louder than the other beggars. If his cries are not heard he sleeps hungry that night, if he sleeps at all.

Rogers assumes that being a blind beggar illustrates the sinful condition. The blind beggar is hostile to anything to do with God. He is sociopathic in his anti-Christian nature. He is irredeemable and non-reformable. Common grace hedges him from destruction of self and others. Partial enablement nor pre-regenerative help will not help him. He needs immediate and total help if he is to be helped at all. Like Dr Frankenstein, if we try to short cut God's plan by capturing illumination and enablements we'll have a monster on our hands. Dr Rogers man will be a dead man who has sight. He can't nod his head, he can't raise his hand, he can't walk the isle he can't reason or deduct. He is a rotten corpse with good eyes! Scary!

Prevenient grace of Wesleyanism, illumination by some reformers, preemptive placement of the sinner by some moderate Calvinist and divine enablement of Dr Rogers' SBC; none of these are of any use to the sinner. He needs more than sight to see, he needs a new heart and become a new creation . He needs a work done to him that he can not boast nor glory in anything but the grace and mercy of God.