Author: Joe
Last saved by: Auth User
Company: GDC

99-05-27.JSH-143 / 

© 1999  Joe Griffin

Faith-Rest Drill: Doctrine of the Divine Decrees: Blessing of Man & The Divine Decrees; Infralapsarianism

VII.	Blessing of Man & the Divine Decrees:
1)	Omniscience was able to perceive the fall of man and then graciously provide a plan for blessing him based on imputations from divine justice.
2)	This system of blessing is part of what are called Elective Decrees.  There have been several attempts to classify the Elective Decrees but the one which is fundamentally sound with regard to biblical revelation is the infralapsarian order.
3)	The term “lapsarian” refers to one who believes that man is a fallen being.  The development of the infralapsarian order of the elective decrees is important to understanding the doctrine:
Griffin, Joe.  Forty Proclamations: The Theology of Grace Doctrine Church.  Chesterfield: Grace Doctrine Church, 1990, p. 20:
The word “lapse” is an English word taken from the Latin lapsus and means, “to fall.”  In theology, it is used in reference to the Fall of Adam.  A “lapsarian” then is one who believes that Adam is a fallen being.  There arose among those who subscribe to the lapsarian claim a debate over the logical order of God’s elective decrees.  In other words, how did God choose to solve the problem of a fallen creation?  Biblical scholarship has determined that the correct logical order of the decrees should place election after the Fall of Adam.  The prefix “infra-“ means “under,” or “below.”  Literally then, infralapsarian means “under the lapse.”  Thus, when the infralapsarian lists the elective decrees of God, he places election under, or after, the Fall of Adam.
4)	The infralapsarian order of the elective decrees is as follows:
1.	The decree to create mankind.
PRINCIPLE:  God cannot elect what does not exist.  For God to elect anyone they must first of all be created.

2.	The decree to permit the Fall.
PRINCIPLE:  Condemnation must precede salvation.  If man is in need of salvation then he is obviously in a fallen condition.
3.	The decree to provide salvation for all mankind.
PRINCIPLE:  The doctrine of unlimited atonement, the principle that Christ died for the sins of all mankind, not just a predetermined few.
4.	The decree to elect those who believe in Christ and to leave in just condemnation all who do not believe.
PRINCIPLE:  God provides all men free will to accept or reject His grace offer of salvation through faith alone in Christ alone.
NOTE:	Rejection of Jesus Christ as Savior is a rejection of both the love of God and the grace of God.  Those who do often call themselves Christians.  They spend a lot to time overcoming their sins through good works and paying penance.  God is not into penance.  He is into forgiveness.
Jesus Christ did all the good works necessary for salvation on the cross. Therefore, our penance pays God nothing but insult!  Our volition believes in the Lord’s substitutionary sacrifice.  God forgives us our pre-salvation sins, saves our souls, and imputes us His righteousness.  That’s it!  That’s all!  And that’s the truth!
5.	The decree to apply salvation to those who believe in Christ.
PRINCIPLE:  Each individual must first choose God’s plan of salvation after which, God decrees to elect that person to eternal life in His heaven.
Incidentally, the supralapsarian order of the elective decree is as follows:
1.	Elect some to be saved and reprobate all others.
2.	Create mankind both elect and reprobate.

3.	Permit the Fall.
4.	Provide salvation for the elect.
5.	Apply salvation to the elect.
5)	For the elect the question arises, “After salvation, what?”
6)	God has developed a perfect plan for the elect: Perfection produces perfection:
1.	A perfect plan can work with imperfect persons by encapsulating those persons perfectly.
2.	This is accomplished by the imputation of Plus-R at salvation and the maintenance of status quo spirituality after salvation.
3.	These encapsulated people are still allowed the opportunity to escape through negative volition and be punished. 
4.	But by grace they can stay inside that encapsulated environment and be blessed by it.
Romans 6:3 -	[CTL] Or are you ignorant that all of us who have been immersed into Christ Jesus have been immersed into His spiritual death.
	NOTE:		This is positional sanctification breaking the power of the sinful nature.  Using the divine operating assets the believer has equal privilege and equal opportunity to execute the Christian way of life.
Romans 6:4 -	Therefore, we all have been buried together with Him through the baptism of the Holy Spirit into His spiritual death in order that as Christ has historically been resurrected from deaths, through the glory of God the Father, so also we might have the option to walk in newness of life.
	NOTE:	This is the Christian way of life under the filling of the Holy Spirit, the place where experiential sanctification occurs.  This is the only area of sanctification where sin can occur.  Forgiveness is possible by rebound only.

Romans 6:5 -	If we have become intimately united with Him in the likeness of His death, and we have, not only this but also we shall in fact be intimately united to the likeness of His resurrection,
	NOTE:		This is ultimate sanctification where there also is no sin because there is no sinful nature in the resurrection body.