２０２５年６月１日～約１年間かけ、キリスト教入門・神学コースで学んでいきたいと思います。只毎回集いたいのに集えない学びたいけど１年間を通すとなれば～？？？と思う方朗報です！この度HPから見る・学ぶことが可能になりました。数年後あ！こんな話してたよねって振り返えり誰かの力になることもあると思います。
（第１８回 . Regeneration, Justification, Adoption and the witness of the Spirit
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第１８回. Regeneration, Justification, Adoption and the witness of the Spirit
(BMC Manual)
We believe that justification, regeneration and adoption are simultaneous in the experience of seekers after God and are obtained upon the condition of faith in the merits of the shed blood of Jesus Christ, preceded by repentance, and that to this work and state of grace the Holy Spirit bears witness (Romans 8:16).
JUSTIFICATION – “Declared Righteous”
Definition (BMC Manual)
Justification is that gracious and judicial act of God by which He grants full pardon of all guilt and complete release from the penalty of sins committed and accepts as righteous all who believe on Jesus Christ and receive Him as Lord and Saviour (Romans 3:23-25, 5:1).
Key Scripture
Romans 5:1 — “Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.”
Wesleyan Perspective
Wesley emphasized that justification and regeneration occur simultaneously: one is legal, the other transformational. Justification changes our standing before God; regeneration changes our heart within us.
“Justification removes the guilt of sin; regeneration removes its power.” — Wesleyan maxim
Illustration
A judge, seeing a guilty person, pronounces a full pardon — not because the law was ignored, but because someone else paid the penalty. That’s justification: Then, as we leave the courtroom, our heart is changed so that we no longer want to return to crime — that’s regeneration.
REGENERATION – “The New Birth”
Definition (BMC Manual)
Regeneration, or the new birth, is that gracious work of God whereby the moral nature of the repentant believer is spiritually quickened and given a distinctly spiritual life capable of faith, love and obedience (II Corinthians 5:17; I Peter 1:23).
Key Scripture
2 Corinthians 5:17 — “If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.”
Wesleyan Perspective
John Wesley taught that regeneration is the “new birth” and the beginning of sanctification. It is not the end of God’s work in the believer but the starting point — the moment one’s heart is made alive by grace and set free from the dominion of sin.
“By the new birth, we are saved from the power of sin and restored to the image of God.” — John Wesley
Illustration
Imagine a caterpillar that enters a cocoon — motionless, hidden, and seemingly dead — but later emerges as a butterfly. The creature is not improved or repaired; it is transformed. That is regeneration — a new life, a new nature.
Application
• A regenerated person will show the evidence of new desires, new habits, and new love for God.
• It is not turning over a new leaf; it is receiving a new life.
ADOPTION – “Children of God”
Definition (BMC Manual)
Adoption is that gracious act of God by which the justified and regenerated believer is constituted a son of God.
Key Scripture
John 1:12 — “But as many as received Him, to them gave He power to become the sons of God.”
Romans 8:15–17 — “But ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, ‘Abba, Father.’”
“The pardoned sinner becomes the beloved child.” — John Wesley
Illustration
A young orphan, living in fear and loneliness, is brought into a loving family. The judge signs the papers — she is no longer an orphan; she is now a daughter with a new name, new home, and new future.
That’s adoption — we are not merely forgiven sinners but beloved children in the Father’s house.
Application
Adoption gives intimacy with God — “Abba, Father.” It brings security — no longer slaves to fear.
It offers inheritance — we are heirs with Christ.
THE WITNESS OF THE SPIRIT – “The Assurance of Salvation”
Definition (BMC Manual)
The witness of the Spirit is that inward impression wrought on the soul whereby the Spirit of God immediately and directly assures our spirit that Bible conditions are met for salvation and the work of grace is complete in the soul (Romans 8:16). Therefore, the Spirit bears witness to both the salvation of the sinner and the sanctification of the believer (Hebrews 10:14-15; I John 5:10).
Key Scriptures
Romans 8:16 — “The Spirit itself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God.”
1 John 3:24 — “And hereby we know that He abides in us, by the Spirit which He has given us.”
Wesleyan Perspective
John Wesley distinguished between the direct witness (the Spirit’s inward assurance) and the indirect witness (the evidence of a transformed life). Both are necessary. Holiness and assurance go hand in hand — the Spirit witnesses to those who walk in the light.
Illustration
A father and child walk hand in hand. The child knows his father loves him because of the grip, the warmth, the voice — not because someone told him. That is the Spirit’s witness: an inward “handclasp” of divine assurance.
Conclusion
These four doctrines together form the foundation of Christian experience.
In regeneration, we receive new life.
In justification, we receive a new standing.
In adoption, we receive a new family.
And in the witness of the Spirit, we receive a new assurance.
Every believer can know — not merely hope — that they are saved, cleansed, and loved by God.
And every believer is called to go on to entire sanctification — the fullness of perfect love that these graces begin.