Amazing Grace
“Restoration in the church is not simply a matter of charismatic gifts and new church structures. The people of God must be restored to a fresh appreciation of all that is theirs in Christ. Freedom from law and condemnation open the door for praise and wholehearted dedication to God.”
– Terry acknowledges the move of God that restored the charismatic gifts described in the New Testament (speaking in tongues, prophecy, physical healing etc) to the church in the UK in the C20th. However, he points out that this needs to be grounded in a properly Reformed doctrine of grace if the freedom of the believer is to be established.
“The mistake is thinking that in order to reign in life we must do something, while the New Testament does not teach that. It says that we reign in life by receiving the abundance of grace and the free gift of righteousness. (Rom 5:17)”
– This is a New Testament truth which became a pillar of NFI doctrine and was preached by Terry everywhere as a core component of his apostolic ministry: We always and only ‘reign in life’ by receiving and not by performing.
“I do not remember sinning with Adam in the Garden of Eden, nor do I remember dying on the cross with Christ. However, the Bible says that both have happened as a matter of fact (Rom 5:17-21). Now I am to live in the awareness of that fact.”
Conclusion – this careful walk through Romans 5 would form the basis of Terry’s pastoral argument in ‘God’s Lavish Grace‘ (2004) which was derived in turn from the apostolic ‘foundation-laying’ teaching which Terry delivered to new churches and in conference settings many times. An early outing of this at Clarendon Church in 1979-80 can be heard here.