James 2:24

"You see that a man is justified by works and not by faith alone" (James 2:24).

Federal Visionists love this verse because James allegedly says that justification is by works and not by faith alone. They talk about the "whole counsel of God" (whatever that is) and how this passage ought to inform our definition of justification. They babble on about "Biblicism." They love to appeal to Sola Scriptura and all that rot. Let me show you a more excellent way.

First, Biblicism is a dangerous error that threatens our Modern Reformation. Biblicists are the reckless sort of people who attempt to read the Bible and take it seriously. The Bible is holey book that can only be handled by men who have been trained how to escape the plain meaning of the text.

Second, while we Anti-Federal Visionists feel that Sola Scriptura is a decent slogan, we must warn against its abuse. Anyone who invokes Sola Scriptura is simply trying to appeal to the Bible as our highest authority. However, this grossly misunderstands what Sola Scriptura means. Historically, Sola Scriptura means that our highest authority is how the Reformed church has interpreted the Bible.

For this reason, the Truly Reformed have always favored Sola Fide over Sola Scriptura. No one could argue with the truth that Sola Fide is more foundational to our cause. In fact, if forced to choose, we would pick Sola Fide over and against Sola Scriptura. In all fairness, we would be fine if we just changed the slogan from Sola Scriptura to Sola Traditiona.

Matthew 26:27

“And when He had taken a cup and given thanks, He gave it to them, saying, ‘Drink from it, all of you’” (Matthew 26:27).

Federal Visionists love this verse. They think that it is okay for a twenty-first century pastor to repeat Jesus’ line about “Drink from it, all of you.” This is because Federal Visionists are all about being inclusive with regards to the Lord’s Supper. They will let anyone who is baptized take communion, even children. Obviously, this is a radical departure from what our Lord had in mind.

The first rule of interpretation is context, context, context. At the last supper, Jesus could say, “Drink from it, all of you” because he knew that no children were present. However, for a contemporary minister to say “Drink from it, all of you” in the presence of children is outright dangerous. Every year, dozens of children spontaneously combust when the communion juice hits their lips. It’s not widely reported, but we must stop the madness.

When Jesus said, “Drink from it, all of you,” he never intended this exact phrase to be infrequently repeated year after year. This line was basically a throwaway, an off-the-cuff remark that Jesus probably wished was never recorded in Scripture.

Ultimately, Anti-Federal Visionists are not very interested in what Jesus said. We are much more interested in guessing how Jesus would fence the table today if he were a NAPARC pastor.

Thus, the mark of a truly Reformed pastor is that he does not emulate Jesus. In no sense should we ever attempt to be like Jesus and say “Drink from it, all of you” in the presence of a mixed multitude. When a modern Reformed minister administers the cup, at best, he can say, “Drink from it, some of you.”

Ephesians 2:8-9

“For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast” (Ephesians 2:8-9).

Federal Visionists claim to love these verses, but what they take away with the left hand, they give with the right. They only quote this passage to make themselves seem orthodox, but they don’t really believe it.

Federal Visionists constantly whine about being misunderstood, but this is the plea of all heretics. No, Federal Visionists are actually easy to figure out. Here’s a simple, two-pronged approach to attacking the Federal Vision:

1) If a Federal Visionist says something that is unorthodox, then take them at their word and prosecute them as heretics.

2) If a Federal Visionist say something that seems to be orthodox, then do not take them at their word. They are lying. They really believe the opposite and need to be persecuted as heretics.

Thus, no matter what Federal Visionists say, they cannot win. They are either telling the truth about their unorthodoxy or lying about their orthodoxy. These are the only two options.