Systematic Theology, by Louis Berkhof - New Leaven

a. Regeneration is a creative act, by which the spiritually dead sinner is restored to
life. But the truth of the gospel can only work in a moral and persuasive way. Such an
instrument has no effect on the dead. To assert its use would seem to imply a denial of
the spiritual death of man; which, of course, is not intended by those who take this
position.
b. Regeneration takes place in the sphere of the sub-conscious, that is, outside of the
sphere of conscious attention, while the truth addresses itself to the consciousness of
man. It can exercise its persuasive influence only when man’s attention is fixed on it.
c. The Bible distinguishes the influence of the Holy Spirit from that of the Word of
God, and declares that such an influence is necessary for the proper reception of the
truth, John 6:64,65; Acts 16:14; I Cor. 2:12-15; Eph. 1:17-20. Notice particularly the case of
Lydia, of whom Luke says: “She heard us (ekouen, impf.), whose heart the Lord opened
(dienoixen, aor., single act), that she attended (prosechein, inf. of result or purpose) unto
the things which were spoken of Paul.”
3. SCRIPTURE PASSAGES THAT SEEM TO PROVE THE CONTRARY.
a. In James 1:18 we read: “Of his own will he brought us forth by the word of truth,
that we should be a kind of firstfruits of His creatures.” This passage does not prove
that the new generation is mediated by the Word of God, for the term here used is
apokuesen, which does not refer to begetting, but to giving birth. They who believe in
immediate regeneration do not deny that the new birth, in which the new life first
becomes manifest, is secured by the Word.
b. Peter exhorts believers to love one another fervently in view of the fact that they
have been “begotten again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, through the
Word of God, which liveth and abideth.” I Pet. 1:23. It is not correct to say, as some have
done, that “the Word” in this verse is the creative word, or the second person in the
Trinity, for Peter himself informs us that he has in mind the word that was preached
unto the readers, vs. 25. But it is perfectly in order to point out that even gennao (the
word here used) does not always refer to the masculine begetting, but may also denote
the feminine giving birth to children. This is perfectly evident from such passages as
Luke 1:13,57; 23:29; John 16:21; Gal. 4:24. Consequently, there is no warrant for the
assertion that Peter in this passage refers to the initial act in regeneration, namely, the
begetting. And if it refers to regeneration in a broader sense, then the passage offers no
difficulty whatsoever in connection with the matter under consideration. The idea that
it refers to the new birth here, is favored by the fact that the readers are represented as
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