{"id":413,"date":"2013-01-30T17:37:00","date_gmt":"2013-01-30T17:37:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/54.225.232.228\/us\/product\/the-beginnings\/"},"modified":"2025-12-16T15:39:45","modified_gmt":"2025-12-16T15:39:45","slug":"the-beginnings","status":"publish","type":"product","link":"https:\/\/banneroftruth.org\/uk\/store\/christian-living\/the-beginnings\/","title":{"rendered":"The Beginnings"},"content":{"rendered":"

Book Description<\/h2>\n

An unconverted Christian is an impossibility. This is the clear testimony of the Bible. Consequently it is of paramount importance for us to understand the beginnings of spiritual life, to know what God has said concerning conversion, what it is and what it is not. This book seeks to examine in some detail the essential strands: awareness of sin, faith in Jesus Christ and repentance. Other areas covered by Paul Helm include ‘legalism’, the relation of faith to assurance and the present need for accurate language in the church to maintain preaching and Christian experience within a thoroughly biblical framework.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Table of Contents Expand \u2193<\/a><\/h3>\n
\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
<\/td>\n<\/td>\nPage<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\nIntroduction<\/td>\nix<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
1<\/td>\nCONVICTION WITHOUT CONFESSION<\/td>\n1<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\nConviction<\/i><\/td>\n3<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\nIs Conviction Enough?<\/i><\/td>\n8<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\nWhat was the Matter?<\/i><\/td>\n16<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\nSome Conclusions<\/i><\/td>\n18<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\nDoes God Toy with Men?<\/i><\/td>\n21<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\nStrands not Stages<\/i><\/td>\n25<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
2<\/td>\nREPENTANCE WITHOUT FAITH<\/td>\n27<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\nWhat is Repentance?<\/i><\/td>\n30<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\nThe Appropriateness of Repentance<\/i><\/td>\n35<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\nSorrow for Sin without Repentance<\/i><\/td>\n37<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\nA Common Factor<\/i><\/td>\n42<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\nSumming Up<\/i><\/td>\n47<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
3<\/td>\nFAITH AND REPENTANCE<\/td>\n49<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\nWhat is Faith?<\/i><\/td>\n50<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\nTrue Repentance \u2013 Some Examples<\/i><\/td>\n53<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\nRepentance Inseparable from Faith<\/i><\/td>\n58<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\nBut Repentance is not Faith<\/i><\/td>\n60<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\nWhich Comes First?<\/i><\/td>\n62<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\nSummary<\/i><\/td>\n65<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
4<\/td>\nPROBLEMS<\/td>\n67<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\n\u2018Legalism\u2019<\/i><\/td>\n67<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\nStrands not Stages<\/i><\/td>\n71<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\nFaith, Assurance and the Offer of the Gospel<\/i><\/td>\n74<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\nMechanical Grace?<\/i><\/td>\n81<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\nThe Preaching of the Law<\/i><\/td>\n87<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\nSummary<\/i><\/td>\n92<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
5<\/td>\nSOME CONSEQUENCES<\/td>\n95<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\nJustification and Sanctification<\/i><\/td>\n95<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\nThe Importance of Christian Experience<\/i><\/td>\n102<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\nChristian Piety<\/i><\/td>\n105<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\nWord and Spirit Once Again<\/i><\/td>\n108<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\nOur Language<\/i><\/td>\n112<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
6<\/td>\nEPILOGUE<\/td>\n117<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\nGeneral Index<\/td>\n125<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\nIndex of Scriptural References<\/td>\n129<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Help on the beginnings of the spiritual life from an examination of the essential strands of biblical teaching. 136pp.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":128524,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":[],"product_brand":[],"product_cat":[1249,1270],"product_tag":[5595,20088],"class_list":{"0":"post-413","1":"product","2":"type-product","3":"status-publish","4":"has-post-thumbnail","6":"product_cat-christian-living","7":"product_cat-theology","8":"product_tag-ebooks","9":"product_tag-great-gospel-reads","10":"pa_binding-ebook","11":"pa_binding-paperback","12":"pa_binding-paperback-ebook","13":"pa_class-bp","14":"pa_era-20th-century","15":"pa_format-book","16":"pa_original-pub-date-1351","17":"pa_page-count-2512","18":"pa_recent-pub-date-jun-1-1986","19":"pa_recent-pub-date-year-6057","20":"pa_subtitle-word-spirit-in-conversion","21":"pa_theauthor-helm-paul","22":"pa_topic-coversion","23":"pa_topic-salvation","25":"first","26":"instock","27":"purchasable","28":"product-type-variable","29":"has-default-attributes"},"bundled_by":[],"bundle_stock_status":"instock","bundle_stock_quantity":null,"bundle_virtual":false,"bundle_layout":"","bundle_add_to_cart_form_location":"","bundle_editable_in_cart":false,"bundle_sold_individually_context":"","bundle_item_grouping":"","bundle_min_size":"","bundle_max_size":"","bundle_price":[],"bundled_items":[],"bundle_sell_ids":[],"yoast_head":"\nThe Beginnings - Banner of Truth UK<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/banneroftruth.org\/uk\/store\/christian-living\/the-beginnings\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_GB\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"The Beginnings\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Help on the beginnings of the spiritual life from an examination of the essential strands of biblical teaching. 136pp.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/banneroftruth.org\/uk\/store\/christian-living\/the-beginnings\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Banner of Truth UK\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/TheBannerofTruth\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-12-16T15:39:45+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/banneroftruth.org\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2013\/01\/beginnings_cover_FRONT_RGB.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1425\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"2138\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@Banneroftruth\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Availability\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"In stock\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/banneroftruth.org\\\/uk\\\/store\\\/christian-living\\\/the-beginnings\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/banneroftruth.org\\\/uk\\\/store\\\/christian-living\\\/the-beginnings\\\/\",\"name\":\"The Beginnings - Banner of Truth UK\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/banneroftruth.org\\\/uk\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/banneroftruth.org\\\/uk\\\/store\\\/christian-living\\\/the-beginnings\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/banneroftruth.org\\\/uk\\\/store\\\/christian-living\\\/the-beginnings\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/banneroftruth.org\\\/uk\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/6\\\/2022\\\/01\\\/9781848718982.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2013-01-30T17:37:00+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-12-16T15:39:45+00:00\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/banneroftruth.org\\\/uk\\\/store\\\/christian-living\\\/the-beginnings\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/banneroftruth.org\\\/uk\\\/store\\\/christian-living\\\/the-beginnings\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/banneroftruth.org\\\/uk\\\/store\\\/christian-living\\\/the-beginnings\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/banneroftruth.org\\\/uk\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/6\\\/2022\\\/01\\\/9781848718982.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/banneroftruth.org\\\/uk\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/6\\\/2022\\\/01\\\/9781848718982.jpg\",\"width\":1425,\"height\":2138},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/banneroftruth.org\\\/uk\\\/store\\\/christian-living\\\/the-beginnings\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/banneroftruth.org\\\/uk\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Store\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/banneroftruth.org\\\/uk\\\/store\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":3,\"name\":\"The Beginnings\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/banneroftruth.org\\\/uk\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/banneroftruth.org\\\/uk\\\/\",\"name\":\"Banner of Truth UK\",\"description\":\"Christian Publisher of Reformed & Puritan Books\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/banneroftruth.org\\\/uk\\\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/banneroftruth.org\\\/uk\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/banneroftruth.org\\\/uk\\\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Banner of Truth UK\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/banneroftruth.org\\\/uk\\\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/banneroftruth.org\\\/uk\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/banneroftruth.org\\\/uk\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/6\\\/2021\\\/04\\\/logo_and_text_Jun2015.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/banneroftruth.org\\\/uk\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/6\\\/2021\\\/04\\\/logo_and_text_Jun2015.png\",\"width\":377,\"height\":132,\"caption\":\"Banner of Truth UK\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/banneroftruth.org\\\/uk\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.facebook.com\\\/TheBannerofTruth\",\"https:\\\/\\\/x.com\\\/Banneroftruth\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.instagram.com\\\/banneroftruth\\\/?hl=en\"]}]}<\/script>\n<meta property=\"og:availability\" content=\"instock\" \/>\n<meta property=\"product:availability\" content=\"instock\" \/>\n<meta property=\"product:retailer_item_id\" content=\"9781848717008\" \/>\n<meta property=\"product:condition\" content=\"new\" \/>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"The Beginnings - Banner of Truth UK","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/banneroftruth.org\/uk\/store\/christian-living\/the-beginnings\/","og_locale":"en_GB","og_type":"article","og_title":"The Beginnings","og_description":"Help on the beginnings of the spiritual life from an examination of the essential strands of biblical teaching. 136pp.","og_url":"https:\/\/banneroftruth.org\/uk\/store\/christian-living\/the-beginnings\/","og_site_name":"Banner of Truth UK","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/TheBannerofTruth","article_modified_time":"2025-12-16T15:39:45+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1425,"height":2138,"url":"https:\/\/banneroftruth.org\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2013\/01\/beginnings_cover_FRONT_RGB.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_site":"@Banneroftruth","twitter_misc":{"Availability":"In stock"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/banneroftruth.org\/uk\/store\/christian-living\/the-beginnings\/","url":"https:\/\/banneroftruth.org\/uk\/store\/christian-living\/the-beginnings\/","name":"The Beginnings - Banner of Truth UK","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/banneroftruth.org\/uk\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/banneroftruth.org\/uk\/store\/christian-living\/the-beginnings\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/banneroftruth.org\/uk\/store\/christian-living\/the-beginnings\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/banneroftruth.org\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2022\/01\/9781848718982.jpg","datePublished":"2013-01-30T17:37:00+00:00","dateModified":"2025-12-16T15:39:45+00:00","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/banneroftruth.org\/uk\/store\/christian-living\/the-beginnings\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-GB","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/banneroftruth.org\/uk\/store\/christian-living\/the-beginnings\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-GB","@id":"https:\/\/banneroftruth.org\/uk\/store\/christian-living\/the-beginnings\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/banneroftruth.org\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2022\/01\/9781848718982.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/banneroftruth.org\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2022\/01\/9781848718982.jpg","width":1425,"height":2138},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/banneroftruth.org\/uk\/store\/christian-living\/the-beginnings\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/banneroftruth.org\/uk\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Store","item":"https:\/\/banneroftruth.org\/uk\/store\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"The Beginnings"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/banneroftruth.org\/uk\/#website","url":"https:\/\/banneroftruth.org\/uk\/","name":"Banner of Truth UK","description":"Christian Publisher of Reformed & Puritan Books","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/banneroftruth.org\/uk\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/banneroftruth.org\/uk\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-GB"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/banneroftruth.org\/uk\/#organization","name":"Banner of Truth UK","url":"https:\/\/banneroftruth.org\/uk\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-GB","@id":"https:\/\/banneroftruth.org\/uk\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/banneroftruth.org\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/04\/logo_and_text_Jun2015.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/banneroftruth.org\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/04\/logo_and_text_Jun2015.png","width":377,"height":132,"caption":"Banner of Truth UK"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/banneroftruth.org\/uk\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/TheBannerofTruth","https:\/\/x.com\/Banneroftruth","https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/banneroftruth\/?hl=en"]}]},"og_availability":"instock","product_availability":"instock","product_retailer_item_id":"9781848717008","product_condition":"new"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/banneroftruth.org\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/product\/413","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/banneroftruth.org\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/product"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/banneroftruth.org\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/product"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/banneroftruth.org\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=413"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/banneroftruth.org\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/128524"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/banneroftruth.org\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=413"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"product_brand","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/banneroftruth.org\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/product_brand?post=413"},{"taxonomy":"product_cat","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/banneroftruth.org\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/product_cat?post=413"},{"taxonomy":"product_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/banneroftruth.org\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/product_tag?post=413"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}