|
The State of Man
What is the
Biblical Opinion?
bt Matthew Heyns
The position of Man before God is often debated,
but rarely is God's opinion taken into consideration. Mostly, it is man's
opinion of himself which is set up to be the definer of his condition. This is a
classic petitio principii, uses of the conclusion to prove the argument. It is
man's own opinion of himself which is, in fact, his largest problem. Man has
assessed the situation and determined that "I am the captain of my
fate," to paraphrase the poet. This passage from Romans 1 shows the folly
of pursuing our own wisdom in our attempt to define our situation.
For the unseen things of Him from creation of the
world are clearly seen, being realized by the things that are made, even His
eternal power and Godhead, for them to be without excuse. Because, knowing God,
they did not glorify Him as God, neither were thankful. But they became vain in
their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened. Professing to be wise,
they became fools. (Romans 1: 20-22)
God's own Word tells us something of ourselves,
different from our opinion of ourselves. It is God's opinion which must be
considered if we are to say we have a true understanding of the State of Man,
and not be declared fools by God's Word.
The basic opinion which mankind has of man is that
man is a moral neutral, a free agent, free to make decisions about life and
death, morality and conscience, and spirituality, as he sees fit. To determine
if this is true, the first premise which must be investigated is the Biblical
classification of man. This is done to draw a conclusion concerning man's
ability to actually make and carry out these decisions, based on his actual
capabilities. How many classes of man are there in God's eyes? Carefully
examining the Scripture, we find only two classes of people, although there are
several names and allegories applied to them. We will look at a few type pairs,
then verify the conclusion by them.
The first type pair is defined by these terms; "sons of God," and
"sons of the devil." There is frequent use, or rather, misuse, of the
terms sons of God or children of God, intending to apply it to the whole of
mankind. Jesus, however, did not allow the use of this term to mean that all men
are sons of God. He used a different term in relation to those who do not obey
the truth of the gospel. These are not to be spoken of as "Children of
God." They have been denied such a status by God Himself. "You are of
the devil as father, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer
from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in
him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the
father of it." (John 8:44; AV). While it is true that we are all the
creatures of God, we are not all the sons of God. "In this the children of
God are revealed, and the children of the devil: everyone not practicing
righteousness is not of God, also he who does not love his brother" (1 John
3:10).
When the Bible talks about someone being "sons of
your father the devil," what does it mean? To help, let's see the
comparison between the sons of God, and the sons of the devil:
[This] I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye
shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh. (Galatians 5:16; AV)
[There is] therefore now no condemnation to them
which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.
(Romans 8:1; AV)
A comparison between those who are of God, and
those who are not, shows the sons of God walk in the Spirit, not fulfilling the
lusts of the flesh. Compare this statement with John 8:44, and then look at the
list of "flesh" works, on Galatians 5:19-21.
It says in John 8, "the lusts of your father
you will do" . . . what lusts do we do?
Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which
are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, Idolatry,
witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies,
Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell
you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things
shall not inherit the kingdom of God. (Galatians 5:19-21; AV)
And who/what is the most deceitful of all,
above whom/which nothing is more deceitful?
The heart is deceitful above all, and desperately
wicked: who can know it? (Jeremiah 17:9; AV)
And to whose heart does this refer? A man's heart
. . . every man's heart . . .
Moreover, the determination of the placement of a
soul in either camp is done at the behest of God, "having predestined us to
the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good
pleasure of His will" (Ephesians 1:5). The adoption is according to the
will of God, not the decision of man. One is either the child of God, or the
child of the devil. There is a definite division, and there is not a third
classification.
The second pair of types is that of children of the promise and children of the
flesh. The writer to the Romans described this pair in chapter nine: "That
is, not the children of the flesh are children of God; but the children of the
promise are counted for a seed. For this is the word of promise: `At this time I
will come and Sarah shall have a son'" (verses 8 & 9). The apostle here
refers to Ishmael and Isaac, the children of Abraham, but Ishmael was the child
of the flesh, not the child of the promise. Even as Abraham pleaded with God
that Ishmael might stand before Him, God declared the condemnation of Ishmael.
In Genesis 17: 18 and 19 we read, "And Abraham said to God, `Oh that
Ishmael might live before You!' And God said, `Sarah your wife shall bear you a
son indeed. And you shall call his name Isaac. And I will establish My covenant
with him for an everlasting covenant, and with his seed after him.'" There
would be no covenant established with Ishmael, the child of the flesh.
Jesus helped us understand this in the same
conversation in which He called some the "sons of your father the
devil," in John 8. In that discourse, He referred to the qualification for
being called a child of Abraham, which is to say, a child of the promise.
"They answered and said to Him, Abraham is our father. Jesus answered them,
If you were Abraham's children, you would do the works of Abraham" (John
8:39). And what were the works of Abraham? "Therefore know that those of
faith, these are the sons of Abraham" (Galatians 3:7). There is a definite
division. There is no third category.
The third pair is that of sheep and goats. Jesus, the Good Shepherd, spoke of
them in Matthew 25, where He said, "And indeed He shall set the sheep on
His right hand, but the goats off the left" (verse 33). Further, He said:
Truly, truly, I say to you, he who does not enter
into the sheepfold by the door, but going up by another way, that one is a thief
and a robber. But he who enters in by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. The
doorkeeper opens to him, and the sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own
sheep by name and leads them out. And when he puts forth his own sheep, he goes
before them, and the sheep follow him. For they know his voice. (John 10:14)
The Shepherd is not a goatherd. Many are in the
church and claim an allegiance to Christ, but in Matthew 25:12, and other
verses, Jesus claims that He has not known them. They are not sheep and do not
believe despite their claims to the contrary. Some are elders, some deacons,
some pastors, some Sunday School teachers. Some are just average churchgoers.
Most are quite sure they are sheep and not goats. "But you did not believe
because you are not of My sheep, as I said to you" (John 10:26). But since
"the Son of man has come to seek and to save that which was lost"
(Luke 19:10), and the prophet says, "For so says the Lord Jehovah: `Behold,
I Myself will search for My sheep and seek them out'" (Ezekiel 34:11), we
know that goats do not become sheep, but lost sheep are found. There is a
definite distinction. There is no third category.
There are other classifications which might be examined, but these continue to
show that there are only two categories of man; Children of God, or children of
the devil. Other terms may be used, but there remain only two categories. It is
important to remember that all believers were once under the dominion of sin and
the Law, but are not considered to have been goats. The distinction must be made
because the believer knows himself to have been under the Law, and the Scripture
bears out the thesis. In Titus 3:3, Paul states: "For we ourselves also
were once foolish, disobedient, deceived, slaving for various lusts and
pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful, hating one another."
Further, he reminds us, "And such were some of you. But you are washed, but
you are sanctified, but you are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by
the Spirit of our God" (1 Corinthians 6:11), and likewise, in Ephesians 2:1-3:
"And you, who were once dead in trespasses
and sins, in which you once walked according to the course of this world,
according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now works in
the children of disobedience; among whom we also had our way of life in times
past, in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the
thoughts, and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others."
The condition of the believer prior to conversion
was equal to, in all manners, aspects and intents, that of the nonbeliever. By
these terms, believer and nonbeliever, reference is made to Jesus' statement as
quoted above in John 10: 26, and while no one is able to determine with absolute
finality whether anyone else is or is not a "sheep," the terms are
used because God has used them and are applied as the Bible applies them. No
implication of judgment concerning any specific person's place is intended,
however, the Biblical paradigm is irrefutable. Some are sheep and some are not.
Just what is the state of the unsaved man, both those who will become saved in
God's time and those who will never become saved?
According to Ephesians 2, quoted above, every man
is dead in trespasses and sins. Every man walks according to the course of this
world. Every man lives according to the prince of the power of the air, which
works in every child of disobedience, thus also making every man disobedient and
rebellious. Every man's way of life is in the lusts of the flesh, to pursue
after the things which please the flesh and fulfill the evil thoughts. Every man
is a child of wrath. Every human, aged one day to 100+ years.
Romans 3: 10-18 is another passage which clearly
describes the condition of man prior to salvation:
"As it is written: "There is none
righteous, no not one; there is none that understands, there is none that seeks
after God." "They are all gone out of the way, have together become
unprofitable, there is none that does good, no, not one." "Their
throat is an open grave, with their tongues they have used deceit, poison of
asps is under their lips; whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness;"
"their feet swift to shed blood; destruction and misery are in their way,
and the way of peace they did not know." "There is no fear of God
before their eyes.""
"There is none that seeks after God."
This is a quote from Psalm 14. "There is no fear of God before their
eyes." This is from Psalm 36. Both of these Psalms speak to the state of
the evil doers, the unsaved. How many times has it been heard, "I was
seeking the truth," or "I was looking for God," or "I was
looking for the light," from someone unwilling to give up a night of TV to
search the Scripture for the truth, or would just rather look somewhere else
besides Scripture for the brand of truth which pleases them? The problem is that
God says none, not a single one, seeks after God. Yes, it is true that many are
seeking for something, but not one is seeking God. What are they seeking? They
are most likely seeking to placate their souls, to soothe themselves, to feel
good about themselves. This is the basis and drawing power of the
"modern" church, which uses a variety of unbiblical methods to tickle
the ears and soothe the woes of unconverted people, then pats their backs and
unscripturally ensures them of their salvation. When they come to a preacher who
says what they want to hear, they think they have found God. Paul says,
For the time will come when they will not endure
sound doctrine; but *after their own lusts* shall they heap to
themselves teachers, having itching ears; And they shall turn away ears from the
truth, and shall be turned unto fables" (2 Timothy 4: 3-4; AV)
What are the lusts they follow after? Those of
the flesh. Jesus told us in John 8:44 that the "lusts of your father ye
will do." The unsaved man's will is to do the will of the flesh. What is
the flesh's will? The Scriptures tell us the will of the flesh is to overthrow
God. That is the will of all persons without exclusion, unless and until they
are saved. Every human, age one day to age 100 years.
While we consider ourselves in a position to make
decisions and determinations concerning our activities and destinies, the Bible
tells us differently. "Do you not know that to whom you yield yourselves
slaves for obedience, you are slaves to him whom you obey?; whether it is of sin
to death, or of obedience to righteousness" (Romans 6:16)? We are not
slaves to sin because we submit ourselves to sin. We submit ourselves to sin because
we are slaves to sin and slaves are obligated to submit to their masters. To
develop the idea further, several passages refer to man's inability to make
alterations in the course of his life. "O Lord, I know that the way of man
does not belong to man; it is not in man who walks to direct his steps"
(Jeremiah 10:23). "Man's steps are of the Lord; how can a man then
understand his own way" (Proverbs 20:24)? It would seem that God is making
it clear that the paths we follow in life are not of our own choosing, but are
of God. Does God precisely determine the steps in a man's life? "The steps
of a man are ordered by the Lord" (Psalms 37:23).
Does this mean that God is the cause of evil?
Does this mean that God instigates evil in man? "Surely the wrath of man
shall praise Thee: the remainder of wrath shalt Thou restrain" (Psalms
76:10; AV). Man's wrath, as a child of wrath in rebellion against God, are the
sins he commits for which he stores up wrath for himself in the Day of Wrath
(Romans 2:5). That wrath (allegorically, sin, reflective of God's righteous
anger against sin) which God will not use to praise Himself He restrains. That
is, the one who purposes the deed will not be allowed to carry it out. Thus, God
controls even the sins which we are allowed to commit. An excellent example is
Abimelech, of whom we read in Genesis 20:6; "And God said to him in a
dream, `Yes, I know that you did this in the sincerity of your heart. For I
also withheld you from sinning against Me. Therefore I did not allow you to
touch her.'" God prevented Abimelech from sinning. Another example is
Pharaoh. God speaks of what he will do in Pharaoh's heart in Exodus 4:21;
"And the Lord said to Moses, When you go to return into Egypt, see that you
do all those wonders which I have put in your hand before Pharaoh; but I
will harden his heart, that he shall not let the people go." God
lifted his restraint and allowed Pharaoh's heart to be what it was naturally,
hard and stony. A third example is Cyrus, King of Persia. God foretells his own
workings in Cyrus' heart in Isaiah 44:28 and 45:1;
"who says of Cyrus, He is My shepherd, and
shall do all My pleasure; even saying to Jerusalem, You shall be built; and to
the temple, Your foundation shall be laid. So says the Lord to His anointed, to
Cyrus, whose right hand I have made strong in order to humble nations before
him. And I will loosen the loins of kings, to open before him the two-leaved
gates; and the gates shall not be shut.""
God moved Cyrus, who was not yet born when the
prophecy was written, to do just what the prophecy said. God moved Cyrus to
perform a "good deed." This can be summed up by this statement of Paul
to the Philippians in chapter 2:13: "For it is God who works in you both
to will and to do of His good pleasure."
It has been shown, then, that both the evil and good that men do are controlled
by the "good pleasure" of God. It is God's pleasure to restrict evil
and his pleasure to cause good. The heart of man is described by God in Jeremiah
17:9 as "deceitful above all and desperately wicked." If the
restraining influence of God is removed, every man would perform according to
the dictates of his own heart and would therefore act in a desperately wicked
manner. The condition of a man's heart before salvation is such that there is no
possible way for him to perform an act of righteousness. If it were possible for
man to believe on his own, it would be a righteous act accomplished by a
desperately wicked heart. This is contrary to the nature of things. God has
already rhetorically asked us in Jeremiah 13:23, "Can the Ethiopian change
his skin, or the leopard its spots? Then you also may do good, who are
accustomed to doing evil."
God has given us many passages which tell us that
doing any "good thing" is not going to lead to salvation. Here are
two. "For by grace you are saved through faith, and that not of yourselves,
it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast"
(Ephesians 2: 8-9). Again He says, "not by works of righteousness which
we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us, through the washing
of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit" (Titus 3:5).
Why would God not allow us to do a righteous act,
like believing on Jesus, so we can be saved? It is not that he does not allow
it, but it is because we are not capable of any act by which to merit his favor.
"But we are all as the unclean, and all our righteousnesses are as a
menstruous cloth. And we all fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind,
have taken us away" (Isaiah 64:6). Even if one were to have a thought to do
a righteous thing, such as to humble one's heart before Christ, even then he is
not able to perform it. Even in the Christian the desire to do well does not
indicate the ability to do so, "For I do not do the good that I desire; but
the evil which I do not will, that I do" (Romans 7:19). Even as we desire
to do well, we cannot do it in the flesh. Thus, the problem is not that a mean,
cantankerous God will not allow us to perform our acts of righteousness. The
problem is that we are incapable of any such act!
What is the heart of man capable of apart from
the action and power of God?
For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed
evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders, thefts, covetousness,
wickedness, deceit, lasciviousness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness:
All these evil things pass out from inside and defile the man." Mark
7:21-23)
Notice what is missing from this list: love,
faith, belief, honesty, compassion, honor. Name a good attribute and it is not
found here. This does not mean that unsaved man cannot love, for instance, but
man's concept of love is heavily tainted, and the love man can have is not a
Godly or God pleasing love. It is a marred reflection of the image of God in
which man was originally created. It does not fulfill the requirements of 1
Corinthians 13. The fact that a man may occasionally exceed the norm and perform
great examples of compassion is to the praise and the glory of God, who is the
root and cause of it.
So, how does a wicked man become a righteous man? How can a child of the devil
become a child of God? "What must I do to be saved?" The answer is,
"There is nothing you can do to become saved." There is,
however, hope. God performs a miracle; a heart transplant, actually, of our
spiritual heart. God says:
And I will sprinkle clean waters on you, and you
shall be clean. I will cleanse you from all your filthiness and from your idols.
And I will give you a new heart, and I will put a new spirit within
you. And I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you
a heart of flesh. And I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk
in My statutes, and you shall keep My judgments and do [them]. (Ezekiel 36:
25-27)
Now, following this "surgery," there is
a new answer. "What must I do to be saved?" "Believe on the Lord
Jesus Christ, and you will be saved." This new heart, fashioned by God and
free from sin, is able to believe. It has no other choice: it must believe! Did
not the Lord God give us this statute: "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ
and you will be saved"? This new heart, it says in Ezekiel 36, is caused
to walk in God's statutes, it does not choose to walk so. "Jesus answered
and said to them, This is the work of God, that you believe on whom He has
sent" (John 6:29). "So that if any one is in Christ, that one is a new
creature; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new"
(2 Corinthians 5:17).
Does this mean, that a "goat" has
become a "sheep?" Not at all! God refers to those who will become
saved by his grace, as "lost sheep;" children awaiting the time when
we come into the inheritance our Father has prepared for us.
For you were as sheep going astray, but now you
are turned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls. (1 Peter 2:25)
(Ephesians 1:5) having predestined us to the
adoption of children by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure
of His will, . . . (Ephesians 1:11) in whom also we have been chosen to an
inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of Him who works all
things according to the counsel of His own will,
What can I do in the mean time, if I believe I am truly being led of God to be
seeking after God, while I am waiting for this transplant? God's waiting room
has only one publication, and it's not the Reader's Digest. "Then faith is
of hearing, and hearing by the Word of God" (Romans 10:17). If I have heard
the Gospel and think I am drawn to him, yet do not know if I have experienced
conversion, I should read the Bible and obey what I find there. I should seek
out biblically sound preaching and listen to it. This does not guarantee
salvation. I may be doing so from a sense of duty or of works, but duty or work
without faith is nothing. "Without faith it is impossible to please
Him" (Hebrews 11:6). The unconverted heart can have no faith. Even if I am
deceiving myself, faith comes no other way than by the Word of God, and I must
apply it to my heart in generous portions. "And He said to them, `Take heed
what you hear. With that measure which you measure, it shall be measured to you.
And to you who hear, more shall be given'" (Mark 4:24).
What will be evidence I have been converted? A
perfect example is the publican from Jesus' parable in Luke 18. "And
standing afar off, the tax collector would not even lift up his eyes to Heaven,
but struck on his breast, saying, `God be merciful to me, the sinner!'"
(Luke 18:13). This man did not do any of the things modern evangelicals would
normally tell people to do! He did not come forward. He did not pray the
"Sinner's prayer." He did not invite Jesus into his heart. He did not
repent (by today's definition). He confessed. He admitted before God just what
he was, and who God was. "God the righteous, me the sinner!" He did
not tell God to save him. God saves whom He will. "Therefore He has mercy
on whom He will, and whom He will, He hardens" (Romans 9:18).
"Salvation is of the Lord" (Jonah 2:9). "Does not the potter have
power over the clay" (Romans 9:21)? The publican asked for God's mercy,
having realized just what he really was. It is only the Spirit of God who
reveals this to anyone.
Just prior to this parable is another which also
deals with conversion. A widow pleads with a judge for vengeance, "Avenge
me of my adversary!" Our adversary is the law, which stands in opposition
to us in the Court of God, and justice for the sinner is eternal damnation. God
got justice for the elect by carrying out judgment on Jesus Christ, their
substitute. "And shall not God avenge His own elect who cry day and
night to Him, though He has been long-suffering over them" (Luke
18:7)? Most certainly I might cry out day and night, "God have mercy on me,
the sinner!" Can confession and prayer for mercy in themselves cause God to
save us? Remember, it is "not by works of righteousness which we have done,
but according to His mercy He saved us, through the washing of regeneration and
renewal of the Holy Spirit" (Titus 3:5).
Does God require our permission to do with us as he sees fit? Do we have the
capability to grant such permission? Isn't God a "gentleman" (funny
how the feminists haven't put this false doctrine to rest!) who will not impose
his will upon his creations? Nay, but shall the potter require the permission of
the clay? False doctrines state that man must grant God approval or God cannot
save them, and that their hearts are capable of hearing and understanding and
accepting the things of God. The Bible tells us differently. "But the
natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are
foolishness to him; neither can he know them, because they are spiritually
discerned" (1 Corinthians 2:14). Mankind is not in a position of neutrality
in respect to the things of God. God's things are foolishness to man. Man will
not accept them. Man can not receive them. But the gospel of God does not deal
with the natural man, it kills him. It removes his heart and replaces it with a
new one. "I have been crucified with Christ, and I live; no longer I, but
Christ lives in me" (Galatians 2:20). I am owned, not because I have chosen
to be owned, but because I have been bought. "Or do you not know that your
body is the temple of the Holy Spirit in you, whom you have of God? And you are
not your own, for you are bought with a price. Therefore glorify God in your
body and in your spirit, which are God's" (1 Corinthians 6:19, 20).
But let us not say that there is unrighteousness
in God because he has not provided salvation for all. God is not unjust. God
does not owe salvation to any, but we owe absolute fealty to God and do not
deliver. He is the Creator, we the creation. But God, to show his mercy and his
grace and glorify himself thereby, has condescended to grant to those of his
choosing a way of escape. This is what agape love is all about. It is
condescending love, bestowed on one who does not deserve it, by one who does not
owe it. When God spoke concerning his salvation plan, he directly addressed the
question in Romans 9:14. He asks, "What shall we say then? Unrighteousness
with God? Certainly not!" He replies to his own question:
Out of the mouth of the most High proceedeth not
evil and good? Wherefore doth a living man complain, a man for the punishment of
his sins? (Lamentations 3:38, 39; AV)
Even so then, also in this present time there is
a remnant according to the election of grace. But if by grace, then it is no
more of works; otherwise grace is no more grace. But if it is of works, then it
is no more of grace; otherwise work is no more work. (Romans 11:5, 6)
The salvation of God is singularly of God, not of
my works.
How is a person saved, if they can do nothing to assist in their salvation? It
says in the Scripture:
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus
Christ, who blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenlies in
Christ; according as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that
we should be holy and without blame before Him in love, having predestined us to
the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good
pleasure of His will, to the praise of the glory of His grace, in which He has
made us accepted in the One having been loved. In Him we have redemption through
His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace, which
He caused to abound toward us in all wisdom and understanding; having made known
to us the mystery of His will, according to His good pleasure which He purposed
in Himself, for an administration of the fullness of times, to head up all
things in Christ, both the things in Heaven, and the things on earth, even in
Him, in whom also we have been chosen to an inheritance, being predestinated
according to the purpose of Him who works all things according to the counsel of
His own will, (Ephesians 1: 3-11)
It is God who, according to his purpose, has
foreknown and predestined, predestined and called, called and justified,
justified and glorified (Romans 8: 28-30). How does a person become saved?
According to God's good pleasure, those who will become saved will be saved.
"And hearing, the nations rejoiced and glorified the Word of the Lord. And
as many as were ordained to eternal life believed" (Acts 13:48). Is it
possible that God has purposed that all persons should be saved, yet cannot
accomplish that purpose? Not at all, for He says, "My purpose shall stand,
and I will do all My pleasure;" (Isaiah 46:10).
All that the Father gives Me shall come to Me,
and the one who comes to Me I will in no way cast out. For I came down from
Heaven, not to do My own will but the will of Him who sent Me. And this is the
will of the Father who sent Me, that of all which He has given Me I should lose
nothing but should raise it up again at the last day. (John 6: 37-39)
The state of man has been shown to be that he is under the dominion of sin and
the flesh (Ephesians 2:2), unable and unwilling to understand or receive the
things of God (1 Corinthians 2:14), and is not willing to come to God (John
5:40); not being in any way capable of performing, of his own accord, even the
simplest of acts of righteousness (Jeremiah 13:23), but rather, being utterly
deceitful and desperately wicked in his heart (Jeremiah 17:9) would, without the
preventing grace of God (Psalms 76:10), act in a manner in agreement with his
heart, that is, in a totally wicked and deceitful manner. Whether God will
eventually save a person or will not, the predilection of his soul is the same
(Titus 3:3). However, although not willing nor able to receive the things of
God, God nonetheless has revealed the power of God unto salvation unto all them
that believe (Romans 1:16), not according to blood (that is, heredity), or to
the will of the flesh (that is, I do not desire it in my unsaved flesh), not of
the will of man (that is, of someone else's desire for my salvation), but of God
(John 1:13): and has made them to be "holy and without blame before Him in
love, having predestined us to the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to
Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will (Ephesians 1:4b,5). These He
has converted from their former condition, "not by works of righteousness
which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us, through the washing
of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, whom He poured out on us
abundantly through Jesus Christ our Savior, that being justified by His grace,
we should become heirs according to the hope of eternal life" (Titus
3:5-7).
Even in his converted state, man on his own is
incapable of truly righteous acts, as apart from Christ he can do nothing (John
15:5). While converted man may wish to do good, the good things we will to do we
do not do, but the evil we will to not do, that we do (Romans 7:7). The works of
man are ever impotent to provide any spiritual benefit, but the good works we do
are only of God (Ephesians 2:10), and we do nothing more than that which we are
expected to do (Luke 17:10). Yet an ongoing desire to live according to the
commandments of the Lord as set down in His Word will become evident as the
evidence of the conversion of our hearts (Ezekiel 36:26,27), and we will delight
in keeping them (Psalms 119:97). This is not because of what we have decided,
but because of the change of heart which has been done upon us (see Jeremiah
31:19).
Can I then state that anything is necessary
before I am saved, which I bring to God as a worthy offering in exchange for
which God is obligated to save me? It cannot be, "else grace be no more
grace." Is there a work I do "for" God which will aid him in his
saving me? "But to him working, the reward is not reckoned according to
grace, but according to debt" (Romans 4:4). No more than I can do the work
of anyone else can I do the work of God. I cannot do God's work unless I am God,
as the results would be anything but Godly. God does God's work, and "This
is the work of God, that you believe on whom He has sent"
(John 6:29).
Shall not the Judge of all the
earth do right?
Genesis 18:25
All passages quoted from the Modern
King James Version of the Bible, Jay P. Greene, Editor, unless otherwise noted. |
