For I am not ashamed of the Gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek. For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith.

Romans 1:16-17

Introduction

A significant portion of Christianity teaches what is called free will. In other words, each person who hears the Gospel has his or her own free will choice to either accept or reject Christ. The usual argument of free will is as follows:

1) God loves all people and wants all to be saved

2) The Holy Spirit convicts men of their sin and their need for a Savior.

3) Each person when presented with the Gospel will ultimately decide for himself whether he will accept or reject Christ

4) Each person who believes on Christ will be saved and will not lose this salvation even if their lives do not exhibit good works. Some advocating the doctrine of free will teach that salvation can be lost (e.g. Wesleyans).

I am convinced that the vast majority of you reading this will instantly recognize this as the prevalent salvation appeal whether you hear it in your church, on the radio, TV or other media forms. In free will terminology, you will usually hear the following to describe the salvation experience:

1) He/she made their own decision for Christ

2) He/she accepted Christ into his/her life

3) He/she chose to believe and be saved

4) He/she allowed Christ to come into his/her life

These terms are intended to mean that a person can exercise his own free will decision in order to be saved. As will be investigated, the following is what the Bible teaches concerning salvation:

In their free will, all men are rebellious toward God and His Word and are unable to exercise saving faith without the irresistible call of God. God, in His sovereign will, chose to cause certain individuals to exercise saving faith and thereby be saved. God affects the will of man in order that he will believe. When a person becomes saved by responding to the call of God, he or she will persevere in the faith and produce fruit that is the evidence of God indwelling them.

As is evident to many reading this, the above statement is essentially what was taught by the Reformed church in the period of church history called the Reformation. However, this book will use the Bible as the sole source of truth.

The doctrine that God chooses those whom He will save is known as election. This teaching holds that all men are so lost in their sinfulness that they are unable to respond to God with saving faith. Therefore, all people outside of God’s grace are destined to hell. Out of His sovereign love and goodness, God choses to save some from going to hell. These people are referred to as the elect. Those who go to hell are not sent there because God causes them to sin. Rather, those who go to hell are sent there due to the justice of God and because of theri own sin.

Election and Free Will are Mutually Exclusive

The teaching of free will and the teaching of election both cannot be right. One involves man’s free-will choice of accepting Christ and the other involves God’s sovereign choice of the sinner. We cannot teach that one can accept Christ out of our own choice and teach that God sovereignly chooses us (John 15:16). Man cannot truly exercise saving faith by his own free will and at the same time be spiritually dead and unable to make a spiritually good decision (Ro 3:10-11). Finally, we cannot teach both that man will persevere in the faith resulting in good works and also teach that man can be saved only to slide back into rebellion towards God. The above comparisons should demonstrate that free will and election are in direct contrast to one another.

The Bible teaches us to contend earnestly for the faith that was once delivered unto the saints (Jude 3-4) and to give a defense for the hope that is within us (1 Pet 3:15). This is what this book seeks to do. It is hoped that the reader, after thoughtfully and prayerfully considering the arguments of this book, will be convicted concerning the truth of election.

Teaching concerning salvation usually can be classified into one of the following four categories:

Salvation by works (e.g. baptismal regeneration, keeping sacraments, social action, etc)
Man is saved by his own free will decision for Christ without any influence by the Holy Spirit
Man is saved by his own free will decision with ‘urging’ by the Holy Spirit
Man is saved by God’s sovereign choice, and God fully causes the believer to believe.

This book will not address item #1. The fact that man is not saved by works will be a basic premise of this work. Items #2 and #3 are both shades of free will and ultimately are based on works. I believe that item #4 is closest to the Biblical truth of the Gospel. It teaches an absolute inability for man to exercise saving faith outside of God. God must change man’s will in order that he will believe. God has chosen these elect people before the foundation of the world according to the good pleasure of His will.

The Importance of the Problem

Many of you may be questioning whether the discussion so far is really all that significant to the Christian life. Could this discussion of free will and election be just another debatable area or an ‘endless genealogy’ that the Bible clearly warns believers to stay clear of (Titus 3:9, 1 Tim 1:4)? The very topic of election vs. free will arose in the Reformation church culminating in the Synod of Dort in which free will (a.k.a. Arminianism) was renounced as heresy. But was this renouncement proper? Is free will just a slight variation of the truth? Couldn’t it be that election and free will are both suitable approaches to teaching about salvation?

There appear to be three negative implications of the doctrine of free will. The first implication is that it is an ear tickling message (2 Tim 4:3) to mankind, which pleases man by giving him the final authority over salvation. By its very platform, free will allows for man to have the ability to choose for himself to accept God. This exalts man to have some goodness in himself to be able to make a positive spiritual decision. He is not altogether in rebellion to God. Free will teaches that man is sinful, but it allows for a little spark of goodness in man to be able to accept the Gospel. Free will recognizes that the Holy Spirit is necessary to help man see the truth, but ultimately it is up to man to accept or reject the Gospel. Instead of understanding that man is given the faith of Christ (Gal 2:16, Phil 3:9, Eph 2:8-9, Phil 1:29) by God and, therefore, is caused by God to believe, those who hold to free will understand faith as man’s own faith that he decides to exercise. Therefore, the first implication of free will is that it does not present man as a complete sinner and exalts man to a higher status that he really is.

The second negative implication of the doctrine of free will is that it contradicts the teaching of the Bible. It teaches that man can make his own decision to be saved. Therefore, it softens the Biblical teaching of man’s inability to do anything for his salvation.

I can illustrate this point by way of an example in my own experience of sharing the Gospel with an unsaved acquaintance. I knew this acquaintance over some length of time. When I first presented him the gospel, I presented him a typical free will appeal. Very respectfully and kindly, he put me off and did not accept it. He was completely kind and willing to listen. Some years later, I presented the Gospel to him again. This time, I presented to him the need to repent and believe Christ and I explained to him about the absolute and total rebellion of man and that God in His sovereign kindness chooses not to give all mankind what they deserve (i.e. hell), but in His divine purpose elects some and causes them to believe and, therefore, be saved. What a bomb! This usually cordial and respectful person nearly leaped out of his chair and shouted words to the affect that it is not fair and that God is a tyrant if He saves some and not others. What’s so much better about those He saves over those He does not save? But that was the point I explained. None of us merit anything with God but only out of His kindness and love does He choose to save some. There was nothing man could do to gain his salvation. This usually cordial person was now upset with me for what I believed and was insulted. Now I understood the meaning of the verses:

And I, brethren, if I yet preach circumcision, why do I yet suffer persecution? then is the offense of the cross ceased.

Gal 5:11(see also 1:10)

…join with me in the suffering for the gospel according to the power of God, who has saved us, and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace which was granted us in Christ Jesus from all eternity.

2 Tim 1:8-9 (see also 2:3,9, 4:5)

In other words, the teaching that man is unable to do anything for his salvation is offensive. This is because human nature is one of pride. Mankind wants to be able to achieve success and play some part in his salvation. I fear that there are many today who are holding to a form of godliness, but denying its power due to their desire to play a role in their salvation.

The third negative implication of free will theology is that it may have caused the church to become huge in number with the presence of many unbelievers. I am personally convicted that the free will teaching has, in a large part, led to the staggering statistic that over 1 billion people are identified as being ‘Christian’. Free will doctrine has taught people that all they have to do is to accept Christ and be saved. They exclude the Scriptures that teach that it is the power of God to save people and that God gives them the faith of Christ (Gal 2:16) and the Holy Spirit (Ro 8:9). The only ones who are saved are those who have had their wills changed by God to exercise saving faith and produce the holy fruit of repentance, discipleship and obedience to the word of God.

The explosion of church numbers has also been aided by the prevalence of Christianity to engage in church growth with all sorts of psychological and social appeals. The day of ‘side-door evangelism’ has possibly brought many unsaved people into the church under the guise of wealth, health, fellowship, fun and games, and psychology ‘helps’ and ‘plugging in’. The philosophy of church growth as well as free will goes something like this: why not use any and all means to get the unsaved in the church and lead them to make a decision for Christ so that they will be saved. There is nothing wrong in wanting others to be saved (it is a principle of scripture – 2 Pet 3:9, Ro 9:1-5, 1 Tim 2:1-6). But, what is wrong is when we bring people into the fold by using worldly techniques and unclear teaching concerning man’s need to repent from sin. The obvious result of the potential increasing numbers of unsaved in the church (i.e. those who have made a false profession) is that the church becomes leavened with sin and false doctrine. Unfortunately, this is prevalent in many churches today.

The doctrine of free will results in a false hope for many people that they are saved. Since they made a public profession of Christ and participate in church activities they feel that they are safe and secure. We must all examine ourselves (2 Cor 13:5) to see whether we are truly in the faith. The way we examine ourselves is by comparing our lives with Scriptural teaching that a Christian will not practice repetitive willful sin, that the Christian will be a disciple of Christ, and that the Christian will, by the power of the Holy Spirit, be able to understand spiritual truth. The unsaved in the church will truly be surprised when, on judgment day, Christ tells them that he never knew them and that they are damned (Mat 7:21-23).

The Extent of Free Will Teaching

It is also important to understand the extent of the free will teaching in Christianity today. Although I have not undertaken an in depth research project to tabulate the percentage of churches that teach free will, it would be an easy task to survey your local churches to quickly find out the extent of free will. Each of you reading this is challenged to study his own local area to understand for himself the massive extent of the free will teaching. In the county I live in (which is generally a ‘conservative’ religious area), I have discovered that out of hundreds of churches, I have only located a few that teach election and are under the authority of the word of God.

The Method of Approach

It is important to outline the method that this book will undertake.

Scripture Only – No reference to church fathers, psychology/philosophy, or emotional appeals will be used. It would be an easy matter to demonstrate that many past leaders and theologians in the history of the church have accurately taught election. However, for the purpose of this work, the Scripture will be used as the sole authority of truth (2 Tim 3:16-17, etc). Additionally, any other arguments of man, whether they be philosophical or emotional, must be laid aside in this serious matter of determining the truth.
Consider the context of all verses as the entire Bible – This is also a vital factor in coming to Biblical truth. It has been demonstrated by the cults and others that virtually anyone can use verses out of their context in the Bible to prove just about anything they want. It is important to look at each verse used in their proper immediate context. It is also vitally important to consider the verse in light of its chapter, book and ultimately the whole Bible. I believe that the main reason for the confusion between election and free will amongst Christians is that there are a few verses that are usually used out of their context to ‘prove’ free will while ignoring the bulk of the Scriptural teaching on election. I believe that the vital key to understanding Biblical truth is to consider all related verses on a topic, study them intensely and come to a conclusion that reconciles all available data on the topic. Without this approach, we are doomed to enter into an arena of endless debate and uncertainty. Only by studying the Bible thoroughly will we come to truth.
Consider objections and be able to clearly answer them from the Scripture – As we strive to study the Bible completely to come to truth, it is only fair that we consider objections to election. There are several verses that when taken out of their context (whether it be the context of the paragraph, book, or the entire Bible) can be used to confuse and cast doubt on election by God’s grace.

Format of the Book

This book will begin by analyzing why God alone must be the source of our salvation. As will be seen, it is necessary for God to give men the faith of Christ (Gal 2:16, Eph 2:8). Left to their own devices and in his free will, mankind will not and cannot exercise true saving faith. In short, mankind is spiritually dead. Next, it will be shown that the Bible teaches that God chooses to elect some individuals to be saved based on no work that they have done (including the work of believing – see John 6:29). The avenue that God uses to lead man to salvation is the Gospel of Jesus Christ. God causes man to be spiritually enlightened by giving him the faith of Christ. The Christian is caused to believe resulting in his justification (Ro 3:24). Finally, the important topic of God’s work in the true believer will be examined. It will be shown that God works in true believers (see Part 4 of this book) by use of God’s word, the Bible, to lead man into righteousness and transform him from glory to glory (2 Cor 3:18). All true believers will produce fruit because of the grace of God working in their lives.

It is vitally important to strive for the truth (Jude 3-4, 1 Pet 3:15, Titus 1:9). It is prayerfully hoped that each of you reading this will have an open heart and be willing to humbly suffer for the truth that man, in no way works for his salvation.

Part 1 – Man’s Inability to Exercise Saving Faith

Chapter 1 Mankind’s Inability to Merit Salvation

We will begin our study on the Gospel of grace by examining the reason that God must perform all the work of salvation including changing the will of man in order that he will believe. As even the free will teachers will agree to, man in his natural state is depraved and unable to be pleasing in God’s sight. By depraved, it is meant that man’s efforts to participate in his salvation are completely unpleasing in the sight of God. The following scripture is a classic to illustrate the depravity of man:

What then? Are we better than they? No, in no wise; for we have before proved both Jews and gentiles, that they are all under sin; As it is written. There is none righteous, no, not one; There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God. They are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one. Their throat is an open sepulchre; with their tongues they have used deceit; the poison of asps is under their lips; Whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness; Their feet are swift to shed blood; Destruction and misery are in their ways; And the way of peace they have not known. Their is no fear of God before their eyes. Now we know that what things soever the law saith, it saith to them who are under the law: that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may be guilty before God.. Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall be no flesh justified in His sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin….For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.

Ro 3:9-20,23 (see also Ps 14:1-3)

As can be seen in this Scripture, there is no one who God sees as righteous. All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. The Scripture is clear that no work that man can do can merit him salvation (see Titus 3:5, Gal 2:16, 2 Tim 1:9, Eph 2:8-9, etc). In man’s natural state, he does not seek after God, nor does he understand the ways of God. In this chapter, it will be seen from Scripture that man’s works are displeasing to God and earn man no merit whatsoever. Because of the free will teaching that there is a spark of goodness in man (i.e. that man makes a spiritually good decision to believe), it is imperative that the groundwork of the depravity of man be laid. In the following 2 chapters, it will be seen that man has no ‘spark of goodness’ to exercise his free will in order to accept Christ and be saved.

All Men are Under the Sway of Sin

Wherefore, as by one man sin entered the word, and death by sin: and so death passed upon all men, for that all men have sinned

Ro 5:12

People are brought into the world already having a sin nature. They bear the original guilt that was passed on through Adam, the physical father of all living. The Psalmist tells us in Psalm 51:5 that we were brought forth in iniquity and in sin were we conceived. In Ps 58:3, we find that the wicked are estranged from the womb and that they go astray as soon as they are born. Therefore, it should be evident that all who were ever born (or conceived) are guilty before God of not following the will of God. The following Scriptures serve to emphasize the wretchedness of man’s fallen state:

This is an evil among all things that are done under the sun, that there is one event unto all: yea, also the heart of the sons of men is full of evil, and madness is in their heart while they live, and after that they go to the dead.

Ecc 9:3

All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.

Is 53:6

The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?

Jer 17:9 (see also Ps 16:2)

And the LORD smelled a sweet savour; and the LORD said in his heart, I will not again curse the ground any more for man’s sake; for the imagination of man’s heart is evil from his youth; neither will I again smite any more every thing living, as I have done.

Gen 8:21

And you, that were sometime alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now hath he reconciled

Col 1:21 (see also Mat 7:21-23)

O generation of vipers, how can ye, being evil, speak good things? for out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh.

Mat 12:34

Besides the above scriptures, there are many other examples in the Bible that teach that man cannot please God (e.g. Ro 7:5-23,8:5-13, Job 14:4,15:4, John 1:10, Ro 1:18-32, etc). However, an objection that may be raised by some is that man can do some good and, therefore, cannot be completely bad in the eyes of God. Moreover, free will teaches that although man is depraved, he can still be good enough to make a decision for Christ. Almost everyone will agree that all people have done bad, but there are a great amount of people who will insist that they can do good as well. They admit that they have done some bad things but overall they are generally a good person. It is vitally important to understand the Biblical teaching on this matter for in this lies a crux of the ‘free will’ error. The Bible teaches that even the things that man does which appear to be good are really filthy rags in the sight of God:

But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away.

Is 64:6

Can the Ethiopian change his skin, or the leopard his spots? then may ye also do good, that are accustomed to do evil.

Jer 13:23

It is hoped that the above discussion shows that man in his natural state cannot be pleasing to God. Even the works that appear to be good can never earn merit with God.

Slavery to Sin

In order to further illustrate the point that man in his unsaved condition is bound to sin, we will turn to briefly examine the fact that man is in slavery to sin.

Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin…But God be thanked, that ye were the servants of sin, but ye have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered you…Being then made free from sin, ye became the servants of righteousness.

Ro 6:6, 17-18 (see also Gal 4:3-11, 21-31, 5:1, Titus 3:1)

In this Scripture, it can be seen that prior to being saved, man is a servant (i.e. slave) to sin. To be a slave conveys the meaning that there is no escape and that man is so under the compulsion to sin that he cannot overcome it in his natural state. Titus 3:3 also witnesses to the fact that we, in our natural state were servants to sin. In fact, the scripture records that the whole world is under the sway of the wicked one (see 1 John 5:19, John 8:34, 44, 2 Tim 2:25-26).

A beautiful picture to illustrate slavery to sin is found in the book of Exodus. The nation of Israel was enslaved to their Egyptian slavemasters. They, of themselves, were unable to free themselves from the Pharaoh’s wicked rule. It took the great power of God in bringing the plagues on Egypt to finally release them. Besides a significant historical fact, we can see this story as a picture of the state of the elect prior to their salvation. They are in bondage to serve the wicked one (1 John 5:19) and, in their own power, they are unable to free themselves from their bondage to sin. There must be One sent from God that frees man from his sin nature and rebellion towards God.

The deliverance from this bondage to sin is achieved by the Redeemer. In the New Testament the word translated redeem comes from Greek words that have to do with being bought out of and being released from the slave market. The following table lists the meanings of these Greek words in the New Testament and their usage in Scripture:

Greek Root Definition (Scriptures)

agorazo to use or acquire at the market place (Rev 5:9, 14:3-4, 2 Pet 2:1, 1 Cor 6:20, 7:23)

ekagorazo go to the market and buy out of the market (Gal 3:13, 4:5)

lutroo pay for a slave (Titus 2:14, 1 Pet 1:18, Heb 9:12,15, Col 1:14, Eph 1:7, 1 Cor 1:30, Ro 3:24, 8:23, Lk 2:38)

The point of the above study on the Biblical usage of slavery is simply that man in his natural state is unable for himself to be righteous. He is in bondage. He needs a Savior to release him from slavery. Man cannot free himself from sin and rebellion. It is God who redeems man from his fallen state. In the next chapter, we will delve deeper into the natural state of man to answer the question of whether the ‘depravity’ of man also includes his inability to exercise saving faith. If it is the case that man cannot exercise saving belief on his own, it follows that God has chosen certain individuals and given them the faith of Christ so that they will believe. Therefore, by this faith, man is made righteous.

Chapter 2 Man’s Total Inability to Exercise Saving Faith

The purpose of this chapter is to show that man is unable to exercise saving faith in Christ. This is a central point of contention between the doctrines of free will and election: can man by his own decision exercise saving faith? There are many who will full heartedly agree that man is depraved and that all his works are as filthy rags in the sight of God. However, they will stop short and teach that man can indeed make his own choice whether to exercise saving faith. Their argument goes something like this. Man is unable to please God in the works he does except that God offers him the choice to either believe or reject the Gospel. If he decides to believe, he will be saved. If he rejects, he will be damned. Those who teach such a view of salvation usually contend that man’s free will belief is not a work. But, it will be seen that that is not true at all. Man’s belief is a work.

Therefore, in this chapter, it will hopefully be shown that:

Man is saved by faith alone.
But, man is unable to come to God by exercising his own saving faith.
Man’s attempt at faith cannot save.
This is because mankind is spiritually dead.
Additionally, true saving faith involves exertion (or work) which must be the work of God, not man.

Saved by Faith Alone

To demonstrate that Christians are saved by faith alone, we will briefly investigate Romans 3:21-31. Other verses that also clearly teach salvation by faith alone (e.g. Eph 2:8-9, Gal 2:16, 3:11, Ro 1:17, Heb 2:4, 10:38, Hab 2:4, John 6:47, John 20:31, Rev 22:1) will not be investigated at this point but also serve to witness to the fact that man’s works of trying to keep the law provides no merit in gaining salvation.

Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin. But now the righteousness of God without the law is manifested, being witnessed by the law and the prophets; Even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe: for there is no difference: For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God; Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus:

Ro 3:20-24

In these 5 verses, it can be observed that no man is capable of being justified by keeping the law (i.e. the commands of God). All have sinned. Therefore, even if man keeps the whole law but stumbles in one point, he is guilty of all (see James 2:10). Additionally, it should be noted that because the law came in, the knowledge of sin came in. If the law was not given, we would not have known what sin was (see Gal 3:23-26, Ro 7:7-12). Therefore, the law was given to teach man the depths of his sin and his need of a Savior. In fact the Scripture teaches (Ro 5:20-21, 3:20, Gal 3:19) that sin actually increased when the law came in. In other words, because the law came in, man was now guilty of rebellion from God’s law as well as the sin he did. Therefore, his sin was increased. However, while we were yet sinners, the faith of Jesus Christ was given so that man may be justified apart from the deeds of the law. It is important to note in verse 22 that righteousness given to man is due to the faith of Christ, not man. Also, in verse 24, it is important to note that we were justified by the free grace of God (i.e. a free gift). Therefore, the faith that we are justified by must be a free gift of God’s grace.

Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God; To declare, I say, at this time his righteousness: that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus.

Ro 3:25-26

Jesus Christ died so that men may be justified by faith. To be justified, man exercises saving faith in the blood of Christ so that his sins may be remitted. By the remission of sins, man is therefore justified. The blood of Christ points to the fact that Jesus became the propitiation for our sins by dying on the cross and becoming our substitution for our sins.

Where is boasting then? It is excluded. By what law? of works? Nay: but by the law of faith. Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith without the deeds of the law.

Ro 3:27-28

Here, the Scripture clearly teaches that man is justified by faith and not by works of the law. In other words, man in his own might and through careful observance of the law will never succeed. It is by faith in Christ that man is made whole.

Is he the God of the Jews only? Is he not also of the Gentiles? Yes, of the Gentiles also: Seeing it is one God, which shall justify the circumcision by faith, and uncircumcision through faith.

Ro 3:29-30

In these two verses, it may be observed that this gift of salvation by faith is available to both Jew and Gentile. The implication here is that while the law was actually given to the nation of Israel, this did not mean that God only cared about Israel. His plan was to include both Jew and Gentile through faith.

Do we then make void the law through faith? God forbid: yea, we establish the law.

Ro 3:31

Since salvation is extended to the Gentiles who never had the law, it is possible for one to think that the law of God does not need to be observed. This is totally contrary to God’s nature and the word of God. God’s plan for man is that he become righteous and do the works pleasing to God (Eph 2:10, 2 Cor 3:18, etc). Therefore, those who are saved by faith are destined to be righteous and will be able to observe the commands of God (see 1 Pet 1:1-2, 1 John 2:3-6, 5:2-3, Heb 5:8-9 and Part 4 of this book).

No Man Can Come to God

Now that we see that man is not saved by works, but by faith alone, let us move on. We find that the Bible also teaches that no man is able to come to God. They have all gone their own way, there is none that understand (see Ro 3:10-11).

No man can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me draw him: and I will raise him up at the last day.

John 6:44

But the righteousness which is of faith speaketh on this wise, Say not in thine heart, Who shall ascend into heaven? (that is, to bring Christ down from above)

Ro 10:6

It is important to observe in the above 2 verses that man cannot truly come to God for salvation. Oh yes, he can say that he is a Christian and go to church. He can even do some great things in the ministry (Mat 7:21-23). But, true salvation only exists when the elect person has been divinely drawn by God to be a Christian. A Christian should never think that he has come to Christ in his own free will. He can never ascend into heaven to meet Christ. God must condescend to the plane of man and revive that spiritually dead soul.

Man’s Attempt at Faith Cannot Save

Next, it is important to show that there are many examples in the Bible of people who make an attempt at faith, but are not really saved. Now, if the free will doctrine were true, it would follow that these people would be saved. If the free-will teachers are right, and we are not saved by works, then it would follow that simple faith alone would save. Consider the following verse:

Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well: the devils also believe and tremble

James 2:19 (see also Mk 1:24,34,5:7, Mat 8:29, Lk 4:34,41)

The fact that men can acknowledge that Jesus Christ was a historical figure (or even acknowledge that He is God) cannot be reckoned as saving belief. In the above verse, we see an example of demons who believe. But, they are not among God’s elect. Rather, they are damned to an eternity in prison (2 Pet 2:4, Jude 6). Similarly, those referred to in James 2 as having dead faith are not saved:

What doth it profit, my brethren, though a man say he hath faith, and have not works? can faith save him? If a brother or sister be naked, and destitute of daily food, And one of you say unto them, Depart in peace, be ye warmed and filled; notwithstanding ye give them not those things which are needful to the body; what doth it profit? Even so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone.

James 2:14-17

Although they have exercised belief, it was not saving belief. In fact, the Scripture recognizes many examples of people who ‘believe’ in Jesus, but are not saved. The following passage is an example:

Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven. Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.

Mat 7:21-23

Here, we see people who cry out Lord, Lord and have even done mighty works and signs in the name of Jesus Christ, but they were not saved. In fact, as verse 21 reveals, they were in reality workers of iniquity. Now, some may say that these people really did not have faith. While it is true that they did not have saving faith, they did have enough faith to call Jesus ‘Lord’ and do works in His name. This raises the question as to just how much faith is enough to be considered saving faith? But, this is exactly the crucial point that we must understand. The Scripture makes it clear that there is a significant amount of faith that must exist for a person to be saved. This faith must be sufficient in order to produce repentance and good works. Therefore, this faith takes exertion of the will to achieve. This exertion is work.

The following Scripture also testifies to the fact that some who think they have saving faith indeed do not. They may have belief enough to even share the Lord’s Supper, attend church faithfully and do mighty works, but if they do not have the faith of Christ, they are damned:

Then said one unto him, Lord, are there few that be saved? And he said unto them, Strive to enter in at the strait gate: for many, I say unto you, will seek to enter in, and shall not be able. When once the master of the house is risen up, and hath shut to the door, and ye begin to stand without, and to knock at the door, saying, Lord, Lord, open unto us; and he shall answer and say unto you, I know you not whence ye are: Then shall ye begin to say, We have eaten and drunk in thy presence, and thou hast taught in our streets. But he shall say, I tell you, I know you not whence ye are; depart from me, all ye workers of iniquity. There shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth, when ye shall see Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, and all the prophets, in the kingdom of God, and you yourselves thrust out. And they shall come from the east, and from the west, and from the north, and from the south, and shall sit down in the kingdom of God. And, behold, there are last which shall be first, and there are first which shall be last.

Luke 13:23-30

In this passage, Jesus was questioned as to how many would be saved. He responded that we should strive to enter by the narrow gate. In other words, many will strive to enter, but it is only by the narrow gate (i.e. the minority) that we are to be saved. The illustration of the narrow gate instructs us that it is the minority of those seeking who are really to be saved. This contradicts the free will doctrine of today which teaches that anyone who makes a decision for Christ will be saved. In 13:25-26, Jesus teaches that many will be knocking at the door only to find the door closed. Those outside will argue that they ate and drank in Christ’s presence and were under His teaching. In other words, they shared communion with believers and participated in all types of religious observances and sat under teaching of the word of God. But, it is fruitless. They are all told to depart. The significance to this passage for our discussion is that those who stood at the door and knocked were in their own power searching for Christ. Their defense to being shut out was that they did various works that were religious. They had believed in Christ on their own terms. However, without the faith of Christ (i.e. saving faith), they are doomed.

Another example of people who ‘believe’ in Jesus are the multitudes of John 6. In John 6:1-15, Jesus performed miracles of healings as well as the miracle of the feeding of the 5000. The multitude who saw the miracles came and wanted to make Jesus a king. But later in the same chapter we see in verse 66 that many of these departed from Him because of His teaching on eating the body and blood of Christ (which they did not understand due to their spiritual blindness). The import of this passage is that there were many who initially ‘believed’ in Jesus and His miracles but later departed and proved themselves not to be true believers (see also John 2:23-25).

The Scripture contains many more examples of people who ‘believed’ in Jesus, yet were not saved. For example, Simon the Sorcerer is recorded in Scripture as having believed. Yet, the Bible goes on to teach us that he was unsaved (see Acts 8:12-21). In the parable of the Sower and the Seed, we find that the seed that sprouted up in the rocky and thorny soils ultimately perished (see Mat 13:3-23). That is, although they initially believed in Jesus, they later proved themselves to be unbelievers by falling away.

For the sake of space, other passages that teach that not all who believe are saved are listed below but will not be looked at in detail. Rather, the reader is encouraged to carefully study the following passages. These ‘believers’ may have thought they were doing service to God. But, their works were detestable (see Mat 7:21-23):

The seed on the thorny and rocky soil (Mat 13:3-9, 18-23, Luke 8:13)
The Samaritans & Simon, the Sorcerer (Acts 8:12-20, especially vv.13,17)
John’s Disciples (Acts 19:1-8)
The Man who had his Father’s Wife in Corinth (1 Cor 5)
Ananias & Sapphira (Acts 5:1-11)
False Brethren (2 Cor 11:26, Gal 2:4)
False Teachers in the Congregation (Jude 4, 2 Pet 2, 2 Tim 4:3-4, Gal 1:6-9, 2 John 7-11)
Those Who Have Climbed in Another way (John 10:1-2)
Those Who Fall Away from the Faith (2 Thess 2:3)
Those who depart from the Faith (1 Tim 4:1-4)
Those who are Divisive Men (Titus 3:9-11, Ro 16:17-18)
Those who profess to know God, but their deeds are wicked (Titus 1:15-16)
Those who have believed and are baptized with the Holy Spirit (Mk 16:16)
Those who do not persevere (Heb 3:6,14, Col 1:22-23. See also Chapter 15 for more verses and discussion)

The fact that many have believed but were not saved turns out to be a quite significant argument that man’s free will belief cannot save him. It is only when his will is changed by God and he has the faith of Christ that he will be saved. No man who makes a free-will decision for Christ can be saved. It is only the circumcising work of God in the heart of the elect that results in salvation. Besides contradicting Scripture, the problem with teaching that man’s free-will belief in Jesus is saving faith is that it is a works salvation. That is, since it is evident that some who believe are not saved, then it follows that it takes a significant amount of faith to be saved. Therefore, man’s faith becomes work.

Observations of Christianity should reveal that just because someone exercises his belief or ‘acceptance’ of Christ does not make him a true Christian. In part 4 of this book, many proofs will be offered concerning works and other characteristics that will be evident in true believers’ lives. It should be evident that the 1+ billion people in the world who profess the name of Christ indeed cannot all be saved, for many in the church do not bear Christian fruit. In fact, it is possible that only a small fraction of those who ‘believe’ in Christ are true believers.

Mankind is Spiritually Dead

A powerful illustration that man in unable to make a decision to believe in God is that of spiritual death. There are many scriptures that picture mankind as being dead in his natural state and, therefore, unable to do anything that could merit his salvation. This must necessarily also include his exercising saving belief:

And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins; Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience: Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others. But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved)

Eph 2:1-5 (see also Col 2:13)

As can be seen from these Scriptures, man is unable to respond to God since he is dead to spiritual truth. All the analogies of the unsaved man being as dead would be pointless if the doctrine of free was accurate. For example, Jesus would have had to ask Lazarus or Jarius’ daughter (see John 11 and Lk 8:40-56) if they wanted to be raised from the dead. Asking a dead person whether he or she would want to be revived violates the illustration of being dead in our trespasses and sins. More detailed examination of mankind’s spiritual deadness and the fact that God alone must quicken man will be held until Chapter 10. For now, it is only important to understand that spiritual deadness is a significant picture of man’s inability to exercise saving faith.

The Parable of the Supper Feast (Luke 14:15-24) provides an interesting picture of man’s unwillingness to truly enter the kingdom of God. In this parable, the Master (i.e. God) invites many to a great supper. Those invited all made excuses in order not to go to the supper. Some had to attend to their newly acquired possession of land, others were just married, and still others had just bought new animals they had to attend to. In all cases, they refused to come although they were invited. This is a picture of the unwillingness of man to truly follow Jesus Christ. They may say that they are His friend, but when it comes to actions they prove that they are indeed unwilling to follow.

The Master then ordered His slave to go out into the highways and amongst the hedges and compel those whom he found to come in to the feast. Please note the term ‘compel’. The individuals along the highways and by the hedges were not invited because of any work that they had done. In fact, they did not even have the option to decline. Rather, they were compelled to come to the feast. So it is with true believers. If they are offered to make up their own minds, they will ultimately ask to be excused. But, God compels us to come in to the feast of eternal life.

A similar parable is in Mat 22:1-14. Here, we find a king (i.e., God) who gave a wedding feast for his son (i.e. Christ). He initially invited certain individuals to come (i.e. a picture of the nation of Israel under the law). These individuals did not want to go. They mistreated the slaves that the King sent (i.e. the prophets) and killed them. So, the king was enraged and destroyed them and their city. This is picture of what man deserves. Man, in his natural state, is rebellious to the prophets of God (i.e. the Bible) and is therefore a murderer. As the King set their city on fire and destroyed the murderers, so also does all mankind deserve hell. But in God’s grace, we find that this King sends out more slaves to invite as many as they can find to come into the wedding hall. They gathered both good and bad. This is a picture of the spread of the Gospel and the effective working of the Gospel. Under the law, man cannot come to God and please Him. However, under grace they will be called and chosen to attend the great marriage feast of Christ.

Moreover, in verses 11-14, we find a dinner guest who did not have on wedding clothes. He was cast into the outer darkness (i.e. hell). This is a picture of those who have heard the Gospel and decided in their own power to come to God. However, they were never truly born again since they did not have the faith of Christ but rather they only had their own faith. This is analogous to those who will come to Christ on judgment day and say ‘Lord, Lord did we not do great things in your name’. But the Lord will tell them to depart, because He never knew them (see Mat 7:21- 23). This then is the meaning of verse 14 of Matthew 22 which says that many are called, but few are chosen. Many hear the gospel message, but it is only those who are chosen and given the faith of Christ who are truly saved. Others who exercise their own human-generated faith, but never received the faith of Christ, will be cast into outer darkness.

The absolute inability of man to exercise saving belief is also illustrated in the New Testament in Luke 18:18-30. Here, we find a certain ruler that comes to the Lord and asks the Lord what he must do to inherit eternal life. Jesus answers him that he must keep the commandments of God:

Thou knowest the commandments. Do not commit adultery, do not kill, do not steal, do not bear false witness, honor thy father and thy mother

Luke 18:20

The man replied to the Lord that he has done all these from his youth. In other words, he was asserting that by his righteousness he has done all these things. But then the Lord commands him to give up all that he has and come and follow. When he heard this, he went away for he was very rich. In this story, we see a man that was no doubt very successful and was righteous by man’s standards. He would not steal, or kill, commit adultery, or dishonor his parents. But he was unable in his own power to follow Jesus. He could do many so-called good works, but was unable to exercise saving belief.

Saving Faith Requires Work

It is important to understand that saving faith requires exertion of the will (i.e. a work). However, the exertion is God’s work, not man’s (see John 1:12-13). Therefore, the fact that the Bible refers to saving faith as a work is a significant argument that man cannot exercise saving faith. This is true because we have already seen that man is not saved by works. Therefore, the faith that man tries to exercise in his free will cannot result in salvation. It is only when God causes man to exercise saving faith that he will be saved.

We turn now to some passages where the Bible clearly recognizes faith as a work:

Then they said unto Him, ‘What shall we do that we might work the works of God?’ Jesus answered and said unto them, ‘This is the work of God, that ye believe on Him whom He has sent.

John 6:28-29

In John chapter 6, the multitudes had followed Jesus to the other side of Lake Galilee. Jesus rebuked them because they followed Him to receive more food (v. 26-27). The multitudes then asked Jesus in verse 28 about the work that they may do so that they may work the works of God. In other words, they asked Jesus to tell them what they must do to be seen as righteous in the eyes of God. Jesus replied that the work of God was to believe in Him. The important fact to be gleaned is that belief in Jesus is recorded as a work. To believe in someone, we must exert some amount of our own will to believe. It is more that intellectual understanding of facts. Belief involves exercising a change of mind in relation to the person believed on. It is therefore evident that belief (i.e. faith) is a work in itself. This is substantiated by the following verse:

For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves; it is a gift of God. Not of works lest any man should boast.

Eph 2:8-9

This verse is pinpointing for us exactly what the mechanism of our salvation is (i.e. God’s grace). This means that God, without regard to any of our works, has saved us. It is also interesting to note that this salvation comes through faith which is not of ourselves. In other words, the faith by which we are saved is not our own faith, it (i.e. faith) is a gift of God. The belief that we have in Christ is not our own. It is given to us. Verse 9 emphasizes this by saying that there is no work we can do to merit salvation.

Some object to this verse saying that the gift of God only refers to salvation and not to faith. That is, they teach that God’s gift is salvation and those who will exercise their own man-generated faith will be saved. However, this line of reasoning falls short. First of all, to say that the gift of God only refers to salvation and not the faith is to try to divide an event that integrally involves faith. To try to say that salvation does not include the act of faith is absurd. Therefore, the gift of God concerning salvation must include faith since that is part of salvation. To say that faith is not a gift of God but because of man’s effort is to deny that salvation is solely by grace. Second, the term ‘that not of yourselves’ refers to a noun. The only nouns in the preceding part of verse 8 are grace and faith. To say that grace is a gift of God is redundant since that is what grace means. The language more naturally follows that it is the faith that is also a gift of God. Finally, we find in the Bible that, on the one hand, Titus 3:5-7 teaches us that we are justified by grace and on the other hand we find the Bible repeatedly teaches that we are justified by faith (Ro 3:28). Therefore, it should be apparent that faith and grace are intimately linked together. To try to separate the two harms sound Bible teaching. Therefore, we are led to conclude that the gift of God in Eph 2:8-9 includes the whole salvation process including faith.

An additional testimony that faith is actually a work is found in the following Scripture:

And this is His commandment, that we believe in the name of His Son Jesus Christ, and love one another as he gave us commandment

1 John 3:23

It is evident in Scripture that keeping the commandments of God are works. In 1 John 3:23, it is a commandment of God to believe in Jesus. Belief in Jesus is put right beside the command to love another. It is evident that one cannot be saved by loving other people since it is obvious to all that loving others is a work. Therefore, it must also follow that belief in Jesus Christ is also a work.

We give thanks to God always for you all, making mention of you in our prayers, remembering without ceasing your work of faith…

1 Thess 1:2-3 ( see also 2 Thess 1:11)

In flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ.

2 Thess 1:8

For in Jesus Christ neither circumcision availeth any thing, nor uncircumcision; but faith which worketh by love.

Gal 5:6

These Scriptures record faith as a work (see also Acts 6:7, Ro 1:1-6,16:26, 2 Thess 1:8 for Scriptures that refer to faith as work). However, it may be argued by some that this is a different faith than what was performed to merit one’s salvation. However, this argument falls short because belief is belief, whether it is before or after salvation. People may believe different things, but the act of belief is the same function. Therefore, it is appropriate to apply this verse in proving that faith is a work.

And you, that were sometime alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now hath he reconciled in the body of his flesh through death, to present you holy and unblameable and unreproveable in his sight: If ye continue in the faith grounded and settled, and be not moved away from the hope of the gospel, which ye have heard, and which was preached to every creature which is under heaven; whereof I Paul am made a minister;

Col 1:21-23

To continue in faith requires work. The faith that was given to us by God continues in us. We, as Christians, will persevere in the faith, and our ultimate salvation is based on the fact that we will continue the work of faith until the day of our death or the return of the Lord (see Chapter 15). Therefore, to continue in the faith is a work.

One final passage that demonstrates that faith is a work is the following:

Unto you therefore which believe he is precious: but unto them which be disobedient, the stone which the builders disallowed, the same is made the head of the corner, and a stone of stumbling, and a rock of offense, even to them which stumble at the word, being disobedient: whereunto also they were appointed.

1 Pet 2:7-8 (see also 1 Pet 1:22)

It is important to notice here that it is those who disbelieve who are identified as disobedient (see also Ro 6:17). To be obedient involves the following of a commandment of God. If one does not believe the Gospel, he is disobedient and has not done the will of God. Therefore, it should be seen that believing involves obedience and therefore can be viewed as a work.

Another interesting proof that saving faith is a work and therefore it cannot be our own is as follows. Just prior to entering the Promised Land, Moses prophesied concerning Israel. In Deut 30:1-2, he prophesied that Israel would once more turn to the Lord and obey Him after a period of rebellion. Israel indeed rebelled after entering the Promised Land finally culminating in the Assyrian and Babylonian captivities. Although, there would be a revival under Nehemiah and Ezra, there would never be a sustained time of faithful obedience to the Lord. In the following verses, we find the prophecy of future Israel turning to the Lord.

And thou shalt return and obey the voice of the LORD, and do all his commandments which I command thee this day. And the LORD thy God will make thee plenteous in every work… for the LORD will again rejoice over thee for good, as he rejoiced over thy fathers: If thou shalt hearken unto the voice of the LORD thy God, to keep his commandments and his statutes which are written in this book of the law, and if thou turn unto the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul. For this commandment which I command thee this day, it is not hidden from thee, neither is it far off. It is not in heaven, that thou shouldest say, Who shall go up for us to heaven, and bring it unto us, that we may hear it, and do it? Neither is it beyond the sea, that thou shouldest say, Who shall go over the sea for us, and bring it unto us, that we may hear it, and do it? But the word is very nigh unto thee, in thy mouth, and in thy heart, that thou mayest do it.

Deut 30:8-14

The interesting thing to note in this passage is verses 11 through 14 which are quoted in Ro 10:6-8. In Deuteronomy 30, these verses are referred to as a commandment of the Lord. However, in Romans 10, they are summarized in verses 8 and 9 as the word of faith being preached: that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you shall be saved. Therefore, by studying the relationship between Deuteronomy 30 and Romans 10, we see that faith is a commandment of God. These passages serve as another strong proof that the exercise of faith is a work. Since the elect are not saved by their works, we should understand faith as that divine work done by God in changing the believer’s will in order that he will exercise faith. Saving faith cannot be generated by man. Otherwise, man is saved by works.

The Definition of Faith in the Bible Implies it Requires Exertion of the Will

The Scripture is abundantly clear that man cannot be justified by any work that he has done. Yet, we find that when we look at the Biblical definition of what faith is, we see that it must involve exertion of the will (or work). We have already observed that faith is actually referred to as work in the Bible. But, let us now examine the terms used for faith in the Bible.

Faith is Trust, Reliance, Steadfastness

The Greek words translated believe (pisteuo) and faith (pistis) convey the meaning of trust and reliance. In the Hebrew, the words translated believe and faith have the meaning of ‘remaining steadfast’. Therefore, it can be seen from the literal meanings of the Greek and Hebrew words that faith and belief mean more than just simple intellectual assent or knowledge.

Next, it is important to analyze a New Testament definition of faith:

Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.

Heb 11:1

In this definition of faith, it can be seen that faith is the foundation of what we hope for in the future (see also Luke 1:45). The word translated substance literally means ‘what stands under’. Or, in other words, it is the basis to our hope. It can be seen that if faith is the belief that man has that drives his hope, then faith must mean more than simple assent. It must involve a change in mental outlook in a situation that causes one to look forward to future things. This faith would naturally result in affecting a change in a person that would affect what he did in his life. Therefore, it can be seen that if faith causes hope (which is a good work), then it is a motivating force behind the performance of good works. In the balance of Hebrews 11, we find listed a ‘hall of faith’ where many examples of Old Testament believers who, by faith, were approved by God (i.e. saved). It should be noted that in all the examples of the faithful in Hebrews 11, their faith was defined by their works that they did. Therefore, we may now begin to see the close relationship that saving faith will result in good works.

But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.

Heb 11:6

Here is another definition of faith from Hebrews 11. Careful examination of the above verse reveals that faith can be defined as believing that God exists and is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him. It should be stressed that faith involves diligently seeking God. In Ro 3:11 the Scripture teaches us that no man seeks after God. Yet, faith is defined as seeking after God. Therefore, it should be evident that true faith involves some amount of effort on the part of the believer. That is, he will seek after God. Seeking after God involves exertion of the will and can therefore be viewed as a work. As we shall see later, only God can change the will of man so that he will seek after God and be saved.

Terms Used to Describe Salvation Imply Exertion of the Will

Another significant facet of the definition of faith is that other terms used of salvation all imply that some exertion of the will is required of the believer. The following is a listing of some terms for salvation:

Call – Ro 10:13, 1 Cor 1:2

Repent – Luke 13:3,17:30-31, 20:21,4:46-47,26:20, Acts 5:31, 11:18, 2 Pet 3:9, Heb 6:1-6, Rev 2:5,16,22, 3:3,19

Confess – Ro 10:9-10, 1 John 4:2-3,15, 2 John 7, Heb 11:13, John 9:22, 12:42, Luke 12:8, Mat 10:32, Heb 3:1, 4:14, 10:23, 2 Cor 9:13, 1 Tim 2:10, 6:12-13

Ask – John 4:10

Come and Take – Rev 22:17

In all these terms, it should be apparent that to exercise saving faith in Jesus Christ takes more than simple assent or knowledge. It takes some exertion of the will to believe. For example, the term confess (Gr: homologia) literally means ‘to say the same thing’. To be able to confess the Lord means that we are in agreement with Him. This results in the fact that to be saved is to be in agreement with the Lord. Therefore, we are no longer in rebellion. This is contrary to the state of the unsaved man (see Ro 3:10-12). If we say that we are saved by our free will confession of Christ, we assert that we are no longer in rebellion to God. This is a prideful assertion if we claim that it is our own free will decision that we have come to believe.

Another example is the often used term ‘repentance’ to describe the salvation experience (especially see Acts 5:31, 17:30-31, 26:20, 2 Pet 3:9, Luke 24:46-48). The fact that man must be repentant to be saved indicates that exercising faith must involve an exertion of the will. The fact that one repents results in a changed attitude and behavior. Therefore, we see that repentance also involves work.

Faith Results in a Relationship that Produces Good Works

From the above discussion, it should be evident that belief in the existence of Jesus or even belief in His work cannot in itself be considered ‘saving faith’. What then is saving faith? Faith is a relationship with Jesus Christ. It is belief given by God that results in a change in attitude and results in good works. The good works do not merit salvation in any way, but rather they are the natural result of salvation. While an in depth study of good works resulting from faith will be held until Part 4 of this book, the following Scriptures should be sufficient to demonstrate that true faith must be accompanied with good works:

Even so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone. Yea, a man may say, Thou hast faith, and I have works: shew me thy faith without thy works, and I will shew thee my faith by my works. Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well: the devils also believe, and tremble. But wilt thou know, O vain man, that faith without works is dead? Was not Abraham our father justified by works, when he had offered Isaac his son upon the altar? Seest thou how faith wrought with his works, and by works was faith made perfect?

James 2:17-22

Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law: for sin is the transgression of the law. And ye know that he was manifested to take away our sins; and in him is no sin. Whosoever abideth in him sinneth not: whosoever sinneth hath not seen him, neither known him.

1 John 3:4-6

By studying the above scriptures (see also Mat 12:33, Gal 2:16-20, Eph 2:8-10), it should be seen that true saving faith will always be accompanied with good works (although the good works do not cause us to merit salvation). Therefore, we may begin to formulate a definition of saving faith as that belief that results in trust and obedience in a person. In this light, it may be viewed that faith is in itself a work. It is something that man must do in order to create an attitude of obedience. Supporting this conclusion, there are many Scriptures that equate belief with obedience:

And being made perfect, he became the author of eternal salvation unto all them that obey him;

Heb 5:9

By faith Abraham, when he was called to go out into a place which he should after receive for an inheritance, obeyed; and he went out, not knowing whither he went. By faith he sojourned in the land of promise, as in a strange country, dwelling in tabernacles with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same promise:

Heb 11:8-9

Unto the pure all things are pure: but unto them that are defiled and unbelieving is nothing pure; but even their mind and conscience is defiled. They profess that they know God; but in works they deny him, being abominable, and disobedient, and unto every good work reprobate.

Titus 1:15-16

The law and the prophets were until John: since that time the kingdom of God is preached, and every man presseth into it.

Luke 16:16

From the above Scriptures, we see a close link between faith and obedience. In fact, there cannot be a severance of the two.

The Old Testament usage of the terms faith and belief also reveals to us that true belief always was intimately linked with obeying God. The following Old Testament Scriptures testify to the fact that believing in God was linked to doing the commands of God: Gen 15:6, Num 20:12, Deut 1:32, 9:23, 2 Ki 17;14, 2 Chr 20:20, Ps 78:22,32, 106:12,24, 119:66.

Mankind is Not Saved by Works

The Scriptures teach us that man cannot be saved by man’s works. It is only the work of Christ that can save people. Although there are many Scriptures that could be quoted to prove that man is not saved by his works (e.g. Ro 3:27, 4:2,6, 9:11, 11:6, Gal 3:2,5,10, Titus 3:5, Eph 2:8-9), the following two Scriptures will be presented:

Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified.

Gal 2:16

Who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began,

2 Tim 1:9

Galatians 2:16 is a beautiful statement of our salvation (i.e. that we are not saved according to any works of the law that we may do, but it is the faith of Christ that saves us). No flesh could ever be justified by the works of the flesh, because all have sinned (Ro 3:23). Therefore, it takes the faith of Christ to save us. In 2 Tim 1:9, it is clear that it is not our work that saves us, but it is God’s grace according to His purpose that saves us.

An objection that could possibly be raised is that Christians are not saved due to their works of the Law, but their work of faith can save them. The issue being raised is that we cannot be saved by the keeping of the Mosaic Law including all the ceremonial laws, but man’s own faith in Christ can save him. This objection fails miserably. First of all, we just saw that faith is indeed a work and is commanded by Scripture. But, more importantly, it is an invalid interpretation of Scripture to separate the ‘Mosaic Law’ from the rest of the Bible. All the commands of the Bible comprise the Law of God (see 1 John 3:4, Ro 7:15-24, 8:4, Gal 4:21-22, 2 Tim 3:16-17, 1 John 2:4-5, John 14:24, 17:17-19). Additionally, the Bible has many commands to trust and believe in God and His Christ (see e.g. John 6:28-29, Acts 16:30-31, Ps 4:5, 9;10, 13:5, 22:4-5, 25:2, 31:6, 32:10, 33:21, 37:3,5, 40:3, 52:8, 56:4-11, 84:12, 86:2, 91:2, 112:7, 115:8-11, 125:1, Pr 3:5, 16:20, 28:26, 29:25, Is 26:4, 36:7, Jer 17:7, Zeph 3:2, Deut 10:16, Rev 22:17, etc, etc). Therefore, it can be seen that man’s belief in Christ is a command of Scripture and, therefore, part of the law of God. If we say that man is saved by his own faith, then we are teaching error.

Others may argue that faith cannot be a work since the Scripture seems to draw a contrast between faith and works. Therefore, faith and works must be fundamentally different entities. Why then does the Scripture make the distinction between faith and works if man’s faith is essentially a work? The answer can be seen in that the works of the law are clearly things that man must do on his own to merit salvation. Faith, on the other hand, can be seen as that belief that God gives to man in order for him to become a disciple. Therefore, the faith that a man is saved by is not a work of man, but it is the work of God. In this sense, it is appropriate to draw the distinction between faith and works since the faith that man is saved by is not his work.

The Bible clearly teaches that the faith that merits our justification is the faith of Christ (Gal 2:16, Phil 3:9, Eph 2:8, John 6:37, Ro 4:3-5, etc). It is given to the elect (1 Cor 1:4) in order to justify them as righteous before God. It is hoped that it has been shown that man cannot save himself in any work that he does and that man’s own belief (faith) does not make him righteous unless it is saving faith that is given to him by God. Man’s self-generated faith is a work that cannot merit salvation. It has no effectual working in it to produce good works. In short, it is spurious, dead faith.

Objections to Man’s Inability to Exercise Saving Faith

Let us now consider the following objections raised by some concerning the inability of man to exercise saving belief:

Man indeed has a free will to do as he pleases, including believing in Jesus Christ.

As was seen in this chapter, man can indeed believe in something or someone. This belief can result in a change in his character or outlook on life. But man’s own faith cannot please God. If it did, this would result in a works gospel where man has the ability to perform a work that could bring him to Christ. The Scriptures are abundantly clear that there is no work that man can do that can merit his salvation (e.g. Eph 2:8-9, 2 Tim 1:9, etc). The Scriptures are also clear that saving faith is caused by God (see Part 3 of this book). So, to answer the above objection, we must acknowledge that man can indeed exercise his own belief in Jesus. But, this faith cannot be true saving faith. The Bible records many accounts of people that originally ‘believe’ and follow Jesus only to fall away and prove themselves not to be truly saved (e.g. Mat 13:3-9, 18-23, Heb 2:1-4, 3:7-4:11, 5:11-6:20, 10:26-31, 12:18-29).

The Old Testament commands people to turn to God (e.g. Joel 2:12, Zech 1:3, Deut 10:16, Ez 33:11, 2 Chr 7:14). Additionally, the Old Testament promises blessings for obedience (Amos 5:14, Is 1:19-20, Jer 4:1, Lev 26:3, Deut 38:1) and rebukes man for his disobedience (e.g. Num 14:43, Jer 7:13-14, 32:23, etc). Therefore, it is possible that men can turn to God and believe since God would not ask people to do something that is impossible for them to do nor would he taunt man with a promised blessing for doing something he was incapable of doing.

This objection falls short for several reasons. First, we do not understand why God may ask people to do something that He knows that they cannot do. We should not apply our own human reasoning to conclude that God would be unfair to ask such a thing. We should stand in awe of a God that is so much above our ways that we cannot understand all that He does (Is 55:8,9, Deut 29:29, Ro 9:17-23). It is clear from the New Testament that the law could not justify anyone, yet God added it anyway. In giving the law, it can be seen that God was giving man commands that He knew they could not keep. The law was added to be a tutor in order to teach us of our great need for a Savior (Gal 3:23-26, Ro 7:7-12).

Similarly, in the verses listed above as objections, we can see the great working of God in that he commands men everywhere to repent, knowing that none can keep the law. In His sovereign will, God designed the salvation plan such that all may be clearly seen in their rebellious state, so that the grace of God may be magnified and glorified. It is only when God works to cause the elect to believe that they will turn to God (Deut 30:6, Ez 36:26, Jer 31:18-19, Ps 80). Therefore, the Scripture is fulfilled in that there will be a remnant that will turn to God and receive the blessing of salvation.

Just as the Prodigal Son chose to return to his father, so too can people chose to believe and be saved (Luke 15:11-32).

It is true that mankind is like the prodigal son. We all have rebelled from God and seek our own way (Ro 3:10-11). All of us wish to seek our own inheritance and be able to use it to enjoy the pleasures of this world. However, we must be very careful in determining that this Scripture teaches free will. In Luke 15:17, we find that the Prodigal Son changed his mind to return to his father only when he ‘came to his senses’. In this particular account we are not told how it is that he came to his senses. Therefore, we must not read into the Scripture and determine that it was by his own free will that he came to his senses.

We find in the Scripture that we come to our senses when God enlightens us to spiritual truth (1 Cor 2:7-13). In the natural condition, we are all like the prodigal son. However, when God draws us to Himself, He causes us to be spiritually enlightened to the Gospel. Just as Peter did not by His flesh and blood know that Jesus was the Christ, the Son of the living God, we do not come to our senses except by the grace of God (see Mat 16:16-17). Therefore, the story of the prodigal son does not teach free will. Rather, it emphasizes our wicked rebellion from God. It is only when we come to our spiritual senses by the working of God, that we can be saved.

Just as God desired to gather Israel like a hen gathers her chicks, but they were unwilling, so it is with us (Mat 23:37, Acts 7:51). God earnestly desires that we all will believe and be saved.

The main problem with thinking that we are able to believe in Jesus and be saved in our free will is that it contradicts Mat 23:37. That is, the main point of Mat 23:37 is to illustrate how man does not have the ability to come to God. Many have used Mat 23:37 to try to support that God is just sitting by and hoping that man will believe so He can save them. However, this is not what Mat 23:37-38 is teaching. Mat 23:37-38 teaches this: Israel was an example of a people who sought salvation by their works. They were unwilling to come to God for salvation by faith. In Mat 23:38, the Scripture says that their house is left desolate. That is, no one was able to come to God in faith. As much as God desires that man will be holy and good, man is unable to do it. It is only when God circumcises the heart of man that he is able to believe in God (Ro 2:29, Ez 36:26-27). Man’s natural hardened heart will never come to God in saving faith!

In this chapter, we have seen that man is saved by faith alone and not by works. This is a very prominent and clear theme throughout the Bible. We have seen that the faith of man is a work. We saw that it takes a significant exertion of the will to exercise saving faith. Simple faith can never save. There are many examples of those who had simple, dead faith in the New Testament and were not saved. Since faith can be viewed as a work and we know that man cannot be saved by works, we are led to conclude that man’s self-generated, free will faith can never save. It is only when God supernaturally gives the elect the faith of Christ can his will be changed in order to be saved.

Chapter 3 Mankind’s Spiritual Blindness and Deafness

In Chapter 1, we studied that mankind is rebellious to God and, therefore, cannot please Him. In Chapter 2, we delved deeper into man’s fallen state and discovered that man’s attempt at faith in Christ cannot result in salvation. Man’s belief is a work. The faith of Christ is needed in order to cause man to exercise saving faith. In this chapter, we will look at another great testimony of Scripture: mankind is spiritually blind and deaf – they cannot exercise saving faith in Christ. They can only exercise their own attempt at faith, which falls far short. Mankind, in its natural state, cannot truly understand the things of God. Although people can make a decision for Christ in their own faith, they will never be able to truly follow Christ in discipleship and obedience. It is only by the gracious gift of faith that we become indwelt with the Holy Spirit, thereby understanding spiritual truth. This indwelling and enlightenment then results in the outworking of righteousness in the believer’s life (an in depth discussion of the outworking of God in believers’ lives will be held until Part 4 of this book). For other New Testament passages on this topic, see 1 John 2:11, 2 Pet 1:9, Acts 28:25-27, 2 Thess 2:11, Ro 9:16-18, Mat 15:14, 23:16-1724-26, 24:14, Lk 19:42, 2 Cor 3:13-4:3, 1 John 4:6, Ro 11:7-8,25.

10 Scriptural Proofs that Mankind is Spiritually Blind and Deaf and, therefore, is Unable to Exercise Saving faith

1.As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one; There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God.

Ro 3:10-11

This Scripture makes a plain assertion that no one understands spiritual truth. That is, no man in his natural state is able to really fathom the depths of the mysteries of God. Additionally, there is no one who seeks after God. This is a very significant statement. It should be understood that no man really wants to be a disciple of God, therefore being obedient.

2.What then? Israel hath not obtained that which he seeketh for; but the election hath obtained it, and the rest were blinded. (According as it is written, God hath given them the spirit of slumber, eyes that they should not see, and ears that they should not hear;) unto this day.

Ro 11:7-8

God is teaching us that the nation of Israel did not receive the salvation that it was looking for. Although Israel searched after God (i.e. exercised their own faith), they did not find God. Only the elect of Israel received the promise of salvation. The rest of the nation of Israel who were not saved were in a spiritually blinded state. The amazing thing in this passage, however, is found in verse 8. Here, we find that it was God who gave them the spirit of slumber and made them spiritually blind and deaf. This serves as a testimony to the sovereignty of God. In His sovereign will, He chose some in the nation and blinded the rest.

It is important to at this point to understand why God has blinded people. Consider the following Scripture.

And the disciples came, and said unto him, Why speakest thou unto them in parables? He answered and said unto them, Because it is given unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it is not given. Or whosoever hath, to him shall be given, and he shall have more abundance: but whosoever hath not, from him shall be taken away even that he hath. Therefore speak I to them in parables: because they seeing see not; and hearing they hear not, neither do they understand. And in them is fulfilled the prophecy of Esaias, which saith, By hearing ye shall hear, and shall not understand; and seeing ye shall see, and shall not perceive: or this people’s heart is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed; lest at any time they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears, and should understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them. But blessed are your eyes, for they see: and your ears, for they hear. For verily I say unto you, That many prophets and righteous men have desired to see those things which ye see, and have not seen them; and to hear those things which ye hear, and have not heard them.

Mat 13:10-17 (see also Mk 4:11-12, Ro 1:21-28, Is 6:9-10)

In this passage, the disciples questioned Jesus as to why He taught in parables. The answer was that so those who were blinded would not be able to understand what he was talking about. Jesus intentionally did not want to reveal spiritual truth to those who are not the elect. Therefore, one who is unsaved can never understand spiritual truth unless it is granted to him by God. In this passage, we find a significant statement concerning the fact that it is not Christ’s intention to save all people.

In addition, we find that the blinding that God gives to those who are not saved is because of their sinful condition. Those who do not have (i.e., those who are not saved) will have even what is given to them taken away. In other words, those who are not being saved receive further blinding by God. What they are given (i.e., the natural ability to rationalize and understand) is taken away from them. That is why Jesus spoke in parables. Jesus did not want those who were not to be saved to understand what He was teaching in the Spirit. It is important to understand here that God does not blind people because He wants them to be damned. Mankind, in their free will, will always be rebellious to God (Ro 3:9-23). Therefore, they will receive damnation. God further blinds those who are not to be saved by blinding them in that they are not able to understand the spiritual truths of the Bible.

Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be. So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God. But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his.

Ro 8:7-9

Here, we see that man, in his natural state, is at enmity with God. We saw in the previous two chapters that mankind does not want to keep the law of God. Man’s mind is at enmity with God. In other words, man hates to follow and be obedient to God. Oh yes, there are many that make a decision for Christ and appear to be followers. But, we will find out on the last day that they were really practicing wickedness and the Lord will command them to depart (Mat 7:21-23). Verse 9 of Romans 8 teaches us that all true believers will not be controlled by flesh since they have the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. Therefore, verse 8 refers to man in the unsaved condition. Based on the above discussion, it should be evident that man, in his own free will, cannot make a decision to truly exercise saving faith. It is impossible since he is at enmity with God.

Which things also we speak, not in the words which man’s wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual. But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.

1 Cor 2:13-14

The key verse here for our discussion is verse 14 which teaches us that the natural man (i.e. the unsaved) does not receive the things of the Spirit of God. In 1 Cor 12:3, the Scripture says that no one can say Jesus is Lord, but by the Holy Spirit. In other words, to be saved and say Jesus is Lord (see Romans 10:9), we must submit to His Lordship by the Holy Spirit. However, in 1 Cor 2:14, the Scripture says that the unsaved man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God. Therefore, to receive the things of the Spirit, man must receive them by the working of God.

Unto the pure all things are pure: but unto them that are defiled and unbelieving is nothing pure; but even their mind and conscience is defiled.

Titus 1:15 (see also Eph 4:17-18)

The unsaved man’s mind is defiled and impure and darkened due to ignorance. How can a person in this state make the blessed confession of faith in the Lord? He cannot, he is in rebellion and unable.

And he said, Therefore said I unto you, that no man can come unto me, except it were given unto him of my Father.

John 6:65

No man, in his own power, can come to the exercise of saving faith. This Scripture was written in the following context. Earlier in John 6, there were multitudes that were following Jesus primarily due to the great signs that He performed (e.g. feeding of the 5000). However, when Jesus told them that to be His follower they must eat his flesh and drink his blood, many were offended and fell away. It was in this context Jesus taught that it was only those whom it was granted by the Father that would come to Him for salvation. The others would be spiritually blinded. Such was the case in John 6. Those who fell away did not understand the spiritual truth of eating the body and drinking the blood of Christ. They did not understand that Jesus words were spirit (see John 6:63).

For unto you it is given in the behalf of Christ, not only to believe on him, but also to suffer for his sake;

Phil 1:29

Here is another testimony that the ability to exercise saving faith has been granted (i.e. given) to man. No man in his natural ability can ever make himself righteous by exercising his own faith. It is only the faith of Christ granted to us that makes us righteous (Gal 2:16, Phil 3:9, etc).

Old Testament Citations of Spiritual Blindness and Deafness

Yet the LORD hath not given you an heart to perceive, and eyes to see, and ears to hear, unto this day.

Deut 29:4

And he said, Go, and tell this people, Hear ye indeed, but understand not; and see ye indeed, but perceive not. Make the heart of this people fat, and make their ears heavy, and shut their eyes; lest they see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and convert, and be healed.

Is 6:9-10 (see also Acts 28:25-27, Ro 11:25)

For the LORD hath poured out upon you the spirit of deep sleep, and hath closed your eyes: the prophets and your rulers, the seers hath he covered.

Is 29:10

Bring forth the blind people that have eyes, and the deaf that have ears.

Is 43:8

Hear now this, O foolish people, and without understanding; which have eyes, and see not; which have ears, and hear not: Fear ye not me? saith the LORD: will ye not tremble at my presence, which have placed the sand for the bound of the sea by a perpetual decree, that it cannot pass it: and though the waves thereof toss themselves, yet can they not prevail; though they roar, yet can they not pass over it?

Jer 5:21-22

Son of man, thou dwellest in the midst of a rebellious house, which have eyes to see, and see not; they have ears to hear, and hear not: for they are a rebellious house.

Ez 12:2

Space will not permit a detailed analysis of the above Scriptures in their context (see also Ps 58:4, Ex 4:11). Suffice it to say that spiritual blindness and deafness is a symptom of the unsaved throughout the Bible. It is only by the grace of God, that the elect are granted the ability to exercise saving faith.

New Testament Examples of Spiritual Blindness/Deafness

The following Scriptures are offered for additional confirmation that man cannot exercise saving faith due to his spiritual blindness/deafness. In each of these passages, the beautiful truth of God’s work in opening the spiritual eyes of the unsaved result in their exercising faith and then being healed physically. This is a picture of their new found ability to follow the ways of God after they are saved:

The Man Born Blind – John 9:1-41, esp v. 21, 39-41
Healing a Blind and Dumb Demoniac – Mat 12:22, Luke 11:14
Healing Two Blind Men – Mat 9:27-31
Healing a Deaf Mute at Decapolis – Mark 7:31-37
Healing a Blind Man at Bethsaida – Mark 8:22-26
Healing Blind Bartimaeus – Matt 20:29-34, Mark 10:46-52, Lk 18:35-43
Restoration of Malchus’ Ear – Luke 22:49-51, John 18:10

Responding to Objections Concerning Mankind’s Spiritual Deafness & Blindness

It is necessary to pause at this time to analyze three objections that are raised concerning man’s spiritual blindness and deafness. These three objections will be looked at in some detail, and I prayerfully hope that the error of these objections will become obvious to the reader.

Objection: The Holy Spirit convicts the world thereby allowing all men to choose to accept or reject Christ. It is agreed that man in his natural state is blind and unable to believe in God. But, the Holy Spirit convicts all men and thereby urges all to accept the Gospel. With the conviction of the Holy Spirit, man is spiritually awakened sufficiently in order to make a free will decision for Christ. The two verses used to support the ‘urging’ of the Holy Spirit are as follows:

And when he is come, he will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment: Of sin, because they believe not on me; Of righteousness, because I go to my Father, and ye see me no more; Of judgment, because the prince of this world is judged.

John 16:8-11

That was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world.

John 1:9

Free will teachers who hold to the universal urging of the Holy Spirit usually interpret the above Scriptures to teach that the Holy Spirit was sent into the world to convict the entire world of sin. Therefore, man is enlightened of his need for a Savior and can choose for himself whether to accept or reject the Gospel. Similarly, in John 1:9, it is taught that Christ came into the world as a light that gives all men some amount of illumination in order to either choose for or against the Gospel.

There are five significant difficulties with the above objection. First, it teaches that man has a spark of goodness in him. He can still choose ultimately whether or not to accept the Gospel. Man’s salvation is dependent on him making a decision for Christ. This is at odds with the clear teaching of the Bible that saving faith is caused by God (Phil 1:29, Acts 5:31, Acts 13:48, Eph 2:8-9) and is actually the faith of Christ (Gal 2:16, Phil 3:9, Ro 3:22, Gal 3:2,5,7, etc), not man’s own faith (Eph 2:8). This leads us to the next major difficulty.

The second difficulty is that by using the above two Scriptures to teach man’s free will, a very large amount of Scripture is ignored. As discussed in Chapter 1 and 2, there are virtually scores of Scriptures that teach the sovereignty of God and man’s inability to exercise saving faith. Therefore, by using John 1:9 and 16:8-11 out of their contexts to support free will, basic Bible hermeneutics (i.e., rules to interpret the Bible) are violated. That is, there exists no consistency to the interpretation of Scripture.

The third difficulty with saying that all mankind is convicted and illumined is that this does not accord with reality. Many people have never heard of the Gospel and many people are not ‘convicted’ or illumined to their sinful condition. Many believe that they are righteous outside of Christ. Additionally, many seem to not have any guilt (or conviction) when they sin. It is only those who have heard and learned from God who will come to Jesus (John 6:45). In other words, God convicts and opens the heart of the elect so that they will be saved. Since John 6:45 teaches that every man who has heard from the Father will come to Christ, it follows that the true conviction of the Holy Spirit is only for the elect.

The fourth difficulty with the above objection is that the Scriptures teach us that it is not God’s will that all men know spiritual truth. We have already examined Mat 13:10-16 where we saw that Jesus spoke in parables so that only those who were elect would understand the deeper truths of the Gospel. Since it is not God’s will that all understand spiritual truth, it follows that the conviction of the Holy Spirit seen in John 16 must be limited to the elect.

The fifth difficulty with the objection of the ‘urging’ of the Holy Spirit is the most significant. When John 16:8-11 and John 1:9 are properly understood, it is evident that they do not teach an urging of the Holy Spirit to all men. Let us now examine these Scriptures in their proper context to understand their true meaning.

In John 16, Jesus is discussing the coming of the Holy Spirit with His disciples. He is very concerned (John 16:4-7) with informing the disciples that when He departs, He will send the Holy Spirit to help them. In John 16:12-15, Jesus assures the disciples that the Holy Spirit will guide them into all truth and glorify Jesus. Therefore, in the context of John 16:4-7 and 12-15, Jesus is talking about the relationship that the Holy Spirit will have with true believers. By understanding John 16:8-11 as referring to all of mankind, there arises a problem. First of all, the word ‘reprove’ in verse 8 is a strong term that literally means to convict. In other words, this term cannot be seen as an urging, but rather as legal victory. The Holy Spirit will succeed in thoroughly convicting the world. With this interpretation, however, it may lead some to suggest universal salvation, which we know cannot be true based on the fact that many are doomed to eternal separation (e.g. Mat 22:13, 8:12, 25:30, 13:42,50).

The real key to understanding John 16:8-11 is that the term ‘world’ does not mean all of mankind. Jesus came to save the world from their sins (John 3:16,17, 1 John 2:2, etc). However, it must be understood that the term ‘world’ refers to the extent of God’s salvation. It will go into all the ends of the earth (Acts 1:8, Col 1:23) and God will save both Jew and Gentile (Eph 2:11-22, Ro 2:28-29). In fact, there are many places in Scripture that inclusive terms such as ‘all’ or ‘world’ do not necessarily refer to each and every individual (see Appendix A for a more thorough discussion).

Verses 9 through 11 support the teaching that the ‘world’ is all those people who will receive God’s salvation (i.e. the elect). In verse 9, we find that the Holy Spirit convicts the world (i.e. the elect) concerning sin because they do not believe. In other words, man in his natural condition cannot exercise saving faith without the irresistible call of God. This supports the rest of the Bible concerning man’s state (i.e., that he is unable to exercise saving faith and needs God to cause him to believe). In verse 10, we see that after man is regenerated, he is convicted of righteousness. In other words, the Holy Spirit will now teach man how to be righteous and actually perform good works. In verse 10, the statement by Jesus ‘you no longer see me’ refers back to verse 7 when He says that He will send the Holy Spirit when he departs. Therefore, verse 10 is pointing to the fact that it is the Holy Spirit that is man’s Helper (see verse 7) and when he comes and indwells the saved man, he will lead him into all righteousness (Ps 23, Ro 8:16, Phil 2:13). In John 16:11, we find that the Holy Spirit will convict the world (i.e. the elect) concerning judgment because Satan is judged. In other words, since Satan was bound at the cross (Mat 12:22-29, Rev 20:1-3), we are giving the earnest expectation (Ro 8:18-30, 1 Cor 1:7, Phil 3:20) that we will be glorified. We are commanded in 2 Pet 3:12-13 to look forward to our ultimate redemption (see also 2 Cor 5:1-4). Therefore, understanding John 16:8-11 in context, we see that the Holy Spirit will come into the world in order to convict the elect of sin so that they become saved, to lead the saved man into a righteous lifestyle and give the believer the earnest expectation of the future glory of the believer.

Concerning John 1:9, this verse cannot mean that all men are enlightened in Christ. The Scripture is clear that mankind is indeed in darkness (1 John 1:5-7, John 3:20-21). So how are we to understand this? John 1:9 must be understood that Jesus came into the world as the Light. He is the only source of truth and salvation. However, it is only the elect who will be enlightened and saved. The reader is again referred to Appendix A for proof that the usage of ‘all’ often does not mean each and every individual. In many usages in Scripture, the term ‘all’ is used a limited sense. In many places it refers to the elect as is the case in John 1:9.

In summary, it is hoped that it has been clearly shown that John 16:8-11 and John 1:9 cannot be used to teach that the Holy Spirit urges all people to either accept or reject the Gospel. On the contrary, we discovered that these Scriptures are a beautiful testimony of how God uses the Holy Spirit to lead the elect into saving faith. The term ‘world’ used in these Scriptures refers to the extent of the Gospel message and not necessarily the conviction or illumination of every individual.

Objection: Since the Bible teaches that Jesus will draw all men to Himself (John 12:32), all will be given a chance to believe in their free will

In John 12:32, Jesus teaches that when He is lifted up, He will draw all men to Himself. Some take this verse to teach that after Jesus ascended to heaven, He gave the Holy Spirit to convict the world and give all men the chance to believe. However, when we compare Scripture to Scripture, we find that this cannot be the case. Firstly, the term ‘draw’ literally means to drag away by force and do it effectually. It is used 8 times in the New Testament (John 12:32, John 6:44, 18:10, 21:6, 21:11, Acts 16:19, 21:30, James 2:6). The word implies that the drawing will be done completely. For example, in James 2:6 it talks about the rich who drag the poor into the courts. Therefore, we see that the term ‘draw’ is a very strong term and does not fit into the teaching of urging people to make a free will decision. In fact, In John 6:44, this term is used in the sense that no one can come to the Father unless the Father draws him.

Also, we must remember that in the Bible the term ‘all’ is used as is appropriate to the context (see Appendix A). We find in the Bible that the only people that are drawn are the elect (e.g. John 6:44). Finally, reality does not correspond with the teaching that all men are drawn to Jesus. There are many people who have lived and died and never heard of Jesus. Many people have never felt any conviction whatsoever of the truth of Jesus and His atonement for us. Therefore, we find that John 12:32 does not teach a universal call of God to mankind. Rather it teaches that all the elect will be drawn to Jesus by the working of God.

Objection: Since Man Receives the Holy Spirit after Salvation, then He Must Have Chosen for Himself Whether to Believe or Not

This argument has very little Scriptural support. This teaching has come about more as a logical result of the free will movement. The argument asserts that the Holy Spirit came to dwell within us after we believed. The popularity of this teaching has resulted in circular reasoning. That is, this objection is used as a proof of the doctrine of free will but, its only support is drawn from a logical outcome of free will teaching. Scriptures that have been used to support this objection are as follows:

This only would I learn of you, Received ye the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith?

Gal 3:2

In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that Holy Spirit of promise, Eph 1:13

In Galatians 3:2, it should be understood that the Gospel is the divine mechanism that results in salvation. Therefore, the fact that the Galatians received the Holy Spirit subsequent to hearing the Gospel does not prove that the Holy Spirit is received after salvation. It simply teaches that the Gospel is the mechanism by which we are saved (i.e. signified in this passage by the reception of the Holy Spirit).

Although the King James Version is a very faithful translation, Eph 1:13 is a verse that can be easily misunderstood by the choice of wording. The phrase ‘after that ye believed’ at face value could lead one to believe that we exercised our faith first and then received the Holy Spirit. This cannot be. First, the Greek grammar should be better translated ‘having also believed you were sealed with the Holy Spirit’ as is the translation found in the New American Standard Version (see also New King James Version) of the Bible. Secondly, there are other Scriptures that teach that there cannot be a time that we are saved and not have the Holy Spirit:

But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his.

Ro 8:9 (see also 2 Tim 1:14, Gal 2:20, 1 Cor 2:12, etc)

As can be seen from the above Scripture, we cannot say there has been a time that we believed and did not have the Holy Spirit. Additionally, the Scripture teaches the following:

Wherefore I give you to understand, that no man speaking by the Spirit of God calleth Jesus accursed: and that no man can say that Jesus is the Lord, but by the Holy Ghost.

1 Cor 12:3

Here, we find that it is because we have the Holy Spirit indwelling us that we are able to call Jesus our Lord. We saw that Ro 8:9 teaches that no one can be saved without the Holy Spirit. Also, to be saved one must believe that Jesus is Lord (Ro 10:9-13), and no man can do this without the Holy Spirit. It must follow that the point of salvation must coincide with the receiving of the Holy Spirit. It should be evident from the above discussion that the objection that the Holy Spirit is given to Christians after salvation really has no Scriptural merit at all.

Part 2 – God’s Sovereign Choice of the Elect

Chapter 4 God’s Sovereign Choice of the Elect

In Part 1 of this book, we looked at the depravity of man. We saw that the Bible teaches that all men are sinful. Even the works that man does that appear to be good are really filthy rags in the sight of God. Additionally, we saw that man’s own faith is a work that can in no way lead to salvation. It is only the faith that God gives to man that saves him. We saw that man can exercise faith in his own free choice, but this sort of faith will never lead to the true relationship that brings about obedience. Finally, we saw that mankind is spiritually blinded to spiritual truth. This blindness results in the inability of man to exercise saving faith.

An in depth study of election will now be undertaken. Since man can never in his own work exercise saving faith, God chooses certain people that He will cause to believe. This choice (or election) of man is not based on any work that he has done. Rather it is the sovereign choice of God to mercifully save some people. Additionally, the election of believers is not due to the foreknowledge of God in that he chose those who He foreknew would have faith to believe. God, of course, foreknows all things, but his choice of the elect is due to the divine purpose of His will, not man’s works.

In this chapter, it will be shown that the Bible characterizes believers as elect or chosen of God. Chapter 5 will show examples of God’s sovereign election as seen in the Bible. In Chapter 6, we will carefully prove that God’s election of the believer is not the result of any work that man has done, including his ability to exercise faith. In Chapter 7, the subject of whom Christ died for will be examined. It will be seen in Chapter 7 that Christ died only for those who would become Christians. This will serve as additional evidence that God predestined only His elect to be saved.

Definition of Election and Predestination

To begin our study of election, it is necessary to examine the Biblical terms election (or elect) and chosen. These terms are from the same Greek root word which means ‘to choose’. Additionally, the term ‘predestinate’ (Ro 8:29-30, Eph 1:5,11) is the Greek word ‘proorizo’ which means ‘to mark out beforehand’. It is important to note that the definition of these terms in and of themselves do not prove that God has chosen some people to be elect. For example, it could be argued that the elect refer to those who God foreknew would believe the Gospel. Therefore, God elected them to hear the Gospel of which they would believe when they heard it. (This objection is invalid which will be more thoroughly examined and refuted in Chapter 6). Therefore, we must carefully look at the Scripture for the usage of the terms election and chosen to further prove that election is by God’s sovereign will and not any work of man.

Scriptures Teaching that Christians are the Elect

The following is a listing of Scriptures that characterize Christians as the elect (or chosen) of God. It is important to note that the elect did not choose Christ, but He chose the elect (John 15:16). Additionally, bear in mind, that we have already studied that man is depraved and unable to exercise saving belief in Jesus Christ.

But we are bound to give thanks always to God for you, brethren beloved of the Lord, because God hath from the beginning chosen you to salvation through sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth: Whereunto he called you by our gospel, to the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.

2 Thess 2:13-14

Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain: that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give it you. If ye were of the world, the world would love his own: but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you.

John 15:16

Wherefore the rather, brethren, give diligence to make your calling and election sure: for if ye do these things, ye shall never fall:

2 Pet 1:10

But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvelous light

1 Pet 2:9

But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you. The church that is at Babylon, elected together with you, saluteth you; and so doth Marcus my son.

1 Pet 5:10,13

Knowing, brethren beloved, your election of God.

1 Thess 1:4

I speak not of you all: I know whom I have chosen: but that the scripture may be fulfilled, He that eateth bread with me hath lifted up his heel against me.

John 13:18

For as the Father raiseth up the dead, and quickeneth them; even so the Son quickeneth whom he will.

John 5:21

No man that warreth entangleth himself with the affairs of this life; that he may please him who hath chosen him to be a soldier… Therefore I endure all things for the elect’s sakes, that they may also obtain the salvation which is in Christ Jesus with eternal glory.

2 Tim 2:4,10

Paul, a servant of God, and an apostle of Jesus Christ, according to the faith of God’s elect, and the acknowledging of the truth which is after godliness;

Titus 1:1

The elder unto the elect lady and her children, whom I love in the truth; and not I only, but also all they that have known the truth; The children of thy elect sister greet thee. Amen.

2 John 1:1,13

Wherefore the rather, brethren, give diligence to make your calling and election sure: for if ye do these things, ye shall never fall:

2 Pet 1:10

Put on therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, bowels of mercies, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, longsuffering;

Col 3:12

Salute Rufus chosen in the Lord, and his mother and mine.

Ro 16:13

And shall not God avenge his own elect, which cry day and night unto him, though he bear long with them?

Luke 18:7

And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect’s sake those days shall be shortened.

Mat 24:22

And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.

Mat 24:31

Until the day in which he was taken up, after that he through the Holy Ghost had given commandments unto the apostles whom he had chosen:

Acts 1:2

For the promise is unto you, and to your children, and to all that are afar off, even as many as the LORD our God shall call.

Acts 2:39

Him God raised up the third day, and shewed him openly; Not to all the people, but unto witnesses chosen before God, even to us, who did eat and drink with him after he rose from the dead.

Acts 10:40-41

And he said, The God of our fathers hath chosen thee, that thou shouldest know his will, and see that Just One, and shouldest hear the voice of his mouth.

Acts 22:14

As concerning the gospel, they are enemies for your sakes: but as touching the election, they are beloved for the father’s sakes.

Ro 11:28

As thou hast given him power over all flesh, that he should give eternal life to as many as thou hast given him…I pray for them: I pray not for the world, but for them which thou hast given me; for they are thine. And all mine are thine, and thine are mine; and I am glorified in them.

John 17:2,9-10

I am the good shepherd, and know my sheep, and am known of mine. As the Father knoweth me, even so know I the Father: and I lay down my life for the sheep.

John 10:14-15

All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out… And this is the Father’s will which hath sent me, that of all which he hath given me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up again at the last day.

John 6:37,39

Objections Answered:

Although, it should be evident from these Scriptures that God considers Christians as chosen (elect), there are 3 objections that need to be considered at this time:

Objection #1 – God refers to Christians as elect because God chose to provide a salvation plan through the atonement of Christ and those who partake of it in their free will have become elect. It is appropriate to refer to Christians as elect because man has chosen to accept the salvation plan. Therefore, the election of Christ is passed on to Christians.

This objection fails for many reasons. First, the Scripture teaches that man is depraved and unable to exercise true saving faith. Therefore, man is unable to ‘accept’ the salvation plan in his own free will. Second, God causes the believers to exercise saving faith (see Part 3 of this book). Therefore, it is appropriate to refer to Christians as elect since they were chosen to have faith. Third, the objection by the free will adherents is a stretch of what the Scripture is saying. The terms ‘elect’ and ‘chosen’ should be left to their plain literal meanings. Additionally, if it were true that free will is true, should not the Bible refer to Christians as those who have accepted the salvation plan of God? The repeated usage of the term ‘elect’ seems altogether unlikely if it was the Christian who chose God and not that God chose the Christian. It would be much more appropriate to use a term that suggested ‘acceptance’.

Objection #2 – God desires and commands all men to repent and be saved. Therefore, it must follow that anybody can accept salvation. Otherwise, there would be no need to command all men to repent.

This is one of the most commonly used objections to the Gospel. Those who hold to the free will gospel teach that since God desires and commands all men to repent and be saved, it must be possible that all can be saved. Since all can be saved, then any man can exercise free will belief and be saved. Although, on the surface, the verses that are used to support this objection seem to support free will, closer examination reveals that these verses do not support free will at all.

One of the main problems with this objection is that if the verses taught free will, then an abundance of other Scripture would be contradicted. For example, we have already seen in the first part of this book that man is unable to exercise saving faith on his own. He is spiritually dead (Eph 2:1-7, Col 2:13, etc) and it is only by the enabling of God that man becomes saved. Additionally, there are many verses that teach that God did not choose man because of any work that he has done or a work that God foresaw that he could do. In Part 3 of this book, it will be seen that God causes believers to exercise saving faith (John 6:65, Acts 13:48, Ro 9:7-26, Phil 1:29, 2 Tim 1:9, 2:25-26, 2 Pet 1:1-3). Therefore, it is evident that God chooses who He will cause to exercise saving faith. In the paragraphs that follow, verses that free will teachers use to prove the universality of God’s desire for ‘all’ to repent will be carefully examined to understand their true teaching. Proper interpretation of each passage reveals that it is not God’s desire that all men be saved.

The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.

2 Pet 3:9

This verse is used by many to teach that God is patient with all people and is holding back judgment in order to give people as much time as possible to repent. The context of 2 Pet 3 concerns the coming judgment on the world (see 3:7). There is a Day in which God will judge the world and destroy it to make way for the new heavens and the new earth (3:12-13, Rev 21:1). But, prior to this dreadful Day of Judgment, God is waiting patiently for all to come to repentance.

Those who hold to free will maintain that in 2 Pet 3:9, God is pleading with all men to repent and be saved. But, is that really what this verse is teaching? A significant problem with this interpretation is that it contradicts an abundance of Scripture concerning the truth of election. In addition, notice who God is longsuffering towards. It does not say that God is longsuffering and pleading with each and every individual on the face of the earth. It says that He is longsuffering to us. (It should be noted that some manuscripts of the New Testament use the word ‘you’ instead of ‘us’ in this verse. This variance still does not alter the meaning of the verse. God’s delay in judgment is not due to his desire for all men to be saved, but rather, his desire for the elect to be saved.) Therefore, it should be understood from both the context of 2 Pet 3:9 as well as the terminology in 2 Pet 3:9, that this Scripture is not teaching that God wants all to repent, rather He does not want (and will not allow) any one of the elect to perish.

It is also interesting to note that 2 Pet 3:9 refers to the promise of God. It is evident elsewhere in Scripture that the promise of salvation was not for each and every man on the face of the earth. It was only for Abraham and his Seed (Gen 21:12, Ro 9:7-8). By this, we see that God’s promise was limited and not universal. The spiritual Seed of Abraham was Christ Himself (Gal 3:16) and all the saved believers (Gal 3:28-29). Additionally, in Romans 9, the Scripture tells us that the promise was given to the children of God (verse 8). The Scripture makes it plain that there are only some that God chooses to extend mercy to (e.g. Jacob and not Esau – see Ro 9:10-16). Therefore, 2 Pet 3:9 should be understood as God’s longsuffering in waiting for all the elect to be saved.

And the times of this ignorance God winked at; but now commandeth all men every where to repent: Because he hath appointed a day, in the which he will judge the world in righteousness by that man whom he hath ordained; whereof he hath given assurance unto all men, in that he hath raised him from the dead.

Acts 17:30-31

The above Scripture was spoken by Paul in his debate with the Athenians at Mars Hill. This verse is used by some to prove that God is commanding each and every person everywhere to repent. Because of this, they conclude that it is possible that all can be saved. Although it is true that this Scripture says that God commands men everywhere to repent, it does not teach that it is possible for all to be saved by their free will acceptance of the Gospel.

The term ‘all men everywhere’ in verse 30 refers to the fact that the Gospel was sent forth into the Gentile world and was being spread rapidly. ‘All men everywhere’ cannot actually refer to every living person in the world at that time. It should be obvious that not all people could have possibly have heard the Gospel. Later in Acts, there were still some who had not heard the true Gospel (Acts 18-19) as well as the obvious fact that not all heard it outside of the sphere of the area that was traveled by Paul, the apostles, and the spread by others. It should be clear then that the term ‘all men everywhere’ cannot refer to each and every individual. Rather, it refers to the fact that the Gospel was to reach into all ends of the earth and not that it was preached to all people. With the preaching of the Gospel, God’s kingdom was no longer to be focused around national Israel. Rather, it was to concern itself with the whole world (e.g. Ro 10:18-21, Acts 10:1-11:18, Acts 13:46-49). This verse cannot be used to support the assertion that God actually is pleading with every person or that He necessarily desires every person to be saved.

Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth. For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus; Who gave himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time.

1 Tim 2:4-6

Free will teachers use these verses to teach that (1) God desires each and every person to be saved, (2) Christ is the mediator between all of mankind and God and (3) that Christ is the ransom for all people. All three of these assertions fail to hold to the truth.

In the first place, assertion (1) is nowhere to be found in these verses. The term ‘who will have all men to be saved’ is a good translation (as is found in the KJ Version). Other versions translate this term as ‘who desires all men to be saved’ (e.g. NAS Version, NKJ Version, etc.). The use of the term ‘desire’ in these translations seems to imply that God is only ‘hoping’ that all men will be saved. However, the Greek term for ‘desire’ is the word will (Gr: theleo, see Ro 9:18, 1 Cor 4:19, Eph 1:5,9,11, etc). In other words, this phrase is saying that God’s will is to have all men be saved. The question then is: will God’s will be done? That is, does God’s will override the will of man? The Scripture teaches us that salvation is due to God’s will, not man’s will (John 1:12-13, Ro 9:15, see also Chapter 9). Therefore, 1 Tim 2:4 is a statement that God will have all men to be saved. Let us now turn to look at the nature of the term ‘all’ as used in Scripture.

A significant fact of Scripture is that in many places the word ‘all’ does not necessarily mean absolute totality. The reader is referred to Appendix A to survey many usages of all where the context clearly reveals that the term all does not include each and every human being. To determine in Scripture what the term ‘all’ means, we must carefully search out the context of the usage. It becomes clear that the term ‘all’ in 1 Tim 2:4-6 must mean all the elect will be saved. This is supported by 1 Tim 2:5 as well. If the term ‘all’ was used in its most general sense of consisting of all people, then the Scripture would teach in verse 5 that Jesus Christ is the mediator for all people. But, we know this cannot be true. The Bible does not teach universal salvation.

The term mediator applies to one who intercedes to God on our behalf. In the Old Covenant, the priest was a mediator on behalf of the people’s sins. The priest would bring their sacrifices to God so the people would be forgiven. In the book of Hebrews, Christ is seen in many places as the High Priest of believers (see Heb 2:14-18, 3:1, 4;14, 5:5-10, 6:20, 7:26-28, 8:1-3, 9:11, 10:21). Since the Scripture is plain that those who are unsaved will have to go to hell because of their guilt, Christ cannot in reality be their High Priest. Therefore, 1 Tim 2:5 should be understood in light of the fact that Christ is not the mediator between God and unsaved man. Therefore, the term ‘men’ in 1 Tim 2:5 must refer only to the elect.

Finally, in verse 6 it should also be evident that Christ, as the ransom for ‘all’ men, only refers to all the elect people. Again, the usage of all must be seen in a limited sense and not in the all- inclusive sense. This is supported elsewhere in Scripture. The term ‘ransomed’ is from the Greek antilutron which consists of the same root word for ‘redeem’. In the Greek, redeem literally means to loose by a price. Unsaved man is not loose but is still in bondage to sin. This term ransomed cannot properly refer to unsaved person. Therefore, it must refer to the elect since only they are truly loosed from the slave market of sin (see Ro 6:1-11, Gal 3:13, 4:5, Titus 2:14, etc). If the term ‘all men’ was not seen in the limited sense as referring to ‘all the elect people’ then this Scripture would essentially be teaching that Christ has set all men loose by His propitiation. Again, this would lead us to universal salvation, which we know is not true.

In summary, 1 Tim 2:4-6 teaches that God will have all He chooses come to be saved. We can rest assured that our salvation is not dependent on the will of man but on the grace of our Lord. Jesus Christ is our mediator between the elect and God and brought His sacrifice on our account. He sets the elect loose from the slave market of sin by His sacrifice.

Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me.

Rev 3:20

Some teach that this verse proves that God is pleading and asking all men everywhere to open the door to Him and therefore, be saved. By this they assert that God makes an offer to all men and that it is man’s free-will responsibility to believe, thereby opening the door to Christ. This teaching holds that God knocks at the door of all men’s hearts and hopes that they will respond in faith. It is true that the Gospel does reach many more people than will ultimately truly believe and be saved. Many are called but few are chosen (Mat 22:14). However, this does not prove that man is able to open the door to be saved. God has designed His salvation plan such that many people hear the Gospel. In this sense, the Gospel goes out to all ends of the earth. God is truly knocking at the door for all people. However, because of man’s utter depravity and rebellion, no one will open the door to Christ. As Ro 3:9-23 teaches us, there is none who understand and none who seek after God. All men want their own salvation plan and cannot truly come to God in saving faith.

Therefore, it is true that God is knocking at the door of men’s hearts, but the issue is: how will they who are spiritually blind and deaf be able to open the door? The previous chapter of this book dwelled on the fact that mankind is spiritually blind and deaf and that this blindness will keep them from exercising saving faith. Therefore, while Rev 3:20 truly teaches that God’s message of salvation goes out to many people, the only ones that will open are the ones that God causes to respond in faith (see Part 3 of this book). This verse truly focuses on salvation from the point of view of man in that he must open the door to be saved. But, when we understand the whole Bible in context, we must conclude that man is depraved and it is only by the will of God will man open the door. It is only God who will enable man to spiritually enlightened so that he will open the door and be saved.

Objection #3 – God calls mankind, but they refuse. Therefore, since God calls many more people than will be saved, it must be man’s decision to accept or reject the Gospel. Otherwise, God would only call those who were elect.

The Scriptures that are used to support this objection include the following:

And sent forth his servants to call them that were bidden to the wedding: and they would not come.

Mat 22:3

O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not!

Mat 23:37

And ye will not come to me, that ye might have life.

John 5:40

Therefore will I number you to the sword, and ye shall all bow down to the slaughter: because when I called, ye did not answer; when I spake, ye did not hear; but did evil before mine eyes, and did choose that wherein I delighted not.

Is 65:12

Ye stiffnecked and uncircumcised in heart and ears, ye do always resist the Holy Ghost: as your fathers did, so do ye.

Acts 7:51

Because I have called, and ye refused; I have stretched out my hand, and no man regarded; But ye have set at nought all my counsel, and would none of my reproof

Pr 1:24-25

And now, because ye have done all these works, saith the LORD, and I spake unto you, rising up early and speaking, but ye heard not; and I called you, but ye answered not

Jer 7:13

An obvious problem with this objection is that it is purely drawn on man’s reasoning and not on Scripture. We, as men and women, cannot presume to understand the deep workings of God’s will (Is 55:8,9, Deut 29:29, Ro 9:19-20). Only God knows why He designed the plan of salvation such that more people hear the Gospel than will be saved.

In the above Scriptures, the truth of man’s depravity and rebelliousness can be clearly seen. Had man not been rebellious to God, he could have saved himself. But, as we know, Adam rebelled from God. Thus, the human race was plunged into sin (Ro 5:12-21) of which we have all partaken. It should be noticed in all the verses listed above as ‘prooftexts’ that these verses serve to show the sinfulness of man. These Scriptures and the fact that God calls more men than are actually saved shows that man, in his natural condition, will always rebel to a free offer of God. Man can never exercise saving belief that will result in repentance and obedience. He can only exercise his own belief that results only in intellectual assent or some other form of false, superficial, or lukewarm discipleship. Therefore, it should be clear that the above objection has no Scriptural basis for drawing the conclusion that free will must be true since God calls many and only a few are saved. The calling to the non- saved serves to illustrate the depravity of man and that he will rebel to God and is spiritually dead.

It is hoped that this chapter has shown that God chooses men to salvation. Additionally the objections considered in the chapter were seen to be futile attempts by man to justify that he has the ultimate decision concerning his salvation. In the next chapter, we will examine examples of election as seen in the Bible.

Chapter 5 Biblical Examples of Election

Familiar Biblical examples of election will be examined. As we recall, election is the choice of God of who will be saved. Election underscores the fact that man is depraved and unable to be pleasing to God. It is God who must choose to save some people, otherwise all would be lost. It should also be noted that the Bible does provide other examples of conversions in the Bible where the sovereign election of the individual may not be readily evident. But, these passages cannot be used as a ‘prooftext’ for the doctrine of free will. They simply teach us other aspects of God’s salvation.

An example of a passage which can be wrongly interpreted to teach the free will gospel is the conversion of the Philippian jailor in Acts 16. However, a careful examination of this passage reveals that ‘free will’ acceptance of Christ is not taught. While it is clear that the jailor asked what he must do to be saved (16:30), this request does not mean that he exercised his free will to be saved. Paul simply answered him that he must believe to be saved. This is a true statement. The Scripture clearly teaches that it is only those who believe who are saved. The fact that the jailor asked this question does not mean that it was the jailor’s own will that caused him to exercise saving faith. Elsewhere in Scripture, it is abundantly clear that it is the faith of Christ (Gal 2:16, Phil 3:9, etc) that saves us. Saving faith is caused by God (Phil 1:29, Acts 13:28, 5:31, Eph 2:8-9, etc). We must always remember that when the Scripture teaches that man was saved by his faith, it must be understood that his saving faith was given to him as a gift from God (Eph 2:8-9).

We now will turn to conversions in the Bible that clearly reveal the sovereignty of God working in the lives of the elect.

Paul

In Acts 9, we find the story of how the apostle Paul was converted. In verses1-2, we find that Paul had asked permission from the authorities to go and find Christians in order to bring them bound back to Jerusalem. Presumably this was to persecute and/or kill them. However, in verses 3-6, a great light shown from heaven and the Lord Himself spoke to Paul commanding him to go to Damascus. Here we see that it is the Lord who makes the approach to Paul (see 1 Cor 1:1, 2 Tim 1:1). Paul was intent on persecuting Christians, but the Lord called out to Paul to stop him from his madness. In these verses, we do not find an appeal from God for Paul to believe. Rather, we find a command of the Lord to go to Damascus.

If free will were true, the Scripture should state that the Lord asked Paul whether or not he would wish to follow Jesus. A command of the Lord would be most inappropriate if free will were true. Rather, the Lord blinded the sinful, rebellious man, Paul, and sent him to Damascus. The blinding of Paul likely pictures the blindness of people in their unsaved state (see Chapter 3) and the subsequent unblinding of Paul would picture the ability of the Christian to understand spiritual truth when he is indwelt by the Holy Spirit (Acts 9:17-18, 1 Cor 2:9-16).

In verse 12, the Lord commands a certain man, Ananias, to go to Paul to restore his sight. This can be seen as a picture of God’s use of man in bringing the Gospel to the unsaved. In verses 13-14, Ananias raised a concern to the Lord that Paul was a very wicked man in that he was persecuting Christians. This pictures the fact that God calls whom he will even if they are absolutely rebellious to the kingdom of God. So, in verses 13-14, we see the utter depravity of man. But in verses 15-16, the Lord replies to Ananias:

But the Lord said unto him, Go thy way: for he is a chosen vessel unto me, to bear my name before the Gentiles, and kings, and the children of Israel: For I will shew him how great things he must suffer for my name’s sake.

Acts 9:15-16

Here we find the significant fact that God chooses who will be His. It is not up to the work of man to be saved. It is the work of God. We see later in the passage in verses 17-19 that Paul did regain his sight and was filled with the Holy Spirit (i.e. he was saved). This is confirmed by Paul’s words in the book of Galatians. In Gal 1:15-16, Paul says:

But when it pleased God, who separated me from my mother’s womb, and called me by his grace, To reveal his Son in me

Gal 1:15-16 (see also Acts 22:14)

God had chosen Paul before he was born to become a Christian. There was no free will on Paul’s part that caused his salvation. Rather, we find God’s sovereign work in the life of a very rebellious and wicked man in order to save him. Therefore, in Acts 9, we find a picture of the salvation of men. It is the Lord who calls man and irresistibly causes him to believe. The Lord came to Paul, blinded him and commanded (not requested) him to go to Damascus. The Gospel was preached to him, and he was saved. So, in the example of Paul’s conversion, we see the absolute sovereignty of God’s will in men’s lives to lead His chosen ones to salvation.

The Thief on the Cross

When Jesus was crucified, there were two others crucified alongside Him. While hanging on the cross, the two were reviling Jesus (see Mat 27:44). But, we see a very interesting thing happen. In Luke’s account, we find the following:

And one of the malefactors which were hanged railed on him, saying, If thou be Christ, save thyself and us. But the other answering rebuked him, saying, Dost not thou fear God, seeing thou art in the same condemnation? And we indeed justly; for we receive the due reward of our deeds: but this man hath done nothing amiss. And he said unto Jesus, Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom. And Jesus said unto him, Verily I say unto thee, To day shalt thou be with me in paradise.

Luke 23:39-43

Here we find that one of the robbers crucified with Christ continued to revile Him. But, we find a change in the other. He rebuked the reviler. He came to realize that they were rightly being crucified, but Christ did nothing that deserved crucifixion. At this point, his spiritual eyes were opened to see the true nature of his sin and that they deserved to be killed. Jesus then told him that he would be in paradise with Jesus. In other words, he was saved. But, what caused the change in attitude that was seen in the passage in Mat 27:44 to the attitude that was seen in Luke 23:39-43? The Scripture does not record any salvation appeal made to the robbers. There was no earthly reason at all that the robber should have changed his attitude from that of reviling to discipleship. It should be evident in this passage that God’s own power saved the man. He was a wicked man that was being crucified for his wickedness. While in great agony on his cross, the robber was saved in God’s sovereign will. God changes his attitude from one of reviling to worship.

Jeremiah

Then the word of the LORD came unto me, saying, Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations.

Jer 1:4-5

Here is testimony that Jeremiah was known by God before he was born. In fact, Jeremiah was ordained by God to be a prophet before he was born. We see no decision on Jeremiah’s part to either accept or reject the call of God. God simply chose him to the service of the ministry. If God would wait for man to follow, no man would ever be saved. It is only by God’s sovereign will that any man is saved.

John the Baptist

Another example is John the Baptist. Before he was born his father Zecharias prophesied that he would be a prophet and that he would go before the Lord to prepare His ways for Him (Luke 1:76). But, how could this be true if every man has a free will to accept or reject the Gospel? In the case of John the Baptist, we find that the Scripture says that he was indwelt by the Holy Spirit from the womb (Luke 1:15) . In other words, he was converted before he was born. This shows the sovereignty of God. There is no way that a child can make a rational decision to accept or reject Christ before he is born. It was the working of God in the life of John the Baptist that saved him.

The fact that John was saved prior to birth testifies to the following important fact: It was not only that God foreknew John would accept the Gospel. But, God also made the salvation occur. In other words, salvation is not dependent on God’s foreknowledge of who will believe. Salvation is dependent on God’s foreknowledge according to His good pleasure. In the next chapter, we will thoroughly examine the objection that God foreknows those who, in their free will, will accept the Gospel and, therefore, election is only a choice based ultimately on man’s free will.

Thomas, the Doubter

Another example of election is that of Thomas. Thomas was one of Jesus’ disciples. He had spent 3 1/2 years traveling and learning from Jesus. He had seen great miracles and healings. After Jesus was crucified, he heard from the other disciples that Jesus had been risen from the dead. He did not believe (see John 20:19-25). This is very significant. Here was a man who saw the supernatural signs Jesus did. He was also taught by Jesus about spiritual truth. He had been privy to the private interpretation that was given to the disciples concerning the things Jesus said and did (Mat 13:10-17, 34-36, Mk 4:33-34, etc). However, through all this, Thomas did not believe in Jesus’ resurrection without having the physical proof shown to him (John 20:26-31).

Thomas was spiritually blind and deaf to the truth of Jesus’ resurrection. It took Christ Himself to appear to Thomas in order for him to believe. Thomas had to see for himself that Jesus was risen. In the free will concept of belief, it would be understood that Thomas did not have faith enough to believe and be saved. But, that is exactly the significance of this passage. No man has enough faith to truly believe in Jesus. Even if mankind sees signs and wonders, this will never cause true saving belief. It is only when God Himself illumines Himself to the elect that they will believe. Thomas would never have believed unless it was for Christ’s work in revealing Himself to him. Similarly, we will never believe unless Christ causes us to believe. It should be seen in the picture of Thomas’ unbelief that all men are unbelieving unless it be for the electing, illuminating work of God.

The Lost Sheep

The parable of the Lost Sheep illustrates to us another evidence of God’s electing work in the believer:

What man of you, having an hundred sheep, if he lose one of them, doth not leave the ninety and nine in the wilderness, and go after that which is lost, until he find it?

Luke 15:4 (see also vvs 5-7, Mat 18:12-14)

It should be noted in this passage that it is the Good Shepherd who searches for the lost sheep. The lost sheep represents the unsaved elect individual. This individual, in his own power, will never find his way home to Christ.

It is important to observe that before this individual is found (i.e. saved), he is already referred to as a sheep that belongs to the Shepherd. He has belonged since the foundation of the world (Eph 1:4). When he is born into this world, he is born into sin. He is lost and wandering in the wilderness of life. The Good Shepherd searches out what belongs to Him. He has not come to search out all who are lost, only those who are His. In this parable, the truth of election should be evident. The elect are sheep from the foundation of the world. It is Christ who goes out and finds them wandering in this world and causes them to be saved.

Korah’s Rebellion

Another example of the sovereignty of God in determining who is to be saved is found in Numbers 16. We find a band of men that challenge the authority of Moses and Aaron during the Israelite’s wanderings in the wilderness. This band was lead by a certain Levite named Korah. He rallied 3 of the sons of the first-born Reuben to follow him. Additionally, there were 250 other men of renown (see 16:2,7-8) who joined in the rebellion. In verse 3, we find the crux of the reason for the rebellion:

And they gathered themselves together against Moses and against Aaron, and said unto them, Ye take too much upon you, seeing all the congregation are holy, every one of them, and the LORD is among them: wherefore then lift ye up yourselves above the congregation of the LORD?

Num 16:3

We see that the rebels accused Moses and Aaron of exalting themselves above the rest of the congregation. They asserted that the congregation of Israel was holy and by doing this, Moses and Aaron took too much upon themselves. The rebels also wanted to be leaders. In verses 4-5, the challenge is issued for the next day:

And when Moses heard it, he fell upon his face: And he spake unto Korah and unto all his company, saying, Even to morrow the LORD will shew who are his, and who is holy; and will cause him to come near unto him: even him whom he hath chosen will he cause to come near unto him. This do; Take you censers, Korah, and all his company; And put fire therein, and put incense in them before the LORD to morrow: and it shall be that the man whom the LORD doth choose, he shall be holy: ye take too much upon you, ye sons of Levi.

Num 16:4-7

Here, we see that God will choose the holy one and will cause him to come near. In the historical context of this verse, we see that the priesthood of Aaron was being challenged (see verse 11). But, the deeper spiritual meaning is that God will choose who will be His own and make them holy. In no way can man’s works make him holy in the eyes of God. Commentary on this passage is found in the book of Jude. In Jude, the rebels in Numbers 16 are examples of the false teachers discussed in Jude 4. These false teachers (the same sort as Korah and his rebels) turned the grace of God into licentiousness. In other words, they teach that man can live a lifestyle of looseness of morals and still be saved.

The false teachers in Jude are similar to the rebels in Numbers 16. They both teach that anybody (even if they are unsaved and practicing a sinful lifestyle) can make a free will decision for Christ. But, that is contrary to Scripture. The Scripture teaches that when a person is saved, he or she becomes holy and will practice righteousness. Their past lifestyle of sin will be gradually done away with (see 2 Cor 3:18, 4:16). In short, they will stop practicing sin, (1 Cor 6:9-11, Gal 5:19-21, Ro 6:1-8, Ro 8:1-17, etc) and they will become a disciple of Christ (John 8:30-32, Mat 28:19-20, John 6:48-58, 10:3-5, 26-28, etc). Additionally, the Scripture states that it is God who causes the believer to be saved and holy. God dwells in the believer (Ro 8:9, 2 Tim 1:14, Gal 20, Jude 19-20, etc). Also, God works in the believer to produce fruit (Eph 2:8-10, Phil 2:13, 1 Thess 2:13, Titus 2:11-12, Col 1:29, Ro 8:11, etc). In short, God’s grace does all the work of salvation and sanctification.

Besides the fact that God causes the believer to be holy, it is clear from Num 16:5 that God causes the salvation of the elect. Korah and his company stood for all those who believe that they can work for their salvation and holiness. Moses and Aaron stand for all those who God has chosen to bring near to Himself and make holy. Just as God chose Jacob over Esau due to no work on their part (Ro 9:10-16), he also will choose the elect according to His own sovereign purpose and will (2 Tim 1:9).

Chapter 6 Election not Based on Man’s Works, but God’s Sovereignty

In the last two chapters, we saw that the Bible portrays believers as chosen of God. In this chapter, we will closely analyze the basis of God’s election of believers. That is, did God save the elect because He foreknew that they were capable of saving faith? Or did God save the elect according to the good pleasure of His will and according to His own purpose? It is the goal of this chapter to expound the Biblical truth that God did not chose man based on any of man’s works or God’s foreknowledge of man’s ability. Many who hold to free will assert that election violates the goodness and love of God. Therefore, we will examine if this is so.

God Elected Believers Before the Foundation of the World

There are many Scriptures that reveal that God chose certain individuals to salvation prior to the foundation or creation of the world:

According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love: Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will…In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will…

Eph 1:4-5,11

Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world

Mat 25:34

But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, even the hidden wisdom, which God ordained before the world unto our glory

1 Cor 2:7

That the blood of all the prophets, which was shed from the foundation of the world, may be required of this generation

Luke 11:50

The beast that thou sawest was, and is not; and shall ascend out of the bottomless pit, and go into perdition: and they that dwell on the earth shall wonder, whose names were not written in the book of life from the foundation of the world, when they behold the beast that was, and is not, and yet is.

Rev 17:8

And that he might make known the riches of his glory on the vessels of mercy, which he had afore prepared unto glory

Ro 9:23

For we which have believed do enter into rest, as he said, As I have sworn in my wrath, if they shall enter into my rest: although the works were finished from the foundation of the world.

Heb 4:3

But we are bound to give thanks alway to God for you, brethren beloved of the Lord, because God hath from the beginning chosen you to salvation through sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth: Whereunto he called you by our gospel, to the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.

2 Thess 2:13-14

It should be evident from a perusal of these verses that those who would be saved were marked out to be saved before the foundation of the world. Therefore, God has chosen certain individuals to be saved.

It is important to note that we were predestinated according to the good pleasure of God’s will. It is not our works that make us righteous. It is not our choice that causes our salvation. It is only by God’s good pleasure that He chose some to be saved. It is by God’s kindness and love that He condescends to mankind to save some when all deserve hell.

It is important to note that God works all things after the counsel of His will. This statement alone (Eph 1:11, see also John 1:13) clearly refutes the doctrine of free will. If this doctrine were true, then the Scripture could not be right when it says that we were predestinated according to the counsel of God’s will. If free will were right, then it is man’s will that determines if he is to be saved. God would have given up his will to yield to man’s will in determining which men were to be saved.

A free will objection is that believers are predestinated and chosen before the foundation of the world in that the salvation plan was predetermined and believers partake of that election when they exercise their free will decision for Christ. In other words, it is not the individuals who are predestined, rather it is the program of salvation that is predetermined beforehand.

But when the entire context of the Bible is considered, this objection is untenable. First of all, it is a stretch of Eph 1:4-11 to consider such an assertion. In verse 4, the Scripture says that He chose us. Twisting the meaning of Eph 1:4 to say that we are chosen because we chose the Gospel and, therefore, partake of predestination violates the plain meaning of the passage. More importantly, if the free will objection were true, then many other Scriptures discussed throughout this book would be contradicted. Let us look at one other passage of Scripture that teaches that God sovereignly chooses individuals before they are born without regard to any work that they have done.

And not only this; but when Rebecca also had conceived by one, even by our father Isaac; (For the children being not yet born, neither having done any good or evil, that the purpose of God according to election might stand, not of works, but of him that calleth;) It was said unto her, The elder shall serve the younger. As it is written, Jacob have I loved, but Esau have I hated. What shall we say then? Is there unrighteousness with God? God forbid. For he saith to Moses, I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion. So then it is not of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God that sheweth mercy…What if God, willing to shew his wrath, and to make his power known, endured with much longsuffering the vessels of wrath fitted to destruction: And that he might make known the riches of his glory on the vessels of mercy, which he had afore prepared unto glory, Even us, whom he hath called, not of the Jews only, but also of the Gentiles?

Ro 9:10-16, 22-24

Here, we find that God sovereignly chose Jacob instead of Esau. In verse 11, the Scripture emphasizes the fact that God chose Jacob before the twins were even born. Neither had done any good or bad before they were born. Therefore, the fact that God chose Jacob teaches God’s purpose of election. That is, God took Jacob who, in many aspects, was inferior to Esau (e.g. not a skilled hunter, not a favorite of Isaac). But, God shows His sovereignty and decides who will be saved. This is asserted in Ro 9:15 where the Scripture says that God will have mercy on whom He will. In other words, he chooses us, and we do not choose Him (see John 15:16). Verse 16 also asserts that it is not man’s will or man’s performance that determines salvation, but it is solely God who has mercy.

Another interesting point concerning Esau is that he earnestly sought repentance, but could not find it (Heb 12:17, Gen 27:34-41). Esau wanted a blessing from his father. He wanted the goodness of being in the covenant of God. But, he was not the chosen one. Therefore, Esau can be seen as a picture of those who seek for salvation in their own strength. This belief will never result in salvation.

It should be evident from Ro 9:10-24 that it is not tenable to assert that Christians are elect because they decided for Christ in their free will and, therefore, partook of predestination. The Scriptures in Eph 1:4-11 as well as Romans 9:10-24 teach that man is particularly chosen of God before the foundation of the world and not according to any work.

Who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began.

2 Tim 1:9

Here is another testimony of Scripture that teaches that we were saved not according to works, but according to God’s own purpose and grace given to us before the world began. God foreknew the fall of man and provided for a salvation plan to save the elect. Everything works according to His own purpose and call. We saw in Chapter 2 that man’s attempt at faith is clearly a work. Therefore, it is impossible that we can be saved by our free will decision.

There is another piece of Biblical evidence that the election of God was directed at individuals and not directed in a broad general sense to all who, in their free will, would decide for Christ. This evidence is found in the call of individuals looked at in Chapter 5. For example, it is clear from Scripture that Jeremiah, Paul, and John the Baptist were all ordained to their ministry before they were born (see Luke 1:15, Gal 1:15, Jer 1:4-5). These men were not given the opportunity to either accept or reject the Gospel. They were called with a holy calling to be servants of God.

God Elects the Base, Weak and Foolish Things

God, in His sovereign will, chooses to save those who are not the smartest, handsomest, wisest, or most well known to be saved. Rather, He chooses people who are not well esteemed so that His sovereignty may be clearly seen:

For ye see your calling, brethren, how that not many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called: But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty; And base things of the world, and things which are despised, hath God chosen, yea, and things which are not, to bring to nought things that are: That no flesh should glory in his presence. But of him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption: That, according as it is written, He that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord.

1 Cor 1:26-31 (see also James 2:5)

The reason God chooses the foolish, weak, and base things of the world is not that He chooses partially (see Acts 10:34-35, Ro 2:11), but rather so that His glory may be clearly seen in the salvation plan. That is, by using those who are not necessarily the wisest, mightiest, or noblest, He shows that salvation does not depend on works. It is by grace that we are saved. He creates His elect just as a potter molds clay (Ro 9:19-23). God saves these weak, foolish and base things of the world and transforms them into a special holy people for Himself and seats them at His right hand (Eph 2:6).

At that time Jesus answered and said, I thank thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because thou hast hid these things from the wise and prudent, and hast revealed them unto babes. Even so, Father: for so it seemed good in thy sight. All things are delivered unto me of my Father: and no man knoweth the Son, but the Father; neither knoweth any man the Father, save the Son, and he to whomsoever the Son will reveal him. Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.

Mat 11:25-30 (see also Lk 10:21-22)

This a very beautiful passage that reveals the mercy of God and His sovereignty. We find in verse 25 that God has hidden spiritual truth from the wise and intelligent of the world and has revealed it to ‘babes’ or as 1 Cor 1:25-31 would say: the weak, foolish and base of the world. In verse 27, we see that no one can know God unless Jesus wills for the person to know. This is a statement of the election of God. God has condescended to man and shown His great love by saving some. In His wisdom, He has not chosen the wise ones of the world. But, he has saved those who seem least qualified or deserving. We see that those who have taken His yoke have found that it is very easy. When one becomes saved, there is no work that individual did for his salvation. To persevere in the Christian life, the Holy Spirit leads the believer (Ro 8:14-16) to show him/her by the Bible how to walk the Christian life. In the enabling might of God Himself, the believer is able to carry the load of the Christian life including all of its persecutions and trials. In this light, the burden of being a Christian is truly light since it is God Himself who indwells us to will and to do for His good pleasure (Phil 2:13).

Objection: God Elects Based on His Foreknowledge of Man’s Free Will Belief

This objection has been already mentioned, but now it is important to carefully look at this objection to see if it is valid. The objection runs like this. God is omniscient and, therefore, knows everything that will happen before it actually happens. In fact, he knows everything from eternity past. He must have known who would believe in their free will. Therefore, they hold to the free will choice of man in salvation while recognizing that God has foreknowledge. The free will teachers use this objection to assert that the usage in the Bible of the terms ‘elect’, ‘chosen’, and ‘predestinate’ are based on the fact that God knew that certain people would choose the Gospel. God must predestinate them in order that they will hear the Gospel so that they can believe. They maintain that the usage of the term foreknowledge (see 1 Pet 1:2, Ro 8:29, 11:2, Acts 2:23) refers to the fact that God foreknew who would accept the Gospel.

The above objection has some merit in that it recognizes the fact that God truly knows all things from eternity past. Additionally, it somewhat accounts for the complaint that God is not fair since not all people hear the Gospel. Therefore, they teach that those who God foreknew would believe received a chance to hear the Gospel. This would solve the free will doctrinal problem of the fairness of God. (The free will doctrine has a significant difficulty concerning the fact that not all people hear the Gospel.)

The objection that God elects based on His foreknowledge of man’s free will fails miserably on several accounts. First, inherent in this objection is the fact that there is some goodness in man and that he can exercise saving faith without God irresistibly causing him to believe. Proof that man cannot exercise saving faith without the prompting of God has already been given in Part 1 of this book (especially Chapter 2). Next, there is ample Scripture in the Bible that clearly teaches that the elect are caused to exercise saving faith by God and that saving faith is not man’s own faith. This Scriptural evidence is the subject of Part 3 of this book. Finally, it would not make any sense for the Bible to so abundantly teach the call and election of believers if man could make a free will decision to accept Christ. The Scripture once and again calls Christians ‘elect’. The term elect in itself strongly implies that they are Christians not because of their work but entirely due to the work of Christ. If free will were true, it would be expected that the Bible would be replete with language that refers to Christians as those who ‘made a decision’ or those who ‘choose God’. But this is not the case. In fact, the language of the Bible is just the opposite. It says that God chose us, we did not choose Him (John 15:16, 6:37, 44-45, Ps 65:4).

Therefore, it should be clear that the assertion that God foreknew those who would accept the Gospel in their free will is not consistent with Scripture. Additionally, the usage of the term foreknow in Scripture (see 1 Pet 1:2, Ro 8:29, 11:2, Acts 2:23) refers to the fact that God is omniscient. He foreknew the elect before they were born, and He predestined them to salvation by the sovereign changing of man’s will. In no way can this usage of foreknow be pressed into saying that God foreknew those who would believe in their free will. There is no Scriptural support for that.

Objection: Election Violates the Goodness, Longsuffering and Fairness of God

This objection has several facets to it, but they all center on the issue that election may appear to violate the goodness of God. How can a God that loves all men and is patient, good and fair choose certain individuals to salvation while others are abandoned to hell? The Bible teaches us to not be a respecter of persons (James 2:1-13) and to be good and patient (Gal 5:22-23). So, why should we not expect the same from God.

Of course, the Bible is plain and clear that God is good (Is 57:15, Ps 92:15, Hab 1;13, Job 34:10, Ro 9:14, Pr 15:9,26), longsuffering (2 Pet 3:9, Is 55:7, Luke 6:36, Ps 32:10, Ro 5:8, Ps 86:15, 103:8), and fair (Ps 116:5, 145:17. 11:47, Heb 6:10, 2 Tim 4:8). The real issue in determining the truth about election cannot be based on man’s inductive reasoning that since God is good He must design His salvation plan to be based on free will. Additionally, we cannot base our conclusions about election on our human reasoning that it is unfair for God to save some and not others.

To answer the above objection, we must first understand that all men are depraved. All of man’s righteous acts are as filthy rags (Is 64:6). In the eyes of God, all men have gone astray. Since all men are unrighteous and in rebellion to God, it should be clear that man in his own ability will not truly come to follow God. It appears to me that there could only be three possible cases concerning who God would save. Either God would save all people (universal salvation), he would save nobody, or He would save some people. If God would save all men, then the justice of God would be in question since there would be nobody in hell. If God would save nobody, then the love of God would be drawn into question since all would be in hell. How could a loving God consign all men to hell? The third possibility seems to be the only solution. In the salvation plan that God would save only some, the love of God could be clearly seen in His love for those He would save while at the same time His justice would clearly be seen in those who were not to be saved. It is in this third salvation plan that the attributes of God seem to be properly in balance.

How would God design the salvation plan so that some men would be saved and others not be saved? Here we come to the crux of the issue between free will and election. If it is asserted that God’s salvation plan is by free will, then God becomes a respecter of persons. That is, he designed His salvation plan such that only those who 1) heard the Gospel and 2) those who in their own ability to exercise free will decided to choose Christ could be saved. As previously examined in Chapter 2, this makes salvation on the basis of works and not the faith of Christ. Therefore, the only other salvation plan is that God had to choose certain men to be saved, and He then gave them the faith of Christ (Gal 2:16, Phil 3:9, etc) to believe and be saved. This places salvation completely in the hands of God and not man. This Gospel is fair and one of love in that all men would be doomed to hell had it not been for the gracious gift of God to save some. Additionally, He did not choose the wise, mighty or noble, but rather chose the weak, base and foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise, mighty, and noble so that the sovereignty of God can be clearly seen.

Finally, it is of great importance to realize that the Scripture teaches that we do not know all the inner workings of God. That is, we do not know why he decided to chose certain men over others. We do know that it was not according to those persons works and abilities. Rather, it is due to the sole purpose of God (see Is 55:8-9, Deut 29:29). Consider the following passage:

As it is written, Jacob have I loved, but Esau have I hated. What shall we say then? Is there unrighteousness with God? God forbid. For he saith to Moses, I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion.

Ro 9:13-15

Here, we find the election of Jacob over Esau. The question in verse 14 being raised essentially is this: Could there be unrighteousness on God’s part since He chooses certain men over others to be saved. But, the divine answer is ‘God forbid’. In other words, who are we to question God?

Therefore hath he mercy on whom he will have mercy, and whom he will he hardeneth. Thou wilt say then unto me, Why doth he yet find fault? For who hath resisted his will? Nay but, O man, who art thou that repliest against God? Shall the thing formed say to him that formed it, Why hast thou made me thus? Hath not the potter power over the clay, of the same lump to make one vessel unto honour, and another unto dishonour?

Ro 9:18-21 (see also Jer 18:1-12)

God has mercy on whoever He desires. Through His forbearance, patience and kindness (Ro 2:4), he brings His elect into salvation. The question could be raised as to why would he find fault with those who are not saved. But, the Scripture replies that we are but the clay in His hands. How can we find fault? How can we dare to presume upon the riches of the wisdom of God’s knowledge and grace/ He, as the potter (verse 21), makes us all different for His glory’s sake. He decides who will be saved and who will not be! It is not our decision!

Does God Elect People to Damnation?

Related to the above objection concerning the goodness and fairness of God, is the idea of ‘double predestination’. That is, there are some who assert that if election is true then it naturally follows that God has foreordained the non-elect to hell. This objection is rendered against the doctrine of Election to attempt to prove that the doctrine of Election results in the idea that God is a terribly unfair entity.

This objection falls short. First, we must be careful not to use our own reasoning concerning the nature of God’s sovereignty. God’s ways are so far above our own that we must be careful about jumping to conclusions. The idea that God decided to send men to hell is not Biblical. Double predestination is not found in the Bible. The reason that people go to hell is because of their own sin. God does not force men to sin. God is not the tempter. People are enticed to rebel from God by their own carnal desires (James 1:13-15). Therefore, death entered because of the rebelliousness of people (Ro 6:23) and that all have sinned in Adam (Ro 5:12). God gave Adam the free will choice to either obey or disobey God. God even warned him that in the day he disobeyed, he would surely die (Gen 3). Therefore, God did not cause man to spiritually die and suffer the fate of hell. It was man’s free will choice to rebel and suffer the consequences of hell. However, due to the overflowing greatness and goodness of God, He provided a salvation plan through His Son Jesus Christ so that some would be saved. Therefore, it is untrue that God predestines some to be saved and predestines some to go to hell (i.e. double predestination). Because of man’s choice to sin, all deserve the penalty of hell. But, because of God’s love, He causes some to be saved.

However, some use the passage in Romans 9:17-18 concerning the fact that God says that Pharaoh was raised up to be a rebellious person. Therefore, they use this as proof that God does cause man to sin. However, God is not the author of sin. God does sovereignly allow circumstances to happen such that evil men are further blinded in order that they fall into the sovereign purpose of God. In the case of Pharaoh, God allowed this already evil man to be blinded to the great miracles of God in order that He would demonstrate His greatness. If Pharaoh had not been further blinded, he might have recognized the warning signs of the plagues that were being sent on Egypt. This may have caused him to cooperate with Moses and stifle the later great miracles that God had intended to reveal through His Word. Had Pharaoh heeded the warning of the plagues, the great miracle of the dividing of the Red Sea would not have been needed. However, God sovereignly uses unsaved evil man and further blinds him according to His purpose so that God’s will be done.

God Does Not Love all Men

That brings us to another objection raised by some: Does not the Bible teach that God loves all men. Therefore, it would naturally follow that God would desire that all men be saved. The direct answer to this objection is that the Bible does not teach that God loves all men. Although there are some verses that seem to state that God loves all men, when these verses are examined in their context we find that they do not teach this at all. Additionally, we find Biblical support that God only loves the elect but hates the wicked. This was already briefly examined in Ro 9:13 (see also Mal 1:2) where the Scripture teaches that God loved Jacob and hated Esau. We saw that Jacob, as a picture of all the elect was loved by God. But, Esau (a picture of those doomed to hell) was not loved. In fact, Esau was hated.

The following verses are used by many as ‘proof-texts’ that God loves all people:

John 3:16-17

But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.

Ro 5:8

But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us

Eph 2:4

Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.

1 John 4:10

Now our Lord Jesus Christ himself, and God, even our Father, which hath loved us, and hath given us everlasting consolation and good hope through grace, Comfort your hearts, and stablish you in every good word and work.

2 Thess 2:16-17

And from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, and the first begotten of the dead, and the prince of the kings of the earth. Unto him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood

Rev 1:5

The amazing fact about all the above verses is that nowhere do they say that God loved each and every person. Even in the popular John 3:16, the Scripture says that God loves the world. God can love the world to provide a salvation plan for the elect. God can love the world to shed upon it the common grace that allows each and every person to have the goodness of the earth including food and beauty. God can love the world in that He sent His Son to die so men could be saved. But, it is a stretch of the Scripture to teach that God loves each and every individual in the sense of desiring his salvation. Additionally, in all the other verses quoted above, a careful examination of the context reveals that in each case the love of God is directed at those who would be saved, not all people. In the verses that teach that God loves ‘us’, the context refers to those who are saved.

In addition to Ro 9:13 (and Mal 1:2), the following Scriptures are offered to reveal that God hates the wicked and, therefore, does not love all people:

The foolish shall not stand in thy sight: thou hatest all workers of iniquity. Thou shalt destroy them that speak leasing: the LORD will abhor the bloody and deceitful man.

Ps 5:5-6

The LORD trieth the righteous: but the wicked and him that loveth violence his soul hateth. Upon the wicked he shall rain snares, fire and brimstone, and an horrible tempest: this shall be the portion of their cup.

Ps 11:5-6

Thou lovest righteousness, and hatest wickedness: therefore God, thy God, hath anointed thee with the oil of gladness above thy fellows.

Ps 45:7

Therefore was the wrath of the LORD kindled against his people, insomuch that he abhorred his own inheritance.

Ps 106:40

And I will destroy your high places, and cut down your images, and cast your carcasses upon the carcasses of your idols, and my soul shall abhor you.

Lev 26:30

And when the LORD saw it, he abhorred them, because of the provoking of his sons, and of his daughters.

Deut 32:19

It is hoped that this discussion has shed some light on the fact that God indeed hates the wicked. He has chosen to love and save his own, the elect (John 13:1). But, God must show that He is a just God. He cannot tolerate the sin of mankind. It is in this sense that He hates the wicked and will send them to hell. They are under the wrath of God for the evil that they have done. God indeed hates those who are in rebellion and have not had their sins covered.

In this chapter, it has been seen that God elects individuals to salvation without any regard to their works or any foreknowledge on God’s part concerning their ability to believe. On the contrary, God has elected the weak, foolish and base things of the world in order that His sovereignty would be clearly seen in His salvation plan. In the next chapter, we turn to another very significant question that supports the doctrine of election: For whom did Christ die?

Chapter 7 For Whom Did Christ Die?

The Biblical teaching that Jesus Christ died only to redeem the elect is another powerful proof to the fact that God has chosen to elect (i.e. save) only certain individuals. We saw in the last two chapters that God’s election is not dependent on any work man does or any work that God foresees him capable of. Rather, God’s election is due to his own counsel and purpose (John 1:12-13, Ro 9:10-16).

The issue of whom Christ died for is by far the most hated part of the Gospel message. Those who believe in free will usually cringe at the thought of Christ’s death was to ransom a limited amount of people. Humanly speaking, it is much more desirable to understand God in that He wishes to save everyone. However, we must carefully examine what the Bible teaches concerning this important topic.

Some may immediately object to the assertion that Christ died only for the elect. First, some may quickly cite several verses in the Bible that seem to teach that Christ died for each and every person who ever lived. Others will object that the teaching that Christ only died for a limited amount of people is heartless and not in the loving nature of God. Thirdly, others may object and say that this line of thinking and this very question is not at all important to one’s faith.

In this chapter, we will look at those verses that many quickly point to in defending that God loves everyone and that Christ actually died for every person who ever lived. We will see that these verses when examined both in their immediate context and in the context of the entire Bible do not teach that at all. The topic that will be discussed in this chapter has been called ‘limited atonement’ or ‘particular redemption’. The term ‘limited atonement’ carries a negative sense in that it sounds like the atonement of Christ was not perfect. This, of course, is not true. Christ’s work was perfect in that He will accomplish exactly what He purposed in that the complete body of the elect will be saved. The term ‘particular redemption’ also carries somewhat of a negative connotation in that it seems to imply that God is a respecter of persons. This also is not true. Suffice it say that while the terms ‘limited atonement’ and ‘particular redemption’ may cause some misconceptions if not understood, they are both accurate descriptions concerning Christ’s redemptive work. Let us go on and verify that assertion.

The Problem With Teaching that Christ Died for All

There are three immediate problems we find with the doctrine that Christ died for each and every person. Firstly, it implies universal salvation. That is, if Christ indeed suffered and died for every person, then we would be tempted to believe that all people might be saved. We know from Scripture, however, that at any given time, it is only the small flock that is to be saved. Many will think they are saved, but it is only a very small minority of people who will be saved on the narrow road (Mat 7:13-23). It should be noted that over time the small flock adds up to a great multitude (see Rev 7:9). However, at a given point in time, we see that most are on the broad road to destruction. We find many passages that teach that there is a hell, and many will end up there.

If we teach that Christ died for every person, then we must question how it could be that Christ died for all, yet the vast majority of people are on the road to hell. Was Christ’s atonement defective? Did He fail in His mission to save each and every person? Moreover, we find that the meaning of the atonement of Christ is harmed if we teach universal atonement. If it is indeed true that Christ died for everyone, then the atonement picture in the Bible is nullified. That is, Christ died in the place of those He would save. If His death was also for those that are not going to be saved, then the atonement was not successful in saving people.

Teaching universal atonement also implies a works salvation program. That is, if we teach that Christ died for each and every person, then it also follows that it is up to each and every person to play a part in their salvation. If it is true that Christ died for all so that He set up a salvation program that He did His part and now each person must do their part to accept His atonement, then we are left with a works salvation program since it is ultimately left up to man to believe and be saved. However, when we study the Bible, we find that man has no ability whatsoever to be pleasing in the sight of God (see Part 1 of this book). He is rebellious to the things of God. However, we see that it is God who gives man the ability to believe. People who become Christians are saved by grace. Grace is a free gift. They were given grace without any work whatsoever. We find that even the faith that we are saved by was given to us by the gracious work of God. We are influenced by God to believe and be saved. God changes our heart such that we will believe and be saved. We are given the faith of Christ and by this faith we are saved. Therefore, if we teach that Christ died for each person, it implies that man has a part to play in His salvation.

In addition to these powerful arguments that make us question the proposition that Christ died for all people, we find perfect harmony and support in the Word of God. We find that the Bible teaches that Christ’s death was to redeem His people. He was sent to save the elect, in which effort He was a perfect success. He saved or will save everyone who He planned to save.

The remainder of this chapter will analyze the weighty Scriptural evidence that Christ died for His people only. We will also examine Scriptures used by many to attempt to teach that Christ died for all people.

Point #1 – Jesus Only Prays for the Elect

Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us.

Ro 8:34

Wherefore he is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by him, seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for them….For Christ is not entered into the holy places made with hands, which are the figures of the true; but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us

Heb 7:25, 9:24

I pray for them: I pray not for the world, but for them which thou hast given me; for they are thine. And all mine are thine, and thine are mine; and I am glorified in them….Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on me through their word; That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me.

John 17:9-10,20-21

It should be evident from the above verses that Jesus only intercedes and prays for His own. The question is: if free will were true and Christ died for all, why would He not pray for all those He died for? Jesus praying only for His people would seem to be inconsistent. However, when we understand that Christ’s atonement was only for the elect, then it makes sense why He only prayed for them.

Point #2 – Jesus Saves His People

And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins.

Mat 1:21

Now before the feast of the passover, when Jesus knew that his hour was come that he should depart out of this world unto the Father, having loved his own which were in the world, he loved them unto the end.

John 13:1

Notice in these Scriptures who Jesus was to save from their sins. It was not all men. It was His people who He was to save. Coupled with other Scriptures concerning the fact that Christians were chosen before the foundation of the world (e.g. Eph 1:4), these Scriptures make a strong case that it was God’s intention that Christ’s atonement was to only save certain people from their sins. Jesus is the propitiation for our sins.

Thus saith the LORD, the Redeemer of Israel, and his Holy One, to him whom man despiseth, to him whom the nation abhorreth, to a servant of rulers, Kings shall see and arise, princes also shall worship, because of the LORD that is faithful, and the Holy One of Israel, and he shall choose thee.

Is 49:7

Thus saith the LORD, thy Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel; I am the LORD thy God which teacheth thee to profit, which leadeth thee by the way that thou shouldest go.

Is 48:17

We see in these passages that Jesus as Lord is the Redeemer of Israel. He is not said to be the redeemer of every person since He was not sent to save every person.

But he answered and said, I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel.

Mat 15:24

The context of this Scripture concerns a gentile Syro-Phoenician woman who came to Jesus to ask for her demon-possessed daughter to be healed. It has been argued by some that Jesus changed His mind concerning the limited nature of salvation (i.e. just Israel) and decided to save the woman’s daughter. Therefore, they argue, that Christ’s atonement is extended to all people who will believe. But, that line of reasoning fails. The lost sheep of the house of Israel refers to the elect of all nations and is not limited to national Israel. In the New Testament, the church (including Gentiles) is often referred to as Israel (see Ro 2:28-29, James 1:1, Gal 6:16, Acts 7:38, Rev 21:12-15, Eph 2:11-22, etc). Therefore, when Jesus is saying that He is sent to the sheep of Israel, it must be understood that He was speaking of spiritual Israel, since Jesus always spoke in spiritual terms (see Mat 13:10-17, Mk 4:10-12, John 6:63). The passage should be understood that Jesus was only sent to the spiritual nation of Israel of which this ‘gentile’ woman and her daughter were a part of.

John 6:37-39

These verses are clear testimony to the fact that only certain people will come to Jesus. This Scripture therefore implies that since there is an elect body of people to be saved, Christ came only to save them and not every individual person in the world.

Point #3 – Jesus Sent to Bear the Sins of Many, Not All

Even as the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many.

Mat 20:28

For this is my blood of the New Testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.

Mat 26:28

He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities.

Is 53:11

So Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many; and unto them that look for him shall he appear the second time without sin unto salvation.

Heb 9:28

And he said unto them, This is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many.

Mk 14:24 ( see also Mat 26:28)

In all the above verses, the Scripture says that Christ came to save many. It should be noted that the term many is a proper translation of the Greek. He did not come to save all men. Therefore, all the above verses are strong arguments that Christ was sent only for His elect and not for every individual person.

Point #4 – Christ’s Blood Redeemed Only Those Who Will Be Saved

The final and most obvious argument that Christ died only to save those who foreknew is found in the picture of redemption. We find all throughout the Bible that Christ was sent to redeem His people.

I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep. I am the good shepherd, and know my sheep, and am known of mine. As the Father knoweth me, even so know I the Father: and I lay down my life for the sheep.

John 10:11, 14-15 (see also Ez 34:11-31)

The Scripture says that Jesus came to lay His life down for the sheep, not all men. Since the Scripture is plain that the sheep refer to those who are truly saved, then it must follow that Christ died for the elect. This Scripture does not mention that Jesus died for the goats as well.

Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood.

Acts 20:28 (see also Rev 14:3-4)

In Rev 14:4, it should be observed that the 144,000 were redeemed from among men. This Scripture does not say that all men were redeemed. Rather, it states that only certain individuals were redeemed from among men. Jesus has only purchased the church with His blood (Acts 20:28). The Scriptures teach us that only certain individuals were purchased and redeemed from among men.

For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.

2 Cor 5:21

Grace be to you and peace from God the Father, and from our Lord Jesus Christ, Who gave himself for our sins, that he might deliver us from this present evil world, according to the will of God and our Father:

Gal 1:3-4

Who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works.

Titus 2:14

Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it;

Eph 5:25

Who was delivered for our offenses, and was raised again for our justification.

Ro 4:25

He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things? Who shall lay any thing to the charge of God’s elect? It is God that justifieth. Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us.

Ro 8:32-34

These Scriptures (see also 1 John 3:16, 1 Pet 3:18, Gal 3:13,4:5, Rev 5:9, Heb 9:15, 1 Pet 2:24) say that God made Christ sin for us (i.e. the elect) so that we would be made righteous (i.e. saved). These Scriptures do not say that Christ was made sin for all men. If Christ was made sin for all men, that would mean that His atonement was not fully effective since it is clear that not all are to be saved. It would seem natural that the Scripture would say here that Christ was made sin for all people if that were true. But, the Scripture does not say that. It says that Christ was made sin for us (i.e. for Christians).

Nor consider that it is expedient for us, that one man should die for the people, and that the whole nation perish not. And this spake he not of himself: but being high priest that year, he prophesied that Jesus should die for that nation; And not for that nation only, but that also he should gather together in one the children of God that were scattered abroad. Then from that day forth they took counsel together for to put him to death.

John 11:50-53

This is a very significant Scripture concerning the extent of Christ’s atonement. On the one hand, we find that Christ was to die for the nation. In addition, we find that Christ was to die for the children of God who were to be gathered together. It is clear from this Scripture that Christ’s atonement is for more than the ‘nation’. It is to include the children of God. If universal atonement were true, would it not be more natural for this Scripture to say that Christ died for all people. The fact that Christ’s atonement is expanded to only the children of God, we find that His atonement is limited. An interesting observation can be made concerning the term ‘nation’. On the surface, this term may lead some to argue for universal atonement since it could be argued that the nation must include more than those who were to be saved. However, if it is understood that the ‘nation’ spoken of here refers to the nation of ‘spiritual’ Israel, then this apparent conflict is easily resolved. Many places in the Scriptures, the elect are referred to as the Israel of God. The true Israel of God is not limited to the physical national descendants of Israel nor do all of the physical descendants of Israel comprise spiritual Israel (see Ro 2:28-29, 9:1-8, Acts 7:38, Gal 6:16, Acts 5:31, Heb 12:22, Mat 15:24, 1 Pet 2:5, etc).

Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the same; that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil; And deliver them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage. For verily he took not on him the nature of angels; but he took on him the seed of Abraham. Wherefore in all things it behoved him to be made like unto his brethren, that he might be a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God, to make reconciliation for the sins of the people…Wherefore, holy brethren, partakers of the heavenly calling, consider the Apostle and High Priest of our profession, Christ Jesus

Heb 2:14-17, 3:1

In verse 17, the Scripture says that Christ made reconciliation for the sins of the people (in context, those being saved). In verse 15, those who were delivered must also refer to Christians since these only are delivered from the fear of eternal death and bondage to sin. Therefore, it can be seen that this Scripture testifies to the fact that Christ only atones for those who are to become saved.

Objections Considered

With the above discussion as a background, it is important to realize that there are verses that taken out of their context that can be used to teach that Christ died for all. Although the above Scriptures should prove to be a very strong case that Christ died only for His people, the argument would not be complete unless the verses that seem to teach universal atonement are thoroughly examined. To this task, we now turn. We will divide these verses up into 4 objections:

Christ died for the world and takes away the sin of the world (John 1:29, 3:16-17, 1 John 2:2, 2 Cor 5:18-19, 1 Tim 1:15)
Christ died for all men (Ro 5:6-8, 2 Cor 5;15, Heb 2:9, Ro 8:32)
Christ bought all men with His death (2 Pet 2:1)
Christ is the Savior of all men/world (1 Tim 4:10, 1 John 4:14, John 4:42)

The main problem with all the above objections is the misinterpretation of the words ‘world’, ‘everyone’ and ‘all’ in Scripture. In our contemporary understanding, we consider these words in their most absolute sense,in that they really mean each and every individual on the earth. However, in the context of the Bible, this is not necessarily the case. As has been previously discussed (see also Appendix A) ‘all’ and ‘world’ are often used in a limited sense. For example in Luke 2:1, the Scripture says that a decree went out from Caesar that all the world should be taxed. However, it is obvious that this decree is limited to the Roman Empire. Other areas of the world could not and were not part of this decree. In John 12:32, the Scripture records that if Jesus was lifted up, He would draw all men to Himself. In the context of the Bible, we know that all men will not be saved. Therefore, the ‘all’ in John 12:32 must be understood in a limited sense (i.e. all those who were to be saved). The reader is referred to Appendix A for many more examples of limited uses of the words ‘all’, ‘every’ and ‘world’.

Another significant difficulty with the these objections is that if true, they would contradict the Biblical doctrine of the election of believers (see Parts 1,2, and 3 of this book). Therefore, in each of the verses below, we will not restate the significant problem of context with the entire teaching of the Bible. Rather, it will be shown that a careful interpretation of the verses used in these objections will reveal that they are quite easily harmonized with the rest of the teaching of the Bible concerning election.

Objection #1: Christ Died for the World and Takes Away the Sin of the World

The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.

John 1:29

On the surface, it may appear to some that this Scripture is teaching that Jesus came to take away all the sin of every human of all time. But, this verse does not teach this at all. First, the word for world (Gr: kosmos) does not imply all humankind. It signifies the arrangement of the creation or the order of the world system. In fact, when we look at the New Testament, in 187 occurrences of kosmos, this term is never used to signify all people. Therefore, it should be understood that ‘taketh away the sin of the world’ does not mean the actual removal of sin from all of people. Next, if the meaning of ‘world’ was that Jesus takes away the sin of all humankind, we are faced with a contradiction since it is evident from the Bible that there will be many that are to be unsaved and go to hell (e.g. Mat 13:42, 50, Luke 16:19-31, Rev 20:11-15, etc ). The proper meaning of this verse is that Jesus is the One (and only One) who takes away sin in the world. That is, the emphasis in this verse is on the fact that Jesus is the only One who was to take away sin and not that He would take away all sin from all people. In the world, there is only one way to salvation (John 14:6).

John 3:16-17

These are very popular verses that are used to teach that Jesus died for all people (and universal atonement). This teaching usually holds that it is possible that anyone can believe in Jesus and have everlasting life. In verse 17, it is taught that Jesus came into the world that the world (i.e. all people) might have eternal life. However, this interpretation is not consistent with the clear teaching of the Bible.

The Use of the Term ‘Whosoever, World, and Might’ in John 3:16-17

First of all, the word ‘whosoever’ is usually understood that anybody can have the chance to believe. But, the Greek words for whosoever literally mean ‘every one that’ (see also 1 John 5:1, 18). The term ‘every one that’ simply points to the truism that those who will believe will have eternal life. This term does not convey a meaning that it is possible that any person can exercise free will and be saved. It means that whosoever that God has elected and causes to exercise saving faith will be saved. Next, the term ‘world’, as previously discussed, should not be understood as every one of humankind (see Appendix A). It is much better understood as the created order or system. Jesus Christ was sent into the world not to condemn the whole created order, but that the entire human race would not be doomed. Some were to be saved. Finally the term ‘might’ is not in the original text. It is inserted by translators to help clarify the meaning of ‘be saved’ in verse 17 to not mean universal salvation.

And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for our’s only, but also for the sins of the whole world.

1 John 2:2

In 1 John 2:2, the whole ‘world’ refers to the fact that salvation was not to be limited to a nation or a geographical area. That is, salvation will go to the ends of the earth and be effective until the end of the age. It refers to the fact that Christ’s propitiation is vastly effective for justifying many, many Christians to all ends of the world. Therefore, we should never think of Christ’s atonement as not being effective to the uttermost. It should be seen that this verse is actually teaching the effectiveness of Christ’s propitiation because it says that He is the propitiation for the whole world. Since we know that not all are saved, then it must follow that the whole world being referred to here is again a limited term that means ‘all Christians of all time’. It does not refer to each and every individual since not all are saved.

And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation; To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation.

2 Cor 5:18-19

The free will interpretation of this verse is that Christ is reconciling the world to Himself and, therefore, it is possible that all can be saved. But, this is really a stretch to jump to this conclusion without explicit Scriptural support. If the free will interpretation of these verses were true, we would be faced with the problem that Christ was saving all people since the term reconcile is always used in connection with those being saved (2 Cor 5:20, see also Ro 5:10, 11:15, Eph 2:16, Col 1:21-23). Therefore, this interpretation would imply that there is no hell. In these verses, it should be noted that it was Christians (i.e. ‘us’) who are reconciled to Christ. Therefore, it should be clear that the term ‘reconciling the world unto Himself’ should be understood that Christ is in the process of saving people throughout the created order. It does not include all people since not all are saved. He is in the process of saving the elect.

This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners; of whom I am chief.

1 Tim 1:15

Here, the free will teachers hold that since all men are sinners, Jesus came into the world to save all men. But, this Scripture does not teach this. This Scripture is revealing is that He came to save sinners. It does not say that he came to save all sinners. In the context of the Scripture, Paul was emphasizing his own sinful background and the fact that he was saved by God’s grace, although he was in absolute rebellion to the grace of God. (see Gal 1:13-15).

Objection #2: Christ Died for all Men

For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly. For scarcely for a righteous man will one die: yet peradventure for a good man some would even dare to die. But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.

Ro 5:6-8

This verse is used sometimes to teach that Christ died for all the ungodly and since all people are ungodly before they are saved, then it follows that Christ died for all men. But, as was the case in 1 Tim 1:15, this verse does not say that Christ came to die for all the ungodly. It just says that He died for the ungodly. This Scripture should not be pressed to teach that Christ died for all. The point that is being made in this Scripture is that Christ died to save depraved, wicked men who did not deserve to be saved (i.e. the elect).

He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things?

Ro 8:32

Free will objections to election using this verse are hardly worth refutation. It should be quite evident that the ‘us’ referred to in the first part of this verse refers only to those who are to be saved. This is true since the all used in the second part of the verse must refer to believers since only those who are saved are freely given all things. Only Christians have been justified (Ro 4:25) and made to sit in heavenly places (Eph 2:6, 1 Cor 2:14-16, Mat 13:11-12, Mk 4:11,25, etc).

For the love of Christ constraineth us; because we thus judge, that if one died for all, then were all dead: And that he died for all, that they which live should not henceforth live unto themselves, but unto him which died for them, and rose again. Wherefore henceforth know we no man after the flesh: yea, though we have known Christ after the flesh, yet now henceforth know we him no more. Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.

2 Cor 5:14-17

Here we find two of the most often used verses to teach that Christ died for all people. But a careful examination of the context clearly reveals that the ‘all’ must refer to all the elect. Furthermore, it can be shown that this Scripture actually turns out to be a powerful proof for ‘limited atonement’.

In verse 14, we find that Christ died for all but that also these became dead. The death here refers to the death that a person experiences when he becomes a child of God. He dies to the old nature, is crucified with Christ, dies to sin, and dies to the world (Gal 2:20, 5:24, 6:14, Ro 6:1-11, etc). When one becomes saved, he identifies with the death of Christ. Therefore, in 2 Cor 5:14, when Christ died for Christians, all Christians were made dead. The relationship of the believer being dead with Christ is reinforced in verses 15 through 17. Here, the Scriptures teach us that through the death of Christ, Christians will no longer live unto themselves (i.e. they died to the old nature). They are made alive in Christ just as Christ was resurrected (verse 15). In verse 16, we find that we are to recognize no man according to the flesh. This is because Christians are dead to the flesh nature and their spirits are made alive in Christ (see Ro 8:1-16). It is also interesting to note in verse 16 that the term ‘no man’ must refer to Christians only since they alone are the ones who have died to the old flesh nature. This is another strong proof that the ‘all’ of verses 14-15 refer to Christians and not to all of humankind. Finally, in verse 17, we find that it is the Christian who is a new creature in Christ. He has died to sin and is made alive in Christ. By understanding the context of 2 Cor 5, it should be evident that the ‘all’ that Christ referred to must be limited to Christians. It is in this sense that this verse actually becomes a strong argument for ‘limited atonement’.

But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honour; that he by the grace of God should taste death for every man.

Heb 2:9

On the surface, it seems as if this verse is teaching that Christ actually died for every man that ever lived. It seems as though He tasted death in order to give a chance for every man to be saved. So goes the free will argument. However, the term ‘for’ is the Greek word huper which means ‘on behalf of’. In other words this Scripture teaches that Christ died on behalf of or ‘instead’ of every man. If we would assert that this Scripture is teaching that Christ died instead of every man, then we are faced with a contradiction since many people are under damnation. We know that it cannot be true that Christ died instead of every man because there will be many who will suffer eternal death in hell. Had the Scripture been intended to mean that Christ died so that all could possibly be saved, then there are other Greek words that could have been used instead of huper to better convey the meaning of ‘for’ conveying a meaning of possibility.

Another reason that ‘every man’ refers only to the elect is found in the fact that many places in Scripture the terms ‘all’ and ‘everyone’ refer to only a limited amount of people. The usage of these terms must be defined by the context in which they are used. In fact, very often in the Bible, these type of terms are used not to be all inclusive. This is the subject of Appendix A and the reader is referred there for more discussion. Finally, the Scripture elsewhere refers to Christians as those who Christ has died for (see Ro 5:8, 1 Cor 5:7, 1 Thess 5:10, Titus 2:14, 1 Pet 2:21, 3:18, 4:1, 1 John 3:16). Therefore, Heb 2:9 should be understood that Christ suffered death for every elect person.

All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.

Isaiah 53:6

Many teach that this Scripture is saying that the iniquity of all men were placed upon Christ. Therefore, Christ has atoned for them as long as they are willing to accept it. The error of this assertion is quickly seen when the context of Isaiah 53:6 is looked at. In the preceding verse, the Bible teaches that the context refers to those who have been healed. Since those who have been healed refer to those who are saved, we must understand verse 6 in light of this. That is, all we like sheep have gone astray (i.e. all those saved were astray in their natural sin condition) and the iniquity of us all (i.e. all those being saved) has been laid upon Christ. This Scripture does not teach that all the iniquity of every person was laid upon Christ.

Objection #3: Christ Bought all Men with His Death

But there were false prophets also among the people, even as there shall be false teachers among you, who privily shall bring in damnable heresies, even denying the Lord that bought them, and bring upon themselves swift destruction.

2 Pet 2:1

This passage has been used by many to teach that the death of Christ served to buy all men including the unsaved, and therefore, it is possible that all can make a free will decision for Christ. It must be admitted that the false teachers in 2 Pet 2:1 are unsaved since in 2 Pet 2:3-9 their doom is clearly portrayed. Therefore, we are faced with a Scripture that seems to teach that Christ has bought unsaved men as well as saved.

To understand the meaning of ‘bought’, we need to understand the usage of this Greek word agorazo in the Bible. The term agorazo literally means ‘to use or acquire at the market place’. This term is translated as buy or redeem. Most often, this term is used in the New Testament for actual buying of goods at a market although it can sometimes refer to Christ’s purchase of Christians with His blood (see Rev 5:9, 14:3-4, 1 Cor 6:20, 7:13,30). However, it should be noted that there are other Greek terms translated ‘redeem’ that hold a stronger connotation concerning salvation as seen in the purchasing either out of the market (i.e. ekagorazo – Gal 3:13) or to loose a slave by a price (i.e. lutroo – Gal 4:5, Titus 2:14, 1 Pet 1:18, Heb 9:12).

The real key to the meaning of ‘bought’ in 2:1 is found in verse 20 of 2 Peter. Here we find false teachers who had escaped the defilements of the world through the knowledge of Jesus Christ. In that sense, they experienced some of the effects of salvation, primarily through associations with true Christians. In a sense, they were ‘bought’ in that they did participate in Christianity. This thought is similar to Heb 6:4-6 which describes a person who was never saved but had experienced some of the benefits of Christianity. This is also similar to the unsaved husband who is ‘sanctified’ by his believing wife (see 1 Cor 7:14). Therefore, we can see that the term bought in 2 Pet 2:1 is used in the sense that these unsaved false teachers had experienced some of the results of grace, and in that sense they had participated in Christianity. They were bought in so far that they were participating in the true church that was purchased with the blood of Christ. However, they were not truly saved.

However, there is another significant argument against using 2 Pet 2:1 as a prooftext for free will. Because the false teachers in 2 Pet 2 were clearly unsaved, their ‘redemption’ was not genuine. If it were, then this Scripture would be teaching that these men lost their salvation which cannot be true (see Part 4 of this book). Therefore, we must understand ‘bought’ in 2 Pet 2:1 only in so far as the false teachers participated in Christianity and not that they were truly redeemed by Christ. It is only Christians that are truly redeemed.

Objection #4: Christ is the Savior of all Men/World

For therefore we both labour and suffer reproach, because we trust in the living God, who is the Saviour of all men, specially of those that believe.

1 Tim 4:10

And we have seen and do testify that the Father sent the Son to be the Saviour of the world.

1 John 4:14

And said unto the woman, Now we believe, not because of thy saying: for we have heard him ourselves, and know that this is indeed the Christ, the Saviour of the world.

John 4:42

These three verses are easily reconciled with the true Gospel of election. They teach that Christ is the Savior of all men. This is clearly true. Jesus Christ is the only way to salvation (Acts 4:12, John 14:6, 1 Tim 2:5). Therefore, He is the Savior of all men. It is interesting to note in 1 Tim 4:10 that Jesus is the Savior especially of those who believe. Therefore, it is clear, in context, that this Scripture refers to all of humankind. But, His being Savior is only specially useful to those who are of faith. These Scriptures nowhere teach that His atonement and death was for all men. These Scriptures are simply saying that Christ is the only way to salvation and, therefore, is the Savior of all men/world. This does not mean that His atonement was provided for all people.

Therefore as by the offense of one judgment came upon all men to condemnation; even so by the righteousness of one the free gift came upon all men unto justification of life.

Ro 5:18

This Scripture, indeed, cannot be used to support the idea that Christ’s atonement was intended for each and every person. The phrase ‘the free gift came upon all men unto justification of life’ is sometimes used to teach free will. But, this assertion fails since this Scripture teaches that His free gift came to all men unto justification of life. In other words, His free gift resulted in justification to all. The word ‘all’ must be conditioned by the context. We find in the very next verse the context of the word ‘all’ in verse 18. In verse 19, we find that the obedience of the One results in the many being made righteous. The all of verse 18 is further explained in verse 19 as the many. Therefore, ‘all’ must be understood as ‘all the elect’. Otherwise, this verse would teach universal salvation which is contrary to Scripture.

It is prayerfully hoped that the discussion in this chapter helps solidify the argument that election is true. Very importantly, some common objections to election were considered, and it is hoped that they were seen to be invalid objections. When these objections were carefully examined in light of the context of the Bible, it should be evident that they can easily be reconciled with election. This should serve as a caution to all students of God’s word to carefully examine Scripture in light of all Scripture to draw conclusions. It is in this very area (i.e. the proper context of Scripture) that all false gospels and cults raise their arguments. One can take just about any Scripture out of its context and draw erroneous conclusions concerning the true meaning of the Scripture.

It is important to note as we move along in this study of the doctrines of election and free will that each chapter is intended to be another view of the Gospel and is not intended to be ‘built’ one upon another. In other words, if any of these chapters were taken by itself, the individual chapter should form a very strong argument for the veracity of the doctrine of election.

The next part of the book is the most significant argument that proves the truth of election. If it could be shown from the Scripture that the faith that Christians are saved by is caused by God without any humanly generated faith, then it should be abundantly evident that our salvation is not dependent on our free will, but rather God’s sovereign will. To this argument, we now turn.

Part 3 – God Changes the Will of Man

Chapter 8 Repentance and Faith Come From God

If there could be a climax to this book, this is it. If it could be proven from Scripture that saving faith is solely from and caused by God, then it can be concluded that free will is false. This is true because free will teaches that it is man’s free will faith that saves him. Therefore, in the ‘free will’ scheme, salvation is not solely the work of God, rather man has a part to play in salvation.

As should become abundantly evident from this part of the book, the Bible teaches that it is the faith of Christ given to man by the grace of God that saves us. Therefore, man’s free will belief cannot save him. If it were left to our free will, no man would be saved, since all men by nature are rebellious to God (see Ro 3:10-11, etc).

This part of the book will investigate many proofs from the Bible that teach that the faith of man is irresistibly caused by God. Man is caused to exercise faith by God. Faith is the outward result in man by which he is justified. In this chapter, we will look at the clear Scriptural teaching that repentance and faith are caused by God and not generated by man’s free will.

Repentance Intimately Linked with Salvation

Before we look at the Scriptures that teach that repentance is caused by God and is not man’s free will decision, it is important to look at the close connection between repentance and salvation. ‘Repentance’ literally means to ‘change one’s mind and therefore, be willing to go in another direction’. It should be evident that the usage of this term in Scripture implies that there is an exertion of the will that is involved in repentance. This exertion of the will is a work since it results in a changed attitude and direction in life. This is important since there are some that teach that one can be saved and not be repentant about their old sin nature. This is an extreme position of the free will teaching and results in ‘easy- believism’. Additionally, if it can be shown that repentance is part of the salvation experience, then there is significant proof that God must grant repentance. Otherwise, if repentance is necessary for salvation and it is man’s own free will repentance that causes him to be saved, then we are forced to conclude that man is saved by works.

There are many Scriptures that teach repentance is part of the salvation experience:

And said unto them, Thus it is written, and thus it behoved Christ to suffer, and to rise from the dead the third day: And that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem. And ye are witnesses of these things.

Luke 24:46-48

These were the words of Jesus to His disciples after His resurrection. He affirmed to the disciples that His resurrection was foretold in the prophets. Because of His atonement, repentance and remission of sins would be preached throughout the world. In short, Christ was teaching His disciples that the Gospel was to go forth. But, it is interesting to note that the sending forth of the Gospel is intimately linked with preaching repentance and remission of sins. So, we see in this example that the Gospel message of salvation includes the teaching of repentance.

I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish.

Luke 13:3 (see also verse 5)

Here, we find Jesus teaching that, unless men repent, they will perish just as the Galileans whose blood Pilate mingled with their sacrifices. We find Him using this horrible physical event that took place as an opportunity to teach that unless people repent they will likewise perish. In this example, He was referring to eternal death for those who do not repent.

The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.

2 Pet 3:9

This Scripture is another example of the usage of ‘repent’ to represent salvation. The comparison between ‘perish’ and ‘repentance’ attests to the fact that repentance is part of the salvation experience since the appropriate opposite to perish would be salvation.

Acts 17:30-31

This Scripture teaches us that men are commanded to repent. This command is to avert the judgement at the advent of Christ. It should be evident that to avert judgment, we must be saved. Therefore, the term repent is used as an antecedent to salvation since this Scripture is teaching repentance in order to escape judgment.

But shewed first unto them of Damascus, and at Jerusalem, and throughout all the coasts of Judea, and then to the Gentiles, that they should repent and turn to God, and do works meet for repentance.

Acts 26:20

Paul’s missionary journeys were intended to preach the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. Since Paul preached repentance, we should understand that repentance is intimately connected with the salvation experience.

From the above Scriptures, it should be evident that it is not possible to divorce repentance from salvation. Repentance is integrally part of the salvation experience. It is the work in man that indicates the inward saving faith of Christ. If we find in Scripture that repentance is only possible when given by God, then another powerful proof for election will have been reviewed.

Repentance Granted by God

Him hath God exalted with his right hand to be a Prince and a Saviour, for to give repentance to Israel, and forgiveness of sins.

Acts 5:31

We find that Jesus Christ was exalted to the right hand of the Father in order to give repentance to Israel. Note again here the intimate connection between repentance and salvation. It should be clear that the Scriptures teach that the forgiveness of sins cannot occur without repentance and the act of repentance is given to man by God.

And the servant of the Lord must not strive; but be gentle unto all men, apt to teach, patient, in meekness instructing those that oppose themselves; if God peradventure will give them repentance to the acknowledging of the truth; And that they may recover themselves out of the snare of the devil, who are taken captive by him at his will.

2 Tim 2:24-26

Paul is giving instructions to Timothy concerning what the servant of the Lord must be like. We find that the servant of God must instruct those in opposition so that God may give them repentance. It is important to note that those who were taken captive are unbelievers. Many times in Paul’s writings to Timothy he warns him of false teachers. These verses are another such example. But, Paul teaches Timothy to be gentle in his instruction to these false teachers. He should not debate them into the kingdom of God. It was God’s work to give them repentance so that they may be set free from the snare of the devil and be saved.

In these two verses, we see two important points. First, repentance is intimately connected with the salvation experience. Second, it is the work of God to cause someone to repent and be saved. Man, in his own free will, does not want to repent. Man is rebellious toward God and wants to please himself. Therefore, in order to cause man to believe, God must cause him to repent and have a change of mind towards God. The fact that the above 2 Scriptures so clearly state that God gives repentance should be ample proof to the veracity of Election (see also Ro 2:4, Phil 2:13, 2 Pet 1:3).

Faith Given to Believers

The fact that it is faith that saves a Christian is a basic premise held throughout this book. It is the clear teaching of Scripture (Ro 4:25, 3:21-30, 5:9-11, Gal 3:8, etc). But, the question at hand is whether this faith that saves Christians is their own free will decision to believe or is it the supernatural working of God in the believer that irresistibly causes him to believe. That is, does God work in the heart of the unbeliever to change his will such that he will believe? This is not to say that God forces an unsaved man to believe against his will. God works a supernatural work that changes the unsaved man’s will such that he will exercise faith in Christ. Just as we saw above concerning the fact that God causes the elect to repent, God also causes the elect to exercise saving faith:

Simon Peter, a servant and an apostle of Jesus Christ, to them that have obtained like precious faith with us through the righteousness of God and our Saviour Jesus Christ:

2 Pet 1:1

In this Scripture, Peter addresses his second epistle to those who have obtained like precious faith. This faith was not their own, but was received. In other words, their own free will did not result in their salvation, but they received a faith that saved them. This faith is through the righteousness of God and Jesus Christ. This faith was not generated by man. It was through God that these believers obtained a like precious faith.

For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast.

Eph 2:8-9

This is one of the most quoted Scriptures that is used to teach salvation. Careful examination of this Scripture reveals that these verses do not teach ‘free will’ but are a testimony that the faith that we are saved by is not our own. It is not our free will that saves, but the faith that we have obtained through the righteousness of God. Pure and simple: it is the precious gift of God. It is the belief that is given to us so that we may be justified. In no way, is this belief of works, lest any man should boast. In other words, the faith that we are saved by is not due to the work of man. If it were, man could say that he has done something to merit his salvation.

It is sad to say, but this is exactly what is being taught in the vast majority of Christendom today. People are being taught that it is their free will decision that saves them. In other words, much teaching on salvation today appeals to the flesh. It teaches that man can perform some work in order to be saved. We must realize that we are unable to exercise saving faith and are totally depraved. Then we can understand that it is only by God’s grace that we are saved.

For unto you it is given in the behalf of Christ, not only to believe on him, but also to suffer for his sake;

Phil 1:29

In the context of Paul’s teaching on Christian suffering, we find an important statement. The belief we have is given to us. It is not ours. It is a faith that God graciously gives to us so that we may be justified by the law of faith. Could there be a clearer Scripture than this?

And he said, Therefore said I unto you, that no man can come unto me, except it were given unto him of my Father.

John 6:65

In John 6, Jesus is teaching that one would have to eat His body and drink His blood to be saved. This saying offended many because they did not understand that Jesus was teaching spiritually as He normally did (John 6:63, Mat 13:10-16, Mark 4:33-34). Jesus predicted in verse 65 that many would not truly believe on Him (see verse 66). Only the ones that it had been granted to come to Him were to be saved. In other words, in the natural flesh, no man will come to Jesus for salvation unless it was given to him by God the Father. Many may superficially believe and make decisions for Christ, but only the elect who are drawn to Christ by God will be saved. Therefore, we see that it is God who grants the faith by which we must be saved. Man in his own ability cannot do it.

According to the eternal purpose which he purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord: In whom we have boldness and access with confidence by the faith of him.

Eph 3:11-12

God’s people have bold access to the eternal purpose of salvation. But, in Eph 3:12, this bold confidence is only the the faith of Jesus Christ. In the context of Eph 3:11-12, the ‘him’ at the end of the passage is referring to ‘Christ Jesus our Lord’. The ‘him’ in the original Greek is the ‘genetive’ case (i.e., owned by ‘him’). Therefore, we can easily see that the Christian’s ‘access with confidence’ is the result of the faith of Jesus Christ. The KJV bible and many literal translations correctly interpret that this is the faith of Christ. However, some modern versions erroneously state that this ‘access with confidence’ is by faith in Him. This erroneously implies that it is by human faith.

John answered and said, A man can receive nothing, except it be given him from heaven.

John 3:27 (see also 1 Cor 4:7)

In these two Scriptures, evidence can be found that saving faith cannot be of man’s own free will. If it were, these Scriptures would be contradicted. If free will were true, man could say that it was his work of faith that caused him to be saved. Oh yes, they will agree that it is Christ who saves through His death. They will also agree that they are sinful and depraved. But, they will not fully accept their depraved state. They reserve a spark of goodness in themselves to make a free will decision to accept Christ. However, the above Scriptures (as well as many, many others) teach us that our own free will faith is nothing outside of the saving faith that is given to us.

Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.

Heb 12:2

Why would the Scripture record that Jesus is the author and finisher of our faith? This serves as one more testimony to the fact that Jesus is altogether related to faith. He is the prime example, and He is the source of all saving faith. Therefore, it must follow that saving faith is from God. We see that this verse closely corresponds and harmonizes with the above verses previously studied. This brings us to a very important point concerning the Gospel.

Christians Receive the Faith of Christ

As we shall shortly see, the Scripture is clear that when a person becomes saved, he receives the faith of Christ to be saved. In other words, the believer’s heart is affected by the Gospel such that He actually receives Christ’s faith. He then becomes a believer and is justified by his faith. God supernaturally works in the believer’s heart such that the believer’s spiritual eyes are opened and he now has the faith to believe. It is not his self-generated ‘free will’ faith that justifies him, rather it is the faith of Christ that is given to him and becomes his own.

Gal 2:16 (see also 3:2,5,7)

This is a very popular verse to teach that a Christian is not justified by his works but rather by faith. But, what oftentimes gets overlooked is the source of the faith that justifies (i.e. the faith of Christ). There is good reason it gets overlooked at times though. In most modern translations of the Bible, the second phrase ‘the faith of Christ’ is changed to ‘faith in Christ’. By studying the original Greek for the term translated ‘of’ in the King James Version, it is quickly seen that the term should most definitely be translated of. The Greek term is ek which always carries the meaning ‘of’ or ‘out of’. Another interesting fact is that the first phrase ‘the faith of Christ’ should be translated ‘faith through Jesus Christ’. Taking these facts into consideration, the verse in the original reads that man is not justified by the works of the law but rather by faith through Jesus Christ. Our belief in Jesus, therefore, comes through Jesus Christ. The last part of the verse teaches us that it is the faith of Christ that justifies us. In outlined form, this verse teaches us the following:

Man is not justified by works of the law

Rather, man is justified by faith through Christ (see also 1 Pet 1:20-21)

Christians, therefore, believe in Jesus Christ

But, they are justified by the faith of Christ, not by works

In other words, this verse is teaching us that Christ gives His faith to man to be saved and, therefore, man believes. But, it is the faith of Christ by which we are justified and not man’s own free will choice. Otherwise, if man is saved by his own faith, this would amount to being saved by works.

It is important to note as we review the verses associated with the faith of Christ being given to the elect that we cannot understand in our human finite mind how this actually occurs. How is it that God gives the faith to man to believe? How is it that God causes our own free will to be changed to believe in Jesus? We do not believe contrary to our will. Rather, God changes our heart such that our wills are changed to believe in Jesus. It is none of our own effort, but it is the work of God.

I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.

Gal 2:20

A few verses later in Galatians, we find another testimony to the fact that the life Christians lead is not done in their own faith. Rather, it is the faith of Christ. Christians were crucified with Christ, but have been raised with Christ in order to live an overcoming holy life. This topic will be investigated in great detail in Part 4 of this book. In depth discussion of the issue of the Christian and holiness will be held until then.

And be found in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith:

Phil 3:9

Even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe: for there is no difference:

Ro 3:22

In these two verses, the words translated ‘of’ are proper translations contrary to what many modern translations teach. Paul testifies to the fact that the righteousness that believers have is due to the faith of Christ and not their own faith. The Scripture teaches us that when one is saved, God comes to dwell in that believer (Ro 8:9, 2 Tim 1:14, etc). It is the supernatural union/communion of God with our spirit that saves us and causes us to exercise faith in Christ. But, it is important to understand that it is the faith of Christ working in us that leads to righteousness, not our own self-generated faith.

For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith.

Ro 1:17

This verse has been an enigma to many students of the word of God. However, when the Gospel is properly understood, this verse interprets itself. When it is understood that God elects certain individuals to salvation and then gives them the faith of Christ to be able to exercise saving faith, the meaning becomes evident. The righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith. In other words, the faith of Christ is given to His people to change their wills to exercise faith. The word ‘from’ in Ro 1:17 is the Greek word ek (G1537) which mean ‘out of’. Because we know that Jesus Christ is the Faithful One (Rev 1:5, Rev 3:14), it is His faith that is given to His people (see also Ro 3:22 above). And it is by this gift of faith that the Christian is made righteous. He can never be made righteous by his own attempt at faith.

Belief is a Work of God

It is important to review at this time the fact that faith is in itself a work. In John 6, we saw:

Then said they unto him, What shall we do, that we might work the works of God? Jesus answered and said unto them, This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent.

John 6:28-29

This Scripture informs us that the work of God is that we believe in Jesus Christ. It should be evident that faith in itself is a work. Galatians 2:16 and many other verses in the Bible teach that man can never be saved by works. Therefore, if we insist that we are saved by our own free will decision for Christ, we are essentially teaching a works salvation. As was seen in Chapter 2, faith requires some amount of exertion to be genuine. There is a dead faith that is generated by man and does not save. Faith has to be more than intellectual assent – it must involve repentance and a will to change one’s outlook towards God and His Word.

Consider the following Scripture that teaches that our faith is the working of God:

In whom also ye are circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, in putting off the body of the sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ: Buried with him in baptism, wherein also ye are risen with him through the faith of the operation of God, who hath raised him from the dead.

Col 2:11-12

We find in verse 12 that the faith that saves us is the operation or working of God. It is not our own free will decision to accept Christ. It is the working of God in the lives of those whom He chooses. The faith of Christ is given to us, and our will is changed to exercise saving faith. We are saved from faith to faith! We are the clay in the hands of the Great Potter (Ro 9:21-23). It is God who works and molds us into His image. He gives us the ability to believe. Nothing pertaining to eternal life is from ourselves (John 3:27, 1 Cor 4:7). It is by the working of God by His grace (Eph 2:8-9).

Justified by Grace

God gives us another proof that our saving belief (i.e. faith) in that there are several Scriptures that teach us that we are justified by grace (Titus 3:5-7, Ro 3:24-26, Eph 4:7) and several Scriptures that teach us that we are justified by faith (Ro 3:21-22,28-30, 4:5-7,25, 5:1, 2 Cor 5:19, Acts 13:39, Gal 3:8, etc). Consider the following Scriptures that teach us that we are saved by grace:

Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost; Which he shed on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Saviour; That being justified by his grace, we should be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life.

Titus 3:5-7

Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus: Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God; To declare, I say, at this time his righteousness: that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus.

Ro 3:24-26

But unto every one of us is given grace according to the measure of the gift of Christ.

Eph 4:7

We see in the above verses that Christians are justified by grace (i.e. the free gift of God). A gift is something that is freely given to us without any work or effort on our part. Therefore, we should understand that the faith that we are justified by is a gift and not necessarily our own faith. In the following verse, we see that we are justified by the faith of Christ:

Gal 2:16 (see also Phil 3:9)

Therefore, it should be understood that the faith that we are justified is given to us by grace. That faith is the faith of Christ. Our belief that we are saved by is given to us and, therefore, the result of God’s irresistible and sovereign working in the Christian. The believer has his heart circumcised by God in order that he will exercise saving faith (Deut 30:6, Ro 2:29).

But What About Simple Faith?

An objection that may be raised by some is that the Scripture teaches that we are saved by simple faith alone. Therefore, anyone can believe, and it is our own faith that saves us. Consider the following well-used Scriptures:

And brought them out, and said, Sirs, what must I do to be saved? And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house.

Acts 16:30-31

And said unto the woman, Now we believe, not because of thy saying: for we have heard him ourselves, and know that this is indeed the Christ, the Saviour of the world.

John 4:42

Whosoever believeth that Jesus is the Christ is born of God: and every one that loveth him that begat loveth him also that is begotten of him.

1 John 5:1

For after that in the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe.

1 Cor 1:21

For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved. He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.

John 3:16-18

He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him.

John 3:36

I said therefore unto you, that ye shall die in your sins: for if ye believe not that I am he, ye shall die in your sins.

John 8:24

Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me hath everlasting life.

John 6:47

To declare, I say, at this time his righteousness: that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus.

Ro 3:26

But for us also, to whom it shall be imputed, if we believe on him that raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead;

Ro 4:24

And many other signs truly did Jesus in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book: But these are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life through his name.

John 20:30-31

And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely.

Rev 22:17

These verses are truly beautiful in their simplicity of salvation. We find that all one has to do is believe and be saved. We can freely come to receive the water of life freely. All these Scriptures clearly state that salvation comes by man’s simple faith. But, unless we understand the full context of the Scriptures, we could easily be misled into believing that it is our own faith that saves us. As we have previously studied, it is not our own attempt at faith that saves us, but the powerful working of God in each elect person’s life that causes him or her to believe.

I truly believe that the prevalence of free will today is mostly due to a lack of understanding of the whole Bible in context. I am convinced that many people following the doctrine of free will believe in it due to the fact that they were brought up under that teaching or that they have only superficially understood the Bible. I am convicted that when a true believer studies the Bible with an open heart, he should not come to any other conclusion than the truth of the doctrine of election.

Returning to the above verses, it should be realized that it is true that we are saved by simple faith alone. But, understanding the context of the whole Bible, it is found that this simple faith is not our own. It is the faith of Christ that is freely given to us. All the above verses can be easily harmonized with election. It is true that all we have to do to be saved is to believe. Man in his depraved condition will not do this though. He is rebellious towards God (Ro 3:10-11, Is 53:6, Col 1:21). The ‘whosoever’ that will come and take freely and believe are the elect who are caused by God to believe.

It is interesting to note that the word translated ‘whosoever’ in the Greek is literally ‘every one that’. In today’s understanding, the term ‘whosoever’ seems to imply that it is available to all and that all could possibly believe. While it is true that in a sense salvation is available to all, all men are naturally rebellious to God. It is only those who have had their hearts circumcised by God who will believe. They are the ‘every one that’ referred to in these verses. These verses should never be used to teach that all men in their free will belief can exercise saving faith. These verses never teach that at all. They simply teach that every one that believes will be saved and the ‘every one that’ is limited to those who God has planned to save.

But What About 1 Cor 15:14?

And if Christ be not risen, then is our preaching vain, and your faith is also vain.

1 Cor 15:14

Some use this verse to teach that it is truly a person’s own faith by which he is saved because it refers to the faith as being ‘yours’. But, this reasoning falls short. It needs to be clearly understood that we are indeed saved by our own faith in that it is the saving faith that was given to us. That is what grace is all about. When we are given a gift, it becomes our own. So, in this sense, we are saved by our faith. But, it needs to be remembered that without receiving the circumcision of the heart and by being given the faith of Christ, we would never have believed in our own power. There is no contradiction in this verse. Saving faith is truly our own once it is given to us by God.

In this chapter, it has been seen that repentance and faith are a gift of God. God causes believers to exercise repentance and saving faith. In the next chapter, more Scripture will be examined that builds an insurmountable argument for election. We will look at many Scriptures that plainly teach that salvation is granted by God, and believers are caused to be saved in the sovereign will and purpose of God.

Chapter 9 Salvation Determined by God’s Will

In this chapter, we will investigate the fact that salvation is granted to the elect according to God’s predetermined will. We have already seen that man’s salvation is not dependent on his works. It is a result of the merciful gift of God. People are saved by God through His call to them by the Gospel. To fully understand God’s sovereignty in salvation, we will briefly review the call of God and God’s use of people to preach the Gospel. Then, we will carefully examine Scriptures that teach that each individual’s salvation is only by the sovereign will of God, not man’s will. Many Scriptures will be offered that teach that it is God alone that completely causes of our salvation.

The Call of God

The Bible refers to believers as being ‘called’ of God:

To all that be in Rome, beloved of God, called to be saints: Grace to you and peace from God our Father, and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Ro 1:7

Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, whereunto thou art also called, and hast professed a good profession before many witnesses.

1 Tim 6:12

Wherefore, holy brethren, partakers of the heavenly calling, consider the Apostle and High Priest of our profession, Christ Jesus;

Heb 3:1

But when it pleased God, who separated me from my mother’s womb, and called me by his grace, To reveal his Son in me, that I might preach him among the heathen; immediately I conferred not with flesh and blood:

Gal 1:15-16

Paul called to be an apostle of Jesus Christ through the will of God, and Sosthenes our brother, Unto the church of God which is at Corinth, to them that are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints, with all that in every place call upon the name of Jesus Christ our Lord, both their’s and our’s:

1 Cor 1:1-2

1 Cor 1:26-28

But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you.

1 Pet 5:10

Wherefore the rather, brethren, give diligence to make your calling and election sure: for if ye do these things, ye shall never fall:

2 Pet 1:10

Who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began

2 Tim 1:9

From the above verses, it should be evident that the Scriptures refer to Christians as those who were called. God has called them through the Gospel in order to lead them to salvation. Another interesting fact in the New Testament that points to the fact that believers are called is the usage of the term church. The Greek word for church is ekklesia. This word literally means ‘that which is called out’. The word ‘church’ is used many times in the New Testament (Rev 1:4,11, Philemon 2, Heb 2:12, 12:23, James 5:14, 3 John 6,9,10, 1 Tim 3:5,15, 2 Thess 1:1,4, 1 Thess 1:1, 2:14, Col 1:18,24, Eph 1:22, Gal 1;2, 2 Cor 1:1, 1 Cor 1:2, Ro 16:1-5). Therefore, it follows that Christians are referred to as ones that are called.

At this juncture, it is tempting to jump to the conclusion that the term ‘called’ proves that mankind is depraved and is not willing to come to God on its own. Therefore, mankind needs God to change his depraved will, thus verifying the doctrine of election. But, this argument, by itself, is insufficient for teaching that God leads and sovereignly causes the elect to believe. One could argue that God calls many more men through the Gospel than actually become saved. Therefore, we must better develop what the call of God is to prove the doctrine of election.

The Call of God Comes by the Gospel as Preached by People

To help understand what the call of God is, it is important to look at Scriptures that teach that men are saved through the Gospel and that the Gospel is preached through man:

How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher? And how shall they preach, except they be sent? as it is written, How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good things! But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Esaias saith, Lord, who hath believed our report? So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. But I say, Have they not heard? Yes verily, their sound went into all the earth, and their words unto the ends of the world.

Ro 10:14-18

In Ro 10:17, the Scripture says that faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God. It is only when the Gospel is preached, that men actually come to have faith. Faith is put into action by the hearing of the word.

This passage also teaches that the Word of God is brought through the hands of men. Even the Bible itself, inspired of God, was penned through man. Men have been sent out into the world by God to preach His Gospel by which man may be saved (see Col 1:5-6). God used the apostle Paul to send forth the Gospel in the first century A.D. (see Acts 26:16-18). It is by the hands of men that the Gospel in entrusted. In Mat 28:19- 20, Jesus commands His disciples to go out into all the world to preach the Gospel (see also Luke 24:46-48, Mk 16:15).

Finally, in the Great Commission passage, we see that the Gospel has gone out into all ends of the earth. This is not to say that each and every person has actually heard the Gospel throughout all time. This cannot be true. But, it does teach that the Gospel has gone into all types of places and cultures.

A Perplexing Question

This brings us to a very perplexing question: If the free will doctrine is true, why is it that not all people have heard the Gospel? While it is absolutely true that the Gospel has gone out into all ends of the earth, there is no one that can assert that each and every person has heard the Gospel. Those in many remote lands throughout time that have never had the Gospel preached to them. Many countries in the East fall into this category. Even in the great missionary days of Paul, not all people alive at that time could have possibly have heard the Gospel, since the Gospel did not go to the Indians in America, in the Far East or other similar remote areas. Additionally, before Christ came to the earth, there were multitudes of people that never heard the Gospel since God primarily dealt with the nation of Israel. Even today, there are some in remote and dark areas that have never been presented with the true Gospel.

The Bible teaches that it is only through Christ that one may be saved (Acts 4:12, John 14:6, 10:9, 1 Tim 2:5, Acts 10:43, etc). We cannot say that these people who have not heard have a chance for salvation via some other gospel. If we say this, then we are contradicting the Bible’s clear teaching on the matter that Christ is the only way to salvation. Therefore, we are left with a most perplexing problem. Is God unloving and unfair in that he does not see to it that all people hear the Gospel and, therefore, have an opportunity to be saved?

This becomes a major problem with those who hold to the free will teaching. They either ignore this problem, teach that those who have not heard will be presented with the Gospel in a ‘millennial kingdom’, or they teach that some other ritual or sacrifice that they perform in full hearted service to their god will save them. These notions are with no Biblical support and are clearly heretical (e.g. Heb 9:27).

But, how do we answer the problem that not all have heard the Gospel? With a proper understanding of election, the answer becomes quite simple. God will ensure that those who are to be saved will hear the Gospel. In other words, God sovereignly works through man by the preaching of the Gospel in order that the Gospel is heard and the elect may believe.

However, it is also interesting to note that the unsaved also may hear the call of the Gospel. It should be obvious that since man does not know who the elect are, the Gospel will be preached to many others as well. Many of these others may even believe in their own strength. But, if they have not been given the faith of Christ, their human belief is futile. These are those who enter the ranks of the churches, but will either fall away from the faith or prove themselves not to be believers by their detestable works (more will be said of this in Part 4). The Bible teaches us that many are called, but few are chosen (see Mat 22:14, 20:16). In fact, there are many Biblical parables and other texts that teach that many who profess to be Christian, indeed, are not. The following Scriptures are just a few of many that attest to this fact, and the reader is encouraged to study these Scriptures: Luke 12:41-48, Jude 4, Mat 22:1-14, Mat 13:3-9, 18-23, Luke 14:15-24, 1 Cor 11:19, Gal 2:4, 2 Cor 11:12-15, 1 John 2:18-19, 2 John 7-11, 1 Tim 4:1-4, 2 Tim 3:1-9, etc.

The Call of God is According to His Will

We will now look at several Scriptures that teach that God’s call is effective and directed toward the elect. God’s call will reach many others besides the elect, but when the elect hear His call they will follow. As we have already studied, the reason that the elect will follow is due to the fact that God opens their hearts to receive the faith of Christ and their will is changed to believe in Christ. The following Scriptures testify to the fact that the call of God, although sent through men, is indeed the working of God to irresistibly cause the elect to believe:

He saith unto them, But whom say ye that I am? And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God. And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven.

Mat 16:15-17

And he said, The God of our fathers hath chosen thee, that thou shouldest know his will, and see that Just One, and shouldest hear the voice of his mouth.

Acts 22:14

It is written in the prophets, And they shall be all taught of God. Every man therefore that hath heard, and hath learned of the Father, cometh unto me.

John 6:45

Careful inspection of these verses and their associated contexts should reveal that when a person truly is saved, it is due to the fact that God has called them. It is true that this will happen through men. But, it is the word of God that is the source of the Gospel. The fact that Peter in Mat 16:15-17 stated that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God, did not come through the revelation of man, but through God. God sovereignly chose to reveal this truth to Peter in order that he would be a disciple of Christ. In Acts 22:14, Paul was chosen by God to know the will of God and be saved. Faith was given to Paul by God. Finally, in John 6:45 the Scripture teaches us that every man who has heard and learned from the Father will come to Jesus. In other words, the call of God is only effective when it is God Himself who opens the deaf ears of a man in order that he will believe and be saved. It is not man’s own free will decision. It is the sovereign working of God in the life of the elect person that causes him to be saved. It is important to note in John 6:45 that the Scripture says that everyone who hears from God will be saved. Others hear the Gospel, but it is only those who God chooses who will be saved.

Salvation Dependent on God’s Will

We will now look at additional Scriptures that teach that man is saved according to God’s will and not man’s will. This argument in and of itself is very powerful evidence for the Gospel of election. To begin, let us turn to a very popular verse:

But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name: Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.

John 1:12-13

I stand in amazement at how often verse 12 of this passage is quoted without verse 13. Verse 12 by itself has been used many times to teach free will. After all, it seems to teach that any one at all who receives Christ will be saved. But, this shows the great danger of not taking verses in their context. In verse 13, the Scripture expands on verse 12 in that it teaches that those who become saved are not born again by the will of the flesh, but by the will of God. What clearer proof could there be for election? If free will were true, the Scripture could hardly teach that Christians are not born again due to man’s will. Verse 13, in this case, should simply teach that they were born again due to man’s will or, at least, man’s will had a part in their salvation. But, the Scripture very carefully points out that it is not man’s will that causes salvation, but it is the will of God that causes salvation.

For he saith to Moses, I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion. So then it is not of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God that sheweth mercy.

Ro 9:15-16

In the context of this verse, we find a discussion concerning the spiritual status of national Israel. Paul was bemoaning the fact that national Israel as a nation was cut off and many were not saved. But, in Romans 9:15-16 we find an answer to the matter of who is to be saved. Salvation is due to God’s will. God will have mercy on whom He desires and will harden whom he will harden (Ro 9:18). Verse 16 teaches us that it is not man’s will that determines who will be saved, but rather it is God’s will. If it were man’s will that determined his salvation, no one would be saved since all men are in rebellion to God and His law. Additionally, if we were to say that it was man’s will that had a part in determining his salvation, then salvation would be based on works and not grace.

An interesting account that salvation is dependent totally on God’s will is found in the following passage:

Howbeit the most High dwelleth not in temples made with hands; as saith the prophet, Heaven is my throne, and earth is my footstool: what house will ye build me? saith the Lord: or what is the place of my rest? Hath not my hand made all these things? Ye stiffnecked and uncircumcised in heart and ears, ye do always resist the Holy Ghost: as your fathers did, so do ye.

Acts 7:48-51

We find in this passage that the house of God cannot be built with human hands. The house of God refers to the universal church of God (1 Cor 3:16-17, 2 Cor 6:16, 2 Thess 2:4, etc). Man, in his own might and abilities, can never build the church of God. It is only God, sovereignly working through man, that can build the church. It is the hand (i.e. will) of God that builds the church.

All things are delivered unto me of my Father: and no man knoweth the Son, but the Father; neither knoweth any man the Father, save the Son, and he to whomsoever the Son will reveal him. Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.

Mat 11:27-28

Here is another proof that it is God’s will as to who will become saved. In the context of Mat 11:27, we find that those who are weary and heavy laden will come to Christ to find rest and be saved (verse 28). But, it is only those whom the Son reveals Himself to who will come to be saved. It is the working of God in His good pleasure to reveal the Son in order for some to be saved. Any other man-generated belief results only in superficial spiritual knowledge and dead faith, which cannot save. So, we find that it is the will of God that determines who will be spiritually enlightened in order to be saved. The following Scriptures are offered at this time for further review and study. In all cases, the Scriptures clearly teach that it is the will of God and not man that results in salvation.

Of his own will begat he us with the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures.

James 1:18

Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.

Mat 6:10

Who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began,

2 Tim 1:9

(For the children being not yet born, neither having done any good or evil, that the purpose of God according to election might stand, not of works, but of him that calleth;)

Ro 9:11

For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren.

Ro 8:29

For the promise is unto you, and to your children, and to all that are afar off, even as many as the LORD our God shall call.

Acts 2:39

Coming to God is Granted by God

Another Scriptural truth concerning the Gospel of election is that the Scriptures refer to the coming of Christians to God as being granted by God. On the surface, free will adherents may quickly agree and say that if it were not for God granting the ability to be saved to all men, no one would be saved. This, however, is a distortion of what the Scripture teaches. The Scripture teaches that the ability that God gives man to be saved is granted to only the elect and the ability to come to God is always effective. That is, everyone who is given the ability to come to God will come to God through the sovereign working of God.

No One Can Come to God Unless Granted By God

And he said, Therefore said I unto you, that no man can come unto me, except it were given unto him of my Father.

John 6:65

For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure.

Phil 2:13

According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue:

2 Pet 1:3

For unto you it is given in the behalf of Christ, not only to believe on him, but also to suffer for his sake;

Phil 1:29

And when the Gentiles heard this, they were glad, and glorified the word of the Lord: and as many as were ordained to eternal life believed.

Acts 13:48

2 Thess 2:13

The above Scriptures testify to the fact that no man can be saved unless it is granted to him by God. In other words, man’s own belief, will or other effort cannot bring him to a saving faith in Christ. It is only when God grants the individual belief that he will become a child of God. In this sense the believer is appointed to believe (Acts 13:48). It is God who works in us for His good pleasure. He is the Potter and we are the clay (Ro 9:19-22). He has given us all things that pertain to life and godliness. All things that He has given to us include the ability to believe. If we were to say (as do the free will adherents) that He has given us all things that pertain to salvation except our free will decision to believe, then 2 Pet 1:3 would be violated since it says that He has given us all things. The ‘free will’ position amounts to a works doctrine of salvation since there is some effort required on man’s part to be saved. But, when we look at the whole context of the Bible, we see God’s sovereignty in our salvation.

It is important to note at this point that election is beautiful in that it teaches man’s utter inability and God’s complete ability. The Gospel is beautiful in that it totally exalts God and gives no place to man’s ability or actions. In this sense, free will errs in that it takes away from the working and sovereignty of God, and it gives man some part in the salvation experience.

God Came to us, We did not Come to Him

But Esaias is very bold, and saith, I was found of them that sought me not; I was made manifest unto them that asked not after me.

Ro 10:20 (Is 65:1)

But now, after that ye have known God, or rather are known of God, how turn ye again to the weak and beggarly elements, whereunto ye desire again to be in bondage?

Gal 4:9

For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren. Moreover whom he did predestinate, them he also called: and whom he called, them he also justified: and whom he justified, them he also glorified. What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us? He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things? Who shall lay any thing to the charge of God’s elect? It is God that justifieth.

Ro 8:29-33

In Ro 10:20, the Scripture teaches that God was found by those who were not seeking for Him. We were not looking for God in order to be saved. We are all, in the natural state, in rebellion to God and do not understand (Ro 3:10-11). Man can believe in Jesus in his own power but, it is a superficial knowledge that cannot bring salvation. In the context of Romans 10, the Scripture is teaching us that the Gentiles who were not looking for God or desiring Him found Him. In other words, God opened their darkened, alienated minds (Eph 4:17-19) so that they would find God. Therefore, it was God who made the approach to man and not that man was seeking to truly serve and follow God. It is true that we have come to know God. But as Gal 4:9 teaches, knowing God is first due to the fact that he knew us. In this sense, it is God who chooses us and not that we choose Him (John 15:16).

We see in Ro 8:29-33 that it is because God foreknew the elect that they became saved. He predestined them according to the good pleasure of His will (Eph 1:4-5,11). God was faithful to arrange that those who were predestined would be called through the Gospel in order that, by the gift of God, they would receive the faith of Christ. In this passage, we see the working of God in the life of the elect person to lead him to salvation. In this sense, it is God who performs all the work to secure the believer’s salvation. It is God who comes to the believer and causes him to believe and know God.

The Elect are Brought to God

The Scripture teaches that the elect do not come to God looking for salvation. It is God who draws them for salvation:

All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out…No man can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me draw him: and I will raise him up at the last day.

John 6:37,44

Blessed is the man whom thou choosest, and causest to approach unto thee, that he may dwell in thy courts: we shall be satisfied with the goodness of thy house, even of thy holy temple.

Ps 65:4

And he spake unto Korah and unto all his company, saying, Even tomorrow the LORD will shew who are his, and who is holy; and will cause him to come near unto him: even him whom he hath chosen will he cause to come near unto him.

Num 16:5

These 4 Scriptures in and of themselves teach election. They are so beautiful in their simplicity and profoundness. They all teach that man cannot approach God on his own. This is because he is depraved as we saw in Part 1 of this book. Next, we see that God needs to choose certain individuals that will become His own. This was covered in Part 2 of this book as seen in the fact that God will choose certain individuals to salvation. Finally, it is God who causes the elect person to come to God and be saved. In John 6:37, we find the beautiful truth that all that the Father gives to Christ will come to Christ. The glorious promise is that none of the elect will be cast out. In other words, they will all persevere and can never be lost. In John 6:44, we find that these men that come to Christ cannot come in their own strength, but it is the Father who draws them to Christ. In other words, man is unable to exercise free will saving belief. He needs God to give him the faith to be saved.

In the 2 Old Testament passages, it is interesting to note that election was clearly preached as well. In both passages, God chooses those who he will cause to approach Himself. In the case of Numbers 16, those who were not caused to approach God were not necessarily inferior people according to the world’s standards. They were of the tribe of Levi (the chosen priestly tribe) and the tribe of Reuben (the first-born tribe). But, in order that God’s sovereignty and His principle of election by grace should be seen, He sovereignly chose Moses and Aaron to be the leaders of the congregation of Israel.

God Performs the Reconciliation

Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new. And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation

2 Cor 5:17-18

Col 1:21-23

In these two Scriptures, we find that it is God who performs the reconciliation between man and God. On the surface, this may not seem like a strong argument for election. However, if we say that we can be saved by exercising our own faith in Christ, then we are essentially saying that we played a part in the reconciliation. No longer could we claim, as the Scriptures do, that reconciliation is all God’s work. For, if we could truly decide for ourselves to accept Christ, then we have made an approach to making reconciliation with God. This, of course, is blasphemous even to suggest such an idea. It is all the work of God to perform the reconciliation. It is Christ’s atoning work that is perfect and totally adequate for our salvation. We have no part in the matter of our atonement. We can limit the effectiveness of Christ’s atonement that he has made for us by saying that we have part of the reconciliation because we made a free will decision to accept Christ. It is only the atoning work of Christ that has made us die to the law (see Ro 7:4) and be made alive in the Spirit.

Christians are Caused to be Born Again

This brings us to another important point: God has caused believers to be born again. The doctrine of free will teaches that Christ and God have provided a means by which we may be saved. But, it is the believer himself who claims the salvation. That is, because each individual has a free will choice whether to accept or reject Christ, each person has control over his destiny to be saved or not. In this scheme, man can be viewed as ultimately responsible for causing his salvation. God provided a means for salvation, but the believer causes his salvation. This is contrary to the following Scriptures:

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.

1 Pet 1:3

John 1:12-13

Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again. The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit.

John 3:8

In 1 Pet 1:3, it is God who has begotten us again. He is the ultimate source of our being saved. It is not our work added to faith that saves us. It is all the work of God to make us become born again. Similar teaching is found in the 2 passages in John. As previously discussed in John 1:12- 13, we find that believers are born again not due to their own will but by the will of God. Here again, we see that it is all God, and not of us.

John 3:8 is another interesting verse that supports the fact that God causes our salvation. In response to Nicodemus, Jesus told him not to marvel. Just as the wind cannot be seen and its source cannot be seen, so it is with being born again. People cannot see the work of God that causes a believer to be born again. It is the sovereign purpose of God that causes a person’s salvation. We cannot see someone make a decision for Christ and say that that is the point of their salvation. All we see is the result of God’s work of causing them to be born again. When a person makes a genuine profession of faith, this is the outworking result of the fact that God has already saved them. Therefore, when a believer is born of the Spirit, no one can tell what was the motive force behind that salvation. In the free will gospel scheme, we find a gospel that teaches that one can know the instant of their salvation because they made a ‘decision for Christ’. That is contrary to the teaching of Scripture.

God Causes the Elect to Turn to Him

Turn us again, O God, and cause thy face to shine; and we shall be saved. So will not we go back from thee: quicken us, and we will call upon thy name. Turn us again, O LORD God of hosts, cause thy face to shine; and we shall be saved.

Ps 80:3, 18-19 (see also Ps 85:4, 126:1)

Turn thou us unto thee, O LORD, and we shall be turned; renew our days as of old.

Lam 5:21

I have surely heard Ephraim bemoaning himself thus; Thou hast chastised me, and I was chastised, as a bullock unaccustomed to the yoke: turn thou me, and I shall be turned; for thou art the LORD my God. Surely after that I was turned, I repented; and after that I was instructed, I smote upon my thigh: I was ashamed, yea, even confounded, because I did bear the reproach of my youth.

Jer 31:18-19

In these Old Testament passages, we find an appeal for God to turn the sinner back to God. Man can never exercise saving faith without the sovereign working of God. Only God has the ability to change the heart of man in order for him to repent and be saved.

In this chapter, we have seen that God is sovereign. Salvation can never be dependent on man’s will. Rather, God alone according to the wonderful counsel of His will has designed a salvation plan and has elected His people to become saved. All elements of the salvation experience are caused by God. Without God, man is unable to be pleasing in God’s sight and is doomed to an eternity in hell.

Chapter 10 The Holy Spirit’s Work in Salvation

Another significant Biblical fact concerning election will be considered in this chapter. In Chapter 2, we briefly looked at the Scriptural teaching that mankind is spiritually dead. Just as a dead man cannot raise himself from the dead, people are unable in their own power to save themselves. And more importantly for our study at hand, people are unable to respond in their own power to the Gospel. As will be demonstrated in this chapter, it is the work of the Holy Spirit in salvation that enlightens and enables a person to be saved.

The point to be made in this chapter is this: If it can be shown that it is the Holy Spirit who enlightens man to be saved, then it must follow that man is unable to exercise free will belief that results in salvation. Furthermore, if we say that the Holy Spirit ‘urges’ man, but man still has the final decision to believe, then we ignore the Biblical teaching of the spiritual deadness of man.

Mankind is Spiritually Dead

The fact that unsaved people are referred to as spiritually dead is beyond debate. The following Scriptures and Biblical pictures attest to this fact:

And you, being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh, hath he quickened together with him, having forgiven you all trespasses.

Col 2:13

Eph 2:1-5

But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.

Gen 2:17

For as the Father raiseth up the dead, and quickeneth them; even so the Son quickeneth whom he will.

John 5:21

Verily, verily, I say unto you, The hour is coming, and now is, when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God: and they that hear shall live.

John 5:25

For they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh; but they that are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit. For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be. So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God.

Ro 8:5-8

(As it is written, I have made thee a father of many nations,) before him whom he believed, even God, who quickeneth the dead, and calleth those things which be not as though they were.

Ro 4:17

We should be able to see from the above passages that deadness is often used in the Bible to speak of a person’s spiritual state. Mankind is spiritually dead in their trespasses and sins. When Adam sinned, he plunged mankind into spiritual death (see Ro 5:12-21). The interesting fact in the usage of ‘death’ as a picture of mankind’s spiritual state is that ‘death’ pictures the fact that mankind is unable to bring itself to life. This should be evident to all including those who hold to free will. But, another important fact is that death pictures mankind’s inability to even respond to a call of God.

The free will teachers would have you believe that while it is true that mankind is spiritually dead, mankind is still able to make up its own mind to either accept or reject the Gospel. This, to me, seems to violate the picture of spiritual deadness. We are not just spiritually ignorant, we are also spiritually dead. Therefore, as we shall shortly see, God needs to spiritually enliven us by the working of the Holy Spirit in order to affect our wills so that we will believe the Gospel. It is when we are enlivened that we will exercise saving faith.

There are many Scriptures that confirm that God causes Christians to be made spiritually alive. It is only God who grants this new life. As we read in Col 2:13, Eph 2:1-5, Ro 4:17, and John 5:21-25, it is God who makes us spiritually alive. Man has no ability to make himself alive any more than a dead man can. It is only God that can do that. Additionally, the Bible in the Old Testament refers to the fact that we cannot be saved unless God revives and restores us (e.g. Ps 80:3,18-19, 60:1, 65:4). That is, all of our ability to respond to God and call on Him is dependent on His revival of our dead spiritual nature.

Raising the Dead is a Picture of Salvation

It is important to take a quick sidetrack to look at another significant fact that points to mankind’s natural spiritual deadness. In the gospels, there are three notable examples of Jesus raising the dead:

Raising of Jairus’ Daughter – Mat 9:18-26, Mk 5:22-24, 35-43, Lk 8:41-42, 49-56

Raising the Widow’s Son – Luke 7:11-15

Raising of Lazarus from the Dead – John 11

Although all 3 examples can be seen to represent a picture of the saving work of Christ, we will briefly look at the raising of Lazarus from the dead. Lazarus had been dead 4 days when Christ raised him. By that time, he should have smelled from the decay of his body. But, instead the Lord raised him. The important thing for us to see from this passage is that Lazarus had no power to do anything to effect his salvation. He was at the mercy of Christ who raised him. This is similar to how Christians are saved. They are dirty, rotten, stinking dead sinners. Christians can do nothing to affect their salvation. The free will teachers would have you believe that Christ does almost all the work, but there is a little something that one must do as well. They teach that you must, in your free will, believe and, thereby, be saved. This is faith plus works. It is close to the truth because it acknowledges man’s sinful condition and the fact that Christ is the center of our salvation experience, but they fail because they allow for man to get some of the credit. We see from the Bible that it is God who does all the work to raise us from our spiritual dead state.

The Holy Spirit Gives Enlightenment

Let us move on to see the work of the Holy Spirit in our salvation experience. This study will also help to prove the fact that God does all the work in salvation and that man cannot do any work towards his salvation, including his free will belief. In Chapter 3, we saw that mankind is spiritually blind and deaf (e.g. see Ro 3:10-11, 11:7-8, Mat 13:10-17, Ro 1:21, Mk 4:11-12, Ro 8:7-8, 1 Cor 2:7-14, Titus 1:15, Eph 4:17-18, Phil 1:29, Deut 29:4, Is 6:9-10, 29:10, 43:8, Jer 5:21-22, Ez 12:2, Acts 28:26-27, etc). Therefore, they are unable in their own strength to become unblinded or make themselves able to hear. It is only the work of the Holy Spirit which enlightens man in order for him to believe.

The following passage testifies to the fact that it is the Holy Spirit who sovereignly works in the elect in order to enlighten them to the Gospel so that they will exercise saving faith:

But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, even the hidden wisdom, which God ordained before the world unto our glory: Which none of the princes of this world knew: for had they known it, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him. But God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God. For what man knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him? even so the things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God. Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God. Which things also we speak, not in the words which man’s wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual. But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.

1 Cor 2:7-14

In this passage, we find that the natural (i.e. unsaved) man does not receive the things of the Spirit since they are spiritually discerned. The unsaved man’s mind is set on the things of the flesh and is at enmity with God (Ro 8:5-8). Therefore, in the natural, man is unable to exercise saving faith because he is hostile to God. But, as we see in our passage above, God reveals truth by the Holy Spirit. Without the Holy Spirit’s influence on a person, they would be unable to understand spiritual things let alone be able to exercise saving faith. Since the Gospel is spiritual truth, it should be understood that without the Holy Spirit, man could never exercise saving faith. It is only when the natural man hears the Gospel with the ear of faith that he will be saved (see John 5:25). It is by the Holy Spirit that man is sanctified and, therefore, saved (see 1 Pet 1:2, 2 Thess 2:13, 1 Pet 1:2, Jude 1, Acts 26:18). It is by the Holy Spirit that man is made alive spiritually and, therefore, is saved (see Col 2:13, Eph 2:1-5, Ro 4:17, John 5:21, Col 3:1, Mat 12:34, etc). It is the Holy Spirit who gives life (2 Cor 3:6, Ro 8:5-8, John 6:63). It is the Holy Spirit who was poured out on man (see Ez 39:29, Acts 2:16-17, Joel 2:28-32, Is 32:15, 44:3, 59:21, Zech 12:10, Pr 1:23) so that the elect could be enlightened, convicted and quickened to eternal life. Just as Peter could only declare Jesus as Christ, the Son of the living God, by the working of God (see Mat 16:16-17), it is the Holy Spirit by which we say ‘Lord’ (1 Cor 12:3)!

Christians are Born of the Spirit

The Bible teaches that all Christians are born of the Spirit. In John 3:1-21, Jesus had a discourse with Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews. Jesus told Nicodemus that unless a man is born of the Spirit, he cannot be saved. This points to the intimate connection the Holy Spirit has in the salvation of men. Without being born again by the Spirit, no man can see the Kingdom of God. Man can make a ‘free will’ decision to believe in Jesus, but unless he has truly been born of the Spirit, he is not saved. Jesus makes an interesting statement in John 3:8:

The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit.

John 3:8

Here, Jesus emphasizes how the work of the Holy Spirit is to be observed. Just as we cannot see where the wind comes from and where it goes, so it is of those who are saved. God, by the Holy Spirit, works in the believer’s heart to cause him to believe. No one can observe that this work is going on in the believer, but it happens. No man can ‘pinpoint’ the exact moment of his conversion since the faith that he exercises in believing in Jesus is the outward working of the inward work of the Holy Spirit. It is by the Holy Spirit that we can truly call Jesus Lord (1 Cor 12:3). Without the work already done by God in changing our wills, we could never call Jesus ‘Lord’ (i.e. be saved).

The Purity of the Gospel

Let us pause and revisit an important objection to the fact that God irresistibly causes the elect to exercise saving faith. The free will teachers will agree that it is true that the Holy Spirit will enlighten man to believe and that without this enlightenment man would never believe. However, they maintain that this enlightenment is given to all, or at least many men. Man has the final decision whether he will accept or reject this ‘urging’ of the Holy Spirit. This argument is based on John 16:8-11 & John 1:9. This objection was dealt with at some length in Chapter 3 and will not be repeated here except to state the conclusions for rejecting the objection:

This view teaches that man has a spark of goodness in himself to decide for himself to accept or reject the Gospel and, therefore, God does not fully cause man’s salvation.
This view is in direct conflict with the Scriptural teaching discussed in Part 1 of this book concerning the utter depravity of man.
If John 16:8-11 and John 1:9 are understood to teach ‘universal conviction and illumination’, then these Scriptures would conflict with reality since not all men are convicted and enlightened about sin, righteousness, and judgment.
God does not intend for all men to spiritually understand. He deafens those who are not of the elect (Mat 13:10-16, Mk 4:11-12, Lk 8:9-10, Ro 1:24-28).
Careful interpretation of John 1:9 & John 16:8-11 shows that these Scriptures do not teach ‘universal conviction or illumination’. These passages support the Scriptural teaching that the Holy Spirit will illumine and convict only the elect to bring them to salvation.

With this as a background, consider the following:

Doctrine 1 – False Teaching

Saved by keeping the law or some other work (e.g. baptismal regeneration, etc)

Errors:

Bible teaches that the works of the law cannot result in salvation (Eph 2:8-9, Gal 2:16, 3:11, Ro 3:21-31, etc)

Doctrine 2 – False Teaching

Saved by a free will decision to believe without urging of the Holy Spirit

Errors:

Bible teaches that the unsaved man cannot understand spiritual truth (1 Cor 2:14)
Belief is a work (John 6:28-29, 3:36, 1 John 3:23, etc)
Man is depraved and does not want God (Ro 3:10-11, Is 53:6, Col 1:21, Jer 17:9, etc)

Doctrine 3 – False Teaching

Saved by a free will decision to believe due to the urging of the Holy Spirit

Errors:

Allows for man to have a spark of goodness (i.e. a good work spiritually)
Man is depraved and does not truly want God (Ro 3:10-11, Is 53:6, Col 1:21, Jer 17:9, etc)
It is evident that not all people have been urged by the Holy Spirit to make a decision for Christ (Ro 1:24-32)
God does not intend for all men to spiritually understand. He further deafens those who are not of the elect (Mat 13:10-16, Mk 4:11-12, Lk 8:9-10, Ro 1:24-28).
Careful exegesis of John 16:8-11 and John 1:9 teach that the Holy Spirit only truly illuminates and convicts the elect

Doctrine 4 – True Teaching Concerning the Gospel

Saved by a divinely caused change of will in the Elect by the Holy Spirit’s enlightenment:

Doctrines 1,2, and 3 are false while doctrine 4 is true. In a sense, all Christian teaching concerning salvation could generally be fit into one of these 4 statements of the way of salvation. Only the fourth is true. But, we can also see an ascending closeness to the truth from doctrine 1 to doctrine 4. In doctrine 1, we find an obvious perversion of Scripture in that this salvation plan outwardly necessitates man’s work to be saved. Although there are some verses in the Bible that seem to teach that works can save a person, when the whole Bible context is understood, we find that faith is what saves us. Good works are the evidence of salvation. More will be said of this in Part 4 of this book. It is the faith of Christ, not our own, that saves us.

In doctrine 2, we see a closer approach to truth in that this teaching recognizes that it is faith that saves a person. But, the error here is that it teaches that it is man’s own faith that saves him. This doctrine does not give any credit to the ministry of the Holy Spirit, but rather credits man with the work of belief.

Doctrine 3 makes an even closer approach to truth in that it recognizes that God must play a very large part in man’s salvation. It recognizes that it is the Holy Spirit that illumines and convicts people. But, it falls short in that it still gives man a place in the salvation experience. It does not teach that the conviction and illumination of the Holy Spirit is altogether effective resulting in salvation. It allows for a free will decision to either accept or reject the urging of the Holy Spirit. This is the doctrine that most ‘evangelical, fundamental and/or conservative’ Christians would believe in. But, it is only the fourth plan which is the true teaching concerning salvation. This is the pure offensive Gospel as beautifully articulated by the Reformers and other great theologians throughout church history. But, most importantly, it is what the Bible teaches!

Chapter 11 The Irresistible Work of God in Biblical Pictures

Now that the foundation is laid that God sovereignly chooses and causes the elect to believe, let us examine some Biblical pictures that illustrate salvation. In this chapter, several illustrations of salvation will be examined. In each case, the sovereignty of God should be evident. That is, in these examples it will be seen that it is not the believer’s choice or work to become saved, but it is all God’s work.

It is important to note that this and the next chapter will present Biblical illustrations of the sovereign working of God to save the elect. These 2 chapters are not intended to be ‘proof-texts’ necessarily for election. However, when interpreted properly, they do provide powerful support for election.

It is important to remember when looking at spiritual meanings of the Scripture that we must compare Scripture with Scripture to draw conclusions about the spiritual meaning of a passage (see 1 Cor 2:13). It is only when we analyze the usage of types consistently in the word of God that we are able to come to truth on a matter. We cannot ‘spiritualize’ a portion of Scripture based on what we might think it means. We must carefully search the entire Bible for the usage of those types in order to allow the Bible to define their meanings. Types are used extensively throughout the Bible. A type is when God uses physical analogy or historical event to illustrate some great truth. For example, when He refers to Christians as sheep, this portrait illustrates to us our nature as Christians in that we are in need of a Shepherd and are easily led by the Shepherd.

Redemption From Slavery

The first Biblical illustration of salvation to be looked at is that of redemption. The Bible often uses this term when addressing the topic of salvation. As well it should be since there are many instructive elements contained within this term. The Greek words used for redemption (i.e. agorazo, ekagorazo, and lutroo) all portray the meaning of purchasing a slave out of the slave market (see Gal 3:13, Mk 11:15, Luke 17:28, 19:45, John 13:29, Rev 3:18, 5:9, 13:17, 14:3-4, 18:11, 1 Pet 1:18-20, Heb 9:12,22, Titus 2:14, Luke 24:21 for verses concerning redemption).

In the Bible, all people in the unregenerate state are in slavery to sin (see Ro 6:17-18, Gal 4:3,8, 21-31). In other words, mankind is held captive by Satan in order to do his will (2 Tim 2:24-26). The natural will of man is to sin (Eph 4:17-19). But, the question of interest to us is whether mankind can free itself from bondage to sin. Most Christians would assuredly answer ‘no’ to this question. But, a question of more interest is whether or not a person can cooperate with God in order to accept his redemption offer. That is, if God provides most of the provision for salvation, is there anything man can do to participate in the salvation program? If God provides the atonement of Christ by His death and blood, is it possible that man can, in his free will, accept this Gospel and, therefore, be saved? If so, then man plays a part in the salvation program.

As can be seen in the above Scriptures concerning redemption, it is clear that it is Christ who provides redemption for Christians. But, do Christians have to accept this offer of redemption to be saved? The clear answer from Scripture to this is no. Redemption was given to us without any strings attached.

Election fits the Biblical picture of redemption. When a slave is on the trading block, he or she does not have a choice as to whether or not he or she will be bought out of the slave market. The slaves are simply there and at the will of those who are bidding on them. Similarly, when a Christian is redeemed by Christ, he or she has nothing at all to do with the redemption. The redemption price was completely paid by the Redeemer. It would be absolute folly to use the picture of redemption (buying a slave out of the slave market) to picture salvation if free will were true. It would be similar to saying that the slave on the trading block has the choice of who is redeeming him. They could observe the bidders and decide for themselves who they wanted to go home with. This is sheer folly and in violation of the Biblical picture of redemption.

Additionally, the usage of redemption in Biblical context also supports the fact that believers are elect of God:

Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers; But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot: Who verily was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you, Who by him do believe in God, that raised him up from the dead, and gave him glory; that your faith and hope might be in God.

1 Pet 1:18-21

This Scripture gives a beautiful statement concerning our salvation. It is very interesting to note in verse 21 that it is by Christ that we believe. If free will were true, this would be most peculiar language to use. Why would it be by Christ? Should it not better to say that it is by our free will decision that we are saved? However, since the faith that we have is given by the grace of God (Eph 2:8-9), this language is appropriate.

In the following 2 verses in Revelation, we find that Christians were purchased from among men. This indicates that not all were purchased:

And they sung a new song, saying, Thou art worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation;

Rev 5:9

And they sung as it were a new song before the throne, and before the four beasts, and the elders: and no man could learn that song but the hundred and forty and four thousand, which were redeemed from the earth. These are they which were not defiled with women; for they are virgins. These are they which follow the Lamb whithersoever he goeth. These were redeemed from among men, being the firstfruits unto God and to the Lamb.

Rev 14:3-4

Here, we find that the elect have been redeemed from among men. These Scriptures do not teach that all men are redeemed, and it is up to mankind to accept that redemption. Rather, Christians are saved from among men. The fact that not all men are redeemed should also point to the fact that Christ did not come to save every man (see Chapter 7 on the topic concerning whom Christ died for). Therefore, it follows that since Christ did not redeem all men, He only wills to save those who are elect.

One final passage from the Old Testament concerning redemption should help reveal the fact that God has redeemed the elect and that redemption results in their faith:

Remember these, O Jacob and Israel; for thou art my servant: I have formed thee; thou art my servant: O Israel, thou shalt not be forgotten of me. I have blotted out, as a thick cloud, thy transgressions, and, as a cloud, thy sins: return unto me; for I have redeemed thee. Sing, O ye heavens; for the LORD hath done it: shout, ye lower parts of the earth: break forth into singing, ye mountains, O forest, and every tree therein: for the LORD hath redeemed Jacob, and glorified himself in Israel.

Is 44:21-23

In verse 22, God tells the people of Israel to return to Him since He has redeemed them. This a beautiful picture of the work of salvation. Christ has redeemed us by the gift of His precious blood. It is that redemption given to us that allows us to believe the Gospel. In other words, Christ first saves us and then we believe. Faith does not result in salvation. Faith and salvation are integrally connected. Christ has first saved us by His redemption. Then God draws us and opens are blind eyes and deaf ears in order that we will believe the Gospel.

The passage in Is 44 is an Old Testament symbol of the salvation plan of God to be revealed in the New Testament. This passage indicates that God has already done the work (i.e. blotted out their transgressions and sins). Therefore, God commands the people of Israel to return since they are already redeemed. The free will teachers would have you believe that it is our faith that causes God to save us and causes God to open our blind eyes. Not at all. As is evident in Is 44, the work of salvation is all God’s work in that He first redeems the elect and then in His proper time irresistibly calls them.

Bringing Back the Captives

Akin to the Biblical teaching concerning slavery and redemption is the prominent Old Testament teaching of the return of the captives from captivity. Both the Northern Kingdom of Israel and the Southern Kingdom of Judah were taken into captivity by the Assyrians and the Babylonians, respectively. In the Prophets, there was much Scriptural assurance of a future return from captivity. In 536 B.C., the people of Israel indeed did begin their return from captivity. However, this was just a fore-shadow of the true return from captivity, which has all to do with salvation.

In the New Testament, God tells us that Christ led captive a host of captives (Eph 4:4, Ps 68:18). In other words, Christ led the captivity out of their bondage and exile and brought them into the servitude of God. Additionally, in Luke 4:18 (see also Is 61:1), we find that Jesus proclaimed the release of the captives. This did not refer to the physical captives that were returned under Nehemiah and Ezra. Rather it had altogether to do with the salvation of man in Christ (see context of Luke 4). An additional Biblical confirmation that the return from captivity refers to salvation can be found in Deuteronomy 30. In this Scripture, we find a prophecy concerning the future of Israel. In Deut 29, it was prophesied that Israel would be taken into captivity. But, in Deut 30:3, He promised that they would be restored from captivity. Their hearts would be circumcised (verse 6). As we shall see later in this chapter, this circumcision of the heart refers to salvation in Christ. This is stated later in Deut 30 (i.e. verses 10-14). Here we find a passage that is quoted in Romans 10. In Romans 10, the context refers to salvation. Therefore, it is evident that the return from captivity has everything to do with salvation.

With this as a background, we can see the nature of captivity in relation to election. The captive does not possess the ability or the possibility to free himself from captivity. The captive has essentially no voice in his fate, whether he is released or not. Therefore, it should be seen that the picture of captivity refers to the fact that man is powerless to gain his freedom. He cannot decide for himself if he is to be freed or not. He is at the mercy of the Deliverer’s will. God, in His sovereign will, returns the captives from exile.

The Circumcised / New Heart

Blindness and deafness to spiritual truth is mankind’s natural state. This has previously been discussed in Chapter 3 and carries much Scriptural backing. In Chapter 10, we saw that it is the work of the Holy Spirit that causes us to be able to see and hear spiritually. Additionally, we saw the Biblical teaching (see Mat 13:10-16, Mk 4:11-12) that God blinds the eyes and deafens the ears of those who are not the elect. The Biblical picture of the circumcised heart is another significant proof that God causes saving faith in the elect. The heart circumcised by God is enabled to hear and see spiritual truth. Consider the following Scriptures:

And I will give them one heart, and I will put a new spirit within you; and I will take the stony heart out of their flesh, and will give them an heart of flesh: That they may walk in my statutes, and keep mine ordinances, and do them: and they shall be my people, and I will be their God.

Ez 11:19-20

A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh. And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them.

Ez 36:26-27

But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; After those days, saith the LORD, I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be my people.

Jer 31:33 (see Heb 8:10, 10:16)

Yet the LORD hath not given you an heart to perceive, and eyes to see, and ears to hear, unto this day.

Deut 29:4

And the LORD thy God will circumcise thine heart, and the heart of thy seed, to love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, that thou mayest live.

Deut 30:6 (see also Deut 10:16)

But he is a Jew, which is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit, and not in the letter; whose praise is not of men, but of God.

Ro 2:29 (see also Col 2:11)

Circumcise yourselves to the LORD, and take away the foreskins of your heart, ye men of Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem: lest my fury come forth like fire, and burn that none can quench it, because of the evil of your doings.

Jer 4:4 (see also Jer 9:25)

In all the above Scriptures, we find that God gives mankind a new heart and circumcises his heart when he is saved. Careful examination of these Scriptures in the context of the whole Bible indicates that salvation is in view in each of these passages (e.g. Jer 31:33 cf Heb 8:10, 10:16). Of interest to us is the nature of the change in heart in these people. It is interesting to note that the Scripture simply says that God will give them a new and circumcised heart. Now, it is evident that man’s heart must be changed in order to believe the Gospel (Ro 10:9-13, Gal 4:6, 2 Cor 1:22). Therefore, it must follow that God must do the circumcision of the heart and the change in heart before a man will believe. We find that it is God who is in charge of whether a man will believe the Gospel and be saved. Surely, God does not circumcise all people’s hearts only to have them reject Him. This would clearly contradict the Scripture which says that only those who are saved will have a new / circumcised heart.

It is hoped that the circumcised / new heart picture is a beautiful proof of the sovereignty of God in the elect’s lives. It is pure folly to understand these pictures any different than the fact that God sovereignly works in the lives of people in order to save some people (i.e. the elect). God circumcises their hearts in order for them to believe and be saved.

The Catching of the Fish

Now when he had left speaking, he said unto Simon, Launch out into the deep, and let down your nets for a draught. And Simon answering said unto him, Master, we have toiled all the night, and have taken nothing: nevertheless at thy word I will let down the net. And when they had this done, they inclosed a great multitude of fishes: and their net brake. And they beckoned unto their partners, which were in the other ship, that they should come and help them. And they came, and filled both the ships, so that they began to sink. When Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus’ knees, saying, Depart from me; for I am a sinful man, O Lord. For he was astonished, and all that were with him, at the draught of the fishes which they had taken

Luke 5:5-9

Now as he walked by the sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and Andrew his brother casting a net into the sea: for they were fishers. And Jesus said unto them, Come ye after me, and I will make you to become fishers of men. And straightway they forsook their nets, and followed him.

Mk 1:16-18 (see also Mat 4:19)

The Scriptures refer to those who spread the Gospel as fishers of men. In this Biblical picture, we see men who are being saved are pictured as fish (see also Mat 13:50 – the good fish). The instructive element in this Biblical picture is that of the nature of a fish. When a fish is being caught in a net, it has no volitional will to be caught. They do not want to be taken ashore at all. It is only by God’s will that they become caught.

This can be seen as a beautiful illustration of salvation. Men are not particularly looking for the Kingdom of God, but because of the Lord’s direction in laying out nets, men are caught into the Kingdom. In addition to Luke 5:5-9, John 21:1-14 also illustrates the fact that it is by the direction and working of the Lord that the fish are caught. Men, in their own strength of preaching and trying to ‘win’ converts, cannot be truly successful unless it is the working of the Lord.

Christians are Enlisted

No man that warreth entangleth himself with the affairs of this life; that he may please him who hath chosen him to be a soldier.

2 Tim 2:4

The Greek word translated ‘chosen him to be soldier’ is the word stratologeo. This word literally means to enlist a person for participating in an army. The translation as ‘chosen’ is quite appropriate since to enlist a person as a soldier is a non-voluntary act. In other words, we find that the careful use of words is intended to teach us that Christians are drafted into service. This points to the fact that the will of becoming a soldier (i.e. becoming a Christian) is the will of the one doing the enlisting and not the will of the one who is enlisted. Therefore, it should be seen here that it is by God’s will that we are saved.

An example of this enlistment can be seen in Paul’s conversion on the road to Damascus (Acts 9:1-20). Here, we find Paul’s will to go and persecute Christians. But, the Lord had other plans for him. The Lord commanded Paul to enter the city of Damascus where there would be a man that would tell him what to do. We do not see here a request from God. Christ did not ask Paul to please accept Him as Savior and then ask him to go to Damascus. Paul’s conversion is further confirmation to the fact that God changes the will of those who become Christians.

God Gives the Growth

So then neither is he that planteth any thing, neither he that watereth; but God that giveth the increase.

1 Cor 3:7

In this Scripture, we see that God indeed uses man to preach the Gospel (i.e. planting and watering). However, it is God alone who gives the growth. In other words, man can make all the effort he wants to bring about salvation, but it is only the sovereign working of God that causes salvation (i.e. the growth). If free will were true, the picture of this illustration would be

lost. The illustration would need to say that it is God who gives the growth if the ground decides to allow the seed to grow. This, of course, is an absurdity. The ground has nothing to do with determining whether the seed will grow. That is determined by the sower in his placement and his provision for watering the seed. It is God who causes the seed to grow into salvation, not man.

In no way is this chapter to be viewed as exhaustive. It provides only a few Biblical pictures that were reviewed. I am sure careful Biblical study could unearth many, many more pictures that illustrate the truth of the Gospel. This chapter, is not intended to stand alone in proving that election is true. In previous chapters, it is hoped that this has been accomplished. Once election is understood, the Biblical pictures looked at in this chapter can be a wonderful confirmation of the truth we have discovered elsewhere in Scripture.

Chapter 12 Healings as an Irresistible Work of God

In this chapter, the irresistible work of God as seen in the healings performed by Jesus will be examined. This chapter is intended to supplement the truth already examined concerning God’s sovereign choosing of certain individuals. His faithfulness results in Him causing believers to believe by giving them the faith of Christ, thereby altering their will in order that they will exercise saving faith. It should be stated that this chapter is not necessary to prove the doctrine of election. Rather, it serves only to illustrate the truth of this doctrine.

A premise in this chapter is that the reader understands the spiritual significance of the healings that Jesus performed in the Gospels. Jesus’ healings, miracles, and parables all served to point out some type of spiritual truth about the Kingdom of God, especially concerning salvation. Healing particularly is a picture of the spiritual healing of individuals that results in their salvation. Unsaved man is pictured as spiritually sick, spiritually dead, and spiritually unclean in the Gospels. Jesus came to take our infirmities and bare our sicknesses in order that we be spiritually healed (1 Pet 2:24). Detailed examination of the beautiful picture of spiritual healing will not be undertaken here. The reader is referred to the following verses in order to confirm for himself the salvation implications of the Biblical pictures of healing: 1 Pet 2:24, James 5:16, Is 19:22, 53:4-5, 57:18-19, Mat 8:17, Heb 12:13, Ps 6:1-4, 30:2, 41:4, 103:3, 107:20, 147:3, etc.

The Healing of the Man with the Withered Hand

The first healing to be looked at is that of the man with the withered hand (Mk 3:1-6, Mat 12:9-14, Luke 6:6-11). By carefully examining this healing, it is hoped that it can be shown that the man with the withered hand was the recipient of the gracious work of healing performed by Christ. He was not the instigator behind his healing, rather God sovereignly chose to heal him in order to picture the work of salvation.

And he entered again into the synagogue; and there was a man there which had a withered hand. And they watched him, whether he would heal him on the Sabbath day; that they might accuse him. And he saith unto the man which had the withered hand, Stand forth. And he saith unto them, Is it lawful to do good on the Sabbath days, or to do evil? to save life, or to kill? But they held their peace. And when he had looked round about on them with anger, being grieved for the hardness of their hearts, he saith unto the man, Stretch forth thine hand. And he stretched it out: and his hand was restored whole as the other. And the Pharisees went forth, and straightway took counsel with the Herodians against him, how they might destroy him.

Mk 3:1-6

In this passage, the adversaries of Jesus stood by to see whether Jesus would heal a man with a withered hand on the Sabbath day. The adversaries were hoping that if Jesus would heal him, it could be proved that Jesus was a sinner since they believed that it was unlawful to heal on the Sabbath day. The adversaries did not understand that Jesus was Lord of the Sabbath (Mat 12:8). Jesus and His work of salvation was what the Sabbath day was all about. The day represents the grace of God (see Heb 4:1-10). Additionally, the Sabbath day was not made to restrict man and put his into bondage but that he be freed from his bondage. The Sabbath day therefore was made for the man and not man for the Sabbath (Mark 2:27). The Pharisees in their zeal had corrupted the spiritual meaning of the Sabbath rest and made it into a day of legalism.

Several observations of this healing of the man with the withered hand are in order. First, we see that this man did not search Jesus out to be healed. He ‘happened’ to be where Jesus was. This is a picture of God’s sovereign drawing of the spiritually sick unbeliever (John 6:37, 44-45). Second, the Sabbath day healing symbolizes the fact that our salvation is not dependent on any work that we may do, but on the fact that it is by grace. The Sabbath day is a day of rest from labor. So, the fact that Jesus performed the healing on a Sabbath can be understood as the impossibility of man’s works resulting in salvation. Therefore, this man did not work to cause his healing. It was by the sovereign work of God that this man was healed.

Finally, it is significant to note the nature of the man’s illness (i.e. a withered hand). The Greek word for withered carries the meaning of a deadness caused by drying. Elsewhere in the New Testament this term refers to an object in the plant kingdom being dried and withered due to intense heat (see 1 Pet 1:24, Mk 4:6, Mat 13:6, Mat 21:19-20, Mk 11:21, Luke 8:6, John 15:6, James 1:11). In many of these Scriptures, it also refers to a person who is unsaved and perishing. Therefore, we can begin to see an element of this man’s spiritual illness. He is spiritually withered and unable to merit anything spiritually.

Even more significant is what was withered (i.e. his hand). The significance of the hand in the Bible should be somewhat obvious. It is used many, many times to refer to control or will. For example, many times in the Bible it refers to a people falling into the hands of another. This refers to the fact that their wills have been given over to the other. The one whose hand they have fallen into is now sovereign over the other. Another significant usage of hand in the Bible refers to God’s hand. This always signifies the will of God. Therefore, applying the spiritual meaning of hand to the historical healing, it can be seen that the man with the withered hand has no sovereignty or will of his own to be healed. It is only by God’s sovereign will that he was healed.

It should be evident then that the withered hand is a picture of how man’s will is dead. He is unable to truly exercise saving faith through his own will (John 1:12-13, Eph 2:8-9, Ro 9:6-23). The healing of the withered hand pictures that it is only by the will of God that man exercises saving belief.

Healing of the Demon-Possessed

There are many occasions in the New Testament of the casting out of demons. These healings should be seen as a picture of salvation. In these cases, the possession by demons is a picture of the natural state of man in that he follows the prince of the power of the air (Eph 2:2). Man, in his natural state, is an enemy of God and does not want to do the will of God (Ro 3:9-23, etc).

There are numerous examples of the casting out of demons in the Gospels. In Mk 1:23-28, 32-34, we find several cases of the casting out of demons. A common thread to be seen in these Scriptures is that the demons do not want to be cast out. In Mk 1:23-24 (see also Luke 4:31-36), we find the demon crying out to Jesus, ‘what do you have to do with us?’ In other words, they wanted not to be cast out, but to be left alone. The man whose will was controlled by the demon was in no position to make a free will decision to exercise faith, let alone saving faith. Therefore, we see another example of the sovereign working of God in the life of spiritually depraved man.

We see that no man who is controlled by the forces of Satan can exercise faith without God first casting out of the demon by His sovereign working. Similarly, unless it is by the working of God, natural man, who is in a rebellious state toward God, will not want to leave his life of sin. God must cause him to be saved.

Another example of the casting out of the demon possessed is the Gadarene demoniacs (see Mat 8:28-34, Mk 5:1-20, Luke 8:26-39). Here we find 2 demoniacs who met Jesus. They, of course, did not want to be cast out. But, if they were, they asked to be sent into the swine. Jesus sent them into the swine, which then rushed into the sea. This death of the swine represents the fact that the demons were unclean (i.e. they were sent into the swine, an unclean animal) and that their ultimate fate is hell (pictured by their demise into the sea). But, again we see that it was the will of Jesus who caused these men to be spiritually cleansed.

It is interesting to note in the casting out of the demons that often the demons know who Jesus is. In this sense, they have belief that He is God and that He has the authority to cast them out. Here is an example of the fact that simple belief in no way can save. Even the demons believe (James 2:19). Therefore, saving faith must involve something more than intellectual belief. Saving faith involves exertion of the will, which is a work (and the Scriptures tell us that we are not saved by works). Only God can give man the Holy Spirit so that he is able to exercise saving faith.

Three other examples of the cleaning of a demon-possessed are found in the stories of the Syro-Phoenician woman (Mat 15:21-28, Mk 7:24-30), the deliverance of the demon-possessed boy (Mat 17:14-18, Mk 9:14-29, Lk 9:38-42), and the casting out of a demon in Mat 9:32-33. In these cases, it was the parent who beseeched the Lord for the cleansing of their child. The one being spiritually cleansed did not ask for the healing but, it was the earnest faith of the parent that is seen. This, of course, does not mean that the faith of the parent caused salvation. It is a picture of the fact the fervent prayers of saved parents is the expected course of events when the child is unsaved. It is in these cases that God demonstrates His sovereign will, and at the same time, the fervent faith of the parent is a great testimony.

It is interesting to note that several other healings in the New Testament also result from the intercession of another (e.g. see John 4:46-54, Mat 9:32-33, Mk 1:29-31, Lk 4:38-39, Mat 8:14-15, Mat 9:2-8, Mk 2:3-12, Luke 5:18-26, Mat 8:5-13, Lk 7:1-10, Mk 8:22-26, Mk 7:31-37). In all these examples, we can find beautiful pictures of the fact that, as Christians, we are to strive to pray and witness to other people. We are not to sit idly by while people remain unsaved. Our work, in this regard, does not cause any merit for salvation. Rather, it is the divine plan of God that we love other people and are burdened for them. It is by this, that we ourselves can grow in the Lord to love others and, at the same time, God’s sovereignty is working in the lives of the elect. That is, He will save them if they are elect regardless of the work of another. But, God’s desire is that Christians have a desire to see others saved. Additionally, in many cases God works in the lives of these people such that He brings them in our paths in order that they hear the Gospel. Therefore, it is by God’s sovereign working that people are saved.

Healing on the Sabbath

It is of interest to point out that many of the healings of Jesus were performed on the Sabbath day. The following are some examples:

– Healing of the Crippled Woman (Luke 13:10-17)

– The Man Born Blind (John 9)

– The casting out of a Demon (Mk 1:23-26)

– The Healing of man at the Pool of Bethesda (John 5)

– The Healing of the Man With Dropsy (Luke 14:1-6)

– The Healing of the Man with the Withered Hand (Mat 12:8-10, Mk 3:1-6)

The significant numbers of healings performed on the Sabbath is important. The Sabbath day is a picture of the grace of God. In Hebrews 4:1-10, the Scriptures explain that it is those who are saved that enter into the rest of the Sabbath day (see Gen 2:1-3). Salvation is often portrayed as a Day of Rest. The rest points to the fact that there is nothing at all that can be done to merit salvation. Free will is at odds with this Biblical picture. In free will, man must perform the work of faith in order to be saved. However, it is only the circumcising work of Christ that gives us the faith to believe that saves us. Therefore, the strong emphasis on healing on the Sabbath day pictures the fact that it is the work of Christ to freely give salvation to the elect.

The Healing of the Man Born Blind

In John 9, there is another example of a healing performed by Jesus. In this healing, we find that Jesus and His disciples were passing by a man born blind (John 9:1). The disciples questioned Jesus as to why was the man born blind (verse 2). Jesus’ answer was that he was blind so that the glory of the Lord could be seen in him (verse 3). That is, God in His sovereign will allowed this man to be born blind (see Ex 4:11) so that Jesus could be glorified. The important point for our study in this healing is found in verse 39. We find an interesting statement by the Lord just after the man born blind believed in Jesus:

And Jesus said, For judgment I am come into this world, that they which see not might see; and that they which see might be made blind.

John 9:39

Jesus came into the world to heal the blind. The blindness that Jesus refers to that of spiritual blindness which is a Biblical picture of the unsaved state of man. We see in this miracle that the man physically born blind is a picture of how Jesus heals those who are spiritually born blind. Spiritually, the unsaved man cannot truly understand spiritual things. In no way does he understand (Ro 3:10-11). He is, by nature, in rebellion to God (Ro 8:5-8). Therefore, it is only God who can open the blind eyes of a man so that he may spiritually come to understand.

It is interesting to note in this story that the belief of the man came after he was healed. The blind man was initially located in the path of Jesus and his disciples. The Scripture records nothing of this man’s own belief causing his blind eyes being healed, rather God’s sovereignty put this man in the path of Jesus. Next, it should be noted that this man believed in Jesus later after his healing (verse 37). Between the time he was healed and believed in Jesus, there was a discussion between the Pharisees and the man himself. In this discussion, the man born blind gave testimony to the One who healed him, but did not yet know of the One who healed him. It was only later after the man was cast out that Jesus found him and the man came to believe in Jesus. Therefore, it should be evident that the man’s outward faith in Christ was actually subsequent to his healing. This points to the fact that man is saved by God and is evidenced by the outworking of faith in Christ. That is, salvation and believing in Jesus go hand in hand. Man’s belief in Jesus does not result in salvation but, God’s circumcision of the heart results in salvation which is witnessed by faith.

What About Those Who Asked to be Healed?

In only a few cases of healing in the Gospels, we find that the healing was performed by Jesus on someone who asked to be healed:

The Woman with the Flow of Blood (Mat 9:20-22, Mk 5:25-34, Lk 8:43- 48)
The two Blind Men (Mat 9:27-31)
The Cleansing of the 10 Lepers (Lk 17:11-19)
Blind Bartimaeus (Mat 20:29-34, Mk 10:46-52, Lk 18:35-43)

In each of these cases, the people requesting healing already have saving faith. This is based on the fact that they either address Jesus as ‘Son of David’, ‘Lord’, ‘Master’ or Jesus stated that they had the faith to be made well.

These passages cannot be used as a ‘prooftext’ that they made ‘free will’ decisions for Christ and thereby were saved. The usage of the terms that they addressed to Christ and the fact that Christ stated that they had faith to be well illustrates that they were already believers. Therefore, their request for healing is not a picture of man, in his free will, coming to Christ for salvation. Rather, these healings illustrate the healing process in believers due to their new life in Christ. When a person becomes a Christian, he begins a life of growth and transformation into the image of Christ (2 Cor 3:18). The healings also may illustrate the fact that when someone becomes saved, he is a new creature in Christ because of his spiritual healing (2 Cor 5:17).

In this chapter, it is hoped that the reader is encouraged to carefully study the matter of the healings of Christ. In many of these healings, some important facet of salvation should be seen. In some cases, it was quite evident that it is God’s work completely that the person was healed. That is, the person being healed had no part whatsoever in his healing. He or she did not ask to be healed. In some cases, they were unable to request healing.

The fact that some are even unable to request healing or ‘make a free will decision’ for Christ should be of comfort to all of us. There are many today that are saved by God without being able to make a ‘free will’ decision to accept Christ. I trust many, many of aborted babies as well as people with mental illnesses and other defects that make them unable to make a ‘decision for Christ’ are truly saved by the gracious saving work of God. This fact alone (besides the enormous amount of Scriptural proof) should make us very suspicious of a doctrine that teaches that man must in his will make a decision for Christ. In the Biblical Gospel of salvation through the grace of Christ, we find that none of us are able to exercise saving faith. This should give us comfort concerning those who are truly unable to make an intellectual decision for Christ that they too may be saved.

Chapter 13 The Christian and ‘Soul-Winning’

Now that we have proceeded quite a way into our study of the true Gospel, it is important to look at the issue of soul-winning. This term is used in Christendom to denote the believer’s efforts to present the Gospel to the unsaved. Of course, spreading the Gospel is of very great importance and is commanded by Scripture (Mat 28:19-20, Luke 24:46-48, Mark 16:15, John 20:30-31, 2 Cor 5:18-20, 1 Pet 2:9, Mk 6:7, etc). However, there are questions that arise concerning soul-winning that are important in order to gain a better understanding of the Gospel.

Problems With Free Will Soul-Winning Philosophy

If free will were true, it follows that it is possible that anybody can believe the Gospel. Because of this, Evangelical Christianity consumes much of its time and energy into trying to convert people to believe in Jesus Christ. Their reasoning makes sense, because it would follow that the more the Gospel could be spread, the more people may believe and be saved. Therefore, there is an implied relationship between the efforts of those spreading the Gospel and the amount of people being saved.

The problem with the free will thinking concerning salvation is that it places an emphasis on the work of man. That is, the more the Gospel can be spread, the more people will become Christians. In the sense that Evangelical Christianity understands it, works are necessary to bring people into a saving knowledge of Christ. There are some extreme free will adherents who teach that since Christians have been lazy in spreading the Gospel, countless numbers of people have been doomed to hell that otherwise could have been saved. They believe that if they could have just worked a little harder in evangelistic efforts, then more people could have been saved.

The fallacy with this argument should be obvious. In this scheme, man’s salvation is dependent on another person’s work and effort. In other words, the fact that Christians are saved is not dependent on God’s sovereign working. Rather, it is dependent on the working of man. The second problem is that this violates the goodness of God. If a person’s salvation was dependent on the work of another man in bringing the Gospel and he was lost because of another man’s laziness, then God would be unfair. Therefore, this would violate the goodness of God since not all men hear the Gospel so that they have a chance to be saved.

However, we must take this line of thinking one step further. Many free will teachers hold that the work of spreading the Gospel is limited due to the fact that God foreknew those who would be saved. In other words, God sovereignly works in the lives of those spreading the Gospel in order that those who God foreknows will believe, will hear the Gospel and believe. This line of reasoning is much closer to truth. It recognizes the truth of God’s sovereign working in the lives of those who spread the Gospel. But it falls short in that it does not recognize God’s sovereignty in the lives of those who are being saved. It does not recognize the absolute spiritual depravity in man and allows for a spark of goodness in the person who believes the Gospel.

It is only in election that there is no contradiction with the Bible. Not all men hear the Gospel because God is sovereign and will ensure that at least the elect will hear the Gospel. He does not need to ensure that all people necessarily hear it. Also, man’s salvation is not dependent on any work of man (whether the person presenting the Gospel or the person hearing the Gospel). In the teaching of election, we find that it is all God and none of man, although it is clear that God uses man in bringing the Gospel (Ro 10:10-17).

If God is Sovereign, Why Bother?

Since God is sovereign in the lives of those who are to be saved, the natural question is often raised: why bother? That is, if the elect are going to be saved anyway, why should Christians be concerned at all with the spread of the Gospel. After all, are there not better things to do such as teaching those who are already Christians and living out their own lives to the glory of God? Certainly not! All Christians must be obedient to the word of God. The word of God tells us to freely give of ourselves and make disciples of all nations (Mat 28:19-20). Therefore, all Christians must be endeavoring to spread the Gospel in order to be obedient to the truth.

On the other hand, as Christians, we must always understand that when we spread the Gospel and people become saved, it is not our work that resulted in their salvation. Except for the grace of God, we would be lost and unable to spread the Gospel. When God saved us, we were indwelt with the Holy Spirit in order that we can share God’s word. In the free will mindset, there is a tendency of those spreading the word to gain some credit for the conversion of others. This may take the form of tallies of decisions or other testimonies of conversions that they were involved with. These natural tendencies to take some (although admittedly small) credit for the salvation of others is endemic in the free will teaching since it is based on man’s ability to believe the Gospel. Therefore, the logic necessitates that the one presenting the gospel must have some credit as well because of his ability to present the Gospel.

In summary, it is important to understand that those who believe in election are not guilty of being without zeal in spreading the Gospel. On the contrary, a fervent love to be obedient to God (see Part 4 of this book) and to be involved in the working of God will motivate those who hold to election to be just as fervent as those who hold to free will.

Why Does God Bother?

Another question to be considered in this chapter is the following: If God is sovereign in all His workings, why does God bother with the current world system in order to bring salvation about? In other words, why does not God just decide to save the elect from the foundation of the world and take them to heaven immediately and bypass the need for the world?

This objection is usually aimed at those who hold to election. However, this objection is equally as valid to involve those who hold to free will. You see, even if you hold to free will, this question could easily be raised: Why does not God just immediately ask everyone for a free will decision to exercise faith and be done with it? Why labor through many, many years of trials and tribulations? Why not just have a mass question to all people as to whether they will accept the Gospel or not?

All the above questions, whether directed at those who hold to election or free will, must be answered as follows: As limited humans, we cannot know the inner deep workings of God. We are but the clay and He is the Potter (Ro 9:18-23). Who are we to question God in these matters? Who are we to question God why He condescended to our level to provide a Savior for us? Why did He bother creating us at all? These questions must be left unanswered and in God’s hands.

How to Spread the Gospel

How then is a believer to share the Gospel with the unsaved?

In Humility

It is important that those spreading the Gospel understand the grace of God. They need to understand that it is not their work at all that has any merit in the salvation of another. While it is true that God uses men to spread the Gospel, salvation is in no way dependent on our work in spreading the Gospel. Therefore, when we spread the Gospel, we must humbly understand that we have nothing to do with another’s salvation. We must humbly submit to the will of God. We must never try to take credit in the salvation of another. After all, the point of salvation cannot be discerned anyway (John 3:8).

In Faith

The Biblical principle concerning sharing the Gospel is that it will be done in absolute faith. In Mark 6:8 and Mat 10:10, the Bible tells us to not take bag, money, or bread with us on our journey. We must not rely on our own provisions or ability when we share the Gospel. We are to humbly set out in total reliance on God that He will take care of us in spreading the Gospel. I believe a great wrong in soul-winning today is when we try to develop a soul-winning program. That is, we spend much time and money in the preparation of a special soul-winning event or program in order to win some to Christ. We may design elaborate worldly productions just so we can make a short presentation of the Gospel. These type of programs and productions tend to violate the Biblical principle of taking no bag, bread, or money. Christians, as they are going in the world (Mat 28:19-20), are to share the Gospel without the reliance on the world’s means. This is not to say that we should not share books, tracts, or other information with those who we are sharing the Gospel with. What we should not do is to rely on the world’s methods in reaching the lost. We must realize that any methods that we use to share the Gospel are of no real effect other than it is the seed of the Word of God that leads people to salvation.

In Diligence

It is important to stress that Christians must be diligent to spread the Gospel. They must be obedient to the command of Scripture to spread the Gospel to every creature. We must consider ourselves as ambassadors of Christ (2 Cor 5:20). That is, we are citizens of heaven and not the earth. We must keep our minds on the spiritual battle that is going on rather than waging political battles. We have been enlisted as a soldier (2 Tim 2:4). We must wage war in spreading the true Gospel and always be ready to give a reason for the hope that is within us (1 Pet 3:15).

In Wisdom

In sharing the Gospel, it is important that Christians share the Word in wisdom. They are not to cast their pearls before swine (Mat 7:6). That is, we are not to try to sell or force the Gospel on others when it is apparent that the person has no interest. We must shake off the dust off our feet and move on (Mat 10:14, Mk 6:11). We must pay close attention to when the Holy Spirit closes the door of spreading the Gospel (Acts 16:10).

A characteristic of the free will movement is their diligence in spreading the gospel. On the surface, this seems commendable. However, we should understand that the Bible tells us not to ‘forcefully’ cast our pearls (i.e. the Gospel) in front of swine (the rebellious unsaved). We must maintain the principle of staying in the worthy house until we are ready to leave town (Mat 10:11). That is, we should not abandon those who have been saved in order to minister to others who may not be saved. Once we find the elect, we are to ensure that the peace of God has truly landed on that house. We must ensure discipleship is well under way with the new believer. We must carefully follow the command of the Lord to stay at the worthy house. That is, we must not get so excited with ‘winning’ new souls to the Lord that we quickly forget about the recently converted ones. We must trust God that He is able to use other Christians to reach the elect. Oh, what a tragedy when the newly saved elect are left abandoned in order to minister to the unsaved!

In Quality

I believe that the most significant problem with the free will teaching is its sugar-coated appeal. I believe that the free will, easy-believism approach has led to the burgeoning numbers of unsaved people in the ranks of the church today. Many teach that salvation only involves a mental agreement with the truths of Christ or a repetition of a prayer to be saved. This is easy-believism. Because of its very nature, free will presents a sweet, easy way to believe and be saved. It teaches that man ultimately has control over his destination. If we teach man that he has control over accepting salvation, we teach him that he has a part to play in the salvation plan. It is only when God changes the will of man to believe that he will be saved.

Free will presentations generally miss the boat concerning the nature of judgment. All men are deserving of hell, and only when the unregenerate man repents from his rebellious nature can he be saved (see Lk 13:3, 2 Tim 2:25-26, Mk 6:12, Acts 17:30-31, Luke 13:3, Acts 2:38, 11:18, 20:21, 2 Pet 3:9, etc). Repentance must involve an understanding of man’s wickedness and total inability to save himself. Man must repent and plead to God for mercy. It is only true believers who have the faith of Christ who will be able to truly repent and exercise saving faith. Repentance is given of God (Ro 2:4, 2 Tim 2:25-26, Acts 5:31, Phil 2:13, 2 Pet 1:3) and, therefore, is a work of God and not of man.

Believers are commanded to preach a Gospel that includes repentance. In many places the Bible tells us this: Mk 1:14-15, 6:12, Acts 20:17-21, Lk 24:46-47, Lk 3:3, 5:2, Acts 2:38, 3:19, 17:30-31, Mat 9:13, etc. We must all heed this command so that we are not guilty of building upon the foundation of Christ with wood, hay, and stubble.

It is very important that Christians go about spreading a ‘quality’ Gospel. That is, it must be true to the Scriptures. It must teach man of his utter inability to merit any spiritual good including his own ability to believe the Gospel. When we present the Gospel, we will then be building on the foundation of Christ with gold, silver, and precious stones (1 Cor 3:12). We will be leading God’s elect into the church. The elect will want to cry out to God for mercy. He may not understand the deeper things concerning the nature of salvation. However, he will have a contrite and broken heart of which God will not despise. He will want to full-heartedly forsake the path he was on and follow Jesus:

The LORD is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart; and saveth such as be of a contrite spirit.

Ps 34:18

Seek the LORD while He may be found, call ye upon Him while He is near: Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the LORD, and He will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for He will abundantly pardon.

Isaiah 55:6-7

Part 4 – God Causes the Elect to be Holy and Persevere

Chapter 14 Salvation Always Results in Good Works

This part of the book will examine the Biblical fact that all Christians will produce good works. This is an important element in understanding election. It will be shown that:

The Bible teaches that all Christians will produce good works.
There are some who believe (have faith in Jesus), but do not practice good works.
Based on 1 and 2 above, those believers that do not produce good works are not really saved.

The Bible teaches that all true believers will produce good works. Because not all that ‘believe’ in Christ produce this fruit, then it follows that not all who believe are saved. Those who do not produce fruit have dead faith which can never save (see James 2:14-26). As we have previously discovered, it is only the faith of Christ given to the believer (Gal 2:16, Phil 3:9, etc) that results in salvation. Therefore, man’s free will belief can never be genuine saving faith unless it is the result of God’s sovereign work of causing the believer to believe.

Saved By Faith Alone, Not By Works

Caution must be taken since, it is contended that the Bible reveals the fact that all true Christians will produce good works, it may be objected by some that it is being asserted that works are necessary for salvation. This, of course, is not the fact at all. We are saved only by grace through faith. That faith is not our own, but the faith of Christ. As has been previously examined in this book, there are numerous Scriptures that support the fact that there is no work at all that can save. However, true saving faith will always result in good works in the believer.

Works Will Always Accompany Saving Faith

Once we are given the faith of Christ, we have the Holy Spirit indwelling us (2 Tim 1:14, Ro 8:9). God then works in each true believer to lead them (Ro 8:14-16, Psalm 23, Eph 3:20) and cause them to bring about good works in the body (Eph 2:10, Phil 2:13, etc). Many verses teach that good works will be practiced by Christians. I call these 20 categories of good works the 20 Holy Results of Being a Christian.

Each of these 20 Holy Results will be evident in all true believers’ lives, although imperfectly. It is a fact of Scripture that no man in the flesh can ever be perfect. We all still have sin in our lives:

If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.

1 John 1:8-10

For in many things we offend all. If any man offend not in word, the same is a perfect man, and able also to bridle the whole body.

James 3:2

In the above Scriptures, it should be evident that all men still have sin in their lives. However, it is very important to stress that much Scripture teaches that Christians will lead an overcoming life. They will progress in sanctification (2 Cor 3:18) and be useful for every good work (2 Tim 2:21).

The following table lists each of the 20 Holy Results with corresponding Scriptures. For each Holy Result, one example passage is quoted for the reader’s convenience. It is of utmost importance to stress that each of these Scripture references points out that the Holy Result is characteristic of a saved individual. That is,the Scriptural language teaches that these characteristics must follow someone who is saved. These are not characteristics that are only to be strived for. Rather, they are characteristics that will be evident in each believer’s life.

It also needs to be stressed that these Holy Results are not to be used to judge the hearts of other people. The Scripture teaches us:

Therefore judge nothing before the time, until the Lord come, who both will bring to light the hidden things of darkness, and will make manifest the counsels of the hearts: and then shall every man have praise of God.

1 Cor 4:5

In this Scripture, we learn that it is God’s work to reveal the counsels of people’s hearts. We cannot know for sure the inner workings of a person’s heart and motives. Additionally, we cannot know where a person stands in his or her spiritual development. Therefore, we must only examine our own hearts to see whether we are truly in the faith or if our faith may be spurious (see 2 Cor 13:5, 1 Cor 9:27).

It is also important to remember that the 20 Holy Results are a building block in our study in order to prove that all men who name the name of Christ are indeed not saved. We are not to use them to judge individuals. Rather, on a large scale, they will help us to see that the 1+ billion people in the world that name the name of Christ indeed cannot all be saved.

Holy Result #1 – Does not practice a Lifestyle of Sin

1 Cor 6:9-11 – Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God. And such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God.

1 John 3:4-10, Gal 5:19-21, Gal 6:7-9, Col 3:39, Eph 5:3-5, Titus 1:15-16, 3:10-11, 1 Tim 1:8-11, 1 Thess 1:9, Ps 15, John 8:34-35, 2 Cor 6:17-7:1, 3 John 11, Ro 6:1-23, 7:1-6, 8:1-13, Mat 5:6-8, Col 2:11, 2 Tim 2:19, 2 Cor 6:14, Eph 1:4, Gal 2:15-20, Mat 12:33, Mat 7:21, John 5:29-30, Ps 1:5-6, Rev 22:12-15, James 2:14-26

Holy Result # 2 – Will be Obedient to the Word of God

1 John 2:3-6 – And hereby we do know that we know him, if we keep his commandments. He that saith, I know him, and keepeth not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. But whoso keepeth his word, in him verily is the love of God perfected: hereby know we that we are in him. He that saith he abideth in him ought himself also so to walk, even as he walked.

Heb 5:8-9, 1 Pet 1:1-2, John 15:9-14, Ps 103:17-18, Eph 5:5-6, Mat 7:21-27, 12:46-50, 13:41, Mk 3:31-35, Lk 8:19-21, James 1:22-27, 2:26, John 3:36, 14:15,23, Lk 11:28, Ro 2:12-16, 6:16, Rev 1:3, Heb 10:36-39, 1 Cor 12:3, Hos 14:9, Ro 1:5

Holy Result # 3 – Will Understand Spiritual Truth

1 Cor 2:14-15 – But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned. But he that is spiritual judgeth all things, yet he himself is judged of no man.

Mat 13:10-16, 1 Cor 2:6-16, 1 John 4:6, 2 Cor 3:12-4:4, Heb 10:16, Jer 31:33-34, 2 John 1-2, Col 3:9-10, John 10:3, 2 Tim 1:7, John 2:26-27, Ps 19:7-8, 25:12-14, 32:8, Luke 11:33-36, Phil 3:15, Mk 5:15, 2 Thess 2:11, John 8:47, 18:37

Holy Result # 4 – Will be Disciples of Christ (i.e. learners & followers)

John 8:31-32 – Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed; And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.

Mat 6:19-21, 8:21-22, 9:9, 12:30, 16:24-27, 20:29-34, 24:27, 28:19-20, John 8:12, 30-32, 6:48-58, 9:27, 10:3-5. 26-28, 12:24-26, Luke 9:23- 26, 57-62, 11:23, 14:25-27, 18:35-43 Mk 8:34-38, 10:51-52, 1 Pet 2:21, Rev 14:4, 1 John 2:19, Acts 6:1,7, 14:20,28, 15:10, 19:1, Ps 1:1-4, 111:2, 143:5

Holy Result # 5 – Will be Sensitive to Sin

1 John 1:8 – If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.

1 John 1:8-10, Luke 5:8, 13:3-5, James 1:22-25, Ps 19:12-13, 34:18, 66:2, Ro 7:14-25, Mat 5:3-6, 2 Cor 7:8-12

Holy Result # 6 – Will Receive Answer to Prayer

1 John 5:14-15 – And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us: And if we know that he hear us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of him.

1 John 5:13-15, Ro 8:26-27, Mat 7:7-11, 17:20, 21:21-22, Mk 9:23, John 15:7-8, Mk 11:22-24, Heb 4:14-16, James 5:13-16, Ps 10:17, 17:6, 34:17-18, 1 Pet 3:12, Is 59:2, John 9:31, Job 27:8f,35:13, Ps 34:15f,66:18, Pr 15:20,28:9, Ps 145:19 Is 1:15, etc.

Holy Result # 7 – Will be Progressively Sanctified

2 Cor 3:18 – But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord.

2 Cor 3:18, 4:16, 1 Thess 2:13, Heb 2:11, 10:14, 1 Pet 2:5, Gal 4:19, Titus 2:11-12, Phil 2:13-15 1 Pet 3:15

Holy Result # 8 – Will have Experiential Fellowship with God

Ro 8:16 – The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God

1 John 4:13, 5:10, 2 Cor 1:22, 5:5, Ro 8:15-16, 2 Cor 1:3-7

Holy Result # 9 – Will receive the Chastening of God

Heb 12:6-8 – For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth. If ye endure chastening, God dealeth with you as with sons; for what son is he whom the father chasteneth not? But if ye be without chastisement, whereof all are partakers, then are ye bastards, and not sons.

Heb 12:5-10, Pr 3:11-12, Ps 39:7-11

Holy Result # 10 – Will be Led by the Spirit of God

Ro 8:14 – For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.

Ro 8:26-27, 2 Tim 1:7, Eph 3:20, Ro 8:14-16, Ps 23, 32:7, 33:15-19, 34:7, Gal 4:6

Holy Result # 11 – Will Love Jesus

1 Cor 16:22 – If any man love not the Lord Jesus Christ, let him be Anathema.

Mat 10:37, 1 Cor 16:22

Holy Result # 12 – Will Love the Brethren

1 John 3:10 – In this the children of God are manifest, and the children of the devil: whosoever doeth not righteousness is not of God, neither he that loveth not his brother.

1 John 3:10-17, 2:9-11, 4:11-12, 16-21

Holy Result # 13 – Will not Harm God’s People

1 Cor 3:17 – If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are.

1 Cor 3:17, 3 John 9-11

Holy Result # 14 – Will not Teach Significant, Repetitive False Doctrine

2 Cor 11:13-15 – For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ. And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light. Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness; whose end shall be according to their works.

Jude 4, 19-20, 1 Tim 6:3-5, Gal 1:6-9, 1 Tim 4:1-3, 2 John 7-11, 1 John 4:1-3, 2 Cor 11:12-15, 2 Tim 2:16-21, Acts 8:9-25, Mk 9:42, Mat 18:6, Lk 17:2

Holy Result # 15 – Will Possess Spiritual Gifts

1 Cor 7:7 – For I would that all men were even as I myself. But every man hath his proper gift of God, one after this manner, and another after that.

1 Cor 7:7, 12:7-12, Ro 12:4-8

Holy Result # 16 – Will have Love for Others

1 John 4:7-8 – Beloved, let us love one another: for love is of God; and every one that loveth is born of God, and knoweth God. He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love.

1 John 4:7-10

Holy Result # 17 – Will not Love the World System

1 John 2:15-17 – Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth forever.

1 John 2:15-17, James 4:4, 2 Tim 2:4, Mat 6:19-24, 10:34-39, 12:30, Luke 11:23, 1 Tim 6:9-10, Phil 3:18-19, Gal 6:14, John 17:11-18

Holy Result # 18 – Will not be Ashamed of Spiritual Matters

Mat 10:32-33 – Whosoever therefore shall confess me before men, him will I confess also before my Father which is in heaven. But whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven.

Mat 10:32-33, 2 Tim 2:11-13, Lk 9:26, Mk 8:38, Lk 12:8

Holy Result # 19 – Will be Rejected, Persecuted and Suffer

John 16:33 – These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.

Ps 34:19, Ps 84:5-7, John 15:18-20, 16:33, Ro 8:17, 2 Tim 2:12, 3:12, Mat 10:24-28, 32-33, 20:23, 16:24-27, Phil 1:29, 1 Pet 2:20-21, Mk 8:34-38, Lk 9:23-26, Heb 11:35-37, Gal 4:29, 1 John 3:13, 1 Thess 3:3, Mat 14:30, 2 Thess 1:5, 1 Thess 3:2-3

Holy Result # 20 – Will have a Forgiving Spirit

Mat 6:14-15 – For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you: But if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.

Mat 6:14-15, 18:32-35, Mk 11:25-26, James 2:8

Why a Christian Will Overcome the Sin Lifestyle and Produce Good Works

It is hoped that the abundance of Scripture teaching these Holy Results proves that a true Christian must produce fruit in his or her life. It is important to understand why the true Christian will overcome a lifestyle of sin and produce good works. At salvation, the Christian is spiritually born again and therefore, made spiritually alive (Eph 2:1-4). Because the flesh is unsaved (but, the spirit in man is now saved), this results in a spiritual battle within the Christian: spirit versus flesh (Ro 8:1-16).

God dwells in all true Believers – The Scripture is very clear that God dwells in the believer. The following verses are offered to document the fact that if one does not have the Holy Spirit indwelling, then he cannot be a Christian (see also Eph 1:13, 17-18, Col 1:27, 1 Cor 2:12, 2 Cor 5:5, 1 John 3:24, 4:4, Jude 19-20, 1 Cor 3:16, Luke 11:13):

But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his.

Ro 8:9

That good thing which was committed unto thee keep by the Holy Ghost which dwelleth in us.

2 Tim 1:14

Gal 2:20

At that day ye shall know that I am in my Father, and ye in me, and I in you… Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him.

John 14:20,23

What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own?

1 Cor 6:19

From the above Scriptures, we see that God indwells each and every believer. But, the fact that God indwells the believer is not, in and of itself, ample proof for learning why believers live a life of overcoming sin.

God works in each Christian – Next, it is important to observe from Scripture that besides indwelling each true believer, God also is at work in each believer. Notice the following verses:

For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God. For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father. The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God:

Ro 8:14-16 (see also Gal 4:6)

For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure.

Phil 2:13

For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.

Eph 2:8-10

In these verses, it is evident that God is at work in the lives of believers in order to mold and shape them. God uses situations in life to teach the believer how to be more and more holy. God also chastens His sons in order to teach them holiness (see Holy Result #9).

The reader is referred to Holy Result #7 (Believers are progressively sanctified) and the following verses for additional Scriptural proof that God is at work in every believer’s life: Ro 5:5, 2 Thess 2:17, 1 Thess 2:13, 5:23, 2 Cor 2:14, 4:16, 5:14-15, 13:4, Luke 11:34, Heb 2:11, 9:14, 10:14, 13:20-21, Titus 2:11-12, 2 Pet 1:3-4, Col 1:29, Ro 8:11, John 12:24, 14:26, 15:26, 16:13, Ps 16:2, 37:5-6,23-24, Ez 36:27, Eph 1:3,1:19,3:7,4:16,5:25-27, Gal 4:6, 4:19, 1 Cor 2:16, 12:6,11,13, Phil 1:6,11, 1 Pet 2:5, Gal 2:8,21, Phil 3:21, 1 Cor 15:10

God uses the Word of God to make believers holy – Finally, it is important to touch on the fact that it is the Word of God (i.e. the Bible) that God uses as the instrument to instruct and lead believers. The Bible is very powerful and important in each believer’s life. The fact that God has indwelt and is actively at work in each believer results in the believer being a disciple of Christ (see Holy Result #4 above). The following verses testify to the fact that it is the Bible that God uses to sanctify believers:

For this cause also thank we God without ceasing, because, when ye received the word of God which ye heard of us, ye received it not as the word of men, but as it is in truth, the word of God, which effectually worketh also in you that believe.

1 Thess 2:13

Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way? by taking heed thereto according to thy word. With my whole heart have I sought thee: O let me not wander from thy commandments. Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee.

Ps 119:9-11

All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works.

2 Tim 3:16-17

Wherefore laying aside all malice, and all guile, and hypocrisies, and envies, all evil speakings, As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby:

1 Pet 2:1-2

Other verses that testify to the fact that the Bible is the instrument that God uses to sanctify believers are the following: Ps 119, Heb 5:11-14, Titus 1:1, Col 1:9-10,2:2, John 6:63, James 1:21, John 8:31-32, 1 Tim 6:3-4, Eph 5:25-26, 2 Pet 3:18, 2 Cor 3:18, Ps 1:1-4, Heb 4:12, Joshua 1:8, Ro 10:17, John 17:14-19, Ro 12:2.

In summary, it can be realized from Scripture that all Christians must produce good works (although imperfectly since there wages a war in the Christian between flesh and spirit). Some believers do not produce good works and therefore, causes confusion. Those who profess Christ, yet do not produce good fruit / works have likely exercised their own faith and have not been given the faith of Christ.

Objections to the Holiness of Believers

It is hoped that the Scriptures used for proving the Holy Results reveal beyond a doubt that a true Christian must produce fruit in his or her life. This fruit, as we have seen, is not due to the believer’s own work or strength of will, but it is the work of God in the believer that results in a holy life. However, many people in Christendom teach that man can be saved and continue in a lifestyle of sin. This is contrary to Scripture as the verses above should prove. While it is true that Christians are not yet perfect and that they still occasionally sin (see Holy Result #5), God is working in believers in order to lead them into a life of holiness (see Holy Result #7).

There are some Scriptures that are used, however, to try to support the notion of a ‘carnal’ Christian. In each of these ‘proof-texts’ for antinomianism (i.e. the belief that a true Christian can practice a lifestyle of sin), careful examination of the contexts reveals that a Christian cannot be carnal. Those who argue that a Christian can lead a lifestyle of sin are in effect denying the grace of God. They do not recognize that God saves by grace alone and also works in each believer to produce holiness. The book of Jude is wholly devoted to refuting the heresy of antinomianism. The reader is encouraged to carefully examine Jude concerning this matter.

The arguments that a true Christian can live a lifestyle of sin can be broken up into 8 categories. Each category is listed below and is refuted to demonstrate the fallacy of carnal Christianity.

Antinomian Argument #1:

Description of Argument: The Scripture refers to some believers as carnal. Even Paul referred to himself as carnal. Therefore, it is possible for Christians to practice sin. Additionally, all Christians sin many times a day. (Scriptures used: 1 Cor 3:1-4, Ro 7:14-25).