The power of free will? Satan fully dominates it, so that “free will” – rejects Dieu’s grace. He also rejects the Holy Spirit, who complies with the law in us, for he?Free will, he imagines that he is able to obey the law on his own.
? Martin Luther
- As we said earlier.
- We have released a new type of article in Back to the Gospel: Back to the Classics.
- Where we will read and discuss together a book that is a classic of Christian literature.
- For this discussion it was necessary to read up to page 41 of the book Nascido Escravo.
As we discussed in the previous publication, defining “free will”, this is the first and essential step for any good discussion on the subject.
According to Luther, Erasmo spoke with both sides of his mouth when he tried to give such a definition. On the one hand, he said, “I understand ‘free will’? Like the power of the human will, by which a person can apply or depart from the things that lead to eternal salvation?(45) And on the other hand: “Man cannot want to do good; you cannot take such an initiative, move in that direction, or consume good without special grace.
The question becomes obvious: can man apply or depart from the things that lead to eternal salvation only through the power of his will, or does he need special grace?(It’s just Friday’s infographic)
For Luther, if you need God’s grace, you are no longer free will, because by definition you do not have the capacity in yourself, you need something outside. It submits that:
In short: “Do our weaknesses belong to us and our capacity is given to us by God’s grace?(61);? Free will? (52).
But the highlight of the chapter is Luther’s distinction between God sending something and being able to achieve it; that’s a common argument to this day. Many think, “If God commanded, then I must be able to do it. ” Erasmo argued like this, using some biblical texts:
Now let’s be honest. The text reads: “Does man have a natural ability to obey what God commands?”As Luther has shown, “Do we show man what to do and not what he can do?”(52).
Finally, Luther will argue that these texts show, in fact, from experience, quite the opposite. Think of the following: Has God commanded us to love Him with all that we have and are, have you ever loved him that way?But if God ordered it, doesn’t that mean you can?Yes, it means you are responsible for doing; It shows you what to do, but that’s where the reality of our fallen condition comes from: we can’t, with the strength of our will.
And this is precisely one of the reasons why God gave his law: to make us fully aware of sin (Rom. 3:20). This completely changes the game! Therefore, these texts are no longer arguments to show our ability, but arguments to show our inability!
One last example (mine, not Luther’s). In the same text of Deuteronomy in which God puts life and death before people, in the next chapter, God says that He knows that they will be lost. And the Lord said unto Moses, “You shall rest with thy ancestors, and these people shall soon prostitute themselves, following the foreign gods of the land on which he shall enter. Will you forget me and break the alliance I made with them?(Deuteronomy 31. 16). Whatever the reason: they are rebellious and stubborn (31:26-27).
And we weren’t all like that? As Paul says
“There was a time when we were so foolish and disobedient that we were deceived and enslaved by all kinds of passions and pleasures. We lived in evil and envy, hate and hate; But when goodness and love for men were manifested by God our Savior, not by acts of righteousness done by us, but by his mercy, he saved us by the regenerating and renewing washing of the Holy Ghost, which he poured out upon us generously by Jesus Christ, our Savior (Titus 3:3). -6)
We were slaves. God saved us.
Obs. : One thing that helps in this debate is the difference between natural or moral ability. Watch this video of Sproul to learn more.
One last note. Whenever we say that man has no free will, the discussion about predestination soon arises (and was it not exactly so in the messages of THE EV?). Erasmo was therefore expected to raise such an accusation. According to him:
Now we get to you? Evidence in support of the New Testament. You highlight the text of Matthew 23. 37: “Jerusalem!? How many times have I wanted to gather your children, as the hen gathers his chicks under his wings, and you did not want to argue that if everything goes exactly as God intended, then Jerusalem could answer correctly: “Why are you shedding your tears?If you didn’t want to listen to the prophets, why did you send them?take responsibility when you’ve decided what to do?
Luther continues to speak of the “two wills of God”: the revealed will and the secret will. Says:
However, as I have already said, it is not for us to meddle in God’s secret will, because The secret things of God are completely out of our reach (1 Timothy 6. 16). We must devote our time to considering the incarnate God, the Lord Jesus Christ, in whom God made us understand what we should and should not know (Col. 2. 3).
It is true that the God who became flesh exclaimed, “How many times have I wanted to?And you didn’t want it!? Christ came into this world to realize, suffer and offer to all men all that is necessary for his salvation. But some, hardened by the Lord’s secret will, reject him (Jn 1:5,11). God himself incarnate, however, weeps and weeps at the eternal destruction of the wicked, though in his divine will, he has let them perish willingly. It is not for us to ask ourselves “why,” but to prostrate ourselves with admiration before God.
Right now, some will say that as soon as they corner me, I avoid facing the problem head-on, saying that we should not interfere in God’s secret will, but this is not my invention. In this way Paul argued in Romans 9:19, 21; and Isaiah, before Paul (Is 58:2). It is obvious that we should not seek to poll God’s secret will, especially when we realize that it is precisely the wicked who are strongly tempted to do so. quiet and respectful. If someone wants to do this form of research, they are invited to do so; However, you will find yourself fighting God. As for us, we’ll see who wins!
Before you think Luther was crazy and this God is schizophrenic, think about the following case:
And then was it the death of Christ or not the will of God?
We don’t have room here to discuss this topic, but if you want to study more I recommend these texts:
It’s your turn!
1) Do you think that if God sent something, it means that we have the ability to do it in ourselves?
2) What struck you most in this chapter?Anything you agreed with or disagreed with?