Belief and Unbelief

Recently, in reading an ongoing dialogue between someone that holds to Reformed theology and someone who does not, I have come to the following conclusion. Reformed theology holds that mankind starts from a state of unbelief, whereas those with the opposite view would see mankind as having the ability to not believe.

These opposing views take their positions from what they hold on man's degree of depravity. In the fall, Adam sinned against God, and sin entered in the world. Now, after this, in what state does man find himself? Reformed theologians would hold that man is utterly depraved, or "broken", where those on the other side of the argument would temper this a bit, saying since we were made in the image of God, man is merely "bent."

For those that would hold to men being able to not choose God, they would hold that a person that is presented with the Gospel is able to choose or not to choose whether to follow it. On one level, this is true; we see individuals make decisions (whether to turn left or right down a street, buy this piece of furniture, etc.) every day. However, to we stop to think what were the motivations and desires behind those decisions? As I have mentioned before, definitions are quite important. It can be debated what type of free will is in existence after the fall. I am not arguing that those that are not in Christ do not make choices, but they choose in a different sense--they choose out of their sinful desires. They desire their sin more than honoring Christ, because they are not made aware of Christ through the regenerating power of the Holy Spirit.

Many who proclaim man's "free" will claim that men and women can take the initiative and seek God out, since for them, all men are given a "hole" of sorts that deep down, they know they must fill with God. If this is true, then why is it that much of the world fills it with other things, and lives seemingly happy and blissful? Perhaps it is because they do not know the truth, because it has not been revealed to them, their eyes not having been opened. And even if some do seem to seek out God, by coming to church or some other ministry event, saving faith is only produced when God regenerates the individual by first changing their desires.

I always come back to the parable of the sower (Matthew 13:1-9). Where the seeds fall on rocky ground, these are those whose faith is built on their own efforts, where there has been no effectual calling of the Holy Spirit. You know of whom I speak--the individual who attended your church for several weeks, came forward and was told to say the sinner's prayer, perhaps persisted for a while, and then never showed again, and it has been years. When they are confronted, they care nothing for growing in the faith--it was at most "something else to try." Here, the deepest desires of the individual were not changed--there was an outward profession, but no inward change, which can only be affected by the Spirit. (See John 3)

And what does Jesus follow up with the disciples in explanation? That to them is given the secrets of heaven, but it has not been given to them (the crowds to whom he was telling the parables, who had not yet believed). He quotes from Isaiah: "You will indeed hear but never understand, and you will indeed see but never perceive. For this people's heart has grown dull, and with their ears they can barely hear, and their eyes they have closed, lest they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears and understand with their heart and turn, and I would heal them."

This cannot be more clear: God would heal them, but they choose their sin. One need only look to Romans 1 to see this again:
"For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness supress the truth." (v. 18)

Men condemn themselves--make no mistake of that. However, their desire for their own glory and their own sin is so strong, that they cannot have a desire for God on their own that would lead to saving faith. God must first change their desires to bring them to Christ--God in fact frees our will by destroying the power sin has over us, and when we are awakened to the truth, the beauty of the Gospel is irresistible. But this is not something we are "forced" by God into doing! If anything, we were robots and slaves to sin before the Spirit came to regenerate us! This awakening is the grace of God.