2nd. Semipelagian.-(a.) Man’s nature has been so far weakened by the fall that it cannot act aright in spiritual matters without divine assistance. (b.) This weakened moral state which infants inherit from their parents is the cause of sin, but not itself sin in the sense of deserving the wrath of God. (c.) Man must strive to do his whole duty, when God meets him with co-operative grace, and renders his efforts successful. (d.) Man is not responsible for the sins he commits until after he has enjoyed and abused the influences of grace.
– A.A. Hodge
Semi-Pelagianism has been found lacking so far. It tries to find a medium between Pelagianism and Augustinianism, but is in reality far closer to Pelagianism than Augustinianism. The truth of the matter is that Pelagianism and Augustinianism are the two views that have inner consistency within them and the Semi-Pelagian view does not. I quoted William Cunningham many BLOGS ago from his Historical Theology where he noted that exact point and said that the Semi-Pelagian will tend toward Pelagianism or Augustinianism. Scripture teaches that man is dead in sins and trespasses and is by nature a child of wrath. Pelagianism would absolutely deny that by twisting the text. Semi-Pelagianism tries to take the text into some consideration but ends up denying it altogether as well. It does this in how infants come into the world and how Christ saves sinners. It also does this in terms of sanctification which ends up with man working hard and God making up for what man cannot do.
There are numerous verses of Scripture that instruct us exactly opposite of what Semi-Pelagianism does. We find in Matthew 5:3 that the blessed man has no righteousness of his own as the blessed person is poor in spirit. The Greek word there denotes a poverty that is absolute and with no way to obtain anything either. It is an absolute and utter poverty in terms of righteousness that the blessed person has. There is no teaching here of man working as hard as he can and then God meets him with co-operative grace. We find Galatians 2:20 teaching us that it is no longer I who live but Christ who lives in me. The self and the efforts of self must be crucified and died to rather than work for co-operative grace. Colossians 1:29 puts it this way: “For this purpose also I labor, striving according to His power, which mightily works within me.” In that text it is not striving according to my own power and then being helped with co-operative grace, but it is grace that is working mightily within him.
We will now move to (d) where the Semi-Pelagian view says that man is said not responsible for the sins he commits until after he has enjoyed and abused the influences of grace. This view is a necessary view of the system but still stands against Scripture and what it teaches. It is necessary for the Semi-Pelagian to hold this because man cannot be successful in what he does apart from grace. So if man never has grace, he cannot be responsible for what he does. Since man is in a weakened moral state that is inherited from his parents, if he never hears of the grace of God and of the Gospel he is not guilty of his sin before God. After all, he received this nature as an infant and never heard of how he was to act before God.
What we must see here is that God is never obligated to show anyone any amount of grace or it becomes something other than grace. Where does Scripture ever teach that God must show man grace in order for the person to be responsible for his sin? That seems to make grace responsible for sin. This position also allows for the Semi-Pelagian to hold that those who never hear of Christ in this life to have another chance after death. But Scripture is entirely against this view. Romans 1:18-31 shows that all men are guilty of sin because all know God by nature. Men sin against God because they hate God and refuse to glorify Him. It is in light of this fact that all are guilty before God whether they are under the Law or not that Paul says that all are without excuse and all are accountable (responsible) to God (Romans 3:19-20). Grace is what is needed for man to be saved not what is needed for man to be a sinner. As we have looked at the core of the Semi-Pelagian view regarding the inability of man, we have seen that it stresses the ability of man more than the inability. It stresses the ability of man by nature and then the ability of man to seek God and obtain co-operative grace. Scripture says that no one seeks God and that man is at enmity with God. The Semi-Pelagian view is really just a sub-set of the Pelagian view and both fall far short of setting out the truth of Scripture. In reality both end up with a defective view of sin and of the Gospel.
God Loves... Himself 
Leave a comment