3rd. Augustinian.-Which was adopted by all the original Protestant Churches, Lutheran and Reformed. (a.) Man is by nature so entirely depraved in his moral nature as to be totally unable to do any thing spiritually good, or in any degree to begin or dispose himself thereto. (b.) That even under the exciting and suasory influences of divine grace the will of man is totally unable to act aright in co-operation with grace, until after the will itself is by the energy of grace radically and permanently renewed. (c.) Even after the renewal of the will it ever continues dependent upon divine grace, to prompt, direct, and enable it in the performance of every good work.
Last time we continued looking at the ramifications of the Augustinian view on evangelism. We looked at a couple of positions on evangelism and how those were really Semi-Pelagian if not Pelagian in practice. We began to look at position (b.) above. We will now continue to look at some more ramifications of position (b.), even some that are quite uncomfortable for Reformed people today.
Notice that position (b.) above teaches us that even with all the influences of divine grace upon the soul and will of man, no one can act “aright in co-operation with grace, until after the will itself is by the energy of grace radically and permanently renewed.” This position, which is the historical position of the Reformed, totally destroys a lot of modern day methods of evangelism. Underlying this teaching, however, one can see the stress on the sovereignty of God and a salvation that is totally of grace. It is in direct conflict with any teaching that requires man’s will to be able to cooperate with the grace of God. It is in direct conflict with one who teaches that God draws all men and it is up to the person to respond or not to respond. This position stresses without equivocation that there is nothing in man that will respond even to the grace of God until that will is renewed and regenerated. Man hates God until God gives the person a new heart and the person loves God from that new heart.
We are told that there are means of grace and that is correct. However, nothing has grace in and of itself so that by a mere act of the will grace is given. The unbeliever is not cooperating with the grace of God when s/he reads the Scriptures and offers something called a prayer. No, that person is simply doing those things that God uses to save souls. God uses His Word as a means of grace, but the grace is still in His hand to show and not the sinner’s. By definition grace is that which is caused by God alone and not the sinner at all. Sinners are to hear the preaching of the Word because God saves through the Word, but this is not to be seen as cooperating with the grace of God. God will have mercy on whom He will have mercy and have compassion on whom He will have compassion. He never promises to save those who hear His Word, though it is by the Word that He saves as He pleases.
We must shout to the skies the truth of position (b.) above that God saves by grace alone and not in accordance with the cooperation of man! This should teach us to preach to ourselves to always look to grace rather than what is going on. This should teach us in evangelism to teach unbelievers to seek the Lord for a new heart rather than to cooperate with the grace of God. Until a person has a new heart, there is nothing that a person can do to respond to the grace of God aright. Until a person has a new heart, there is nothing that a person can do that is spiritually good or will please God. Even when God is showing some form of “grace” to a person in many ways, that person cannot respond unless and until God gives them a new heart and new will.
This should teach us to always stress the absolute sovereignty of God in His showing of grace rather than depending on means of grace in salvation. The means of grace are to be taught, but they are means and nothing more while grace itself is a sovereign act of God. Grace can only be moved from within God or it is not grace at all. In the Reformed community there has been much stress on the means of grace. But, strangely enough, that has become a position where the means of grace has now become an agent of grace that a person may apply to him or herself. Baptism may be seen as a means of grace, yet that is still a far different thing than thinking that it confers grace of itself when applied. The Word of God is to be seen as a means of grace, but that is far different than thinking that the will of man may apply grace to himself by reading the Bible. All are to be done in accordance with the preaching of the Word of God and in complete submission to the sovereignty of God who shows grace as He pleases or it is not grace at all. If human beings can do something to earn or cause God to show grace, then grace is no longer grace at all. Instead, as position (b.) teaches, we are entirely in the hand of grace and not even grace itself will move the will of man to spiritually do anything until grace renews the soul and will. It is sovereign grace or it is not grace at all (Rom 4:16; 11:6). Grace never comes on the basis of a human work.
God Loves... Himself 
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