Then, in the second place, this hypocrisy of theirs results in their valuing and seeking to purchase the grace of God at a much cheaper rate than the Pelagians. The latter assert that it is not by a feeble something within us that we obtain grace, but by efforts and works that are complete, entire, perfect, many and mighty; but our friends here tell us that it is by something very small, almost nothing, that we merit grace [act of a ‘free-will’]…For if we are justified without works, all works are condemned, whether small or great; Paul exempts none, but thunders impartially against all. (Luther, Bondage of the Will)
Luther has set out to show that the Arminian (semi-Pelagian) teaching of one work of the ‘free-will’ was actually worse than the Pelagian teaching that people should work hard and merit salvation. On the surface something seems wrong with that thought, but the more one looks at it the more sense it makes. In some ways Arminianism (semi-Pelagianism) is worse than the full form of Pelagianism. Once a person sees what an act of a ‘free-will’ really is, then that person can see something of what Luther wrote about and preached about. His opposition to ‘free-will’ might seem like a person making a mountain out of a mole-hill, but Luther looked past the words and the appearances to see where this act of the ‘free-will’ came from and what it led to.
The Reformation was planted firmly in the biblical teaching of grace alone, but that means sovereign grace alone. In earlier BLOGS it was pointed out that there were twin teachings at the heart of the Reformation Gospel and those were the utter helplessness of man and the sovereign grace of God. Both of those teachings meet at the doctrine of the bondage of the will which Luther considered utterly vital to the Gospel of the Reformation. The Gospel is known in the modern day as justification by faith alone, but that is largely truncated in the modern day. The Gospel of justification by faith alone does not stand alone and apart from the twin teachings at the heart of the Reformation Gospel. In fact, they stand or fall together. So when a person asserts that man has ‘free-will’ and can choose salvation on his own and even that he must choose to be saved from his own will, that is an attack on the Gospel of grace alone to those who are utterly helpless in their sin. The doctrine or concept of ‘free-will’ in terms of how it fits with the Gospel is an attack on the Gospel when it is seen in this context.
Pelagianism teaches that a person must work hard to merit salvation, but Arminianism teaches that all a person must do is one act of the ‘free-will” and then that person will be saved. Again, that one act of the ‘free-will’ demands that the will be free enough from its own depravity and deadness to be something less than totally helpless and to have just a little ability rather than total inability. On the other hands, for the will to be free in its acts it cannot be moved in the final choice by grace alone or the will would not be free. So it can be easily seen that the teaching of ‘free-will’ is an assault on the primary teachings of Christianity as it came from the Reformation. Luther saw this but apparently not many see this today. While Luther is lauded as a great Reformer his teaching on this issue is all but ignored. That is much like the Pharisees of New Testament times who would speak highly of and adorn the graves of the prophets while killing the prophets of their own day.
Luther abhorred the fact that people thought that salvation could be had by one small act of the ‘free-will’ while at the same time they denounced Pelagianism. While it may seem that Arminianism is closer to the Gospel of grace alone and just one small act of the will away from grace alone, Luther saw it as valuing the Gospel less. Many if not virtually all the Reformed today think of Arminianism as teaching something just slightly less than a pure Gospel and yet in the family of Christ, but Luther would not have that thought at all. As he said, “if we are justified without works, all works are condemned, whether small or great.” This should provoke us to thought and prayer. Is the Gospel not only compromised by many works, but also by one tiny little work as well? Is the Gospel of grace alone set out by Paul and then any work at all denounced by him?
The teaching of ‘free-will’ in terms of the Gospel is a Trojan horse in the modern professing Church where the professing Church has the blinders on rather than the horse. It has been brought in the walls of the Gospel of grace alone as just one small thing and yet within that one small thing is an attack on the Gospel itself and what makes the Gospel necessary. It is an attack on the utter inability and total helplessness of man in sin which makes grace alone and Christ alone as necessary to the Gospel. It is an attack on the Gospel of Christ alone and grace alone because that one small work of the ‘free-will’ is said to be necessary. If that act of the ‘free-will’ is necessary, then Christ did not do it all and grace is not alone. That one little act then continues on in the realm of sanctification and beyond so that before long it is ‘free-will’ that is on the throne rather than Christ. There used to be a commercial of a hair product which said that “one little dab will do ya.” In the Gospel one little dab of ‘free-will’ will undo ya. The Gospel of grace alone is under full attack today while those who claim to be friends of it are trying to be gracious and winsome to the enemies of it. After all, they say, Arminians believe in justification by faith alone as well. That just shows that the Trojan horse has made massive inroads in our day.
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