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)
One of the great battles of the Reformation was over the issue of ‘free-will’ or bondage of the will in terms of the Gospel. At times it might not have used that language, but the whole issue of the sinfulness of man and his inability was over this issue. While many understand one of the main issues of the Reformation was justification by faith alone, yet that doctrine also had bigger principles that it was being used to defend. This issue of the bondage of the will is at the very heart of the Gospel and as such at the heart of the Reformation. When the heart of the Gospel of grace alone is attacked, one must rise to defend it. As people during and just after the New Testament times were willing to be put to death rather than offer one pinch of incense to Caesar, so the lovers of the Gospel of grace alone must be willing to suffer ridicule in the stand for the true Gospel of grace alone.
Luther saw the great dangers of the leaven involved in that one little choice of the ‘free-will’ to the Gospel and the heart of the Reformation. He saw it as a great danger and how deceptive it was. The problem today is that we don’t. It has become far more important to be thought of as gracious and nice and as willing to work with people who differ on some minor issues. It may be important to work with people who differ on minor issues, but this is not a minor issue. Paul declared without any equivocation that sinners are saved by grace apart from works. Yet the teaching of ‘free-will’ tries to disguise what it really is and sneak one work into the Gospel. But as Paul also declared, anything but grace alone makes grace to be less than grace.
As noted in the last BLOG, while ‘free-will’ is brought into the camp at the point of choosing salvation, it goes farther than that. If the will is free at the point of conversion, then it is also free if not even more free after conversion. Instead of great truth taught by Jesus that apart from Him we can do nothing (John 15:4-5), those who teach ‘free-will’ do teach that we can do something apart from Him. If the will is indeed free, then for it to be free it has to be free at some point from Christ and His work as the Vine. This leaves the deadly problem of works in sanctification and the problem of free choices in all aspects of Christianity. Grace is cast out in truth while it retains the helper of the will rather than the sovereign ruler of the will. Indeed it is just one small thing at the beginning, but like a virus it takes over and begins to run things.
That virus leads us in our day to hear people teach that God cannot violate the ‘free-will’ but instead must wait on the human to do something. Who is sovereign in that case? It makes grace to be at the beck and call of the human being rather than grace as the sovereign act of God. It makes man and his will out to be sovereign in the matter. It makes the choice of man as sovereign rather than the grace of God. But to be clear on the matter, it also makes grace to be less than grace because it means that God gives grace because a human being made a choice. In other words, the act of the ‘free-will’ is something that moves God to give grace, but that means that grace is given because of something the human does. That something, call it what you will, is a work. That means that this choice of man is now the focus rather than grace. It is a different gospel.
So while it is taught that the act of the will is so weak and so nothing it is really not a work, that is nothing more than words hiding reality. This so-called little act of the will, in reality and as it is seen for what it is, actually destroys the heart of Christianity and sets up an idol in its place. It sets up the idol of man and his will in the place of grace and then that idol gains strength as time goes on so that all is now bowing at the idol of ‘free-will’ in the professing Church. The great idol must be entertained and wooed so that men will choose Christ. That great idol must be given campaigns in order to get enough money so that this great idol can be bowed to in the methods of evangelism and missions. That great idol must be coddled so that it will want to attend and tithe so that great buildings erected to the idol of ‘free-will’ can be paid for and attract others who follow this great idol. The doctrine of ‘free-will’ is indeed nothing but a doctrine of idolatry and defending the throne of the idol that tries to set itself up in the temple of the living God. It may appear small, but it is a huge and consuming idol.
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