For The Cause Of Free-will
Tony M. Montano
The lengths that Mr. Hunt goes to in trying to convince the readers of his book that the Bible teaches that man has a free-will to accept or reject salvation - is truly a sight to behold - as the following excerpt will evidence,
To show that the Bible does indeed teach total depravity as inability, the Calvinist cites such scriptures as “And God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually” (Genesis 6:5; 8:21). Other verses offered in alleged proof of this doctrine include Jeremiah 17:9, “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked,” and Romans 3:10-18, “There is none righteous...none that seeketh after God...none that doeth good...no fear of God before their eyes,” and so forth.
Obviously, however, that man's thoughts are only evil continually, that his heart is desperately wicked and deceitful, and that he neither seeks nor fears God, does not say that he is therefore unable, unless first of all regenerated by God, to believe the gospel even if convicted and convinced thereof by the Holy Spirit. Paul teaches otherwise: 'ye were the servants of sin, but ye have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered you' (Romans 6:17). Clearly, servants of sin responded to the command to repent and believe in Christ - then they were saved, regenerated, changed.
Nor does the statement that “none seeks after God” deny that any man, no matter how depraved, can respond by intelligent choice without first being regenerated if God seeks and draws him.1
We will deal with the second paragraph first. Paul does teach that servants of sin did believe. But, it is not thanks to their supposed free-will decision - as Mr. Hunt would have us believe. Quite the contrary, for we see that Paul gives thanks to God for their having “obeyed from the heart, etc.,” at the beginning of Romans 6:17.
They have God to thank for their obeying and for their being made free from sin and becoming servants of righteousness.2
In tampering with this verse, by leaving out the part where Paul says,
“But God be thanked,...,” It is clear that Mr. Hunt wants us to believe that
the servants of sin have themselves to thank for becoming servants of
righteousness.
From the free-will scheme it is man who is to be thanked for obeying the gospel - for turning from sin to righteousness, etc,. But Paul teaches otherwise; he gives all the praise and glory - the thanks - to God alone.3
As far as Romans 3:10-18 is concerned, Mr. Hunt might as well be saying, “Now when Paul says ‘There is none righteous, no, not one,’ ’there is none that understandeth...none that seeketh after God,’ ’there is none that doeth good, no, not one,’ and ’There is no fear of God before their eyes.’ We know that he cannot be teaching what he seems to be teaching. Since that would mean that man doesn’t have a free-will to be righteous, to be good and to seek after God. We know that man does have a free-will and is able to be righteous and seek after God. In fact, I, Dave Hunt, have done just this of my own free-will. This doesn’t mean that we don’t believe that God’s drawing doesn’t play a part in all of this. God does try to draw everyone to Christ, but, the rest is up to us. Without making an intelligent free-will decision to believe in Christ, none would be saved, no, not one.”
Those that are feasting at the table of free-will, may have it. Those of us that have seen, to the praise and glory of God alone, the truth of grace4 and the error of the free-will teaching, will only be satisfied by the free-grace portions of Holy Scripture.5 We will only glory in the grace of God and the atoning work of Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior. Amen.
It was proper that the Mediator should be capable of obeying the law, broken by the sin of man: as a divine Person could not be subject to the law, and yield obedience to it; and had he assumed the angelic nature, that would not have been capable of obeying all the precepts of the law, which are required of men; and universal perfect obedience was necessary for the justification of a sinner before God; hence Christ was made of a woman, that he might be made under the law, and yield obedience to it; by which obedience men are made righteous in the sight of God (Gal. 4:4; Rom. 5:19).6
We will inquire who the "us-ward" are to whom the Lord is said to be long-suffering. They are undoubtedly the persons to whom Peter writes his epistles, including himself. Let us turn, then, to the first epistle, and see to whom he wrote: "Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, to the strangers scattered throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia;" and he then gives them the honored appellation of "Elect, according to the foreknowledge of God the Father." In the second chapter of this epistle, he calls them "a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people, that they should show forth the praises of him who hath called them out of darkness into his marvelous light."
It is worthy of remark, that the pronouns us and we, so often used by the apostles, in their epistles, are no other than the Lord's chosen people, to whom the precious truths contained in those epistles belong. As a confirmation of this fact, let me refer you to the following texts, in which these two terms, us and we, are often used: "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ, according as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love, having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will." (Eph. 1 3-5.) "But let us who are of the day be sober, for God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ." (I Thess. 5. 8. 9.) "Who hath saved us and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began." (2 Tim. 1.9.) You see, my friends, from these passages, and many more that might be produced, that the "us-ward" in our text are the objects of God's everlasting, electing love; and that their election is not founded upon any foreseen worth or worthiness in the creature, as the procuring cause of it, will be seen from the characters unto whom the Lord has been long-suffering.7
Justified by His obedience: "For as by one man's disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of One shall many be made righteous" (Rom. 5:19). That is, as all in Adam were made sinners, so all in Christ are made righteous. "As in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive" (1 Cor. 15:22). Who are made alive? All in Christ. That 15th chapter of 1 Corinthians is a marvelous piece of Divine Logos by the power of the Holy Ghost. Many mistakes are made in reference to this chapter. What is the subject? Not what is called the general resurrection; but the resurrection to life and glory of "Christ the First-fruits; afterward they that are Christ's at His coming."8
And what was there, blessed Jesus, that constrained thee to this necessity? Was it because there was a poor adulterous woman there, that needed thy grace, and the hour was come for her conversion? Sweet thought! Let me cherish it this morning. Was there not the same needs be for the Father setting thee up, from everlasting, for the head of thy church and people? Could there have been a church without thee? And when thy church had fallen by sin, what archangel could have recovered her but thee? Why then there was a needs be that thou shouldest take the nature of thy people upon thee, and come to seek and save that which was lost. And as it is said of thee concerning this poor woman, that "he must needs go through Samaria," so must it be equally said, Jesus must needs go to Jerusalem, to save Jerusalem sinners by his blood. Oh yes, there was a blessed necessity upon thee, thou Lamb of God, that thou shouldest do all this. "Ought not Christ to have suffered these things, and to enter into his glory?" My soul, indulge this precious thought yet further, and see if there be not a needs be in thy Jesus for numberless other occasions. Is there not a blessed necessity that Jesus should give out of his fullness to his people? Is there not a needs be, when his blessed gospel is preached, that he should be present to give virtue and efficacy to the word delivered? Might not every poor, waiting, needy sinner say, there is a blessed necessity Christ should be here? Surely he is constrained by his promise, that where two or three are met in his name, he is in the midst of them; and therefore he will come, he will bless his word, he will give out of his fullness; for he knows my need, and the need of all his people present. Nay, is not the glory of our Jesus depending upon the receiving of his poor, and making them rich by his bounty? Go one step further, my soul, this morning, as it concerns thyself. Doth not Jesus know now thy state, thy want, thy circumstances, and that thou art waiting for thy morning alms before that thou canst leave his gate? Then is there not a needs be that he, who was constrained to pass through Samaria, should come to thee? Precious, precious Jesus! I wait thy coming; I long to hear thy voice. What I need thou knowest. And as thy glory and my salvation are both blended, do for me, Lord, as shall best conduce to this one end, and all will be well. Jesus will be glorified, and my soul made happy. Amen.
PHILIPPINES: I am very glad that we received your 12 colored, accurate, Spirit filled, vibrant, teaching materials. As we study it carefully and prayerfully line upon line, word for word and we are truly blessed and I've started teaching it and use it in my bible studies.
End Notes:
1 What Love Is This?, Pp. 102 - 103.
2 Romans 6:18
3 For more on this, see: Grace Truth Ministries Newsletter, January 2002,
Number 11, A Letter To Calvary Chapel Pastors - RE: The Scriptures &
Free-will.
4 Colossians 1:5-6.
5 1 Corinthians 1:23-31, Colossians 1:12-13, Ephesians 2:1-10, etc,.
6 Of Christ - The Mediator Of The Covenant, p. 8, GTM Booklet.
7 The GTM Evangelical Pulpit, Number 5, February 2002, p. 12.
8 It Is God That Justifieth, p. 17, GTM Booklet.
