Some of my thoughts on christian liberty last week received a bit of pushback, which I welcome, as I’ve found that even disagreement can be a gift when it leads us back to Christ. Still, I’ve tried to steer clear of getting too caught up in theological skirmishes or what I would refer to as debate-cloaked devotion, knowing we each see through a glass darkly. On the other hand, even the friction that arises from differing viewpoints can be a ‘blessing’ in disguise, prompting us to search the scriptures afresh, agitate our ‘gospel’ presuppositions, and travel down ‘byways’ that normally would be avoided. The only reason I’m referencing this is the fact that it made me think about human responsibility, and besides the opening paragraph which I’ve extracted from my replies, I just wanted to add a few additional thoughts, which I’m hoping may prove helpful to any who, like myself, have wrestled with how man’s inability intersects with God’s command, and who have come to see that what God requires, only Christ can give.
My ‘friend’ mentioned man’s “responsibility,” to believe the gospel, to repent, &c., and while scripture certainly affirms that man is accountable to God, I think it may be wise to axe that particular term when speaking in the context of salvation? It often smuggles in the idea that man has the moral or spiritual ability to do what God requires, which runs contrary to the witness of Scripture and the glory of grace. So when we speak of “responsibility” in salvation terms, as though man has the inherent power to do what God commands, we risk diminishing the sheer necessity and wonder of God’s grace in Christ. The issue is not that the natural man hasn’t been told to believe, but that he cannot. He’s dead in sin, Ephesians 2:1, blind to the light, II Corinthians 4:4, and unwilling to come to Christ. John 5:40. His condition is not ignorance, but inability. So to speak of “responsibility” as though man has the native ability to fulfill what God requires ends up obscuring the glory of grace.
Additionally, it risks suggesting that the failure to believe lies in the absence of human effort, rather than the absence of divine mercy. Romans 9: 13. It frames the gospel as an opportunity instead of a declaration; a potentiality instead of a finished work. The moment we treat “human responsibility” as man doing his part in his contribution to salvation rather than the evidence of his just condemnation and guilt before God, we veer into perilous territory, a man-centered gospel, where grace is conditional and Christ is diminished.
At the heart of the gospel is this truth, that salvation is of the LORD. II Timothy 1:9. It is not a shared effort, it does not spring from cooperation, nor is it sustained by human will, but wrought wholly by divine grace. And yet, the language of “human responsibility,” if left undefined or untethered from man’s inability, can easily become the doorway to synergism, the idea that man and God each play a part in salvation’s execution. Synergism is the notion that salvation is a cooperative effort between God and man. Grace is God’s provision; faith is man’s contribution. Synergism, even in calvinistic circles, often wears a clever disguise, when it says, “faith is man’s response, yes, but God gives the faith, so it’s all of grace.” This sounds pious, but underneath lies a quiet shift in emphasis. Faith becomes man’s contribution, and grace becomes God’s assistance. God may supply the gift, but it’s man who unwraps it, applies it, and activates salvation. Yet Scripture teaches not that man uses grace, but that grace uses man. Ephesians 2:10. The moment we say that man is saved because he believes, even if that faith is a gift, we subtly relocate the cause of salvation from Christ crucified to man believing.
If salvation is part grace and part faith, (as if grace makes it possible and faith makes it actual,) then we’ve turned the gospel into a partnership, and not a proclamation of Christ’s finished work. The gospel doesn’t call sinners to contribute to their salvation by believing and confessing, it announces what Christ has done for the ungodly and declares that all who believe have eternal life. Salvation isn’t by faith, it’s by Christ. And even that faith does not originate in man, but in God who shows mercy. Romans 9:16. In the end, no part of salvation rests on man, not his will, not his wisdom, not even his “response.” It is all of grace, all of Christ, from first to last.
Let me summarize by suggesting that any doctrine that mingles man’s effort with divine grace obscures the glory of Christ. Salvation is monergistic, the work of ONE. From eternity past to final glory, it is GOD who elects, the SON who redeems, and the SPIRIT who quickens, ensuring that every stage of salvation, from its decree to its consummation, is traced to grace alone. Romans 11:36. Grace does not make salvation possible, it makes it actual! MPJ