God’s Word

Free Will (from Spurgeon)

 From the Gospel Focus of Charles Spurgeon, Chapter 3, Sovereign Grace in first sections titled Total Depravity, we looked at the first part back when we did Romans 5:12-21 in weighing in on the reality and severity of the fall and how that was passed on to us as descendants of Adam.

Now that we have took the time to carefully unpack the “Death to Life” series text of Romans 5:12-8:11, we can reflect on the reality of our condition apart from Christ and with Him. 

This week we are looking at the 2nd part of the Total Depravity section in Chapter 3. 

Gen. 3:8-12, John 10:17-18, Rm. 7:15-18

Their are 3 main ideas here,

1-What is our fallen nature able to do apart from Christ?

2-Does the doctrine of free will magnify man into God?

3-What is the first step towards God?

Free Will

Defined as the Freedom to do what one wills to do.

1-What is our fallen nature able to do apart from Christ?

Regarding the will, Spurgeon said, 

“We declare on scriptural authority that the human will is 

so desperately set on mischief, 

so depraved, 

so inclined to everything that is evil, 

and so disinclined to everything that is good, 

that without the powerful, supernatural, irresistible influence of the Holy Spirit, 

no human will will ever be constrained toward Christ.” 

By this statement, Spurgeon affirmed 

that the volitional capacity of sinful man is paralyzed, 

leaving him incapable of responding to the free offer of Christ. 

(Volition: the power of choosing or determining:WILL, an act of making a choice or decision)

Rm. 5:16-17, Rm. 8:7-8, Matt. 16:13-17, 1 Cor. 12:1-3, John 3:3,5, John 6:44, 65, Rm. 7:24, Rm. 4:17-25

2-Does the Doctrine of Free Will magnify man into God?

Consequently, Spurgeon resisted the notion of human free will. 

He contended that such an idea elevates man to the place reserved for God alone: 

“Free-will doctrine—what does it? 

It magnifies man into God. 

It declares God’s purposes a nullity, since they cannot be carried out unless men are willing. 

It makes God’s will a waiting servant to the will of man.” 

Matt. 15:10-11, 17-20, 1 Cor. 2:9-13, Jer. 31:33-34, Ezekiel 36:26-27, Eph. 1:13-14, John 14:15-17, Luke 10:38-42, Acts 6:1-6

3-What is the First Step towards God?

Further, Spurgeon affirmed, 

“If God requires of the sinner, dead in sin, that he should take the first step, 

then he requires just that which renders salvation as impossible under the gospel as it was under the law, 

since man is as unable to believe as he is to obey.” 

Simply put, Spurgeon believed that no human will is entirely free. 

It is either a slave of sin or a slave of Christ, but never free. 

Acts 10:42-43, John 11:43-44, Ez. 37:3-5, 1 Cor. 14:18-19, Rm. 6:16-18

4-Conclusion, Where does the Gospel Begin?

For Spurgeon, this was where the message of the gospel begins. 

The saving message of grace starts with total depravity. 

Man is entirely corrupted by sin. 

He is spiritually dead and unable to save himself. 

He could not be more hopeless and helpless.

John 6:29, John 3:15, 18, 36, John 5:24, 38, 44, 65, John 6:35, 47, 64, 69, John 7:38-39, John 8:24, John 9:35-38, John 10:24-26, John 20:28-2, Matt. 13:17, Lk 10:24

Podcast of Zoom Meeting

Overview of "Life to Death" Series (Romans 5:12-8:11)

 Review all previous notes, clean up outlines

Transition Spurgeon book. We looked at "Total Depravity" in part 1 with the fall of Adam.

Now we need to consider "Free Will" in the way we have come to realize it. 

If led by the flesh our freedom of the will is to sin and die, but if led by the Spirit our freedom of the will is to find eternal life. 

Free will is just that, the freedom to do what we truly want to do.

The problem is not a persons free will, but their desires to rebel from God's command.

It is that problem, Paul is talking about in our text.

When he uses terms like "this body of death" and "wretched man that I am", he talking about a struggle that is brought about because he has come to know the truth about himself and who he really is at the core because the law of God has revealed it to him. It is at the point, he can run and hide and refuse to submit to God's law or he can accept the ugly truth of it all and look to God for restoration and forgiveness.

The apostle Paul looked like David for reconciliation and they found it in Christ.

Insert clip from Spurgeon book on "Free Will" under total depravity section

Consider a couple teachings from that.

The Series

Death in Adam, Life in Christ Rm. 5:12 (wk. 1) Jeff

Dead to Sin, Alive to God Rm. 6:1 (wk. 2) Mike

Slaves to Righteousness Rm. 6:15 (wk. 3) Paul

Released from the Law Rm. 7:1 (wk. 4) Shane

The Law and Sin Rm. 7:7, 13 (wk. 5&6) Keith

Life in the Spirit Rm. 8:1 (wk. 7) Rusty

The Questions

1-What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound? (By no means!) Rm. 6:1

2-What then? Are we to sin because we are not under law but under grace? (By no means!) Rm. 6:15

3-Do you not know that the law is binding on a person only as long as he lives? Rm. 7:1

4-What then shall we say? That the law is sin? (By no means!) Rm. 7:7

5-Did that which is good, bring death to me? (By no means!) Rm. 7:13

6-Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? Rm. 7:24

Monday morning, worked on future blog post

worked on keynote powerpoint and how to share it in meeting

assigned Jeff, Mike, Paul and Shane a project to engage have heard back from them per text

?listen to podcast, edit notes, read text again

Tuesday

Wednesday

Thursday

Friday

Saturday

Life in the Spirit (Romans 7:24-8:11)

 Here we are unpacking the 6th question in our “Death to Life” Series, Rm. 7:24, Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death?

The 3 Points of Focus are

1-He Condemned Sin in the Flesh (Rm. 8:3)

2-Setting our Mind on the Spirit or the Flesh (Rm. 8:5)

3-The Body is Dead because of Sin, but the Spirit is alive because of righteousness (Rm. 8:10)

2 Cor. 12:7-10

Like Pauls thorn in the flesh, us believers have a body of death that we have to carry around until the day we die. This is a reminder of our need for Christ an other peoples’ need for salvation.

Acts 26:28-29

King Agrippa asked do you think you can covert me in such a short time?

Paul desired all men to be like him except for the chains.

1-He Condemned Sin in the Flesh

(Romans 8:1-4)

In this text,

1.1-What are the two internal driving laws at play in the person Paul is talking to?

(The law of the Spirit of Life and the law of sin and death, these are internal verses the external law of God via 10 commandments Ex. 20, Matt. 5:21-22, 5:27-30)

1.2-What has one of the laws done to the other?

(The law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death Rm. 8:2)

1.3-What law was unable to succeed because it was weakened by the flesh?

(The Law of God Rm. 8:3 (Do not Covet) Rm. 7:7-8) 

1.4-How did God make a way to accomplish what the law was unable to do?

(By sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, he condemned sin in the flesh, in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us Rm. 8:3-4)

1.5-What is the purpose of condemning sin in the flesh? 

(In order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us. Rm. 8:4)

1.6-Why is that necessary from your point of view?

(Because for God to be the just and justifier of us Rm. 3:26, if he shows mercy to us and disregards our sins, it is very different than Him actually taking the punishment and paying the price for the sins.)

2-Setting our Mind on the Spirit or the Flesh

(Romans 8:5-8)

So in this text, when talking about choosing to set your mind on the Spirit or the flesh

2.1-Is that a choice that anyone can make or is it only a choice that believers can make?

(apart from me you can do nothing John 15:5, John 6:44,63,65, God enables us and calls us to set our mind on the Spirit)

2.2-Is Paul talking to believers here or unbelievers or both?

(Potentially Both. To believers to realize who they are in Christ and unbelievers to recognize their need for Christ Rm.8:9)

2.3-Can an unbeliever set their mind on the spirit? 

(No unless your are born again Rm. 3:3, 5, you can not understand the mind of Christ. 1 Cor. 2:10-16)

2.4-Is that something that can be done without being born again or repenting and placing faith in Christ?

(no. Rm. 8:8)

2.5-What condition are we in before our salvation, do we have access to the Spirit?

(We are bent towards rebellion to God. We rebel from Him because it is what we freely want to do. His ways are a burden to us. Rm. 7:21-24) 

2.6-If the only option for an unbeliever is the flesh, what good can they choose from their flesh?

(A atheist man can be faithful to his wife, be a reasonably good dad, be a good employee contribute to his community all within his flesh, but when asked to submit to God’s commands, he has a rebellious nature in his flesh that prevents him for doing so. Rm. 8:7)

2.7-Apart from the grace of God, can anyone within their flesh, fulfill the righteous requirement of the law?

(By no means Rm. 8:3-4)

Human Responsibility and Free Will

In the last part of Rm. 8:4, it says that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.

The text goes on to go back and forth between setting the mind on the Spirit or the Flesh and the fruit produced from this.

In Rm.8:7, is says that the mind set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God’s law; indeed, it cannot. This word submit is important in my opinion in regard to the law. We either submit or rebel from the law. And here we have a clear description on what drives our submission or rebellion. It matters what we set our mind on. Acts 2:37 or Acts 7:54

The careful consideration here though in regard to others, is when we urge a person to seek and submit to God’s word and they are not able to do so, are they saved? 

The reason this is important is because it is impossible for the flesh to focus on the spirit. Only by the spirit can a person choose Christ.

1 Cor. 12:3 and Matt.16:17

In these two verses it is highlighted that “no one can say Jesus is Lord except in the Holy Spirit.” 

And it also describes when Peter confessed Jesus as the Lord, that Jesus told him “Blessed are you for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father in Heaven.

3-The Body is Dead because of Sin, 

but the Spirit is Alive because of Righteousness

(Romans 8:9-11)

Here in this part of the passage Paul addresses two things,

1-How do we know if we are in Christ (vs. 9)

2-And how the believers body dies, but his spirit lives. (Vs. 10-11)

3.1-What does it mean that the body is dead because of sin?

(Because of the fall our old man has died Rm. 5:12)

3.2-How do we know if our Spirit is alive?

(You have a new heart with new and right desires) Rm. 8:9, 16, Jer. 31:31-34, Ezekiel 36:26, Heb. 8:10-12 

3.3-How and when does the Spirit that raised Jesus from the dead give life to your mortal bodies?

(He internally gives us life immediately, but will also complete that work when we die and receive our glorified bodies. Rm. 8:20-27, 2 Cor. 4:16-5:10)

3.4-How does this life giving relate to the death of the first Adam in Gen. 3?

(Just like Adam didn’t fully physically die in Gen. 3:7-11, he did immediately spiritually died the moment he recognized his nakedness and feared God because of it. This starts the broken relationship that for most only gets worst over time as we continue to fear God and hide from Him. In the same way, when we eat the bread of life, we immediately can find a peace with God and can come to realize you don’t need to hide from Him or cover up who you are. Come to Him as Adam did originally naked and unashamed Gen. 2:25. He already knows what you look like anyway, whether you try to hide it or not. Be real and honest with your creator and ask Him to direct your ways. 

James 4:7-8, Prov. 20:24, Ps. 119:105, Prov. 19:21, Prov. 3:5-7

We will meet one more time as a Q&A for this series. Just and overview and a time for you to share your heart and struggles with the text personally. We will just take the time to process the big picture of it all.

We will take a couple weeks and look at a few topics from the Charles Spurgeon book to finish this series and transition into the next one in John 5-8.

Podcast of 3-6, Zoom Camp Fire