Do we have free will?
Joshua 24:15
15 But if serving the LORD seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD.”
New International Version (NIV)
The answer
Yes—people make real, morally responsible choices; but no—no human will is independent of God, and apart from His grace it is enslaved to sin rather than able to come to Christ by its own power (Joshua 24:15; John 8:34; John 6:44). Scripture teaches human choice, human responsibility, and God's sovereign grace together.
People genuinely choose and answer for their choices
Joshua called Israel to a real decision: “choose today whom you will serve,” while declaring, “as for me and my house, we will serve Yahweh” (Joshua 24:15). Moses likewise set “life and death, the blessing and the curse” before Israel and commanded, “Therefore choose life, that you may live” (Deuteronomy 30:19). Elijah confronted the people with the same either-or: “if the LORD be God, follow him: but if Baal, then follow him” (1 Kings 18:21).
These are not meaningless commands. God calls people to turn from idols, obey Him, and accept responsibility for refusing Him.
A real will is not an unlimited or neutral will
Jesus said, “everyone who commits sin is the bondservant of sin” (John 8:34). People still choose, but sin is not merely something they occasionally do; it enslaves them. Ephesians 2:1-3 describes people apart from Christ as dead in trespasses and sins, following the world and fulfilling the desires of the flesh. Romans 8:7-8 says that the mind of the flesh is hostile to God, cannot submit to His law, and cannot please Him.
That is why coming to Christ requires more than unaided human determination. Jesus declared, “No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him” (John 6:44). God's drawing is necessary. Yet the same chapter contains Christ's genuine promise: “He who comes to me I will in no way throw out” (John 6:37). Scripture neither treats coming to Christ as self-salvation nor treats God's grace as eliminating the call to come.
God's sovereignty and human responsibility stand together
At the crucifixion, Jesus was “delivered up by the determined counsel and foreknowledge of God,” yet lawless men crucified and killed Him (Acts 2:23). God's settled purpose and the human agents' guilty actions appear in the same sentence. Scripture does not explain away either truth.
The same pattern governs Christian obedience. Believers must “work out” their salvation with fear and trembling, “for it is God who works in you both to will and to work for his good pleasure” (Philippians 2:12-13). God's work does not make willing obedience unnecessary; He is the One who produces it.
True freedom is freedom from sin
Biblical freedom is not independence from God or permission to sin. Jesus said, “If therefore the Son makes you free, you will be free indeed” (John 8:36). God makes the spiritually dead alive together with Christ, saving by grace rather than by human power (Ephesians 2:4-5).
The response God calls for is therefore not confidence in the strength of one's own will, nor passive resignation. It is to turn from sin, come to Christ, and remain in His word (John 8:31). The crucified and risen Son frees slaves to sin, and His promise remains open: “He who comes to me I will in no way throw out” (John 6:37).
Answered from Scripture · reviewed November 11, 2026
Scripture presents human beings as genuine moral agents who make real, accountable choices every day, yet it reveals that the human will is not spiritually neutral. In our fallen condition, our desires are naturally captive to sin, rendering us unable to choose God apart from the regenerating work of His grace. The Bible never flattens this paradox: we are held fully responsible to choose life, even as our salvation rests entirely on God's sovereign mercy.
Moral Agency and Choice
Scripture summons accountable people to make real choices
But if serving the LORD seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD.”
Joshua 24:15 (NIV)
Joshua confronts Israel with a genuine, urgent choice of whom they will worship, demanding a definitive allegiance.
Joshua confronts Israel with a sharp, unavoidable summons in Joshua 24:15, telling the assembly to choose this day whom you will serve. Scripture never treats human beings as mindless marionettes; it addresses us consistently as genuine moral agents who make consequential decisions before a holy God. In Deuteronomy 30:19, the Lord places life and death, blessing and curse, before His covenant people and commands them to actively choose life. God warned Cain in Genesis 4:7 that sin was crouching at the door, yet charged him to master it, and through the prophets He pleaded with Israel to turn away from transgression, asking in Ezekiel 18:30-32 why they would choose to perish when He takes no pleasure in the death of the wicked. In Ezekiel 18:4, the Lord underscores individual moral accountability by declaring that the soul who sins shall die.
This call to make an intentional, accountable decision rings throughout biblical history. Elijah challenged the wavering crowd on Mount Carmel in 1 Kings 18:21 to halt between two opinions and follow the true God, while Isaiah 1:19-20 sets forth the clear promise that willing obedience brings flourishing, whereas rebellion meets the sword. Ruth illustrates this authentic human choice when she consciously clings to Naomi and Naomi's God in Ruth 1:15-16 rather than returning to the comforts of Moab. In Proverbs 1:29-31, the foolish suffer because they hated knowledge and did not choose the fear of the Lord, reaping the precise harvest of their own ways just as Galatians 6:7-8 warns that whatever a person sows, they will inevitably reap. When many disciples walked away from Christ, Jesus turned to the Twelve in John 6:67-68 and asked if they too wished to leave, prompting Peter's heartfelt resolve, while Revelation 22:17 extends an open invitation to whoever desires to drink the water of life freely.
| Passage | What it says |
|---|---|
| Deuteronomy 30:19 | God sets life and death, blessing and curse before the people, calling them to actively choose life. |
| Joshua 24:15 | Joshua demands the people choose this day whom they will serve, declaring his own household's resolve. |
| 1 Kings 18:21 | Elijah urges the people on Mount Carmel to stop wavering between Yahweh and Baal and follow God. |
| Ezekiel 18:4 | Every soul belongs to God, establishing personal responsibility where the soul who sins will die. |
| Ezekiel 18:30-32 | God urges Israel to turn from transgression, asking why they would die, taking no pleasure in death. |
| Ruth 1:15-16 | Ruth consciously chooses to cling to Naomi and Naomi's God rather than return to her homeland. |
| John 6:67-68 | Jesus asks the Twelve if they will also leave, eliciting Peter's willing confession of faith. |
| Genesis 4:7 | God tells Cain sin crouches at the door, but he must rule over it. |
| Proverbs 1:29-31 | Men choose not to fear the Lord and eat the fruit of their way. |
| Isaiah 1:19-20 | Willing obedience brings blessing, while rebellion invites destruction. |
| Galatians 6:7-8 | Whatever a person sows in action, they will also reap in harvest. |
| Revelation 22:17 | The Spirit and Bride summon whoever desires to take living water freely. |
Bondage of the Will
Fallen human desire is naturally captive to sin
The person without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God but considers them foolishness, and cannot understand them because they are discerned only through the Spirit.
1 Corinthians 2:14 (NIV)
Paul shows that the natural, unregenerate person cannot receive or understand the things of the Spirit of God.
Paul exposes the fundamental limitation of fallen human nature in 1 Corinthians 2:14, writing that the natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God because they are spiritually discerned. While humans retain the faculty of choice, the Fall has fundamentally distorted what we love, desire, and pursue. Genesis 6:5 describes the human condition prior to the flood, noting that every intention of the thoughts of man's heart was only evil continually, an assessment echoed in Ecclesiastes 9:3, which laments that the hearts of men are full of evil and madness while they live. Jeremiah 17:9 diagnoses this internal ailment plainly: the heart is deceitful above all things and desperately sick, leaving fallen humanity entirely unable to cure its own spiritual paralysis.
Because the will is inextricably tied to our sinful nature, our choices naturally reflect our rebellion against God. Jesus declares in John 8:34 that everyone who practices sin is a slave to sin, while John 3:19-20 explains that people loved the darkness rather than the light because their deeds were evil, refusing to come to the light lest their deeds be exposed. Paul systematically traces this universal corruption in Romans 3:10-12, concluding that none is righteous, no one understands, and no one seeks after God. According to Romans 8:7-8, the mind set on the flesh is actively hostile to God, cannot submit to His righteous law, and indeed cannot please Him. In Romans 6:16-17, humanity is shown as enslaved to sin leading directly to death, an indictment reiterated in Titus 3:3 and Ephesians 2:1-3, which describes all people prior to regeneration as spiritually dead in trespasses, entirely captive to their fallen worldly passions.
| Passage | What it says |
|---|---|
| Genesis 6:5 | Every intention of the thoughts of fallen man's heart is only evil continually before God. |
| Jeremiah 17:9 | The human heart is deceitful above all things and desperately sick beyond human understanding. |
| John 8:34 | Jesus declares that everyone who practices sin is a slave to sin. |
| Romans 3:10-12 | None is righteous, no one understands, and no one seeks after God on their own. |
| Romans 8:7-8 | The mind set on the flesh is hostile to God, cannot submit to His law, and cannot please Him. |
| 1 Corinthians 2:14 | The natural person cannot accept the things of the Spirit because they are spiritually discerned. |
| Ephesians 2:1-3 | Sinners are spiritually dead in trespasses, following worldly passions until God intervenes. |
| Ecclesiastes 9:3 | Hearts of men are full of evil and madness while they live. |
| John 3:19-20 | People loved darkness rather than light because their deeds were evil. |
| Romans 6:16-17 | Humanity naturally exists as enslaved servants to sin leading to death. |
| Titus 3:3 | Believers were once foolish, disobedient, deceived, and enslaved to passions. |
Sovereign Grace
God frees the heart and grants faith as a gift
It does not, therefore, depend on human desire or effort, but on God’s mercy.
Romans 9:16 (NIV)
Paul explicitly grounds salvation not in human willing or running, but entirely in God who shows mercy.
Paul sweeps away all ground for human boasting in Romans 9:16, declaring that salvation depends not on human will or exertion, but on God, who has mercy. Because fallen creatures are dead in sin, a truly free and saving turn toward God requires an internal resurrection wrought exclusively by sovereign grace. Jesus underscores this necessity twice in John's Gospel, stating in John 6:44 that no one can come to Him unless the Father draws them, and repeating in John 6:65 that coming to Christ must be granted by the Father. John 1:12-13 makes this crystal clear: those who believe are born of God, not of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, showing that divine regeneration precedes and produces human faith.
Scripture consistently depicts this saving change of heart as an act of Almighty God rather than autonomous human resolve. Ezekiel 36:26-27 promises the new covenant miracle wherein God removes the heart of stone and places His Spirit within, causing His people to walk in His statutes. In Proverbs 21:1, even the heart of the mightiest king is like streams of water channeled by the Lord wherever He pleases. When the gospel was proclaimed to the Gentiles in Acts 13:48, as many as were appointed to eternal life believed, and in Acts 16:14 the Lord Himself opened Lydia's heart to pay attention to Paul's words. Thus Ephesians 2:8-9 reminds us that grace and faith are God's unmerited gift, not of works, while 2 Timothy 2:25 notes that God grants repentance. Even our ongoing Christian obedience flows from this divine source, as Philippians 2:12-13 commands us to work out our salvation with fear and trembling precisely because God is at work within us, both to will and to work for His good pleasure.
| Passage | What it says |
|---|---|
| Ezekiel 36:26-27 | God promises to remove the heart of stone and cause His people to walk in His statutes. |
| John 6:44 | No one can come to Jesus unless the Father who sent Him draws them. |
| John 6:65 | Jesus emphasizes that no one can come to Him unless it is granted by the Father. |
| Romans 9:16 | Salvation depends not on human will or exertion, but on God's mercy. |
| Philippians 2:12-13 | Believers work out their salvation because God is at work in them to will and to work. |
| 2 Timothy 2:25 | God is the one who grants repentance leading to a knowledge of the truth. |
| Proverbs 21:1 | The king's heart is channeled by the Lord wherever He pleases. |
| John 1:12-13 | Children of God are born not of human will, but of God. |
| Acts 13:48 | As many as were appointed to eternal life believed the gospel. |
| Acts 16:14 | The Lord opened Lydia's heart to pay attention to Paul's message. |
| Ephesians 2:8-9 | Salvation comes through faith, which is the sovereign gift of God. |
Divine Sovereignty and Human Intent
God directs human intentions toward His sovereign purposes
You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives.
Genesis 50:20 (NIV)
Joseph articulates how evil human intentions and good divine decrees operate simultaneously.
Joseph summarizes the profound mystery of divine concurrence in Genesis 50:20, telling the very brothers who sold him into slavery: you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good. God does not violate human agency or coerce men into performing acts against their will, yet His sovereign providence rules over every human choice with absolute authority. The brothers acted freely out of genuine jealousy and malice, bearing full moral guilt for their crime, yet God was simultaneously and sovereignly ordering those exact sinful actions to bring about the preservation of many lives and the fulfillment of His covenant promises.
This same tension between genuine human intention and sovereign divine decree appears vividly in the prophets and the historical climax of redemption. In Isaiah 10:5-7, the Lord uses the arrogant empire of Assyria as the rod of His righteous wrath to discipline Israel, even while the Assyrian king acts solely out of unbridled personal pride and is later judged for his boastful heart. The supreme demonstration of this reality occurred at Calvary: Peter proclaims in Acts 2:23 that Jesus was delivered up according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God, even as lawless men used wicked hands to crucify Him. The early church prays in Acts 4:27-28 that Herod, Pontius Pilate, the Gentiles, and the peoples of Israel gathered together in Jerusalem to carry out whatever God's hand and plan had predestined to take place, demonstrating that human accountability and divine sovereignty operate concurrently to accomplish God's glorious ends.
| Passage | What it says |
|---|---|
| Genesis 50:20 | Brothers meant evil against Joseph, but God meant it for good savingly. |
| Isaiah 10:5-7 | Assyria acts with arrogant intent while serving as God's rod of wrath. |
| Acts 2:23 | Jesus was crucified by wicked men under God's definite predetermined plan. |
| Acts 4:27-28 | Rulers gathered to do what God's hand had predetermined to occur. |
Liberated Will in Christ
Christ frees the captive will for willing obedience
So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.
John 8:36 (NIV)
True freedom of will is not neutral autonomy but deliverance by the Son.
In John 8:36, Jesus proclaims the deepest biblical definition of human liberty: “So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.” Human nature often mistakes freedom for utter autonomy or mere neutrality, but Scripture reveals that unregenerate humanity is in bondage to sin. True liberation occurs only when the Son breaks the iron grip of that inward tyranny, granting the heart new affections to love and choose what is holy. Genuine freedom is not the power to rebel without consequence, but the supernatural release of our captive desires to delight in the God who made us.
This inward transformation reshapes how the believer lives and chooses each day. As Paul explains in Romans 6:18-22, being set free from sin means becoming willing servants of righteousness, bearing fruit that leads to sanctification and eternal life. We are not delivered into an aimless vacuum, but into a joyful, willing allegiance to our rightful Lord. 2 Corinthians 3:17 confirms that “where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom,” removing the veil from human hearts so we may behold God's glory and choose His will unhindered by spiritual blindness.
Because this liberty is costly, the believer is commanded to guard it fiercely. Galatians 5:1 charges us to stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery, warning against any drift back into legalism or sin. Finally, Galatians 5:13 clarifies the holy purpose of our liberated will: we were called to freedom, not as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love to serve one another willingly before God.
| Passage | What it says |
|---|---|
| John 8:36 | If the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed. |
| Romans 6:18-22 | Set free from sin, believers become willing servants of righteousness. |
| 2 Corinthians 3:17 | Where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is true freedom. |
| Galatians 5:1 | For freedom Christ has set believers free from bondage and yoke. |
| Galatians 5:13 | Believers are called to freedom to love and serve one another. |
Where in the Bible
| Book | Passages |
|---|---|
| Genesis | 3 · Genesis 4:7, Genesis 6:5, Genesis 50:20 |
| Deuteronomy | 1 · Deuteronomy 30:19 |
| Joshua | 1 · Joshua 24:15 |
| Ruth | 1 · Ruth 1:15-16 |
| 1 Kings | 1 · 1 Kings 18:21 |
| Proverbs | 2 · Proverbs 1:29-31, Proverbs 21:1 |
| Ecclesiastes | 1 · Ecclesiastes 9:3 |
| Isaiah | 2 · Isaiah 1:19-20, Isaiah 10:5-7 |
| Jeremiah | 1 · Jeremiah 17:9 |
| Ezekiel | 3 · Ezekiel 18:4, Ezekiel 18:30-32, Ezekiel 36:26-27 |
| John | 7 · John 6:67-68, John 8:34, John 3:19-20, John 6:44, John 6:65, John 1:12-13, John 8:36 |
| Acts | 4 · Acts 13:48, Acts 16:14, Acts 2:23, Acts 4:27-28 |
| Romans | 5 · Romans 3:10-12, Romans 8:7-8, Romans 6:16-17, Romans 9:16, Romans 6:18-22 |
| 1 Corinthians | 1 · 1 Corinthians 2:14 |
| 2 Corinthians | 1 · 2 Corinthians 3:17 |
| Galatians | 3 · Galatians 6:7-8, Galatians 5:1, Galatians 5:13 |
| Ephesians | 2 · Ephesians 2:1-3, Ephesians 2:8-9 |
| Philippians | 1 · Philippians 2:12-13 |
| 2 Timothy | 1 · 2 Timothy 2:25 |
| Titus | 1 · Titus 3:3 |
| Revelation | 1 · Revelation 22:17 |
The story in order
- Creation and Fall (c. 4000 BC) · Genesis 6:5 · Humanity's intentions are only evil, showing the fallen will.
- Cain's Choice (c. 4000 BC) · Genesis 4:7 · Sin crouches, but man must rule over it.
- Abrahamic Covenant (c. 2000 BC) · Genesis 17:1-14 · God's sovereign promises and human response.
- Exodus and Law (c. 1400 BC) · Deuteronomy 30:19 · People are called to choose life and obey.
- Elijah's Challenge (c. 850 BC) · 1 Kings 18:21 · People are urged to stop wavering and choose God.
- Prophetic Call (c. 700 BC) · Isaiah 1:19-20 · Willing obedience brings blessing; rebellion brings destruction.
- Heart Transplant (c. 580 BC) · Ezekiel 36:26-27 · God promises to give a new heart and Spirit.
- Jesus' Ministry (AD 30) · John 8:36 · Freedom in Christ is the true freedom.
- Crucifixion (AD 30) · Acts 2:23 · Human evil fulfilled God's predetermined plan.
- Pentecost (AD 50) · Acts 16:14 · The Lord opened Lydia's heart to believe.
- Apostolic Teaching (AD 55) · Romans 6:18-22 · Freed from sin, believers serve righteousness.
- Paul's Exhortation (AD 60) · Philippians 2:12-13 · Work out salvation as God works in you.
Choice and Consequence
| The Choice Presented | The Action/Attitude | The Result | Passage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Choose life or death | Actively choose life | Blessing | Deuteronomy 30:19 |
| Serve Yahweh or Baal | Stop wavering, follow God | Obedience | 1 Kings 18:21 |
| Serve the Lord | Choose to serve God | Blessing | Joshua 24:15 |
| Rule over sin | Sin crouches at the door | Accountability | Genesis 4:7 |
| Sow in action | Reap in harvest | Consequence | Galatians 6:7-8 |
Key words
- Moral Agency
- The capacity to make ethically significant choices for which one is accountable. · Joshua 24:15
- Will
- The faculty of the mind that chooses, decides, and acts. · John 8:36
- Bondage of the Will (Greek: doulos (δοῦλος))
- The natural human condition where desires are enslaved to sin, unable to choose God. · John 8:34
- Sovereign Grace
- God's unmerited favor and power that freely grants salvation and regeneration. · Ephesians 2:8-9
- Regeneration (Greek: palingenesia (παλιγγενεσία))
- The Holy Spirit's work of giving new spiritual life to a person. · John 3:3
- Predetermined Plan (Greek: prothesis (πρόθεσις))
- God's sovereign decree and foreordination of all events. · Acts 4:28
Recognizing both our real accountability and our natural spiritual inability removes all boasting while establishing true humility and urgent prayer. God's call to repent and believe is genuine, pressing directly upon our hearts today. We are invited to cast ourselves wholly upon His mercy, knowing that whoever comes to Christ will never be cast out.
43 passages, each cited once.
How the major Christian traditions read this
All major Christian traditions confess that human beings make real, morally accountable choices (Joshua 24:15) and that the human will is fallen, entirely incapable of turning to God for salvation without the initiative of divine grace (John 6:44).
Catholic
We teach that the human will was wounded and weakened by original sin, yet not entirely extinguished or destroyed. When God's grace touches the soul, man remains truly free to accept or reject that divine movement. God initiates salvation by prevenient grace, but our will actively cooperates with that grace through faith and charity, as shown when Joshua calls the people to freely choose whom they will serve (Joshua 24:15). God's grace elevates and heals human nature without destroying our freedom of choice (Philippians 2:12-13).
Scripture: Joshua 24:15, Philippians 2:12-13
Orthodox
In the Orthodox Church, we confess the reality of synergy—the loving cooperation between God's grace and human freedom. The image of God in man was clouded and damaged by the ancestral transgression, but our essential human nature and rational freedom were not lost (Confession of Dositheus 14). God respects human agency; He desires that all should be saved and come to knowledge of the truth (1 Timothy 2:4), yet He compels no one. Salvation is a living partnership where divine grace enables our free will to choose communion with Him.
Scripture: 1 Timothy 2:4, Joshua 24:15
Lutheran
We confess that while the natural man retains the liberty to choose in civil and earthly matters subject to reason, the will has no spiritual freedom whatsoever toward God (Augsburg Confession 18). Apart from the Holy Spirit, we are spiritually dead and hostile to God's law (Romans 8:7-8; 1 Corinthians 2:14). Conversion is purely monergistic: God creates faith through the Word and Sacraments without any cooperation from our natural will. Christ alone liberates our enslaved will so that we may believe and receive His righteousness (John 8:36).
Scripture: Romans 8:7-8, 1 Corinthians 2:14, John 8:36
Reformed & Presbyterian
We hold that God endowed man with a natural liberty that is neither forced nor determined by necessity (Westminster Confession 9.1). However, the Fall plunged humanity into total depravity: fallen man is dead in sin and entirely unable to choose God or desire spiritual good (Ephesians 2:1-3; Romans 3:10-12). In effectual calling, God sovereignly regenerates the elect, giving them a new heart and freeing their will so that they come to Christ willingly and freely by His grace alone (John 6:37, 44).
Scripture: Ephesians 2:1-3, Romans 3:10-12, John 6:37, John 6:44
Anglican & Episcopal
Our Articles state plainly that the condition of man after the fall of Adam is such that he cannot turn and prepare himself by his own natural strength to faith and calling upon God (Thirty-Nine Articles 10). We have no power to do good works acceptable to God without the grace of God by Christ preceding us to give us a good will, and continually working with us when we have that good will. Human choices are genuine and accountable, but our spiritual turning is entirely born of prior grace (Philippians 2:13).
Scripture: Philippians 2:13, John 15:5
Baptist
We confess that man possesses a genuine faculty of choice and is fully responsible for his moral decisions (Baptist Confession of 1689 9.1; Joshua 24:15). Yet in our fallen state, the will is enslaved to sin and dead to righteousness (John 8:34; Ephesians 2:1-5). God must sovereignly draw and regenerate a person before they can repent and believe (John 6:44). When the Lord regenerates a sinner, He frees their will to gladly embrace Christ in personal faith.
Scripture: Joshua 24:15, John 8:34, Ephesians 2:1-5, John 6:44
Methodist & Wesleyan
We teach that through the Fall human nature is utterly broken, leaving us with no natural power to turn to God on our own (Methodist Articles 8). However, Christ's universal atonement provides prevenient grace to all people, which partially restores moral agency and frees the will to respond to the gospel (John 1:9; Titus 2:11). God's grace is resistible: He earnestly calls everyone to repent, and each person must freely decide whether to accept or resist His drawing (Acts 7:51).
Scripture: John 1:9, Titus 2:11, Acts 7:51
Pentecostal & Charismatic
We believe that human beings make real choices and are morally responsible before the Lord for their decisions (Joshua 24:15). Sin leaves every person lost and helpless, but the Holy Spirit convicts the world and draws hearts to repentance (John 16:8). Under the Spirit's convicting power, every hearer faces a true decision: to yield to God's gift of salvation or to harden their heart and reject Him (Hebrews 3:15; Revelation 22:17).
Scripture: Joshua 24:15, John 16:8, Hebrews 3:15, Revelation 22:17
Non-denominational & Evangelical
We believe Scripture clearly teaches both God's supreme sovereignty and humanity's genuine responsibility (Acts 2:23). Man is born in sin and spiritually dead, unable to save himself (Romans 3:23; Ephesians 2:1-3). God in His mercy reaches out through the gospel, commanding all people to choose life and believe on Jesus Christ (Joshua 24:15; John 3:16). When a person responds in faith, it is by God's grace, yet the personal choice to trust Him is real and accountable.
Scripture: Acts 2:23, Romans 3:23, Joshua 24:15, John 3:16, Ephesians 2:1-3
Where they differ
Ability of the fallen will in salvation
- Catholic
- Wounded but retains freedom to cooperate with grace.
- Orthodox
- Damaged yet retains capacity to freely cooperate with God.
- Lutheran
- Entirely bound in spiritual matters until regenerated by God.
- Reformed & Presbyterian
- Totally depraved and unable to choose God until sovereignly regenerated.
- Anglican & Episcopal
- Powerless to turn to God without preceding grace.
- Baptist
- Enslaved to sin until freed by God's drawing grace.
- Methodist & Wesleyan
- Freed by universal prevenient grace to accept or reject salvation.
- Pentecostal & Charismatic
- Enabled by the Spirit's conviction to freely respond to Christ.
- Non-denominational & Evangelical
- Spiritually dead yet genuinely called to repent and believe.
Scripture: Romans 8:7-8, John 6:44, Philippians 2:13
Whether saving grace can be resisted
- Catholic
- Can be freely resisted by the human will.
- Orthodox
- Can be resisted because God never violates human freedom.
- Lutheran
- Can be resisted by natural stubbornness in the hearer.
- Reformed & Presbyterian
- Effectually and irresistibly changes the elect sinner's will.
- Anglican & Episcopal
- Preceding grace works with our willing assent.
- Baptist
- Sovereignly overcomes the chosen sinner's rebellion.
- Methodist & Wesleyan
- Universally offered and resistible by human choice.
- Pentecostal & Charismatic
- Can be resisted if an individual hardens their heart.
- Non-denominational & Evangelical
- Requires a personal, unforced decision to accept Christ.
Scripture: Acts 7:51, John 6:37, Matthew 23:37
Your pastor can tell you where your church stands.
Scripture cited
- Joshua 24:15
- 1 Kings 18:21
- Deuteronomy 30:15-20
- John 8:31-36
- Romans 8:5-8
- John 6:37-44
- Philippians 2:12-13
- Acts 2:22-24
- Ephesians 2:1-5