I intend to spike the gun this morning, or, rather, to turn it on the enemy, for it was never theirs; it was never cast at their foundry at all, but was intended to teach the very opposite doctrine to that which they assert. Usually, when the text is taken, the divisions are: First, that man has a will. Secondly, that he is entirely free. Thirdly, that men must make themselves willing to come to Christ, otherwise they will not be saved. Now, we shall have no such divisions; but we will endeavour to take a more calm look at the text; and not, because there happen to be the words "will," or "will not" in it, run away with the conclusion that it teaches the doctrine of free-will. It has already been proved beyond all controversy that free-will is nonsense. Freedom cannot belong to will any more than ponderability can belong to electricity. They are altogether different things. Free agency we may believe in, but free-will is simply ridiculous. The will is well known by all to be directed by the understanding, to be moved by motives, to be guided by other parts of the soul, and to be a secondary thing. Philosophy and religion both discard at once the very thought of free-will; and I will go as far as Martin Luther, in that strong assertion of his, where he says, "If any man doth ascribe aught of salvation, even the very least, to the free-will of man, he knoweth nothing of grace, and he hath not learnt Jesus Christ aright."...
You have heard a great many Arminian sermons, I dare say; but you never heard an Arminian prayer—for the saints in prayer appear as one in word, and deed and mind. An Arminian on his knees would pray desperately like a Calvinist. He cannot pray about free-will: there is no room for it. Fancy him praying,
"Lord, I thank thee I am not like those poor presumptuous Calvinists. Lord, I was born with a glorious free-will; I was born with power by which I can turn to thee of myself; I have improved my grace. If everybody had done the same with their grace that I have, they might all have been saved. Lord, I know thou dost not make us willing if we are not willing ourselves. Thou givest grace to everybody; some do not improve it, but I do. There are many that will go to hell as much bought with the blood of Christ as I was; they had as much of the Holy Ghost given to them; they had as good a chance, and were as much blessed as I am. It was not thy grace that made us to differ; I know it did a great deal, still I turned the point; I made use of what was given me, and others did not—that is the difference between me and them."
That is a prayer for the devil, for nobody else would offer such a prayer as that. Ah! when they are preaching and talking very slowly, there may be wrong doctrine; but when they come to pray, the true thing slips out; they cannot help it. If a man talks very slowly, he may speak in a fine manner; but when he comes to talk fast, the old brogue of his country, where he was born, slips out. I ask you again, did you ever meet a Christian man who said, "I came to Christ without the power of the Spirit?" If you ever did meet such a man, you need have no hesitation in saying, "My dear sir, I quite believe it—and I believe you went away again without the power of the Spirit, and that you know nothing about the matter, and are in the gall of bitterness and the bond of iniquity." Do I hear one Christian man saying, "I sought Jesus before he sought me; I went to the Spirit, and the Spirit did not come to me"? No, beloved; we are obliged, each one of us, to put our hands to our hearts and say—
"Grace taught my soul to pray,
And made my eyes to o'erflow;
'Twas grace that kept me to this day,
And will not let me go."
- C.H. Spurgeon
Full text here:
http://www.spurgeon.org/sermons/0052.htm
Download the mp3 here:
http://www.sermonaudio.com/sermoninfo.asp?SID=7170545810
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C.H. Spurgeon's Sermons
1:03:26The Gospel (Paul Washer)by LaneCh1,081 views
It is essential to understand that we suffer from the bondage of the will, simply put that our wills prior to salvation are enslaved to sin and cannot choose Christ. Our salvation is all of grace. None of us would come to Christ had we not been regenerated by the Spirit followed by repentance, adoption, and ultimately glorification. Many Arminians claim to follow Spurgeon, while lacking a Biblical understanding of what he really taught which was thoroughly Biblical.
TomOwenM 9 months ago
@apologeticsman BE HAS ALREADY BEEN;AND GOD REQUIRETH THAT WHICH IS PAST. PREDESTINATION IS ABOUT BEING RESPONSIBLE AND ACCOUNTABLE TO THE WILL OF GOD. THE WILL OF GOD IS THAT WE PICK UP OUR CROSS(TRUTH) AND DIE TO THE FLESH(THE LIE) DAILY AND FOLLOW CHRIST IF YOU CANT TO THAT YOU CANT BE MY DISCIPLE(LEARNER) ITS NOT A CHOICE ITS A COMMAND.
MrRomans829 9 months ago
@apologeticsman OF HIS SON, THAT HE MIGHT BE THE FIRSTBORN AMONG MANY BRETHEN. THOSE ARE THE CHOSEN ONES. IT IS THE GOODNESS OF GOD THAT LEADS A MAN TO REPENTANCE, NOT MANS CHOICE TO REPENT. MAN DOES NOT SAVE HIMSELF BY MAKING A CHOICE. GOD IS THE ONE DOES THE SAVING WITH HIS GRACE AND MERCY. FOR I KNOW THAT WHATSOEVER GOD DOETH, IT SHALL BE FOREVER;NOTHING CAN BE PUT TO IT,NOR ANYTHING TAKEN FROM IT;AND GOD DOETH IT,THAT MEN SHOULD FEAR BEFORE HIM.THAT WHICH HAS BEEN IS NOW;AND THAT WHICH IS TO
MrRomans829 9 months ago
@apologeticsman WHAT IS REALLY BOTHERING YOU MY CAPS OR IS IT THE WORD OF GOD? YOU SAID WE ARE NOT BLIND, HOW MANY ARE YOU? I THOUGHT THAT I WAS JUST WRITING TO YOU. GOD DOES NOT CHOSE BASED ON WHAT MAN IS GOING TO DO IN THE FUTURE. READ ROM;8;29-30. AS FAR AS WHAT YOU SAID ABOUT ME BEING MIXED UP AND ON A LONG LINE OF VICTIMS OF MANS TRADITIONS AND NOT A GOOD, SOLID STUDENT OF THE BIBILE, YOUR PROJECTION IS VALID.FOR WHOM HE DID FOREKNOW HE ALSO DID PREDESTINATE TO BE COMFORMED DO THE IMAGE
MrRomans829 9 months ago
@MrRomans829 STOP WRITING IN ALL CAPS< WE ARE NOT BLIND. Those who God knows will repent and trust in His son are chosen, God does not arbitrarily choose based on a curve grade or some perverse pleasure he gets from seeing people suffer in hell. You are just mixed up, and another in a long line of victims of man's traditions, and not a good, solid student of the Bible.
apologeticsman 9 months ago
THE ONLY ONE WHO HAS FREE-WILL IS GOD. READ EPH; 1;1-23. EPH;1-10. GA;3;23. ITS BY GRACE( GODS WILL )YOU ARE SAVED THROUGH FAITH WHICH IS A GIFT OF GOD LET NO MAN BOAST. MAN IS BOASTING WHEN HE SAYS THAT HE CAME TO GOD BY HIS CHOICE( FREE WILL). MEN TAKE THE GLORY AWAY FROM GOD WHEN THEY SAY THAT IT WAS BY THEIR CHOICE THAT THEY GOT SAVED, GOD DOES NOT SHARE HIS GLORY WITH ANOTHER. YOU ARE SAVED BY GODS GRACE NOT BY YOUR CHOICE. YOU CANT EVEN GO TO HELL IF YOU WANTED TO. READ; JUDE;4
MrRomans829 9 months ago
@rjm777reaperz VERY WELL SAID
MrRomans829 9 months ago
@MrRomans829 CORRECTION READ 2 PETER;2;10-22. THESE ARE THE SAME PEOPLE IN ROM;9;22
MrRomans829 9 months ago
@apologeticsman HATH FROM THE BEGINNING CHOSEN YOU TO SALVATION THROUGH THE SANTIFICATION OF THE SPIRIT AND BELIEF OF THE TRUTH. 2TH;2;13 READ EPH;2;8-10. JOHN;1;13. JOHN;5;21. JAM; 1;17-18. NOW THATS ARROGANT WHEN A MAN GOES AGAINST THE WORD, TRYING TO TAKE CREDIT FOR HIS SALVATION BY SAYING IT WAS HIS CHOICE. HOW CAN A MAN MAKE A CHOICE TO COME TO GOD WHEN HES SPIRITUALY DEAD. ITS A SPIRITUAL BERTH FROM ABOVE. THE WORD SAYS ANYBODY WHO COMES ANOTHER WAY( BY MANS CHOICE) IS A ROBBER AND THIEF..
MrRomans829 9 months ago
@apologeticsman romans3;10 ; 18 specially 11 there is none who seek GOD no not one that is in the double negative if aftyer just one sin adam n eve hid hoe much more anyone who has been sinning since birth I don't know what bible you read but all those passages that read someone seeked for GOD are only to believers or otherwise someone whom GOD had a plan for bible says mans heart seek evil all the time
patriotsfan1379 9 months ago