When the Bible says that we’re saved by God’s grace, it really is by God’s grace, and His grace alone. From election to sending (Ro 10:15) to drawing to calling to the shining of His light within our dark souls (2 Cor 4:6) to faith in Christ, it’s all according to the Sovereign will and grace of God. God is sovereign over the whole salvation process, from start to finish. In other words, when the Bible speaks of God’s grace in salvation, it means that the whole election and salvation process is in God’s hands alone, to bestow it all upon whom He wills. Our salvation relies completely on Him, according to His own will and purpose.
I no longer believe that sinful mankind is able to believe in Christ on their own (in their own ability to produce faith)—because there is no common denominator within the free will position (self-determination) among those who believe, while the rest doesn’t. In other words, there’s no answer for how one is able to believe, while another isn’t able. For example, in a room of ten people who hear the gospel message, four believe, while the other six don’t. How do we explain the difference between them? I maintain that there’s no way to explain the cause of faith in one person and the lack of faith in another. This to me is one of the most glaring flaws of the non-Calvinist position (self-determination).
On the other hand, within the unconditional Sovereign election position (Sovereign Grace Election), the explanation is simple. It’s God. The common denominator for how one is able to believe, while another isn’t, is God Himself. It’s a matter of God choosing who believes unto salvation, which He ordained in “His Son before the foundation of the world” (Eph 1:4). There’s simply no other explanation why faith is present in the hearts of some, while absent in the hearts of others.
One can reply that the human heart is beyond understanding, which of course is true (Jer 17:9). However, that still doesn’t explain why one person has a heart that believes, while another doesn’t. People do not make themselves believe. They either do or they don’t. One may reply, “but people don’t believe because they don’t want to, so they refuse to come to Jesus.” But that still doesn’t explain the rebellion of their hearts. Why do some have a heart of rebellion, while others have a heart that doesn’t rebel? People either believe or they don’t. They either have a heart of rebellion or they don’t. Where do such differences in the human heart come from? What’s the common denominator? Please explain if you can.
For those who believe that the Bible teaches Sovereign Grace Election, the answer is simple. It’s God Himself that makes the difference from one person to the next. God is Sovereign over all things, including the hearts of sinners as it relates to His Son. Everyone has a heart of unbelief and rebellion unless God intervenes and shines the light of truth within those hearts, who also bestows the gift of faith (2 Cor 4:6; Eph 2:8; Jn 6:64-65; Jn 10:26-27; 1 Cor 1:30-31) within those hearts. This is the only reasonable and biblically straightforward explanation for the response to the gospel message from person to person.
It also explains why there are people around the world who never hear the gospel of Christ. They go to their graves oblivious to the message of salvation. How do we explain that, except that it’s all according to the sovereign grace of God, extending it to whom He will. As with faith, it’s the only sensible explanation why some hear the gospel and some don’t.
God Himself (His will and purpose) is the only explanation in the whole salvation process—from darkness to light, from sinner to saint.
