Okay, our next question is on free will. So how do we explain that differently than the Armenians? I don't know who wants to take that one on. Go ahead.
Yeah, so I just will start with an anecdote. I think when I was becoming reformed, I used to not think that we believed in a free will. And someone said, after I talked to him about Romans 9, well, what about free will? And I laid into him pretty good.
And I realize now that I didn't know as much as I should have, especially when it comes to really the doctrine of man. I know there's a lot of subjects we like to study, the doctrine of God, eschatology, salvation, but perhaps the doctrine of man kind of gets push to the side a little bit. And so as I understand it, with the nature of the debate in the 17th century, it doesn't really have anything to do so much with that we have a free will, but whether or not man in his state of sin can be inclined toward that which is spiritually good. And so we believe we have a free will.
Our confession talks about that in chapter nine of the confession. We believe that God has endowed us and given us that will. It's one of the faculties of the soul with the intellect, and the intellect and the will work when we choose, when we make decisions. And so I've heard it said that as the intellect knows, so the will goes.
And so we could say that the will is that desire, that inclination for that which is good, which flows out of our knowing that which is good. And the free aspect refers to the fact that we're not coerced. Our confession also says God doesn't offer violence in chapter three of the decree. And so we are free from coercion, free from compulsion.
So we do believe we have a free will and we were made and inclined toward that, which is good. But the problem is that Adam sinned. And so now that will is only inclined toward that which is sinful and wicked. And that's why we need it to be changed.
And so Psalm 110 does say that the Lord makes them willing in the day of his power. And so we praise the Lord that he does regenerate our hearts and changes our will towards that which is good. But we definitely believe that we do have a free will and God has made us with that will. No debate there, but really over what can man do in a state of sin.
Yeah, I think I would add to that too, there is free will, it's just where is man in terms of as a creature before God. So, usually we make a fourfold distinction with reference to man. Man prior to the fall, so what Adam had in terms of free will, and then you have man after the fall, what we have as a result of Adam's sin affecting his posterity. and then you have man in a state of grace and then man in a state of glory. So, the will of man is free, but man on the continuum needs to be located so that we know what it is he's capable of choosing.
So, as Mike said, in that state of sin, The carnal mind is enmity against God. It's not subject to the law of God, nor indeed can be. Jesus says, no one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him. So obviously the will is bound.
And so, we need to be freed, we need to be liberated, and that's the grace of God that gives us the ability then to will in the right direction, to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. So, free will is right, it's true, it's biblical, but it needs to be qualified in terms of where man is relative to his own sin and his place before God. Yeah, so in evangelism and preaching, even though we know sinners are all depraved, and we know we depend on the grace of God that they will listen and will come. Right.
And I think there's a good sort of, at least an illustration of that at the gravesite of Lazarus, when Jesus issues the command, come forth, he has the power to enable compliance with that command. So, when we call sinners to believe and repent, we're not appealing to their free will. we're appealing to God's free grace, trusting, hoping, and praying that he will open their ears and their hearts to receive the truth and then come to the Lord Jesus Christ. Pete Yeah, perfect. Thank you.