No one can
come to Me
unless the Father
draws him;
and I will
raise him up
at the last day.
John 6:44
Man does not choose to follow God or to accept His control over their lives unless they have been drawn by God; there is a difference between the Providential agency of God and of His Grace. We should not confound these two things for the one is natural and the other supernatural. An understanding of these two operations is important if we are to accept what the Bible actually teaches or to accept what the world teaches; in regards to God. In the natural God acts according to the uniform laws that He established; by the supernatural, He acts according to His good pleasure of His will. God in controlling man, over their ordinary acts, especially over the wicked, may be seen to be analogous in His manner of guidance over material causes. God's grace is more analogous to His mode of action in prophecy, inspiration, and miracles. An important fact that must be addressed is that in God's providential agency over the minds of man is not to cause an effect that would transcend the efficiency over second causes. As for grace the effects are such that second causes could never cause any effect for in the natural those causes are utterly inadequate. As free agents our acts and the ability to perform them belongs to the agent, that is they belong to man and they arise from the nature of man as rational creatures and are inseparable from that nature. As for the acts of faith, repentance, and other holy affections, they do not flow from the ability of men because man is fallen, their nature is not that which was the nature of man, that of Adam before Adam fell by sinning against God. Faith and it acts are the ability given to man, a new principle of life, it is that which God communicates, or that man draws men to Himself. God not only draws men to Himself, but maintains them in the faith that He has communicated. It is to be admitted that the ordinary acts of man, especially their wicked and evil acts, are determined by their own natural inclinations and feelings. We are not to impose upon God that it is He that cause those feelings of evil so that He would establish and determine sinners so that they would act evilly. Yet, God does act upon certain men, those that He elected before the foundation of the world, His chosen children due to His Sovereignty, to be excited by the Spirit of God, and gives to them grace and the ability to act in Holy Affections. You may object and cavil at that statement that it is God and not man that gives them the right to have such as grace and Holy affections, that man can choose for Himself to be with God. Jesus had this same problem and He addressed it thusly: "Jesus Therefore answered and said to them, 'Do not murmur among yourselves" (John 6:43). You may disagree, but it is God's Word, and the very word of God that we should adhere in order to establish the truth. This is good news that God would in all of His Sovereignty, His justice that demands the death of those who are sinners, and of His mercy and grace that He would even consider man; but He does: "And He said, 'Therefore I have said to you that no one can come to Me unless it has been granted to him by My Father" (John 6:65). Notice the words: "no one can" for the word "can" is the Greek word "δύναται" and the grammar is the word is singular, present, and indicative. It must then be recognized that this Greek word is that of being not able, and who is not able? The Greek word is: "ούδεις" and means, not one, no one, nothing; therefore no one is able to come to the Father unless the Father draws and enables Him. God in His Providential government, His economy over free agents is exercised in much the same manner as He does over the material world, that is in accordance with established laws of matter because they both are due to is ordered efficiency. This would be expected rightfully if we admit that God is Sovereign and Providential. Now, His Holy affections and exercises are not due to the mere moral power of truth, or to His control over our natural affections; does not men, at least in some manner have morals, and do not some men act in rightful ways? Yes! But, to have those things which God gives so that we can exercise Holy affections is due to the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. Without the Holy Spirit in us we are not drawn to Him, nor are we enabled to be drawn. God's children have a life but this life is one in which Jesus Christ lives within us. It is our life, this is not taken away, our natural constitution remains only we now have a higher calling, that calling is to the life that was established from the beginning, a life that is divine in its origin. We are made in the image of God, therefore, in us, there is this divine origin, we are made from nothing and we are to have the attributes of God. Only, those attributes given to a free agent was distorted by sin and only by the calling and enabling, the life of Christ in us, the Holy Spirit's indwelling can we come to Him. It is when the Holy Spirit indwells in us that we are sustained and guided in our exercises of actions that are influence by God, rather than by the laws of mind, or an influence that operates merely through those laws of the mind that are natural and in contradiction to the laws of God. It is this distinction between nature and grace, between the providential efficiency of God and the workings of His Spirit in the hearts of His people that is the most important in all theology. It is this difference between Augustinianism and Pelagiansism, between Rationalism and supernatural, it is what is the Reformed theology, the true evangelical religion.
The next blog will be the conclusion on the Doctrine of Sovereignty. It is good now to bring a close to what we have learned and how to live our lives in harmony with God and according to His calling and enabling. How do we know we are called? God's children become satiated with the desire to know Him, to live for Him, to read His Word, to pray in faith to Him. It is when we understand that God is Good, and that His Sovereignty over our lives, His Providence over the lives of His creation, that we bow in reverence and give to Him our worship. This is done in our lives establishing the fact that we are His children, and when we do those things that are of Him, then we are making sure, to our own satisfaction, our election, and our salvation. Peter the Apostle and disciple of Christ records Isaiah's words: "Behold, I lay in Zion a chief cornerstone, elect, precious, and he who believes on Him will by no means be put to shame" (1 Peter 23:6b).
My little children,
let us not love
in word or tongue,
but in deed and in truth.
And by this we know
that we are of the
truth, and shall assure
our hearts before
Him.
1 John 3:18-19
Today Place Your Confidence In Him
Richard L. Crumb
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