Posted on 12/16/2010 12:39:28 PM PST by marshmallow
Men are possessed of free will, and endowed with the faculty of making a choice. It is not true, therefore, that some are by nature good, and others bad.
1. This expression [of our Lord], "How often would I have gathered your children together, and you would not," Matthew 23:37 set forth the ancient law of human liberty, because God made man a free [agent] from the beginning, possessing his own power, even as he does his own soul, to obey the behests (ad utendum sententia) of God voluntarily, and not by compulsion of God. For there is no coercion with God, but a good will [towards us] is present with Him continually. And therefore does He give good counsel to all. And in man, as well as in angels, He has placed the power of choice (for angels are rational beings), so that those who had yielded obedience might justly possess what is good, given indeed by God, but preserved by themselves. On the other hand, they who have not obeyed shall, with justice, be not found in possession of the good, and shall receive condign punishment: for God did kindly bestow on them what was good; but they themselves did not diligently keep it, nor deem it something precious, but poured contempt upon His super-eminent goodness. Rejecting therefore the good, and as it were spuing it out, they shall all deservedly incur the just judgment of God, which also the Apostle Paul testifies in his Epistle to the Romans, where he says, "But do you despise the riches of His goodness, and patience, and long-suffering, being ignorant that the goodness of God leads you to repentance? But according to your hardness and impenitent heart, you store to yourself wrath against the day of wrath, and the revelation of the righteous judgment of God." "But glory and honour," he says, "to every one that does good." God therefore has given that which is good, as the apostle tells us in this Epistle, and they who work it shall receive glory and honour, because they have done that which is good when they had it in their power not to do it; but those who do it not shall receive the just judgment of God, because they did not work good when they had it in their power so to do.
2. But if some had been made by nature bad, and others good, these latter would not be deserving of praise for being good, for such were they created; nor would the former be reprehensible, for thus they were made [originally]. But since all men are of the same nature, able both to hold fast and to do what is good; and, on the other hand, having also the power to cast it from them and not to do it—some do justly receive praise even among men who are under the control of good laws (and much more from God), and obtain deserved testimony of their choice of good in general, and of persevering therein; but the others are blamed, and receive a just condemnation, because of their rejection of what is fair and good. And therefore the prophets used to exhort men to what was good, to act justly and to work righteousness, as I have so largely demonstrated, because it is in our power so to do, and because by excessive negligence we might become forgetful, and thus stand in need of thatgood counsel which the good God has given us to know by means of the prophets.
3. For this reason the Lord also said, "Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good deeds, and glorify your Father who is in heaven." Matthew 5:16 And, "Take heed to yourselves, lest perchance your hearts be overcharged with surfeiting, and drunkenness, and worldly cares." Luke 21:34 And, "Let your loins be girded about, and your lamps burning, and you like men that wait for their Lord, when He returns from the wedding, that when He comes and knocks, they may open to Him. Blessed is that servant whom his Lord, when He comes, shall find so doing." Luke 12:35-36 And again, "The servant who knows his Lord's will, and does it not, shall be beaten with many stripes." Luke 12:47 And, "Why call me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say?" Luke 6:46 And again, "But if the servant say in his heart, The Lord delays, and begin to beat his fellow-servants, and to eat, and drink, and to be drunken, his Lord will come in a day on which he does not expect Him, and shall cut him in sunder, and appoint his portion with the hypocrites." Luke 12:45-46; Matthew 24:48-51 All such passages demonstrate the independent will of man, and at the same time the counsel which God conveys to him, by which He exhorts us to submit ourselves to Him, and seeks to turn us away from [the sin of] unbelief against Him, without, however, in any way coercing us.
4. No doubt, if any one is unwilling to follow the Gospel itself, it is in his power [to reject it], but it is not expedient. For it is in man's power to disobey God, and to forfeit what is good; but [such conduct] brings no small amount of injury and mischief. And on this account Paul says, "All things are lawful to me, but all things are not expedient;" 1 Corinthians 6:12 referring both to the liberty of man, in which respect "all things are lawful," God exercising no compulsion in regard to him; and [by the expression] "not expedient" pointing out that we "should not use our liberty as a cloak of maliciousness," 1 Peter 2:16 for this is not expedient. And again he says, "Speak every man truth with his neighbour." Ephesians 4:25 And, "Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, neither filthiness, nor foolish talking, nor scurrility, which are not convenient, but rather giving of thanks." Ephesians 4:29 And, "For you were sometimes darkness, but now are you light in the Lord; walk honestly as children of the light, not in rioting and drunkenness, not in chambering and wantonness, not in anger and jealousy. And such were some of you; but you have been washed, but you have been sanctified in the name of our Lord." 1 Corinthians 6:11 If then it were not in our power to do or not to do these things, what reason had the apostle, and much more the Lord Himself, to give us counsel to do some things, and to abstain from others? But because man is possessed of free will from the beginning, and God is possessed of free will, in whose likeness man was created, advice is always given to him to keep fast the good, which thing is done by means of obedience to God.
5. And not merely in works, but also in faith, has God preserved the will of man free and under his own control, saying, "According to your faith be it unto you;" Matthew 9:29 thus showing that there is a faith specially belonging to man, since he has an opinion specially his own. And again, "All things are possible to him that believes;" Mark 9:23 and, "Go your way; and as you have believed, so be it done unto you." Matthew 8:13 Now all such expressions demonstrate that man is in his own power with respect to faith. And for this reason, "he that believes in Him has eternal life while he who believes not the Son has not eternal life, but the wrath of God shall remain upon him." John 3:36 In the same manner therefore the Lord, both showing His own goodness, and indicating that man is in his own free will and his own power, said to Jerusalem, "How often have I wished to gather your children together, as a hen [gathers] her chickens under her wings, and you would not! Wherefore your house shall be left unto you desolate." Matthew 23:37-38
6. Those, again, who maintain the opposite to these [conclusions], do themselves present the Lord as destitute of power, as if, forsooth, He were unable to accomplish what He willed; or, on the other hand, as being ignorant that they were by nature "material," as these men express it, and such as cannot receive His immortality. "But He should not," say they, "have created angels of such a nature that they were capable of transgression, nor men who immediately proved ungrateful towards Him; for they were made rational beings, endowed with the power of examining and judging, and were not [formed] as things irrational or of a [merely] animal nature, which can do nothing of their own will, but are drawn by necessity and compulsion to what is good, in which things there is one mind and one usage, working mechanically in one groove (inflexibiles et sine judicio), who are incapable of being anything else except just what they had been created." But upon this supposition, neither would what is good be grateful to them, nor communion with God be precious, nor would the good be very much to be sought after, which would present itself without their own proper endeavour, care, or study, but would be implanted of its own accord and without their concern. Thus it would come to pass, that their beinggood would be of no consequence, because they were so by nature rather than by will, and are possessors of good spontaneously, not by choice; and for this reason they would not understand this fact, that good is a comely thing, nor would they take pleasure in it. For how can those who are ignorant of good enjoy it? Or what credit is it to those who have not aimed at it? And what crown is it to those who have not followed in pursuit of it, like those victorious in the contest?
7. On this account, too, did the Lord assert that the kingdom of heaven was the portion of "the violent;" and He says, "The violent take it by force;" Matthew 11:12 that is, those who by strength and earnest striving are on the watch to snatch it away on the moment. On this account also Paul the Apostle says to the Corinthians, "Do you not know, that they who run in a racecourse, do all indeed run, but one receives the prize? So run, that you may obtain. Every one also who engages in the contest istemperate in all things: now these men [do it] that they may obtain a corruptible crown, but we an incorruptible. But I so run, not as uncertainty; I fight, not as one beating the air; but I make my bodylivid, and bring it into subjection, lest by any means, when preaching to others, I may myself be rendered a castaway. " 1 Corinthians 9:24-27 This able wrestler, therefore, exhorts us to the struggle for immortality, that we may be crowned, and may deem the crown precious, namely, that which is acquired by our struggle, but which does not encircle us of its own accord (sed non ultro coalitam). And the harder we strive, so much is it the more valuable; while so much the more valuable it is, so much the more should we esteem it. And indeed those things are not esteemed so highly which come spontaneously, as those which are reached by much anxious care. Since, then, this power has been conferred upon us, both the Lord has taught and the apostle has enjoined us the more to love God, that we may reach this [prize] for ourselves by striving after it. For otherwise, no doubt, this our good would be [virtually] irrational, because not the result of trial. Moreover, the faculty of seeing would not appear to be so desirable, unless we had known what a loss it were to be devoid of sight; and health, too, is rendered all the more estimable by an acquaintance with disease; light, also, by contrasting it with darkness; and life with death. Just in the same way is the heavenly kingdom honourable to those who have known the earthly one. But in proportion as it is more honourable, so much the more do we prize it; and if we have prized it more, we shall be the more glorious in the presence of God. The Lord has therefore endured all these things on our behalf, in order that we, having been instructed by means of them all, may be in all respects circumspect for thetime to come, and that, having been rationally taught to love God, we may continue in His perfect love: for God has displayed long-suffering in the case of man's apostasy; while man has been instructed by means of it, as also the prophet says, "Your own apostasy shall heal you;" Jeremiah 2:19 God thus determining all things beforehand for the bringing of man to perfection, for his edification, and for the revelation of His dispensations, that goodness may both be made apparent, and righteousness perfected, and that the Church may be fashioned after the image of His Son, and that man may finally be brought to maturity at some future time, becoming ripe through such privileges to see and comprehend God.
Both abject heresies which are nowhere to be found in the writings of the early Church Fathers, as Irenaeus here makes abundantly clear.
Ping!
All humans have free will and can choose right or wrong. This is in direct opposition to official leftist dogma that says that we have no free will and therefore have no responsibility for our actions.
What amazes me is that “Free Will” as a theological issue is never raised when discussing Islam and its tenets as in
http://www.theusmat.com/islamandfreewill.htm
Love unconditionally and freely given from a sentient being is the greatest gift we can give God and each other. The question one must pose to those who dismiss or diminish the concept of free will is if God had not wanted us to love Him freely why did He not create us incapable of not loving Him.
Just because one believes it, how does anyone really know if they could have chosen differently? Is there any way to prove it after the choice is made?
Pelagianism is a theological theory named after Pelagius (ad. 354 – ad. 420/440). It is the belief that original sin did not taint human nature (which God called very good), and that mortal will is still capable of choosing good or evil without Divine aid. - Foreknown Encyclopedia
Joh 6:43-44 Jesus answered them, "Do not grumble among yourselves. No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him. And I will raise him up on the last day.
Joh 6:63 It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh is no help at all.
Irenaeus can be forgiven. He didn't have the Internet.
Where does Irenaeus claim that man can be saved without Divine aid?
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One of the most fun things to do in a debate with a leftist/atheist who doesn’t believe in free will.
Tell how they sound like a Calvanist in a tone that suggests you agree with them... idiots will sit there and agree with you.
That's a real side-splitter. Fess up........you've never read Irenaeus.
From the above chapter:
"All such passages demonstrate the independent will of man, and at the same time the counsel which God conveys to him, by which He exhorts us to submit ourselves to Him, and seeks to turn us away from [the sin of] unbelief against Him, without, however, in any way coercing us."
And again:
"But because man is possessed of free will from the beginning, and God is possessed of free will, in whose likeness man was created, advice is always given to him to keep fast the good, which thing is done by means of obedience to God.
That doesn't sound like Pelagianism.
Man is Endowed with the Faculty of Distinguishing Good and Evil; So That, Without Compulsion, He Has the Power
Compulsion-a force that compels
Without Compulsion - without a force that compels
We, of course, have to excuse Irenaeus since the Church would not condemn the Pelagius heresy for another 300 years. Many of the early fathers were more interested in trying to get the church to grow rather than putting together a systematic view of scripture.
While you have framed this in a rather snide way ... the assurance of salvation is taught in the scriptures. I don't know how you can dismiss or interpret away 1 John 5:13. I have never heard a Catholic exegete this passage in a way that doesn't just dismiss it out-of-hand.
1 John 5:13
I write these things to you who believe in the name of the son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life.
"that you have" ... Present Active Indicative 2nd Person Plural. No ambiguity in the Greek tense at all.
Both abject heresies which are nowhere to be found in the writings of the early Church Fathers, as Irenaeus here makes abundantly clear
Perhaps you could find all the writings of the church fathers where they explain 1 John 5:13. Esp. Irenaeus ... who was a great-grandchild in the Lord of John himself.
So when the Church condemned Pelagius it overlooked Irenaeus........LOL..??
What sort of mindset drives a man to condescendingly ("we, of course, have to excuse Irenaeus....") label one of the early Church Fathers a heretic?
Even a modicum of humility would give a sane person pause.
This is not Pelagianism;
"For He commissioned [messengers] to call people to the marriage, but they who did not obey Him deprived themselves of the royal supper. Matthew 22:3, etc. The skill of God, therefore, is not defective, for He has power of the stones to raise up children to Abraham; Matthew 3:9 but the man who does not obtain it is the cause to himself of his own imperfection.
The light does never enslave any one by necessity; nor, again, does God exercise compulsion upon any one unwilling to accept the exercise of His skill. Those persons, therefore, who have apostatized from the light given by the Father, and transgressed the law of liberty, have done so through their own fault, since they have been created free agents, and possessed of power over themselves."
What he says, is that men will be held accountable by God for the uses to which they put their free will.
The Bible is quite clear on two things: that God is sovereign, and tht we are responsible. What's in the middle is a mystery.
Grace does not compel, grace enables.
Yes, it is a popular idea because the Lord Jesus Christ said it. He used the word "Elect" at least 10 times in the Gospels and of "Irresistible Grace" - have you never seen John 6: 37-65? Where the Lord Jesus Christ said “No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws them..." and "He went on to say, “This is why I told you that no one can come to me unless the Father has enabled them.”
Note here it is the Father doing the work, Not the Son.
You must pay attention to the Lord Jesus Christ and not dismiss His Words!
I’m neither a Calvanist, leftist nor an atheist, yet I doubt we truly have free will. After a choice is made, how would you prove you could have chosen otherwise, besides just saying you could have?
No one can come to Jesus unless the Father draws them. It doesn't follow that the Father irresistably compels them to come to Jesus.
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