II. Free Will:
In the
Biblical sense of free will, the sovereignty of God over the wills of men is not an impediment to Biblical free will.
Unregenerate man is a slave to sin (Jn 8:34; Ro 3:19; Gal 3:22). Slaves aren't free.
But slaves can still make some
voluntary choices without external
constraints,
slaves can still choose voluntarily to do some of the things they desire.
However, their choices are limited by their condition of slavery.
They can make only those choices their condition of slavery allows.
And that is the condition of unregenerate mankind.
They are slaves to sin (Jn 8:34) because of their fallen corrupt disposition which
favors sin.
However, they can
still make voluntary choices without external constraint,
they can still choose voluntarily to do some of the things they desire.
But the Bible states unregenerate man cannot choose to love and obey God,
because the mind of unregenerate man has been
set in hostility to God by his fallen nature, and cannot submit to God's law (Ro 8:7).
When we speak of free will in its
secular sense, it is the power to make
all moral choices, including the choice to love and obey God, and if they choose, even to live a sinless life.
The Bible denies that unregenerate mankind has such power (Jn 8:34; Ro 8:7).
The Bible affirms that unregenerate mankind has the power to make voluntary choices, without external constraint, according to his disposition.
The Bible affirms that unregenerate mankind has the power to voluntarily choose to do what he wishes or desires.
But in its secular sense, that is not free will, that is simply free
agency.
The free
will of the Bible is
limited and, therefore, in its secular sense, it is only free
agency.
So we have
the Biblical meaning of free will, which is the power to voluntary make choices, without external constraint, according to our disposition/condition, like the slave, and
we have the
secular meaning of free will, which is the power to make all moral choices, even to life a sinless life.
Why is the distinction important?
Because free will in the Bible
- is limited, by unregenerate man's slavery to sin, and his will is not totally "free" in the secular sense,
- is only a matter of acting voluntarily, without external constraint, and
- is not a matter of being allowed the choice of all options, which is the secular meaning of free will.
And because God operates within the hearts of men causing them
voluntarily, without external constraint to do as he wills, he is not violating their free will in the Biblical sense.
So man's free will in the Biblical sense is not violated by God's sovereignty in the actions of men.
That's one down, in the objections to God's sovereignty in the actions of men.