Are you responsible for your own salvation?

by John Holbrook Jr.
A Biblical View, Blog #067 posted November 19, 2018, edited March 10, 2021.

Who is responsible for a person’s salvation, God, who exercises his sovereignty over his creation and its creatures, or the individual, who exercises his or her free will by accepting what God offers to all men? Consider the following verses of Scripture:

1 – Jesus said to His disciples, “But whom say ye that I am? And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God. And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven” (KJV Matthew 16:15-17).

2 – Jesus also said to His disciples, “For I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me. 39 And this is the Father’s will which hath sent me, that of all which he hath given me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up again at the last day. 40 And this is the will of him that sent me, that every one which seeth the Son, and believeth on him, may have everlasting life: and I will raise him up at the last day” (KJV John 6:38-40).

3 – Jesus also said to his disciples, “No man can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me draw him: and I will raise him up at the last day” (KJV John 6:44).

4 – Paul wrote, “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ: according as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love: Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will” (KJV Ephesians 1:3-5).

5 – Paul also wrote, “That in the dispensation of the fulness of times he might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven, and which are on earth; even in him: In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will: That we should be to the praise of his glory, who first trusted in Christ. In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise, Which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory” (KJV Ephesians 1:10-14).

6 – Paul also wrote, “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them” (KJV Ephesians 2:8-10}

7 – Paul also wrote, “But we are bound to give thanks always to God for you, brethren beloved of the Lord, because God hath from the beginning chosen you to salvation through sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth: Whereunto he called you by our gospel, to the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ” (KJV2 Thessalonians 2:13-14).

8 – Paul also wrote, “Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost” (KJV Titus 3:5).

The common denominator among the eight passages above is the testimony that the triune God is the prime actor in a person’s salvation. God-the-Father wrote the person’s name in the Book of Life before the foundations of the world were laid. The triune God created the person. God-the-Son died on a cross to atone for the person’s sins. God-the-Father drew the person to his Son. God-the-Holy Spirit cleansed and regenerated the person and then set God’s seal on the person. Although the person will die, God-the-Son will resurrect the person on the Last Day.

After a person is saved, God is also the prime actor in that person’s sanctification. God-the-Holy Spirit enables the person increasingly to resist temptation, turn away from sinning, and move nearer to God.

Creation is a Drama

One of the reasons why so many Christians claim that they responded to the Gospel of Christ by their own free will is that they don’t understand the nature of Creation.

Creation is a drama whose author is God-the-Father, whose producer and stage-manager is God-the-Son, and whose director is God-the-Holy Spirit. Every being who appears in this drama has a part to play – that is, his or her every thought, word, and deed has been scripted.

► Jesus of Nazareth is the protagonist of the drama, and He follows the Father’s script exactly. See John 8:28-29.

► Satan is the antagonist of the drama, and he follows the Father’s script exactly. See Job 1:6-12 and 2:1-6. Note that (a) Satan must appear in God’s throne room, (b) God requires Satan to give an account of what he has been doing, (c) God draws Satan’s attention to Job, and (d) God tells Satan exactly what he can and cannot do to Job.

► Every man, woman, or child in history has a bit part to play in the drama; if both the protagonist and the antagonist of the drama are controlled by God-the-Father’s script, isn’t it reasonable to assume that the lives of the bit players are as well?

Now, imagine a drama in which every member of the cast is free to say and do whatever he or she chooses to say and do. The result would not be a drama. It would be chaos. Consider Othello, The Moor of Venice. Imagine the thought and effort which Shakespeare put into crafting the plot, the action and the lines for Othello, Desdemona, Iago, Cassio, Brabantio, Roderigo, Emilia, and Bianca. They create the drama. If the actors abandoned the script, there would be no drama. Consider what would have happened if Othello had decided to give Desdemona a dozen roses instead of a handkerchief. Or if Desdemona had tried to wipe Othello’s face with her sleeve instead of her handkerchief. Or if Othello had put the handkerchief in his pocket, instead of dropping it on the floor. Or if Emelia had decided not to pick up the handkerchief. Or if Emelia had decided to keep the handkerchief for herself instead of giving it to Iago. Or if Iago had put something else in Cassio’s room instead of the handkerchief. Or if Cassio had failed to notice the handkerchief in his room. Or if Bianca had showed no interest in the handkerchief that Cassio was carrying. Etc. The play would fall apart.

God’s Sovereignty

Another reason why so many Christians claim that they responded to the Gospel of Christ by their own free will is that they don’t grasp the infinite extent of God’s intellect, power, imagination, inventiveness, etc.

► The Scriptures indicate that God designed, created, and manages Universe, which is the theater in which the drama unfolds, and the earth, which is the stage on which the drama occurs. He controls the movement of every atomic particle, every atom, every molecule, every drop of water, every grain of sand, every celestial body, every galaxy, etc. He ordains every sunrise and every sunset, every cloudless day and every thunderstorm, every meteor shower and every volcanic eruption.

► The Scriptures also indicate that God designed, created, and manages the earth’s creatures. He controls every minnow or whale, every ant or elephant, every butterfly or eagle, and every man, woman, or child. He determines when, where, and why a sparrow falls. He numbers the hairs on each person’s body. He selects the members of each family, church, and nation. He ordains when a nation can live in peace and when it will be engaged in war. Absolutely nothing lies outside his purview and control – particularly something so important as the makeup of the bride whom he is preparing for his Son.

The Bride of Christ

Why is the makeup of the Bride of Christ so important? She is important because she is at the center of Creation’s story – the girl for whose allegiance the protagonist and the antagonist are contending.

Consider the plot of the story: God-the-Father is preparing a bride for his Son despite the opposition of Satan and his minions. Just as God put Adam to sleep, took flesh and bone from his side, formed Eve, and then presented Eve to Adam to be his bride on Day 6 of Creation Week, so God put Jesus to sleep on the cross, took blood and water from His side,[1] is currently forming the “Bride of Christ,” and will present her to his Son[2] to be His wife at the Wedding of the Lamb.

Note that the Bible starts with a wedding between the First Adam and his bride[3] and ends with a wedding between the Second Adam and His bride.[4] These weddings are like bookends to the drama. Moreover, note that, just as Satan tried to spoil the marriage of the First Adam, which he was able to do, so now he is trying to spoil the marriage of the Second Adam, which, according to the Scriptures, he will not be able to do. Nevertheless, the tension of the drama for God’s people in the audience derives from the fact that Satan seems to be succeeding in his efforts and only faith in the trustworthiness of the Word of God will sustain her through the trials which Satan has in store for her.

Do you think that God would leave the composition of his Son’s bride to be determined by the whim of bit players in the drama? Would he allow them to decide for themselves whether or not they will accept or reject God’s offer of salvation through faith in Jesus as their Lord and Savior. No. God-the-Son will have to live with His bride for all eternity. She must be perfect. God-the-Father designed her before Universe was created. Now she is being formed, educated, and trained to be a help-mete for her future spouse, to whom she is betrothed. When God-the-Father presents her to his Son, she will be complete[5] and perfect. There will be no surprises.

© 2018 John Holbrook Jr.
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[1] God’s tool was a Roman soldier’s lance.

[2] The Lamb of God. (John 1:36).

[3] See Genesis 2:18-25.

[4] See Revelation 19:6 and following.

[5] One of the most misunderstood verses in the Bible is 2 Peter 3:9: “The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some men count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance” (KJ21). Some Christians assume that Peter is referring to all people. He is not. He is referring to the people whose names God the Father wrote in the Book of Life before the foundations of the world were laid. Some believers in Peter’s time had become impatient and had begun to wonder when the Lord would return, as He had promised. Peter is admonishing them to be patient, explaining that many people whose names are written in the Book of Life have not yet come into the Kingdom, for they are yet to be born. Indeed, the Gospel has yet to be preached in all nations, so that, when they are born, they can hear it and respond to it. The Lord will not come until His Bride is complete and therefore perfect. If He did come before then, some brothers and sisters whom God the Father has ordained be in the Kingdom would perish, which the Lord is not willing to let happen.