Are Arminians Semi-Pelagian?
Calling Arminians Pelagian or Semi-Pelagian is somewhat of a
tradition within Calvinism. The
Synod of Dort repeatedly did so, clearing the path for generations to
come. I recently completed a study on John Owen’s
book Death of Death in the Death of Christ, where he relates
Arminians with Pelagians. Additionally,
J. I. Packer calls Arminians Semi-Pelagian in his introduction to Death of
Death in the Death of Christ.
The charge that Arminians are either Pelagians or Semi-Pelagians is
false. I intend to demonstrate this though 1) comparing the Canons of Orange to
Arminius and 2) critiquing Packer’s argument.
The primary difference between Arminians and both Pelagians and Semi-Pelagians
is the issue of the necessity of grace. Pelagians deny grace is necessary for
conversion. Semi-Pelagians deny grace is necessary for man to begin conversion
(although, contrary to Pelagians, they think God’s must meet man half
way). Arminians insist that God’s grace is necessary from the very
beginning of conversion and throughout the entire process. For a simple
explanation of the differences by way of analogy, please see this post.
Why compare Arminius to the Canons of Orange to address this topic? To get
answers straight from the horse’s mouth. It’s my contention that
Arminius is the best source on historic Arminianism and the Cannons of Orange
are the best historical source on what the church condemned about
Semi-Pelagianism. For more on the
Canons of Orange, please see the New Advent’s excellent summary on the
subject here.
Agreement between Arminius and the Canons of Orange
All quotations from the Canons of Orange taken from here. I didn’t
provide comments, because I thought Arminius’ agreement with the Canons
was straightforward. I you disagree, please comment.
The Canon’s will be in red, quotations from Arminius' will be in blue.
CANON 1. If anyone denies that it is the whole man, that is, both body and
soul, that was "changed for the worse" through the offense of Adam's
sin, but believes that the freedom of the soul remains unimpaired and that only
the body is subject to corruption, he is deceived by the error of Pelagius and
contradicts the scripture which says, "The soul that sins shall die"
(Ezek. 18:20); and, "Do you not know that if you
yield yourselves to anyone as obedient slaves, you are the slaves of the one
whom you obey?" (Rom. 6:16); and, "For whatever
overcomes a man, to that he is enslaved" (2 Pet. 2:19).
XV. The
proper and immediate effect of this sin was the offending of the Deity. For
since the form of sin is "the transgression of the law," (1 John iii,
4,) it primarily and immediately strikes against the legislator himself, (Gen.
iii, 11,) and this with the offending of one whose express will it was that his
law should not be offended. From this violation of his law, God conceives just
displeasure, which is the second effect of sin. (iii,
16-19, 23, 24.) But to anger succeeds infliction of punishment, which was in
this instance two-fold. (1.) A liability to two deaths. (ii,
17; Rom. vi, 23.) (2.) The withdrawing of that primitive righteousness and
holiness, which, because they are the effects of the Holy Spirit dwelling in
man, ought not to have remained in him after he had fallen from the favour of God, and had incurred the Divine displeasure. (Luke xix, 26.) For this Spirit is a seal of God's favour and good will. (Rom. viii, 14, 15;
1 Cor. ii, 12.)
XVI.
The whole of this sin, however, is not peculiar to our first parents, but is
common to the entire race and to all their posterity, who, at the time when
this sin was committed, were in their loins, and who have since descended from
them by the natural mode of propagation, according to the primitive
benediction. For in Adam "all have sinned." (Rom.
v, 12.) Wherefore, whatever punishment was brought down upon our first parents, has likewise pervaded and yet pursues all their
posterity. So that all men "are by nature the children of wrath," (Ephes.
ii, 3,) obnoxious to condemnation, and to temporal as well as to eternal death;
they are also devoid of that original righteousness and holiness. (Rom. v, 12, 18, 19.) With these evils they would remain
oppressed forever, unless they were liberated by Christ Jesus; to whom be glory forever.
http://www.godrules.net/library/arminius/arminius25.htm
CANON 2. If anyone asserts that Adam's sin affected
him alone and not his descendants also, or at least if he declares that it is
only the death of the body which is the punishment for sin, and not also that
sin, which is the death of the soul, passed through one man to the whole human
race, he does injustice to God and contradicts the Apostle, who says,
"Therefore as sin came into the world through one man and death through
sin, and so death spread to all men because all men sinned" (Rom. 5:12).
VI.
Beside this punishment, which was instantly inflicted, they rendered themselves
liable to two other punishments; that is, to temporal death, which is the
separation of the soul from the body; and to death eternal, which is the separation
of the entire man from God, his chief good.…
…IX.
But because the condition of the covenant into which God entered with our first
parents was this, that, if they continued in the favour
and grace of God by an observance of this command and of others, the gifts
conferred on them should be transmitted to their posterity, by the same divine
grace which they had, themselves, received; but that, if by disobedience they
rendered themselves unworthy of those blessings, their posterity, likewise, should
not possess them, and should be liable to the contrary evils. This was the
reason why all men, who were to be propagated from them in a natural way,
became obnoxious to death temporal and death eternal, and devoid of this gift
of the Holy Spirit or original righteousness. This punishment usually receives
the appellation of "a privation of the image of God," and
"original sin."
http://www.godrules.net/library/arminius/arminius74.htm
CANON 3. If anyone says that the grace of God can
be conferred as a result of human prayer, but that it is not grace itself which
makes us pray to God, he contradicts the prophet Isaiah, or the Apostle who
says the same thing, "I have been found by those who did not seek me; I
have shown myself to those who did not ask for me" (Rom 10:20, quoting Isa. 65:1).
But in
his lapsed and sinful state, man is not capable, of and by himself, either to
think, to will, or to do that which is really good; but it is necessary for him
to be regenerated and renewed in his intellect, affections or will, and in all
his powers, by God in Christ through the Holy Spirit, that he may be qualified
rightly to understand, esteem, consider, will, and perform whatever is truly
good.
http://www.godrules.net/library/arminius/arminius9.htm
CANON 4. If anyone maintains that God awaits our
will to be cleansed from sin, but does not confess that even our will to be
cleansed comes to us through the infusion and working of the Holy Spirit, he
resists the Holy Spirit himself who says through Solomon, "The will is
prepared by the Lord" (Prov. 8:35, LXX), and the salutary word of the Apostle, "For God is at work in
you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure" (Phil. 2:13).
VII. In
this state, the free will of man towards the true good is not only wounded,
maimed, infirm, bent, and weakened; but it is also imprisoned, destroyed, and
lost. And its powers are not only debilitated and useless unless they be assisted by grace, but it has no powers whatever except
such as are excited by Divine grace. For Christ has said, "Without me ye
can do nothing." St. Augustine, after having diligently meditated upon
each word in this passage, speaks thus: "Christ does not say, without me
ye can do but Little; neither does He say, without me
ye can do any Arduous Thing, nor without me ye can do it with difficulty. But
he says, without me ye can do Nothing! Nor does he
say, without me ye cannot complete any thing; but
without me ye can do Nothing." That this may be
made more manifestly to appear, we will separately consider the mind, the
affections or will, and the capability, as contra-distinguished from them, as
well as the life itself of an unregenerate man.
http://www.godrules.net/library/arminius/arminius29.htm
CANON 5. If anyone says that not only the increase
of faith but also its beginning and the very desire for faith, by which we
believe in Him who justifies the ungodly and comes to the regeneration of holy
baptism -- if anyone says that this belongs to us by nature and not by a gift
of grace, that is, by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit amending our will and
turning it from unbelief to faith and from godlessness to godliness, it is
proof that he is opposed to the teaching of the Apostles, for blessed Paul
says, "And I am sure that he who began a good work in you will bring it to
completion at the day of Jesus Christ" (Phil. 1:6). And again, "For by grace you have been saved through faith;
and this is not your own doing, it is the gift of God" (Eph. 2:8). For those who state that the faith by which we believe in God is
natural make all who are separated from the Church of Christ by definition in
some measure believers.
III. Evangelical faith is an assent of the mind,
produced by the Holy Spirit, through the gospel, in sinners…VI. The
author of faith is the Holy Spirit, whom the Son sends from the Father, as his
advocate and substitute, who may manage his cause in the world and against it.
The instrument is the gospel, or the word of faith, containing the meaning
concerning God and Christ which the Spirit proposes to the understanding, and
of which he there works a persuasion.
http://www.godrules.net/library/arminius/arminius87.htm
CANON 6. If anyone says that God has mercy upon us when, apart from his grace,
we believe, will, desire, strive, labor, pray, watch, study, seek, ask, or
knock, but does not confess that it is by the infusion and inspiration of the
Holy Spirit within us that we have the faith, the will, or the strength to do
all these things as we ought; or if anyone makes the assistance of grace depend
on the humility or obedience of man and does not agree that it is a gift of
grace itself that we are obedient and humble, he contradicts the Apostle who
says, "What have you that you did not receive?" (1 Cor. 4:7), and, "But by the grace of God I am
what I am" (1 Cor. 15:10).
Concerning
grace and free will, this is what I teach according to the Scriptures and
orthodox consent: Free will is unable to begin or to perfect any true and
spiritual good, without grace. That I may not be said, like Pelagius, to
practice delusion with regard to the word "grace," I mean by it that
which is the grace of Christ and which belongs to regeneration. I affirm,
therefore, that this grace is simply and absolutely necessary for the illumination
of the mind, the due ordering of the affections, and the inclination of the
will to that which is good. It is this grace which operates on the mind, the
affections, and the will; which infuses good thoughts into the mind, inspires
good desires into the actions, and bends the will to carry into execution good
thoughts and good desires. This grace goes before, accompanies, and follows; it
excites, assists, operates that we will, and co-operates lest we will in vain.
It averts temptations, assists and grants succour in
the midst of temptations, sustains man against the flesh, the world and Satan,
and in this great contest grants to man the enjoyment of the victory. It raises up again those who are conquered and have fallen,
establishes and supplies them with new strength, and renders them more
cautious. This grace commences salvation, promotes it, and perfects and
consummates it.
http://www.godrules.net/library/arminius/arminius155.htm
CANON 7. If anyone affirms that we can form any
right opinion or make any right choice which relates to the salvation of
eternal life, as is expedient for us, or that we can be saved, that is, assent
to the preaching of the gospel through our natural powers without the
illumination and inspiration of the Holy Spirit, who makes all men gladly
assent to and believe in the truth, he is led astray by a heretical spirit, and
does not understand the voice of God who says in the Gospel, "For apart from
me you can do nothing" (John 15:5), and the word of the Apostle, "Not that we are competent of
ourselves to claim anything as coming from us; our competence is from God"
(2 Cor. 3:5).
In
reference to Divine Grace, I believe, 1. It is a gratuitous affection by which
God is kindly affected towards a miserable sinner, and according to which he,
in the first place, gives his Son, "that whosoever believers in him might
have eternal life," and, afterwards, he justifies him in Christ Jesus and
for his sake, and adopts him into the right of sons, unto salvation. 2. It is
an infusion (both into the human understanding and into the will and
affections,) of all those gifts of the Holy Spirit which appertain to the
regeneration and renewing of man -- such as faith, hope, charity, &c.; for,
without these gracious gifts, man is not sufficient to think, will, or do any thing that is good. 3. It is that perpetual assistance
and continued aid of the Holy Spirit, according to which He acts upon and
excites to good the man who has been already renewed, by infusing into him
salutary cogitations, and by inspiring him with good desires, that he may thus
actually will whatever is good; and according to which God may then will and
work together with man, that man may perform whatever he wills.
http://www.godrules.net/library/arminius/arminius10.htm
CANON 8. If anyone maintains that some are able to
come to the grace of baptism by mercy but others through free will, which has
manifestly been corrupted in all those who have been born after the
transgression of the first man, it is proof that he has no place in the true
faith. For he denies that the free will of all men has been weakened through
the sin of the first man, or at least holds that it has been affected in such a
way that they have still the ability to seek the mystery of eternal salvation
by themselves without the revelation of God. The Lord himself shows how
contradictory this is by declaring that no one is able to come to him
"unless the Father who sent me draws him" (John 6:44), as he also says to Peter, "Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jona! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but
my Father who is in heaven" (Matt. 16:17), and as the Apostle says, "No one
can say 'Jesus is Lord' except by the Holy Spirit" (1 Cor. 12:3).
X.
Exactly correspondent to this darkness of the mind, and perverseness of the
heart, is the utter weakness of all the powers to perform that which is truly
good, and to omit the perpetration of that which is evil, in a due mode and
from a due end and cause. The subjoined sayings of Christ serve to describe
this impotence. "A corrupt tree cannot bring forth good fruit." (Matt. vii, 18.) "How can ye, being evil, speak good
things?" (xii, 34.) The following relates to the
good which is properly prescribed in the gospel: "No man can come to me,
except the Father draw him." (John vi, 44.) As do
likewise the following words of the Apostle: "The carnal mind is not
subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be;" (Rom. viii, 7;) therefore, that man over whom it has dominion, cannot
perform what the law commands. The same Apostle says, "When we were in the
flesh, the motions of sins wrought in us," or flourished energetically. (vii, 5.) To the same purpose are all those passages in which
the man existing in this state is said to be under the power of sin and Satan,
reduced to the condition of a slave, and "taken captive by the
Devil." (Rom. vi, 20; 2 Tim. ii, 26.)
http://www.godrules.net/library/arminius/arminius29.htm
CANON 9. Concerning the succor of
God. It is a mark of divine favor when we are of a right purpose and
keep our feet from hypocrisy and unrighteousness; for as often as we do good, God is at work in us and with us, in order that we may
do so.
VI. The
author of sanctification is God, the Holy Father himself, in his Son who is the
Holy of holies, through the Spirit of holiness. The external instrument is the
word of God; the internal one is faith yielded to the word preached. For the
word does not sanctify, only as it is preached, unless the faith be added by
which the hearts of men are purified.
VII. the object of sanctification is man, a sinner, and yet a believer -- a
sinner, because, being contaminated through sin and addicted to a life of sin,
he is unfit to serve the living God -- a believer, because he is united to
Christ through faith in him, on whom our holiness is founded; and he is planted
together with Christ and joined to him in a conformity with his death and
resurrection. Hence, he dies to sin, and is excited or raised up to a new life.
VIII. The subject is, properly, the soul of man. And, first,
the mind, which is illuminated, the dark clouds of ignorance being driven away.
Next, the inclination or the will, by which it is delivered from the dominion
of indwelling sin, and is filled with the spirit of holiness. The body is not
changed, either as to its essence or its inward qualifies; but as it is a part
of the man, who is consecrated to God, and is an instrument united to the soul,
having been removed by the sanctified soul which inhabits it from the purposes
of sin, it is admitted to and employed in the service of God, "that our
whole spirit and soul and body may be preserved blameless unto the day of our
Lord Jesus Christ."
IX. The form lies in the purification from sin, and in a
conformity with God in the body of Christ through his Spirit.
http://www.godrules.net/library/arminius/arminius92.htm
CANON 10. Concerning the succor of
God. The succor of God is to be ever sought by the regenerate and
converted also, so that they may be able to come to a successful end or
persevere in good works.
My
sentiments respecting the perseverance of the saints are, that those persons
who have been grafted into Christ by true faith, and have thus been made
partakers of his life-giving Spirit, possess sufficient powers [or strength] to
fight against Satan, sin, the world and their own flesh, and to gain the
victory over these enemies -- yet not without the assistance of the grace of
the same Holy Spirit. Jesus Christ also by his Spirit assists them in all their
temptations, and affords them the ready aid of his hand; and, provided they
stand prepared for the battle, implore his help, and be not wanting to
themselves, Christ preserves them from falling.
http://www.godrules.net/library/arminius/arminius11.htm
CANON 11. Concerning the duty to pray. None would
make any true prayer to the Lord had he not received from him the object of his
prayer, as it is written, "Of thy own have we given thee" (1 Chron. 29:14).
...let
us by prayer and supplication implore his present aid,
in the name of Jesus Christ our great High Priest. "Do thou, therefore, O
holy and merciful God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Fountain of all
grace and truth, vouchsafe to grant thy favourable
presence to us who are a great congregation assembled together in thy holy name. Sprinkle thou our spirits, souls, and bodies, with the
most gracious dew of thy immeasurable holiness, that the converse of thy saints
with each other may be pleasing to thee. Assist us by the grace of thy Holy
Spirit, who may yet more and more illuminate our minds -- imbued with the true
knowledge of Thyself and thy Son; may He also inflame our hearts with a sincere
zeal for thy glory; may He open my mouth and guide my tongue, that I may be
enabled to declare concerning the Priesthood of thy Son those things which are
true and just and holy, to the glory of thy name and to the gathering of all of
us together in the Lord. Amen."
http://www.godrules.net/library/arminius/arminius5.htm
CANON 12. Of what sort we are whom God loves. God
loves us for what we shall be by his gift, and not by our own deserving.
The
decree concerning the gift of faith, precedes the
decree of election;" in the explanation of which I employ the same
distinction as in the former, and say, "The decree of election, by which
God determines to justify and save believers, precedes the decree concerning
the bestowment of faith." For faith is unnecessary, nay it is useless,
without this previous decree. And the decree of election, by which God resolves
to justify and save this or that particular person, is subsequent to that
decree according to which he determines to administer the means necessary and
efficacious to faith, that is, the decree concerning the gift of faith.
http://www.godrules.net/library/arminius/arminius17.htm
CANON 13. Concerning the restoration
of free will. The freedom of will that was destroyed in the first man
can be restored only by the grace of baptism, for what is lost can be returned
only by the one who was able to give it. Hence the Truth itself declares:
"So if the Son makes you free, you will be free indeed" (John 8:36).
[GODISMYJUDGE comment: Arminius didn’t think that that baptism confers
grace)
...it
is unwisely asserted that, through it, grace is conferred; that is, by some
other act of conferring than that which is done through typifying and sealing:
For grace cannot be immediately conferred by water.
http://www.godrules.net/library/arminius/arminius106.htm
CANON 14. No mean wretch is freed from his sorrowful
state, however great it may be, save the one who is anticipated by the mercy of
God, as the Psalmist says, "Let thy compassion come speedily to meet
us" (Ps. 79:8), and again, "My God in his steadfast love will meet
me" (Ps. 59:10).
II. We define Vocation, a gracious act of God in Christ, by
which, through his word and Spirit, He calls forth sinful men, who are liable
to condemnation and placed under the dominion of sin, from the condition of the
animal life, and from the pollutions and corruptions of this world, (2 Tim. i, 9; Matt. xi, 28; 1 Pet. ii, 9, 10; Gal. i, 4; 2 Pet. ii, 20; Rom. x, 13-15; 1 Pet. iii, 19; Gen.
vi, 3,) unto "the fellowship of Jesus Christ," and of his kingdom and
its benefits; that, being united unto Him as their Head, they may derive from
him life, sensation, motion, and a plenitude of every spiritual blessing, to
the glory of God and their own salvation. (1 Cor. i, 9; Gal. ii, 20; Ephes. i, 3,
6; 2 Thess. ii, 13, 14.)
http://www.godrules.net/library/arminius/arminius34.htm
CANON 15. Adam was changed, but for the worse, through his own iniquity from
what God made him. Through the grace of God the believer is changed, but for
the better, from what his iniquity has done for him. The one, therefore, was
the change brought about by the first sinner; the other, according to the
Psalmist, is the change of the right hand of the Most High (Ps. 77:10).
VIII.
The cause of this repentance is, God by his word and Spirit
in Christ. For it is a repentance tending not to despair, but to salvation; but
such it cannot be, except with respect to Christ, in whom, alone, the sinner
can obtain deliverance from the condemnation and dominion of sin.
http://www.godrules.net/library/arminius/arminius86.htm
CANON 16. No man shall be honored by his seeming attainment, as though it
were not a gift, or suppose that he has received it because a missive from without
stated it in writing or in speech. For the Apostle speaks thus, "For if
justification were through the law, then Christ died to no purpose" (Gal. 2:21); and "When he ascended on high he led a host of captives, and
he gave gifts to men" (Eph.4:8, quoting Ps.68:18). It is from this source that any man has what he does; but whoever
denies that he has it from this source either does not truly have it, or else
"even what he has will be taken away" (Matt. 25:29).
II. We
define Vocation, a gracious act of God in Christ, by which, through his word
and Spirit, He calls forth sinful men, who are liable to condemnation and
placed under the dominion of sin, from the condition of the animal life, and
from the pollutions and corruptions of this world, (2 Tim. i,
9; Matt. xi, 28; 1 Pet. ii, 9, 10; Gal. i, 4; 2 Pet.
ii, 20; Rom. x, 13-15; 1 Pet. iii, 19; Gen. vi, 3,) unto "the fellowship
of Jesus Christ," and of his kingdom and its benefits; that, being united
unto Him as their Head, they may derive from him life, sensation, motion, and a
plenitude of every spiritual blessing, to the glory of God and their own
salvation. (1 Cor. i, 9; Gal. ii,
20; Ephes. i, 3, 6; 2 Thess. ii, 13, 14.)
III. The efficient cause of this vocation is God the Father in the Son. The Son
himself, as appointed by the Father to be the Mediator and the king of his
church, calls men by the Holy Spirit; as He is the Spirit of God given to the
Mediator; and as He is the Spirit of Christ the king and the head of his
church, by whom both "the Father and the Son hitherto work" (1 Thess.
ii, 12; Ephes. ii, 17; iv, 11, 12; Rev. iii, 20; John v, 17.) But this vocation
is so administered by the Spirit, that the Holy Spirit is himself its effector: for He appoints bishops, sends forth teachers,
endues them with gifts, grants them his assistance, and obtains authority for
the word and bestows efficacy upon it. (Heb. iii, 7; Acts xiii, 2; xx, 28; 1
Cor. xii, 4, 7, 9, 11; Heb. ii, 4.)
http://www.godrules.net/library/arminius/arminius34.htm
CANON 17. Concerning Christian
courage. The courage of the Gentiles is produced by simple greed, but
the courage of Christians by the love of God which "has been poured into
our hearts" not by freedom of will from our own side but "through the
Holy Spirit which has been given to us" (Rom. 5:5).
With
regard to the certainty [or assurance] of salvation, my opinion is, that it is
possible for him who believes in Jesus Christ to be certain and persuaded, and,
if his heart condemn him not, he is now in reality assured, that he is a son of
God, and stands in the grace of Jesus Christ. Such a certainty is wrought in
the mind, as well by the action of the Holy Spirit inwardly actuating the
believer and by the fruits of faith, as from his own conscience, and the
testimony of God's Spirit witnessing together with his conscience. I also
believe, that it is possible for such a person, with an assured confidence in
the grace of God and his mercy in Christ, to depart out of this life, and to
appear before the throne of grace, without any anxious fear or terrific dread:
and yet this person should constantly pray, "O lord, enter not into
judgment with thy servant!"
http://www.godrules.net/library/arminius/arminius12.htm
CANON 18. That grace is not preceded by merit.
Recompense is due to good works if they are performed; but grace, to which we have
no claim, precedes them, to enable them to be done.
"God
will bestow more grace upon that man who does what is in him by the power of
divine grace which is already granted to him, according to the declaration of
Christ, To him that hath shall be given," in which he comprises the cause
why it was "given to the apostles to know the mysteries of the kingdom of
heaven," and why "to others it was not given." (Matt. xiii, 11, 12.)
http://www.godrules.net/library/arminius/arminius17.htm
CANON 19. That a man can be saved
only when God shows mercy. Human nature, even though it remained in that
sound state in which it was created, could be no means save itself, without the
assistance of the Creator; hence since man cannot safe- guard his salvation
without the grace of God, which is a gift, how will he be able to restore what
he has lost without the grace of God?
But the
question between them [church and the Pelagians]was
"Can something of good be attributed to man, without grace and its
operation?" He who receives some operation of grace is not instantly under
grace or regenerate; for grace prepares the will of man for itself,
that it may dwell in it. Grace knocks at the door of our hearts; but
that which has occasion to knock does not yet reside in the heart nor has it
the dominion, though it may knock so as to cause the door to be opened to it on
account of its persuasion.
http://www.godrules.net/library/arminius/arminius146.htm
CANON 20. That a man can do no
good without God. God does much that is good in a man that the man does not
do; but a man does nothing good for which God is not responsible, so as to let
him do it.
Our
opinion openly professes that sin is the only and sole meritorious cause of
death, and that man would not have died, had he not sinned. (ii.) By the
commission of sin, Adam corrupted himself and all his posterity, and rendered
them obnoxious to the wrath of God. (iii.) All who are
born in the ordinary way from Adam, contract from him original sin and the
penalty of death eternal. Our opinion lays this down as the foundation of
further explanation; for this original sin is called, in Romans 7, "the sin,"the sin exceedingly sinful,"the
indwelling sin,"the sin which is adjacent to a
man, or present with him," or "the evil which is present with a man
and" the law in the members." (iv.) Our opinion openly declares that
concupiscence, under which is also comprehended lust, is an evil. (v.) The
fifth of the enumerated Pelagian dogmas is professedly refuted by our opinion;
for, in Romans 7, the apostle teaches, according to our opinion, that the
natural man cannot will what is good, except he be under the law, and unless
the legal spirit have produced this willing in him by the law; and though he
wills what is good, yet it is by no means through free will, even though it be
impelled and assisted by the law to be capable of performing that very thing.
But it also teaches that the grace of Christ, that is, the gift of the Holy
Spirit and of love, is absolutely necessary for this purpose, which grace is
not bestowed according to merits, (which are nothing at all,) but is purely
gratuitous. (vi.) The sixth of the enumerated dogmas of Pelagius is neither
taught nor refuted by our opinion, because it maintain,
that Romans 7 does not treat about the regenerate. But, in the mean time, the
patrons and advocates of our opinion do not deny that what is said respecting
the imperfection of believers in the present life, is
true. (vii.) The seventh of the enumerated dogmas of Pelagius is refuted by our
opinion; for it not only grants, that good can with difficulty be done by the
man who is under the law, and who is not yet placed under grace; but it also
unreservedly denies that it is possible for such a man by any means to resist
sin and to perform what is good.
http://www.godrules.net/library/arminius/arminius146.htm
CANON 21. Concerning nature and grace. As the
Apostle most truly says to those who would be justified by the law and have
fallen from grace, "If justification were through the law, then Christ
died to no purpose" (Gal. 2:21), so it is most truly
declared to those who imagine that grace, which faith in Christ advocates and
lays hold of, is nature: "If justification were through nature, then
Christ died to no purpose." Now there was indeed the law, but it did not
justify, and there was indeed nature, but it did not justify. Not in vain did
Christ therefore die, so that the law might be fulfilled by him who said,
"I have come not to abolish them but to fulfill them" (Matt.5:17), and that the nature
which had been destroyed by Adam might be restored by him who said that he had
come "to seek and to save the lost" (Luke 19:10).
For
they said that "a man under this law is he who, by the power and instinct
of nature, (which was not corrupted in Adam,) is able to will that which is
good, and not to will what is evil; but who, through a depraved habit, was so
bound to the service of sin, as in reality, and actually he was not able to
perform the good which he would," &c. This false description of the
man might also be met, not by denying that the subject of this chapter is a man
under the law, but by refuting that description.
http://www.godrules.net/library/arminius/arminius147.htm
CANON 22. Concerning those things
that belong to man. No man has anything of his own but untruth and sin.
But if a man has any truth or righteousness, it from that fountain for which we
must thirst in this desert, so that we may be refreshed from it as by drops of
water and not faint on the way.
Pelagius
says, "Man is able, without the grace of Christ, and instructed solely by
the teaching of the law, to perform the good which he wills, through his free
will, and to omit the evil which he does not will;" but the apostle
declares that this man "consents indeed to the law that it is good, but
that to perform what is good he finds not in himself; he omits the good which
he wills, and he performs the evil which he wills not." Therefore, the
doctrine of the apostle is, independently of its consequence, directly repugnant
to the Pelagian dogma
http://www.godrules.net/library/arminius/arminius147.htm
CANON 23. Concerning the will of God and of man. Men do their own will
and not the will of God when they do what displeases him; but when they follow
their own will and comply with the will of God, however willingly they do so,
yet it is his will by which what they will is both prepared and instructed.
XIV. The Second thing to be observed is, that as the very first
commencement of every good thing, so likewise the progress, continuance and
confirmation, nay, even the perseverance in good, are not from ourselves, but
from God through the Holy Spirit.
http://www.godrules.net/library/arminius/arminius29.htm
CANON 24. Concerning the branches
of the vine. The branches on the vine do not give life to the vine, but
receive life from it; thus the vine is related to its branches in such a way
that it supplies them with what they need to live, and does not take this from
them. Thus it is to the advantage of the disciples, not Christ, both to have
Christ abiding in them and to abide in Christ. For if the vine is cut down
another can shoot up from the live root; but one who is cut off from the vine
cannot live without the root (John15:5ff).
I.
…the union of Christ with us, on account of its being the primary and
immediate effect of that faith by which men believe in him as the only saviour…. II. Such are the appellations of head,
spouse, foundation, vine, and others of a similar kind; from which, on the
other hand, believers are called members in his body, which is the entire
church of believers, the spouse of Christ, lively stones built on him, and
young shoots or branches. By these epithets, is signified the closest and most
intimate union between Christ and believers.
….VIII. The proximate and immediate end is the communion of the parts
united among themselves; this, also, is an effect
consequent upon that union, but actively understood, as it flows from Christ,
and positively, as it flows into believers, and is received by them. The cause
of this is, that the relation is that of disquiparency, where the foundation is Christ, who
possesses all things, and stands in need of nothing; the term, or boundary, is
the believer in want of all things.
http://www.godrules.net/library/arminius/arminius88.htm
CANON 25. Concerning the love with which we love
God. It is wholly a gift of God to love God. He who
loves, even though he is not loved, allowed himself to be loved. We are loved,
even when we displease him, so that we might have means to please him. For the
Spirit, whom we love with the Father and the Son, has poured into our hearts
the love of the Father and the Son (Rom. 5:5).
II. The
love of God is a dutiful act of man, by which he knowingly and willingly prefers,
before all other things, the union of himself with God and obedience to the
divine law, to which is subjoined a hatred of separation and of
disobedience….
…
IX. The principal cause is the Holy Spirit, who infuses into man, by the act of
regeneration, the affections of love, fear, trust, and honour;
by exciting grace, excites, moves and incites him to
second acts, and by co-operating grace, concurs with man himself to produce
such second acts.
http://www.godrules.net/library/arminius/arminius115.htm
Packer’s Semi-Pelagian Strawman
Here’s J. I. Packer’s misrepresentation of Arminianism.
First, it should be observed that the “five points of
Calvinism,” so-called, are simply the Calvinistic answer to a five-point
manifesto (the Remonstrance) put out by certain “Belgic semi-Pelagians” in the early seventeenth century. The
theology which it contained (known to history as Arminianism) stemmed from two
philosophical principles: first, that divine sovereignty is not compatible with
human freedom, nor therefore with human responsibility; second, that ability
limits obligation. (The charge of semi-Pelagianism was thus fully justified.) From these principles, the Arminians drew two
deductions: first that since the Bible regards faith as a free and responsible
human act, it cannot be caused by God, but is exercised independently of Him;
second, that since the Bible regards faith as obligatory on the part of all who
hear the gospel, ability to believe must be universal. Hence, they maintained,
Scripture must be interpreted as teaching the following positions: (1.) Man is
never so completely corrupted by sin that he cannot savingly believe the gospel when it is put before him, nor (2.) is he
ever so completely controlled by God that he cannot reject it. (3.) God’s
election of those who shall be saved is prompted by His foreseeing that they
will of their own accord believe. (4.) Christ’s death did not ensure the
salvation of anyone, for it did not secure the gift of faith to anyone (there
is no such gift); what it did was rather to create a possibility of salvation
for everyone if they believe. (5.) It rests with believers to keep themselves
in a state of grace by keeping up their faith; those who fail here fall away
and are lost. Thus, Arminianism made man’s salvation depend ultimately on man himself,
saving faith being viewed throughout as man’s own work and, because his
own, not God’s in him.
http://www.all-of-grace.org/pub/others/deathofdeath.html
Packer represents Arminianism
in 2 philosophical principles, which he calls semi-Pelagian
and 5 theological points. Of the 5 theological points, only the 2nd actually
represents Arminian
thought. Points 1, 3, 4 & 5 are not only not
taught by Arminius, but he also specifically denied them. Point 2 (man is never
so completely controlled by God that he cannot reject the gospel) does
represent the Arminian
viewpoint. But it involves the operation of God’s grace and cannot be
seen as a Pelagian
or semi-Pelagian
denial of God’s grace.
Of Packer’s 2 philosophical principles, the first (that divine
sovereignty is not compatible with human freedom) is denied by Arminians
as well. God’s sovereignty is completely compatible with human freedom.
Perhaps Packer has a special definition of God’s sovereignty in mind.
Perhaps he means God causally predetermines all things. But why is
Packer’s definition preferable? Isn’t sovereignty about rights and
authority, not causal predetermination?
What we reject is the notion that God’s causal predetermination of an
action is compatible with freedom. Why? Because then the event would not be
free from God’s causal predetermination. But affirming this obvious truth
isn’t
semi-Pelagianism.
Semi-Pelagianism
denies the necessity of grace for the commencement of conversion. Semi-Pelagianism
and incompatiblism are altogether
different subjects.
Let’s pretend for a second that semi-Pelagianism could be deduced from this
first philosophical principle. (it can’t but
let’s pretend) Would that make Arminians semi-Pelagians?
No. It might make them logically inconsistent, but it wouldn’t
make them semi-Pelagians.
The fact is Arminius taught the opposite of semi-Pelagian
views, whether or not he was consistent in doing so.
But semi-Pelagianism
doesn’t
follow from incompatiblism. Arminius taught
that prior to grace, man can be free to choose between evil options, but is
unable to choose good. Thus, the man isn’t
predetermined to one and only one thing (i.e. incompatiblism),
yet he is still unable to do good(i.e. contra semi-Pelagianism).
Packer’s second philosophical point (that ability limits obligation) isn’t
essential for Arminians,
although some Arminians
do hold to it. For more on this subject, please see this post here.
As for Packer's point, no Arminian says man is able to do good, without God's grace. So this point is not semi-Pelagian.
Here’s a link
for the original series of posts, if you would like to comment. For additional discussion on
Packer’s article, please see the comments related to this post here.