The false teaching of mans freewill in the matter of salvation denies mans spiritual inability in that by nature he is dead to God.
Sure man has a physical life, but naturally he has no spiritual life, being alienated from the life of God Eph 4:18
Having the understanding darkened,
being alienated from the life of God through the ignorance that is in them, because of
the blindness of their heart:
Coupled with this alienation from the life of God is a darkened understanding, and blindness of heart
The word alienated means:
- to be shut out from one's fellowship and intimacy
Paul wrote to the Ephesians that prior to their quickening, they were dead in sin Eph 2:1,5
And you
hath he quickened,
who were dead in trespasses and sins
Even
when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved)
The word dead
nekros:
- destitute of life, without life, inanimate
- metaph.
- spiritually dead
- destitute of a life that recognises and is devoted to God, because given up to trespasses and sins
- inactive as respects doing right
- destitute of force or power, inactive, inoperative
All the above applies to us by nature spiritually
Notice
inactive as regards doing right, that is spiritually. It agrees with Rom 3:12
They are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable;
there is none that doeth good, no, not one.
Now being dead spiritually to God, inactive, how can a person be free to do the good things like hearing the word of God, understanding it, faith in God, repentance toward God.
Freewill denies being dead to God spiritually by nature. 3