The Origins Of "Irresistible Grace"
It remains the position of conservative Calvinists that our authority lies in the Scriptures alone. Therefore, we will proceed on the basis that John the Apostle held the view that God's saving grace is irresistible, even if the nomenclature is absent from his texts.
Exposition [Jn. 6:26-47/NASB]
(v26) Jesus answered them and said, "Truly, truly, I say to you, you seek Me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate of the loaves and were filled."
Up to this point in the text, the casual observer might be tempted to think that the Lord Jesus Christ had gained for Himself quite the following. The chapter opens with the feeding of the 5000, and just prior to this section a large crowd from that gathering had followed Him a great distance, earnestly desiring to be near Him. There are few Pastors from few seeker sensitive churches that wouldn't be thrilled to garner such a response. Verse 14 indicates the people even pondered if Jesus were a Prophet. Yet by the end of this very chapter, all but the twelve had turned away (v66).
Notice the Lord's words to the crowd who followed Him: "...you seek Me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate of the loaves and were filled." The Son of God, who knows the hearts of all men and who knew from the beginning who did not truly believe in Him (v64), cuts through their pious pretenses and gets down to the heart of the issue.
(v27) "Do not work for the food which perishes, but for the food which endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give to you, for on Him the Father, God, has set His seal."
The Lord immediately shifts the focus of the conversation from what the people want (more food), to what God wants (the revelation of His saving Son). And being the well trained religionists they were, the more verbal among them took a bite.
(v28-29) Therefore they said to Him, "What shall we do, so that we may work the works of God?" Jesus answered and said to them, "This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He has sent."
Here we see that Christ is not teaching a works based theology, but is in fact pointing people away from reliance on their own efforts, and toward saving faith in Him. Thus justification is by faith alone, in Christ alone. But Jesus doesn't get the sort of response that many evangelicals would hope for.
(v30-31) So they said to Him, "What then do You do for a sign, so that we may see, and believe You? What work do You perform? Our fathers ate the manna in the wilderness; as it is written, 'HE GAVE THEM BREAD OUT OF HEAVEN TO EAT.'"
To the Jewish mind, there was no greater Prophet than Moses. However, in getting their backs up and presenting such a challenge, the crowd are revealing their true heart condition. They don't actually believe --- not in any saving sense. Their attention is focused on the things of man, rather than the things of God. And so, Jesus corrects them.
(v32-33) Jesus then said to them, "Truly, truly, I say to you, it is not Moses who has given you the bread out of heaven, but it is My Father who gives you the true bread out of heaven. For the bread of God is that which comes down out of heaven, and gives life to the world."
There are few things more infuriating than having one's world view challenged. The Jews looked to great human heroes of the faith for their guidance and encouragement, completely forgetting that these men were mere servants of Yahweh. Notice the change in tense from past ("who has given") to present ("who gives"). While manna was a type of things to come, the antitype had arrived from heaven to bring life to the world. Remember, this whole conversation is ultimately about eternal life.
(v34-36) Then they said to Him, "Lord, always give us this bread."
Jesus said to them, "I am the bread of life; he who comes to Me will not hunger, and he who believes in Me will never thirst. But I said to you that you have seen Me, and yet do not believe."
Here, the two verbs "comes" and "believes" are equated. That is, to come to Jesus is the same thing as believing in Jesus. And now, standing before their eyes, is the literal manna from heaven; yet despite this, they do not believe. Don't miss that detail. Even though they have followed Jesus for a great distance, they have not "come to Him" in any salvific sense. But why? They had heard His magnificent preaching. They had eaten the miraculously multiplied loaves and fish. And now they were hearing the gospel straight from the lips of the Son of God...and yet they disbelieved. Why?
And here is the Lord's answer:
(v37-39) "All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will certainly not cast out. For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me. This is the will of Him who sent Me, that of all that He has given Me I lose nothing, but raise it up on the last day."
Notice that the giving of the Father precedes the coming of the called. Notice also that everyone whom the Father gives to the Son will come to Him, and will be raised up on the last day. None whom the Father gives to the Son will be lost. While synergists often argue that the Father gives only those whom He knows will believe on the Son by their own free will, such an argument cannot be made from this text. Indeed, such an argument presupposes the existence of a free will decree, and no such decree resides in Scripture.
Let me emphasize this clearly, the text of John 6 answers the "Why?" question as follows: Those who will not believe, have not been given to the Son by the Father.
But what about free will? Can't we argue that man's chief motivation for belief ultimately lies within his own will? No, we cannot. Libertarian free will, as traditionally espoused by Arminians and other synergists, does not provide us with a motive for doing anything. Free will (theoretically) provides a capacity to choose, but never a reason for choosing. Therefore, the invocation of "free will" solves nothing.
Also, as discussed previously, a passive interpretation of divine foreknowledge is inconsistent with Ro. 8:29, where the active foreknowing of God establishes a relationship with His elect. Though strong assertions have been made to the contrary, an exegetically sound approach to προέγνω leaves little room for argument. See HERE.
(v40) "For this is the will of My Father, that everyone who beholds the Son and believes in Him will have eternal life, and I Myself will raise him up on the last day."
So then, the argument summates as follows:
Only those whom the Father gives to the Son will come to Him by faith. All who come to Christ by faith will be raised up on the last day. It is the will of God the Father to grant eternal life only to those whom He gives to the Son. Notice the continuous affirmation of certainty that Christ will save all whom the Father has given to Him. Only a monergistic hermeneutic provides a consistent foundation for an assertion of eternal security.
(v41-42) Therefore the Jews were grumbling about Him, because He said, "I am the bread that came down out of heaven." They were saying, "Is not this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How does He now say, 'I have come down out of heaven'?"
Thus far we have seen that the crowd was unbelieving. The unbelieving Jews local to Capurnaum demonstrate the very essence of human depravity. Staring their Messiah in the face, they besmirch Him and His parentage. One might expect Jesus to reaffirm His heavenly origins or flex His supernatural muscles in anger, but His response is far more telling.
(v43-44) Jesus answered and said to 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."
Just as the giving of the Father results in the coming of God's people unto Christ, so the drawing of the Father results in the redemption of all whom He draws. Thus, the Jews were unbelieving because they were not being drawn by the Father.
The synergistic response to this text usually goes something like this: God draws everyone, but only those who freely choose to come by faith are saved.
However, the Lord's words leave no room for such an interpretation. This text teaches the incapacity of the natural man to come to Christ. It also teaches the "him" whom God draws to the Son, is the same "him" who is saved by the Son. Unless one wishes to argue for universalism, a consistent reading of the passage leads to only one inexorable conclusion: Absolute monergistic sovereignty. All who come to Christ by faith, do so because God has drawn them; and all whom God draws will be efficaciously saved.
(v45-47) "It is written in the prophets, 'AND THEY SHALL ALL BE TAUGHT OF GOD.' Everyone who has heard and learned from the Father, comes to Me. Not that anyone has seen the Father, except the One who is from God; He has seen the Father. Truly, truly, I say to you, he who believes has eternal life."
Again, the Lord reiterates the singular truth He has been deliniating since verse 37. While the Jews could hear God the Son, this did not result in their learning from Him. God uniquely teaches all whom He efficaciously calls unto faith, and everyone so taught comes to faith. While the closing sentence might seem to support a free will reading of the text, Christ is merely affirming what He has been saying repeatedly. It is the believing ones who receive eternal life. And they that believe are those who have been given by the Father...drawn by the Father. "Why does anyone ever come to faith in Christ?" The only biblical answer to this question is, Irresistible Grace.
Exposition [Lk. 13:31-35/NASB]
Just at that time some Pharisees approached, saying to Him, "Go away, leave here, for Herod wants to kill You." And He said to them, "Go and tell that fox, 'Behold, I cast out demons and perform cures today and tomorrow, and the third day I reach My goal.'
Nevertheless I must journey on today and tomorrow and the next day; for it cannot be that a prophet would perish outside of Jerusalem.
O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those sent to her! How often I wanted to gather
your children together, just as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you would not have it! Behold, your house is left to you desolate; and I say to you, you will not see Me until the time comes when you say, 'BLESSED IS HE WHO COMES IN THE NAME OF THE LORD!'"
There is nothing especially difficult about this Scripture. It say what it says, and it means what it says. Yet it never ceases to amaze me how often synergists will pull verse 34 out of the bag as an argument against Irresistible Grace.
To whom has Christ been speaking in this passage? The Pharisees. To understand His lament over Jerusalem, one need not acquire a degree in systematic theology to conclude that the Lord is unconcerned with the stones, bricks and mortar. Rather, "Jerusalem" represents a certain group of people. But who? Most exegetes would argue that Jerusalem represents the people to whom Jesus has been talking...and I strongly agree. When the Lord laments over Jerusalem, He is lamenting over the hard heartedness of the Pharisees.
But should we conclude, therefore, that Christ deeply desired to save the Pharisees, yet was rebuffed in His efforts by their human liberty? Not a chance! It was not the Pharisees whom Christ desired to save, but their followers. "How often I wanted to gather
your children (the people) together, just as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and
you (the Pharisees) would not have it!"
So then, did the Pharisees oppose the Lord's ministry? Sure. Did they labor to keep the people from salvation? Sure. Did Jesus fail in His mission to save His Jewish elect? Hardly! Does the "free will" of man have sway over the eternal purposes of God? Not a chance! As we have seen in John 6, all whom the Father gives to the Son will come to faith in the Son, and will be raised up on the last day.
Exposition [2 Ptr. 3:3-9]
It is frequently argued by proponents of free will, that God desires to save everyone exhaustively, but only those who freely choose to believe will thus receive eternal life. A favorite passage of those espousing this view is 2 Ptr. 3:9, which states: "The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance."
However, when examined in context, we quickly come to understand that this application of the verse is erroneous and eisogetical. Let's consider the broader passage:
(v3-9) Know this first of all, that in the last days
mockers will come with their mocking, following after
their own lusts, and saying, "Where is the promise of His coming? For ever since the fathers fell asleep, all continues just as it was from the beginning of creation." For when
they maintain this, it escapes
their notice that by the word of God the heavens existed long ago and the earth was formed out of water and by water, through which the world at that time was destroyed, being flooded with water. But by His word the present heavens and earth are being reserved for fire, kept for the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men. But do not let this one fact escape your notice,
beloved, that with the Lord one day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years like one day. The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is
patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance.
Notice the contrast between two groups --- the mockers, who are signified by words like they, their etc, and the beloved...God's redeemed children. It is not all people whom the Lord desires to save, but only His beloved ones. We can see that God is expressing His patience "toward you", not "them".
Consequently, this text teaches that God is carrying out the full extent of time in order to facilitate the salvation of His elect, all of whom He desires to save, and all of whom will indeed come to faith. Rather than challenging the doctrines of grace, this text actually supports them.
Conclusion:
If one sets aside synergistic traditions and makes one's case exclusively from the text of Scripture, one is forced to acknowledge that salvation is by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone -- and that this saving grace is irresistible to the recipient.
