Is Man A Free Moral Agent?
By Rick Gedeon
One of the greatest statements I ever heard about the righteousness of man compared to the righteousness of God was on a cassette tape from a traditional Christian minister at a Promise Keepers convention. He made this statement
“Man’s righteousness is as far away from God’s righteousness as mans evil is from God‘s righteousness.”
That statement just blew me away at a time when I was beginning to seek God again after I left the Worldwide Church of God some years after it became apostate. At that time I was in deep despair at times over some sins that had crept back into my life and was having trouble re-overcoming them. Then I heard that statement and a follow up examination of Romans chapter 5, and there I realized that no matter how good I tried to be along with complete faith in Christ as my redeemer from sin; in reality in this life I would always be a sinner or evil and “fall short of the glory of God” as stated in Romans 3:23. This actually was a great relief to me. It helped me to understand that all men were given over to a carnal selfish nature. So what is the answer to the above question. Is man a free moral agent, who in his life choose to be good or bad, and make the free will decision to accept Christ as Savior and know the truth of God, or are we unable on our own volition able to choose these things?
The answer is that WE ARE NOT FREE MORAL AGENTS, BUT WE AS PAUL SAID, HAVE BEEN “SOLD UNDER SIN” (ROM. 7:14), or given a nature that is through and through sinful and evil when we especially compare it to the righteousness of God. Notice what king David said about the state of man in Romans 3:11:
“THERE IS NONE RIGHTEOUS, NO NOT ONE; THERE IS NONE WHO UNDERSTANDS; THERE IS NONE WHO SEEK AFTER GOD.”
What about this scripture in Jer. 17:9 describing the moral state of mans heart or mind:
“THE HEART IS DECEITFUL ABOVE ALL THINGS, AND DESPERATELY WICKED; WHO CAN KNOW IT?”
And again in Jer. 10:23 the moral state of man is revealed:
“O LORD, I KNOW THE WAY OF MAN IS NOT IN HIMSELF; IT IS NOT IN MAN TO DIRECT HIS OWN STEPS.”
And in the book of Ecclesiastes chapter 9 and verse 3, king Solomon testified about the state of man’s heart or mind:
“TRULY THE HEARTS OF THE SONS OF MEN ARE FULL OF EVIL; MADNESS IS IN THEIR HEARTS WHILE THEY LIVE, AND AFTER THAT THEY GO TO THE DEAD.”
Let's continue to look at other scriptures that describe the moral state of man. Lets read Gen. 8:21 after Noah and his family left the ark and Noah was offering a sacrifice to God:
And the Lord smelled a soothing aroma (from the sacrifice). Then the Lord said in His heart, “I will never again curse the ground for mans sake, ALTHOUGH THE IMAGINATION OF MAN’S HEART IS EVIL FROM HIS YOUTH.”
Now that above statement came from the mouth of God; that our moral state is evil. Although we make many choices in life that are good, God is saying that our overall moral condition is evil. Read what His son Jesus said about this and what He called His disciples in Matt. 7:11 when he gave the sermon on the mount:
“IF THEN YOU (DISCIPLES), BEING EVIL, KNOW HOW TO GIVE GOOD GIFTS TO YOUR CHILDREN, how much more will your Father who is in heaven know how to give good things to those who ask Him.”
And even more condemning were His words to the religious leaders of His day and the Jews who opposed Him; A VERY STRONG ACCUSATION INDEED! Notice John chapter 8:44:
“YOU ARE OF YOUR FATHER THE DEVIL AND THE DESIRES OF YOUR FATHER YOU WANT TO DO. HE WAS A MURDERER FROM THE BEGINING, AND DOES NOT STAND IN THE TRUTH, BECAUSE THERE IS NO TRUTH IN HIM. WHEN HE SPEAKS A LIE, HE SPEAKS FROM HIS OWN RESOURCES, FOR HE IS A LIAR AND THE FATHER OF IT.”
The apostle John testified also of the influence of Satan over our lives in I John 5:19:
“… the whole world lies under the sway of the wicked one.”
And one more scripture that describes the influence of the devil over the behavior of man found in Rev. 12:9:
“So the great dragon was cast out, that serpent of old, called the Devil and Satan, WHO DECEIVES THE WHOLE WORLD;…”
Now what does the bible say about man’s righteousness compared to God’s. Read Isa. 64:6 and part of verse 7:
“BUT WE ARE ALL LIKE AN UNCLEAN THING, AND ALL OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS ARE LIKE FILTHY RAGS;… AND THERE IS NO ONE WHO CALLS ON YOUR NAME, WHO STIRS HIMSELF UP TO TAKE HOLD OF YOU;…”
The Hebrew word here for rags implies treachery or deceit, a strong indictment indeed from the Lord our God. Lets look at one more scripture about our moral state before we change course a bit. Lets read what David said about the state of human goodness in Psalm 39:5 from the KJV:
“Behold thou hast made my days as a handbreadth; and my age is as nothing before thee: “VERILY EVERY MAN AT HIS BEST STATE IS ALTOGETHER VANITY.”
Leviticus The Shadow And Romans Chapters 7 and 8 The
Reality
Have you ever read the book of Leviticus, especially the first several chapters that have to deal with the laws of cleanliness and un-cleanliness, from a woman’s flow of blood, a mans semen on clothing to someone else touching them and therefore becoming unclean? Then there is the law of clean and unclean meats and of course, the weightier sexual sins. If an unclean insect fell into a bowl the bowl had to be destroyed. To me, when I read this or listen to this section of the bible I almost get nauseated at how many times something a man or woman did was considered unclean, like touching a dead animal or human. Remember, if you read this site one of the
main themes is that the Old Covenant and Old Testament were shadows of what was to come in the New Ccovenant and New Testament spiritually through Christ. The Old Covenant is the letter of the reality of the New Covenant. THIS SECTION OF THE BIBLE IS NONE OTHER THAN THE SHADOW OF WHAT PAUL WROTE IN ROMANS CHAPTER 7: THAT A MAN IS CONSTANTLY IN A STATE OF SIN OR IS SIN; OR AS LEVTICUS DESCRIBED: UNCLEAN, and it is the sinful nature in man that causes him to do what he does not want to do; thus verifying that man is not a free moral agent and is constrained from being that free moral agent because of the constant state of sin that he is in. Lets verify this in Rom. 7:14-25:
“For we know that the law IS SPIRITUAL, BUT I AM CARNAL, SOLD UNDER SIN. FOR WHAT I AM DOING I DO NOT UNDERSTAND. FOR WHAT I WILL TO DO, THAT I DO NOT PRACTICE; BUT WHAT I HATE, THAT I DO. If then, I do what I will not to do, I agree with the law that it is good. But now, IT IS NO LONGER I THAT DO IT BUT SIN THAT DWELLS IN ME. For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh) nothing good dwells; for to will is present with me, BUT HOW TO PERFORM WHAT IS GOOD I DO NOT FIND. FOR THE GOOD THAT I WILL TO DO I DO NOT DO; BUT THE EVIL I WILL NOT TO DO, THAT I PRACTICE. NOW IF I DO WHAT I WILL NOT TO DO IT IS NO LONGER I WHO DO IT BUT SIN THAT DWELLS IN ME. I find then a law, THAT EVIL IS PRESENT WITH ME, THE ONE WHO WILLS TO DO GOOD. For I delight in the law of God according to the inward man. BUT I SEE ANOTHER LAW WITHIN MY MEMBERS, WARRING AGAINST THE LAW OF MY MIND, AND BRINGING ME INTO CAPTIVITY TO THE LAW OF SIN WHICH IS IN MY MEMBERS. O retched man that I am! Who will deliver me from the body of this death? I thank God-through Jesus Christ our Lord. So then with the mind I myself serve the law of God, BUT WITH MY FLESH THE LAW OF SIN."
Paul lays it out as plain as day that we are sold or have been given over to a sinful character and are not free moral agents, and even after we have committed ourselves to Christ and have been given the gift of His righteousness as stated in Rom. 5:17, we continue to sin because of the sin that dwells in our flesh.
The Clinching Scripture
The clinching scripture that proves we are not free moral agents can be found in Romans Chapter 8; especially verses 6 and 7:
“For to be carnally minded is death (and the natural man is carnally minded), but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.”
Now let this next scripture (verse 8) sink down in your minds that you are not a free moral agent:
“BECAUSE THE CARNAL MIND IS EMNITY (HOSTILE) AGAINST GOD; FOR IT IS NOT SUBJECT TO THE LAW OF GOD, NOR INDEED CAN BE.”
I hope you understand what you just read. We in our carnal nature given over to us by God is hostile or against the righteousness or nature of God! Therefore, we have no choice in our nature until we are called out of this nature by God. Putting all men under the state of sin was purposely done by our Creator so that in the end no one hopefully would be lost, but that all would through one man be able to claim His righteousness and have eternal or ages abidding life as a son or daughter of God. Lets get down to the brass tax; it is God who calls you out of sin and justifies you through Christ, and not on your own volition. Notice these following scriptures to back this up starting with Luke chapter 10:21-22:
In that hour Jesus began to rejoice in the Spirit and said “I thank You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, THAT YOU HAVE HID THESE THINGS FROM THE WISE AND PRUDENT AND REVEALED THEM TO BABES. Even so Father, for it seemed good in Your sight. “All things have been delivered to Me by my Father, AND NO ONE KNOWS WHO THE SON IS EXCEPT THE FATHER, AND WHO THE FATHER IS EXCEPT THE SON, AND THE ONE TO WHOM THE SON WILLS TO REVEAL HIM.”
And in John 6:44 Jesus testified of this calling:
Jesus therefore answered and said to them (the Jews), “Do not murmur among yourselves. “NO ONE CAN COME TO ME UNLESS THE FATHER WHO HAS SENT ME, DRAW (OR CALL) HIM. And I will raise him up at the last day.”
And again in John 6:65:
And He (Jesus) said, “Therefore I have said to you that no one can come to Me UNLESS IT HAS BEEN GRANTED TO HIM BY MY FATHER.”
It is only through the calling of the Father to Him through Christ and the power of The Spirit of God in us that we can begin to change our evil nature, and one step at a time God will give this opportunity to all men, and we will be delivered from our immoral nature through the free gift of God as Paul testified in Romans 7:24-25:
“O WHETCHED MAN THAT I AM! WHO WILL DELIVER ME FROM THE BODY OF THIS DEATH? I THANK GOD THROUGH JESUS CHRIST OUR LORD!”
By Rick Gedeon
One of the greatest statements I ever heard about the righteousness of man compared to the righteousness of God was on a cassette tape from a traditional Christian minister at a Promise Keepers convention. He made this statement
“Man’s righteousness is as far away from God’s righteousness as mans evil is from God‘s righteousness.”
That statement just blew me away at a time when I was beginning to seek God again after I left the Worldwide Church of God some years after it became apostate. At that time I was in deep despair at times over some sins that had crept back into my life and was having trouble re-overcoming them. Then I heard that statement and a follow up examination of Romans chapter 5, and there I realized that no matter how good I tried to be along with complete faith in Christ as my redeemer from sin; in reality in this life I would always be a sinner or evil and “fall short of the glory of God” as stated in Romans 3:23. This actually was a great relief to me. It helped me to understand that all men were given over to a carnal selfish nature. So what is the answer to the above question. Is man a free moral agent, who in his life choose to be good or bad, and make the free will decision to accept Christ as Savior and know the truth of God, or are we unable on our own volition able to choose these things?
The answer is that WE ARE NOT FREE MORAL AGENTS, BUT WE AS PAUL SAID, HAVE BEEN “SOLD UNDER SIN” (ROM. 7:14), or given a nature that is through and through sinful and evil when we especially compare it to the righteousness of God. Notice what king David said about the state of man in Romans 3:11:
“THERE IS NONE RIGHTEOUS, NO NOT ONE; THERE IS NONE WHO UNDERSTANDS; THERE IS NONE WHO SEEK AFTER GOD.”
What about this scripture in Jer. 17:9 describing the moral state of mans heart or mind:
“THE HEART IS DECEITFUL ABOVE ALL THINGS, AND DESPERATELY WICKED; WHO CAN KNOW IT?”
And again in Jer. 10:23 the moral state of man is revealed:
“O LORD, I KNOW THE WAY OF MAN IS NOT IN HIMSELF; IT IS NOT IN MAN TO DIRECT HIS OWN STEPS.”
And in the book of Ecclesiastes chapter 9 and verse 3, king Solomon testified about the state of man’s heart or mind:
“TRULY THE HEARTS OF THE SONS OF MEN ARE FULL OF EVIL; MADNESS IS IN THEIR HEARTS WHILE THEY LIVE, AND AFTER THAT THEY GO TO THE DEAD.”
Let's continue to look at other scriptures that describe the moral state of man. Lets read Gen. 8:21 after Noah and his family left the ark and Noah was offering a sacrifice to God:
And the Lord smelled a soothing aroma (from the sacrifice). Then the Lord said in His heart, “I will never again curse the ground for mans sake, ALTHOUGH THE IMAGINATION OF MAN’S HEART IS EVIL FROM HIS YOUTH.”
Now that above statement came from the mouth of God; that our moral state is evil. Although we make many choices in life that are good, God is saying that our overall moral condition is evil. Read what His son Jesus said about this and what He called His disciples in Matt. 7:11 when he gave the sermon on the mount:
“IF THEN YOU (DISCIPLES), BEING EVIL, KNOW HOW TO GIVE GOOD GIFTS TO YOUR CHILDREN, how much more will your Father who is in heaven know how to give good things to those who ask Him.”
And even more condemning were His words to the religious leaders of His day and the Jews who opposed Him; A VERY STRONG ACCUSATION INDEED! Notice John chapter 8:44:
“YOU ARE OF YOUR FATHER THE DEVIL AND THE DESIRES OF YOUR FATHER YOU WANT TO DO. HE WAS A MURDERER FROM THE BEGINING, AND DOES NOT STAND IN THE TRUTH, BECAUSE THERE IS NO TRUTH IN HIM. WHEN HE SPEAKS A LIE, HE SPEAKS FROM HIS OWN RESOURCES, FOR HE IS A LIAR AND THE FATHER OF IT.”
The apostle John testified also of the influence of Satan over our lives in I John 5:19:
“… the whole world lies under the sway of the wicked one.”
And one more scripture that describes the influence of the devil over the behavior of man found in Rev. 12:9:
“So the great dragon was cast out, that serpent of old, called the Devil and Satan, WHO DECEIVES THE WHOLE WORLD;…”
Now what does the bible say about man’s righteousness compared to God’s. Read Isa. 64:6 and part of verse 7:
“BUT WE ARE ALL LIKE AN UNCLEAN THING, AND ALL OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS ARE LIKE FILTHY RAGS;… AND THERE IS NO ONE WHO CALLS ON YOUR NAME, WHO STIRS HIMSELF UP TO TAKE HOLD OF YOU;…”
The Hebrew word here for rags implies treachery or deceit, a strong indictment indeed from the Lord our God. Lets look at one more scripture about our moral state before we change course a bit. Lets read what David said about the state of human goodness in Psalm 39:5 from the KJV:
“Behold thou hast made my days as a handbreadth; and my age is as nothing before thee: “VERILY EVERY MAN AT HIS BEST STATE IS ALTOGETHER VANITY.”
Leviticus The Shadow And Romans Chapters 7 and 8 The
Reality
Have you ever read the book of Leviticus, especially the first several chapters that have to deal with the laws of cleanliness and un-cleanliness, from a woman’s flow of blood, a mans semen on clothing to someone else touching them and therefore becoming unclean? Then there is the law of clean and unclean meats and of course, the weightier sexual sins. If an unclean insect fell into a bowl the bowl had to be destroyed. To me, when I read this or listen to this section of the bible I almost get nauseated at how many times something a man or woman did was considered unclean, like touching a dead animal or human. Remember, if you read this site one of the
main themes is that the Old Covenant and Old Testament were shadows of what was to come in the New Ccovenant and New Testament spiritually through Christ. The Old Covenant is the letter of the reality of the New Covenant. THIS SECTION OF THE BIBLE IS NONE OTHER THAN THE SHADOW OF WHAT PAUL WROTE IN ROMANS CHAPTER 7: THAT A MAN IS CONSTANTLY IN A STATE OF SIN OR IS SIN; OR AS LEVTICUS DESCRIBED: UNCLEAN, and it is the sinful nature in man that causes him to do what he does not want to do; thus verifying that man is not a free moral agent and is constrained from being that free moral agent because of the constant state of sin that he is in. Lets verify this in Rom. 7:14-25:
“For we know that the law IS SPIRITUAL, BUT I AM CARNAL, SOLD UNDER SIN. FOR WHAT I AM DOING I DO NOT UNDERSTAND. FOR WHAT I WILL TO DO, THAT I DO NOT PRACTICE; BUT WHAT I HATE, THAT I DO. If then, I do what I will not to do, I agree with the law that it is good. But now, IT IS NO LONGER I THAT DO IT BUT SIN THAT DWELLS IN ME. For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh) nothing good dwells; for to will is present with me, BUT HOW TO PERFORM WHAT IS GOOD I DO NOT FIND. FOR THE GOOD THAT I WILL TO DO I DO NOT DO; BUT THE EVIL I WILL NOT TO DO, THAT I PRACTICE. NOW IF I DO WHAT I WILL NOT TO DO IT IS NO LONGER I WHO DO IT BUT SIN THAT DWELLS IN ME. I find then a law, THAT EVIL IS PRESENT WITH ME, THE ONE WHO WILLS TO DO GOOD. For I delight in the law of God according to the inward man. BUT I SEE ANOTHER LAW WITHIN MY MEMBERS, WARRING AGAINST THE LAW OF MY MIND, AND BRINGING ME INTO CAPTIVITY TO THE LAW OF SIN WHICH IS IN MY MEMBERS. O retched man that I am! Who will deliver me from the body of this death? I thank God-through Jesus Christ our Lord. So then with the mind I myself serve the law of God, BUT WITH MY FLESH THE LAW OF SIN."
Paul lays it out as plain as day that we are sold or have been given over to a sinful character and are not free moral agents, and even after we have committed ourselves to Christ and have been given the gift of His righteousness as stated in Rom. 5:17, we continue to sin because of the sin that dwells in our flesh.
The Clinching Scripture
The clinching scripture that proves we are not free moral agents can be found in Romans Chapter 8; especially verses 6 and 7:
“For to be carnally minded is death (and the natural man is carnally minded), but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.”
Now let this next scripture (verse 8) sink down in your minds that you are not a free moral agent:
“BECAUSE THE CARNAL MIND IS EMNITY (HOSTILE) AGAINST GOD; FOR IT IS NOT SUBJECT TO THE LAW OF GOD, NOR INDEED CAN BE.”
I hope you understand what you just read. We in our carnal nature given over to us by God is hostile or against the righteousness or nature of God! Therefore, we have no choice in our nature until we are called out of this nature by God. Putting all men under the state of sin was purposely done by our Creator so that in the end no one hopefully would be lost, but that all would through one man be able to claim His righteousness and have eternal or ages abidding life as a son or daughter of God. Lets get down to the brass tax; it is God who calls you out of sin and justifies you through Christ, and not on your own volition. Notice these following scriptures to back this up starting with Luke chapter 10:21-22:
In that hour Jesus began to rejoice in the Spirit and said “I thank You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, THAT YOU HAVE HID THESE THINGS FROM THE WISE AND PRUDENT AND REVEALED THEM TO BABES. Even so Father, for it seemed good in Your sight. “All things have been delivered to Me by my Father, AND NO ONE KNOWS WHO THE SON IS EXCEPT THE FATHER, AND WHO THE FATHER IS EXCEPT THE SON, AND THE ONE TO WHOM THE SON WILLS TO REVEAL HIM.”
And in John 6:44 Jesus testified of this calling:
Jesus therefore answered and said to them (the Jews), “Do not murmur among yourselves. “NO ONE CAN COME TO ME UNLESS THE FATHER WHO HAS SENT ME, DRAW (OR CALL) HIM. And I will raise him up at the last day.”
And again in John 6:65:
And He (Jesus) said, “Therefore I have said to you that no one can come to Me UNLESS IT HAS BEEN GRANTED TO HIM BY MY FATHER.”
It is only through the calling of the Father to Him through Christ and the power of The Spirit of God in us that we can begin to change our evil nature, and one step at a time God will give this opportunity to all men, and we will be delivered from our immoral nature through the free gift of God as Paul testified in Romans 7:24-25:
“O WHETCHED MAN THAT I AM! WHO WILL DELIVER ME FROM THE BODY OF THIS DEATH? I THANK GOD THROUGH JESUS CHRIST OUR LORD!”