Audio for the following may be found here. You may also listen to podcast episodes here.
THE REALITY OF TOTAL DEPRAVITY
A common topic of debate is human depravity. Certain beliefs arise surrounding the topic. Human logic does not want to suggest a radically evil human race; yet, Scripture seems to point in such a direction. Why then is total depravity so difficult to admit? Perhaps, we do not want to believe we are as evil as we actually are. To truly grasp the extent of God’s mercy, however, it is imperative that we understand the full extent of our sin. We must realize the reality of total depravity.
Some
Good, Mostly Good, or Completely Evil by Nature?
Of the conflicting options surrounding total depravity, there are three possibilities: humanity possesses some good, humanity is mostly good, or humanity is completely evil by nature and possesses no good whatsoever. The view I personally believe is that humanity is completely wicked with not any good whatsoever. Someone once asked me how a loving God could send a good man from an indigenous area who has never heard the gospel to hell. My response was, “If such a person existed, God would certainly not send him to hell; the problem is that no one is good.” In fact, the question should not be why God would send anyone to hell but why he would allow anyone at all into heaven. Scripture is clear that no one is perfect; to take it further, however, Scripture also suggests the total depravity of every human in history because of the infection of sin from Adam (Rom 5:12). The issue then is not only that humans have sinned (Rom 3:23) but that humans have never done anything but sin, for sin is humanity’s nature and state apart from Christ, i.e. people spend every waking moment in sin when they do not know Christ. Paul submits that people are dead in trespasses apart form Christ (Eph 2:1), i.e. no one is drowning or sinking but completely dead in sin. To understand human nature, therefore, is not to understand humanity being somewhat good apart from Christ but equally depraved and radically sinful prior to knowing him. Contrasting human logic, people should understand that any good in this world comes only from God. Every person is evil by nature and should realize their great need of Christ.
Human
Reason Insinuates at Least Some Good but Is Wrong
Logically, people want to believe that humanity has at least some good. Biblical truth, however, contradicts such a belief by pointing to humanity’s total depravity. If humans were capable of any good, there would not be a need for Christ’s sacrifice on the cross, for people could work up the ability to save themselves. Because of sin, humanity has become utterly worthless. Paul says, “None is righteous, no, not one; no one understands; no one seeks for God. All have turned aside; together they have become worthless; no one does good, not even one” (Rom 3:10-12). People may either trust their mindful logic then or trust the truth of Scripture. When reasoned, it is apparent that humanity is totally evil by nature; yet, the human brain does not want to believe such devastating news. Such news, however, should be devastating for God’s grace to be exceedingly amazing and seemingly scandalous. Often, the idea is that people fall somewhere on a sin scale between 0 and 10 when the reality is that everyone equally is a 0. From the most heinous murderer to the (seemingly) most moral philanthropist, humanity is totally and radically depraved. Without realizing the extent of human depravity, it is virtually impossible to understand and appreciate the depth of God’s grace, which is impossible to realize this side of heaven anyway. To understand the gospel is to understand total depravity, not partial depravity; thus, believing that people possess some good by nature is incorrect.
Can
Someone Be a Christian without Believing in Total Depravity?
Since Scripture promotes the view of total depravity, is it possible to be a Christian without such an understanding? In short, yes, it is possible. Nonetheless, it is an important issue to be explored and understood by all believers. As with any secondary issue, one may believe incorrectly and still be saved; yet, believing incorrectly is still just that: incorrect. To fight the draw of the human brain that insinuates a naturally good state of humankind, Christians should continuously speak the truth of the Bible into their own lives by understanding the drastic extent of the gospel: where sin was all-encompassing, salvation was impossible, and where salvation was impossible, God’s grace was imparted as the only possible saving factor.
The
Difficult to Admit Reality
The
human mind and heart cannot be trusted. While we strongly want to believe that
humanity is capable of good and that humans are at least partially good by
nature, the fact is that Scripture teaches otherwise. Total depravity is not
merely a theological concept made up by old dead men who wanted to argue;
rather, the idea of total depravity is derived form Scripture. While the
goodness of humanity seems logical to us, when truly reasoned with critical
thinking, it is apparent that human nature is always sin, not good. No one
teaches a child to sin; they just do because that is who they are. The only
possible solution for total depravity is the righteousness of Jesus Christ. We
must confess then that we are totally hopeless without Christ and utterly
sinful. It is difficult to admit and yet the undeniable truth that humanity is
radically evil. The hope, however, is that Jesus loves to forgive and loves to
save. What marvelous news that Christ loves us despite our complete rejection
of him so while the news of depravity is bad, the news of Christ’s forgiveness
is exceedingly good.
