Does Free Will Really Exist?

 For centuries theologians of all persuasions have debated the meaning of the term "free will". The problem with most who debate it, is they argue from a point of misinformation, no matter what view they take.  Just like an alcoholic who may have the desire or "will" to live soberly, he cannot. Though his "will" may yet be intact, it is not free. His will is in bondage to his addiction, and it is the addiction that dictates what he chooses, not his will. The only freedom he has is to admit that he has no freedom. It is at this point that one truly sees the grace of God. Once that grace comes in, the will is free for the first time. Free to choose good over evil, free to live victorious and not defeated. 

   When someone is born again, temptation and wrong desire does not cease. Just as the Jews desired to go back to Egypt, so too do we at times desire to go back to sin. Having a truly free will set free by the grace and power of Christ does not equal total sanctification at any point in this life. What it does mean, is that we can now freely choose between flesh and spirit. Those that are truly born again may at times choose the flesh. The difference though is that now that the will is truly free, we now see evil as ugly as it really is, and we see good as lovely as it really is. The true believer, though able to choose evil, will always hear the voice of the Father calling "Where are you?" If you refuse to answer that question, the voice will become ever more faint until you can simply ignore it. You can also choose to ignore the bodily impulse to breathe, but at some point your body will over ride your decision and you will gasp for air. Just as the Jews "held their breath" by desiring to go back to Egypt, God forced them to breath again and His perseverance in them, caused them to continue on towards the Promised Land. That generation was not able to enter, but their children were able. The ones who held their breath did not become enslaved in Egypt again, they remained "saved", yet the reward and enjoyment of their new found freedom was never experienced by them. 

   Free will does not really exist unless you have truly been born again. The "will" may be intact in one who is dead in sin, but it is not free. The will is either in bondage to sin,  or held in the free bonds of grace. Ken Mann