The Westminster Dictionary of Theological terms defines total inability as the view that because of their sinfulness, humans are not able to perform any action that will lead to their salvation. God must take the initiative to give the gift of faith and repentance. Total inability does not mean that man has zero spiritual inclinations or yearnings or that he cannot understand spiritual and theological concepts. Total inability affects the sinner's ability to understand and appropriate the spiritual reality of the Gospel. I am using the term "appropriate" to describe the salvific work of the Gospel, not just cognition.
Before I dive into some interesting passages in John's gospel, I want to address the misunderstanding by some Synergists as to the human response to the Gospel. The accusation has been made that Monergists do not believe that a sinner can seek God prior to coming to faith in Christ. That accusation is partly true, but it needs clarification. Monergists believe that sinners cannot come to faith in Christ without the Holy Spirit doing an initial work. Faith comes from hearing, and hearing from the word of Christ (Romans 10:17). The ability to hear comes from the work of the Holy Spirit. It is not a natural inherent ability that sinners possess. This is an important distinction to make, as I believe we will see in John's gospel. Mongergists do believe that sinners can and do seek God, but they do so because the Holy Spirit is at work in their lives. This work of the Holy Spirit is effectual; which means that it will always result in the justification by faith of the sinner who is the subject of the Spirit's work. This is different than the sinner who supposedly seeks without believing. The rich young ruler (Luke 18:18-30) was such a person. He sought eternal life but not according to the work of the Spirit. He wanted eternal life as a wage due him for his obedience to the Law. Contrast the rich young ruler's response to Jesus compared to Zaccheus (Luke 19:1-10) who sought Jesus with Spirit-given faith and repentance.
There are two passages in John's gospel that I want to look at. The first is John 3 and the account of Jesus and Nicodemus. In John 3:3 Jesus says to Nicodemus, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God." The actual Greek rendering means to be born from above, but even that was lost on Nicodemus. Nicodemus was listening to Jesus with natural hearing, not spiritual hearing. His response was, "How can a man be born when he is old? He cannot enter a second time into his mother's womb and be born, can he?" In verse 5 Jesus had to tell Nicodemus plainly that He was speaking in spiritual terms, not physical terms, "unless one is born of water and the Spirit he cannot enter into the kingdom of God". Even though Jesus explained this spiritual truth, Nicodemus still did not understand it. He responds with, "How can these things be?" Jesus cut Nicodemus down to size when he said, "Are you the teacher of Israel and do not understand these things?" Nicodemus was a Pharisee, one of the most learned Jews of his time. He was an expert in the Law, but all his knowledge was for naught because it did not proceed from faith. At this point in his life, Nicodemus was a natural or carnal man. He is aptly described in 1 Corinthians 2:14 when it states that the natural man cannot understand the things of the Spirit of God.
In John 8, Jesus was talking with some of the Jews. The Jews insulted Jesus by accusing Him of being born of fornication. They claimed that God was their Father. Jesus responded by saying in John 8:42, "If God were your Father, you would love Me, for I proceeded forth and have come from God, for I have not even come on My own initiative, but He sent Me." Jesus then asks a rhetorical question in verse 43, "Why do you not understand what I am saying? It is because you cannot hear My word." The Jews were not hard of hearing. Their physical ears worked just fine. However, their spiritual ears were dead to the things of God. Jesus goes on to say to them in verse 44, "You are of your father the devil, and you want to do the desires of your father." This is very similar to what Paul would write in Ephesians 2:1-2, "1 And you were dead in your trespasses and sins, 2 in which you formerly walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, of the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience." Paul told the Ephesian believers that before they came to faith in Christ they "walked" according to the course of this world. He did not say that in their spiritual deadness that they did nothing; it was just their spiritual bent was towards the devil and not God. They were in bondage to sin and not alive to righteousness. Further down in John 8:47, Jesus says to the Jews, "He who is of God hears the words of God; for this reason you do not hear them, because you are not of God." Sinners are not of God. Left in their sinful state they cannot hear the words of God. Yes. They may read them or audibly hear them, but they are not met with faith. That type of hearing is only possible through the work of the Holy Spirit, and it always results in a sinner being converted.
Before I dive into some interesting passages in John's gospel, I want to address the misunderstanding by some Synergists as to the human response to the Gospel. The accusation has been made that Monergists do not believe that a sinner can seek God prior to coming to faith in Christ. That accusation is partly true, but it needs clarification. Monergists believe that sinners cannot come to faith in Christ without the Holy Spirit doing an initial work. Faith comes from hearing, and hearing from the word of Christ (Romans 10:17). The ability to hear comes from the work of the Holy Spirit. It is not a natural inherent ability that sinners possess. This is an important distinction to make, as I believe we will see in John's gospel. Mongergists do believe that sinners can and do seek God, but they do so because the Holy Spirit is at work in their lives. This work of the Holy Spirit is effectual; which means that it will always result in the justification by faith of the sinner who is the subject of the Spirit's work. This is different than the sinner who supposedly seeks without believing. The rich young ruler (Luke 18:18-30) was such a person. He sought eternal life but not according to the work of the Spirit. He wanted eternal life as a wage due him for his obedience to the Law. Contrast the rich young ruler's response to Jesus compared to Zaccheus (Luke 19:1-10) who sought Jesus with Spirit-given faith and repentance.
There are two passages in John's gospel that I want to look at. The first is John 3 and the account of Jesus and Nicodemus. In John 3:3 Jesus says to Nicodemus, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God." The actual Greek rendering means to be born from above, but even that was lost on Nicodemus. Nicodemus was listening to Jesus with natural hearing, not spiritual hearing. His response was, "How can a man be born when he is old? He cannot enter a second time into his mother's womb and be born, can he?" In verse 5 Jesus had to tell Nicodemus plainly that He was speaking in spiritual terms, not physical terms, "unless one is born of water and the Spirit he cannot enter into the kingdom of God". Even though Jesus explained this spiritual truth, Nicodemus still did not understand it. He responds with, "How can these things be?" Jesus cut Nicodemus down to size when he said, "Are you the teacher of Israel and do not understand these things?" Nicodemus was a Pharisee, one of the most learned Jews of his time. He was an expert in the Law, but all his knowledge was for naught because it did not proceed from faith. At this point in his life, Nicodemus was a natural or carnal man. He is aptly described in 1 Corinthians 2:14 when it states that the natural man cannot understand the things of the Spirit of God.
In John 8, Jesus was talking with some of the Jews. The Jews insulted Jesus by accusing Him of being born of fornication. They claimed that God was their Father. Jesus responded by saying in John 8:42, "If God were your Father, you would love Me, for I proceeded forth and have come from God, for I have not even come on My own initiative, but He sent Me." Jesus then asks a rhetorical question in verse 43, "Why do you not understand what I am saying? It is because you cannot hear My word." The Jews were not hard of hearing. Their physical ears worked just fine. However, their spiritual ears were dead to the things of God. Jesus goes on to say to them in verse 44, "You are of your father the devil, and you want to do the desires of your father." This is very similar to what Paul would write in Ephesians 2:1-2, "1 And you were dead in your trespasses and sins, 2 in which you formerly walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, of the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience." Paul told the Ephesian believers that before they came to faith in Christ they "walked" according to the course of this world. He did not say that in their spiritual deadness that they did nothing; it was just their spiritual bent was towards the devil and not God. They were in bondage to sin and not alive to righteousness. Further down in John 8:47, Jesus says to the Jews, "He who is of God hears the words of God; for this reason you do not hear them, because you are not of God." Sinners are not of God. Left in their sinful state they cannot hear the words of God. Yes. They may read them or audibly hear them, but they are not met with faith. That type of hearing is only possible through the work of the Holy Spirit, and it always results in a sinner being converted.
