Delvanis wrote:
but if the sinner is helpless to refuse God's calling to salvation, then the sinner is responding as a mere robot. And not by a free consciuos choice of his will.
the
opposite is what Calvinists believe! The human will is
not free until it is freed, sovereignly, by God. Once his will has been freed from its bondage to sin, then the person is free to choose Christ, and does so.
Arminians hold to two common presuppositions which the Scripture refutes: So-called "Free will" before the New Birth, and repentance before the New Birth.
Jesus said, "Unless one is born from above, he cannot even see the kingdom of God."
Conversion is the
response of a believer to the New Birth.
The New Birth precedes conversion. The will is freed
first, so that the newly-born man is free to choose Christ.
Recommended reading: Martin Luther's brilliant book,
The Bondage of the Will.
One more bit of info that provided a great deal of clarity for me when I was just learning these things after years of believing in mythical "free will" is this:
While Arminians teach that Christ lived and died and rose again to make salvation
possible for "whosoever will," Calvinists teach that Christ
actually accomplished the salvation of all the elect.
I hope this is helpful...
[color:"0000FF"]Robin[/color]
