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Salvation: Mechanical or Relational?  /  Predestination and Free Will  /  Discussion Questions
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Question 5
Clement says, “Choice depended on the man… but the gift depended on God… For God does not compel,” and Bercot adds they “certainly didn’t believe in irresistible grace”; how would embracing that view reshape how you pray, evangelize, and think about God’s work in someone’s repentance without making salvation sound like self-salvation?
Another way to ask: If God doesn’t force people and grace can be resisted, how would that change how you pray and share the gospel? How can you hold that view without making salvation sound like we save ourselves?

Direct Answer Embracing Clement’s view would lead you to pray and evangelize expecting God’s grace to be essential and active, while still treating the person’s response as real and non-coerced. It avoids “self-salvation” by insisting the “gift” is from God, yet also rejects the idea that God compels belief.

Support from Transcript:

  • Clement: “Choice depended on the man as being free, but the gift depended on God as the Lord.”
  • Clement: God “gives to those who are willing… earnest… and who ask,” and “God does not compel.”
  • Bercot’s conclusion: “So they certainly didn’t believe in irresistible grace, but they did believe in the essential need for grace.”
  • He cautions: “I would hate for you to come away… thinking… we save ourselves… No… we are saved through grace.”
  • Yet he insists humans can “choose to obey… choose to believe… or… disobey,” while also needing “the power of the Holy Spirit” to live a holy life.
Discussion Follow-ups This raises a balance question: how do you pray in a way that honors God’s power to help and convict, while not treating the person as a puppet with no real choice?

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