The profound mystery of human will and divine sovereignty lies at the heart of salvation. While we acknowledge free will exists in everyday choices, when it comes to salvation, our will is hopelessly bound in chains of sin.

Scripture paints a stark picture of humanity's condition. Romans declares "none seek after God" and describes our natural state as loving darkness rather than light. The sobering truth is we aren't neutral toward God—we're actively hostile. The carnal mind, Paul explains, "is enmity against God" and "cannot submit to God's law." This isn't mere stubbornness but a fundamental inability, like a bucket drawing water from a contaminated well, unable to produce anything clean.

When Jesus said, "No man can come to me except the Father draw him," He used a Greek word literally meaning "to drag." This reveals the nature of divine grace—not merely offering salvation but actively overcoming our resistance. This doesn't make us passive participants, however. We "work out our salvation with fear and trembling," yet even this working is "God working in us both to will and to do of His good pleasure."

This teaching liberates us from the burden of self-salvation. If you've experienced transformation, it wasn't your superior wisdom or willpower but God's sovereign grace. Every good desire, every righteous action flows from His Spirit working through you. The glory belongs entirely to Him. Have you tried to earn God's favor through your own efforts, or have you surrendered to His gracious work within you?

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