Free Will

Definition and Meaning

Free will refers to the capacity of the will to judge and choose for itself without external coercion. Christian theology uses the term in both a broad and a narrow sense.

• Broad sense: Human beings genuinely make everyday choices and bear responsibility for their actions. Most denominations affirm free will in this sense.
• Narrow sense: The question of whether human beings after the Fall are able to choose the good and accept salvation on their own, apart from God's grace. Doctrinal controversy centers chiefly on this question.

In theodicy (the attempt to explain how God can be good and omnipotent despite the existence of evil and suffering), it is frequently argued that evil originated in creatures' misuse of free will.

Biblical and Historical Background

Passages frequently cited to emphasize human responsibility for choice include Deuteronomy 30:15–20 and Joshua 24:14–25. Passages frequently cited to emphasize God's sovereign choice and human inability include Romans 9:18–23, Ephesians 2:1–3, and John 6:44.

In the early fifth century, Augustine refuted Pelagianism, which held that human beings can do good even without grace. During the Reformation, Erasmus wrote On Free Will (1524), and Martin Luther responded with The Bondage of the Will (1525). In the seventeenth-century Netherlands, Arminianism and Calvinism clashed over this issue, and the Canons of Dort (1618–1619) set forth the Calvinist position. The Westminster Confession of Faith devotes a separate chapter, Chapter 9, to free will. In the eighteenth century, John Wesley emphasized prevenient grace (grace given before a person believes, which restores the ability to respond).

Practice in the Korean Church

• Presbyterian: Many Presbyterian denominations follow the Westminster Confession of Faith. They hold that fallen human beings have lost the ability to turn to God on their own and that the will is renewed through the regenerating work of the Holy Spirit. The more strongly a denomination identifies itself as Reformed, the more emphatically it teaches this point.
• Methodist and Holiness: Following the tradition of Wesleyan theology, these churches hold that the will, restored by prevenient grace, can either respond to or resist grace.
• Full Gospel and Baptist: Full Gospel churches are generally known for emphasizing human decision. Among Baptists, positions vary from church to church between Calvinism and Arminianism.

Regardless of denomination, calls to decision such as "Receive Jesus" and prayers to receive Christ are widely used at evangelistic meetings and revival meetings. The theological discussion is treated in greater detail in the article Predestination and Free Will.