On the bondage of the will
David Engelsma argues that the doctrine of the bondage of the will—the teaching that the unregenerate human will is enslaved to sin and unable to choose God or salvation—is fundamental to the Reformation's recovery of the gospel of grace. The article contends that denial of this doctrine in modern churches represents a betrayal of the Reformation itself and amounts to a loss of the true gospel, since it affirms that salvation depends entirely on God's sovereign work rather than human choice or decision.
In the Reformation's recovery of the gospel of grace, the truth of the bondage of the will was fundamental. "Fundamental" means that without the confession of this bondage, the gospel of grace could not be proclaimed. "Fundamental" means also that the Reformation proclaimed the gospel only by a confession of the bondage of the will. Without the doctrine of the bondage of the will, there had been no Reformation of the church. Accordingly, loss or denial of the bondage of the will by the...
Full article available on sb.rfpa.org