Total Depravity
Sin has affected every part of who we are — our minds, our wills, our emotions, and our desires. Apart from God's grace, humans are spiritually dead and cannot choose to come to God on their own. This doesn't mean people are as bad as they could possibly be; it means every part of us is infected by sin so that we cannot save ourselves.
Core Concepts
Interpretation Guardrails
- •Sin affects every aspect of human nature, including mind, will, affections, and desires.
- •Apart from grace, fallen humans are unable to come to God savingly on their own.
- •Total depravity does not mean every person is as evil as possible in every action.
Misconceptions We Reject
- Total depravity means every person behaves as wickedly as they possibly can at all times.
- Human beings, without grace, are spiritually able to choose God savingly on their own.
- Only certain parts of human nature were damaged by the fall while the will remained morally neutral.
Key Scriptures
What We Reject
(1)Pelagianism (Human Goodness)
The Claim
Humans are born morally neutral and capable of choosing good without divine grace. Sin is merely a bad habit learned from example, not an inherited nature.
Scripture teaches that all humans are born in sin, spiritually dead, and incapable of seeking God on their own. Psalm 51:5 says, 'In sin did my mother conceive me.' Romans 3:10-12 declares none are righteous, none seek God. Jeremiah 17:9 says the heart is 'deceitful above all things and desperately wicked.' Grace is not optional assistance — it is the only means of spiritual life.
Original Language: Romans 3:10-12 uses the absolute negative 'ouk' ('not') three times: 'none righteous', 'none who understands', 'none who seeks God' — the repetition emphasizes total inability. Ephesians 2:1 calls us 'nekrous' ('dead') in trespasses — dead, not sick; not capable of self-resuscitation. Jeremiah 17:9 uses 'nēsh' ('incurable' / 'desperately wicked') — the Hebrew denotes a condition beyond human remedy, requiring divine intervention.