Day 172

Of Free Will.

Chapter 9, Paragraph 2.

“Man in his state of innocency, had freedom, and power, to will, and to do that which was good, and well-pleasing to God;…”

Scripture Lookup

Ecclesiastes 7:29

 

Reflection

There was a time when man freely chose to do good, and was capable of doing it. Pleasing God was an ability that Adam had without the intervention of a mediator. Such an ability is foreign to us, and hard to comprehend. How could Adam do good without relying on the work of the Holy Spirit? What does it mean to be upright without redemption?

Thomas Boston, in Human Nature In Its Fourfold State, says thus: “[God] did not first make him, and then make him righteous, but in the very making of him, He made him righteous.” Boston explains that Adam had perfect knowledge of God’s law, and what God required of him; Adam’s will was inclined to be in line with the will of God; and that his affections were pure and holy. No war against sin raged within Adam and Eve in their pre-fallen state.

Everything Adam and Eve did before the Fall was done in keeping with God and His law. They tended the Garden of Eden and ruled over the creatures with incredible wisdom, for it was not tainted with sin. Guilt was unknown; all pleasures of the world were acceptable and delightful. Their character was above reproach. They were the glorious creation of God.

“Had Adam stood, none would have quarrelled with the representation.” -Thomas Boston

Questions to Consider

• What do you think Adam and Eve were like before the Fall?