Theology for Everybody: Romansنموونە

I was born in a Catholic hospital and baptized as an infant in a Catholic church. Later, I served as an altar boy and officiated mass with the priest. I became a Christian in college, and my family thought I had joined a cult. My grandmother, who was so Catholic that she became a nun after my grandfather died, asked me, “What about the church that mediates between you and God?” I replied, “I have Jesus. He’s the one Mediator between man and God.” She asked, “Well, what about the priest?” I said, “I have a great High Priest. His name is Jesus.” She asked, “What about confession?” I said, “I confess my sins to Jesus.” Every time my grandmother asked a question, my answer was Jesus. Jesus took care of everything. Martin Luther said this is the issue on which the church stands or falls.

To give you an analogy, I’m going to use two big theological words: synergism and monergism. Synergism is the concept that you and God work together for your salvation. God does His part, and you do your part. You and God partner and work together. On the other hand, monergism is the concept that God alone saves you. He does all the work. Isaiah the prophet asked, “To whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?” (Isaiah 53:1). It’s as if God’s arm reached down to save us.

When our kids were little, the boys would run and jump in anytime we got near a pool. The problem was they didn’t know how to swim. There was one occasion I’ll never forget. One of our sons ran and jumped in, clothes, shoes, and all. And he immediately started going under. According to synergism, I could have reached out my hand, requiring him to reach up and grab it. But I didn’t do that. No, I reached down, grabbed my son, and pulled him out of the water. He didn’t argue with me about overriding his free will because my love for him was more important than his free will. If you know Jesus, that is ultimately your story: you were going under, and God grabbed you. You didn’t find God; God found you. You didn’t grab God; God grabbed you. This sets up the doctrine of predestination or election, which we will address later in Romans.

Today’s Reflection

How did God grab you and save you?