Four Views on Human Depravity

Pelagianism, condemned by the Council of Carthage in 418, wrongly asserts that only Adam’s bad example, and not his sin, was bequeathed to the rest of the human race. Every human since Adam is born in a state of innocence and is only condemned by his own personal sins. 

Arminianism holds to the view that man has a corrupted nature as a result of Adam’s sin, but man is not judicially guilty because of Adam’s sin. Humans are born with a propensity to sin and will die eternally if they do not cooperate with the grace of God to overcome their sinfulness. 

Strong Calvinism views man as totally depraved and unable to respond to God’s grace in any way. Man is dead and can only be made alive as a result of the irresistible grace of God effectively forcing them against or in spite of their will to become regenerate. This view implicitly embraces the contradiction of forced love as well as a denial of Divine essentialism and simplicity. 

Moderate Calvinism affirms the truth that each man is depraved and judicially guilty as a result of Adam’s sin. Yet, unlike Strong Calvinists, Moderate Calvinists affirm that while the image of God is effaced, it is not erased. Thus, man is capable and responsible to receive the free offer of salvation. God, as essentially loving, does not force salvation on the sinner, but rather persuades the sinner to exercise his free will to accept the offer of eternal life in Christ. Moderate Calvinism takes into account all the relevant biblical data, including the truth of man’s personal and imputed guilt before God (Rom. 3:23, 5:12) as well as his responsibility to respond in faith to the free gift of salvation (Acts. 16:31). Further,  Moderate Calvinism is consistent with a classical view of the existence and nature of God, making it the preferable view both logically and biblically.