The Apostle Paul once wrote, “All people, whether Jews or Gentiles, are under the power of sin. As the Scriptures say, ‘No one is righteous—not even one. No one is truly wise; no one is seeking God. All have turned away; all have become useless. No one does good, not a single one.’” Later in the same letter he adds, “For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God’s law; indeed, it cannot” (Romans 3:9-12; 8:7).

This then naturally leads to the question, “Does man possess free will?” Paul Washer answers well:

The scriptural answer is that man is free to choose as he pleases, but because he is depraved, it pleases him to choose evil. In other words, fallen man does have free will, but he does not have a good will. His will is in bondage to his own depraved nature, and therefore he will always freely choose in opposition to the person and will of God.

Man is evil by nature and he does works of evil willfully and freely. Fallen man bears bad fruit because he is a “bad tree” (Matthew 7:18). His will is subject, or in bondage, to his corrupt nature. (Taken from The Gospel’s Power and Message, p. 119).

Yes, Man has free will and that is His biggest problem. But praise be to God that He sent Jesus to change the nature of sinners in such a way that they could be rightly called new creations in Christ (2 Corinthians 5:17). The gospel is not only that Christ has done something for us – die for our sin – but that He also has done something in us – made us new.

I used to be prone to wander, but because of Christ I now am prone to worship.