Grace will always prevail.
A brief look at Augustine versus Pelagius.
In what is likely the quintessential theological “unstoppable force meets an immovable object,” the contentious doctrinal sparring between Augustine of Hippo and Pelagius remains one of the most pivotal junctures in the history of the church. As the fifth century dawned, so, too, did a conflict between two theologians emerge that still influences students of theology today. Whereas Pelagius saw the grace of God as the divine incentive for the believer to choose what is good and virtuous, Augustine saw grace as the indispensable remedy for human beings whose will was bound by sin and death. In the Augustinian view, therefore, God’s unmerited favor “was not merely an aid to choosing what was good,” notes Coleman M. Ford, “but essential for being brought to life” (104).
For Augustine, no amount of divine correctives, however gracious they may be, could ever solve the problem of mankind’s seditious heart. Therefore, the Pelagian construction of faith was a nonstarter since it not only failed to come to terms with the universality of sin but also spoiled the biblical priority given to the Trinity’s saving initiative. The death of Christ on the cross was infinitely more than a moral panacea or an effigy of religious virtue. Rather, it was the sacrificial ministry by which the world was reconciled to God (2 Cor. 5:19). Accordingly, Ford continues, “Augustine implored the Pelagians to see that Christ came as a physician, as savior, and as the redeemer of mankind” (104). The Son of God is not merely some Pelagian paragon of pious ideals, he is the expiatory substitute for the sins of humanity.
The theological strain manifest in the contention between Augustine and Pelagius stretches as far back as Paul’s letter to the Galatian churches and reaches through the Reformation movement of the 16th century to influence the church of today. As Christians still grapple with their religious responsibility in relation to grace, students of theology are urged to distill the truth of Scripture for the glory of God and the sake of his church. No amount of redefinition can coalesce the Pelagian view of salvation with the biblical testimony of redemption, which unfurls how the Son of God “who gave himself as a ransom for all” is the sinner’s only recourse for justification (1 Tim. 2:6; Gal. 2:16). “For Augustine,” Ford concludes, “salvation was found by faith in the person and work of Jesus, not in following the law” (105). Consequently, even though Augustinianism and Pelagiansim are destined to remain embroiled as long as the church endures, the divine announcement gospel will always prevail.
Grace and peace.
Works cited:
Coleman M. Ford, “Salvation,” Historical Theology for the Church, edited by Jason G. Duesing and Nathan A. Finn (Nashville, TN: B&H Academic, 2021).