@TheProtestantP @MarkMacdonald75 The correct statement should be : "Natural man could repent in response to the gospel if he were willing, but he is not able to be willing (because of moral inability)."

@TheProtestantP @MarkMacdonald75 Yeah and I think I know why..

@TheProtestantP @MarkMacdonald75 The problem is that you need reprobates to have the ability to repent in their natural state in order to avoid two contradictory wills in God. It's funny. You are a calvinist for the elect and a flowerite when it comes to the reprobate..

@MarkMacdonald75 @TheProtestantP I agree. One can call it moral inability/Spiritual inability or anything else.. I wprsonally think both terms are kinda misleading. However, the Bottomline is that it's a lacking which only God can fill in order to enable man to repent.

This also doesn't work. Human beings have the faculty to understand the gospel in a literal sense. The ability to understand is not the ability to repent. Repentance requires the conviction of the Holy Spirit. This is a necessity for repentance, not an option.

Baxter is criticising the idea that an unbeliever is like a dead person. He points out that the unbelievers us better than the dead person because he has natural faculties. It's a valid point in that context. However, you are claiming that a human being is able to repent using his natural faculties. That's nonsense and Baxter is certainly not claiming anything of the sort in the part quoted by you.

If you need all, then man doesn't have the natural ability to repent. I.e God did not give anybody the ability tonrepent without God working in him/her. I am making a simple logical and factual statement. I dont see what the problem is. You on the other hand seem to be saying: Human beings have the natural ability to repent. But, they don't have the actual ability to repent without God's help. Do you see the problem? The first statement is made meaningless by the second assertion.

@CalebDixonSmith Lets aplly thia tot he example of Davids adultery. So God willed David to commit adultery.. and then willed Nathan to confront David and finally willed David to repent.. Is that what you want to say?

@VGuy1689 @ReformedCaio do you want to handle this or should I?

@TheProtestantP @MarkMacdonald75 Hope this clarifies things:

I think you are making a nonsensical claim. Here is a question. What is necessary for repentance among the below you can choose more than one: 1. Intellect 2. The ability to reason. 3. The conviction that God exists. 4. The conviction that Jesus is God. 5. The conviction that Jesus is the Truth and died and rose again for me. 6.conviction of my own sinfulness. Can a person with just 1 and 2 repent?

@TheProtestantP @MarkMacdonald75 It's almost like you are a Calvinist vis a vis the elect and a strange kind of Pelagian vis a vis the non-elect.

@TheProtestantP @MarkMacdonald75 Look, why don't you do the following: List out a human beings natural abilities and show me how it's sufficient for a person to repent.

They also lack the knowledge and they won't get it without the Spirit. They lack the conviction of truth and they won't get it without the Spirit. Human beings have the natural faculty to understand the gospel. Being convinced of the truth of the gospel is a supernatural work of the Spirit. Can anyone turn to God without this conviction?

@TheProtestantP They are unable because they are unable. What point is the will if a human being is absolutely ignorant of God's nature, existence etc. Our conviction of these things are from the work of the Spirit. We exist in utter absolute darkness apart from the grace of God.

@TheProtestantP @MarkMacdonald75 The issue is with the word able. Apart from the Spirit of God ,man wouldn't even know God existed. So how is he able to turn to christ?

@Guitardo7 Hey, I am just pointing out a common Calvinistic interpretation of scripture.. 😀