The Reformation – The Unity of Nature and Grace

Thomas Aquinas initiated the debate that is typically characterized by the concept of "nature and grace." Grace represents the higher level: the Creator God, heaven, heavenly things, the invisible world, the human soul, and unity all belong here. Nature represents the lower level: the created world, the earth and earthly things, the visible world, nature, the human body, and diversity belong here.

The Reformation accepted the biblical teaching of total depravity. God created the whole of man, but man became entirely sinful, including his intellect and will. In contrast to Aquinas, it was claimed that only God is autonomous. No one else can have autonomy in the face of divine authority. There is no place for human autonomy in the domain of salvation.

According to the Roman Catholic view, salvation consists of two works: Christ died for our salvation, but man must earn Christ's merits. This is where the humanistic element was introduced.

Reformers believed that man is incapable of doing anything for his salvation; neither autonomy, humanism, religious, nor moral aspirations can help him. Man is saved by God's grace, through faith. The Reformation followed Christ's teachings, as Christ's revelation of God was inseparably connected with the written Word. Scripture gives the key to two kinds of knowledge: the knowledge of God, on one hand, and the knowledge of man and nature, on the other. The great Reformation confessions emphasize that God revealed His attributes to humanity in Scripture, and this revelation is valid for both God and man. God speaks in the Bible, and that is how we know anything truly about God. Thus, we know the actual truth about God, about man, and in some measure, according to reality, about nature as well. Therefore, while we may not have exhaustive knowledge, we do have true and unified knowledge based on Scripture. We know the origin of man, and we know that man was created in the image of God. Man was created in God's image to have a personal relationship with Him. Man's value comes from the original, pre-fall state. Man, therefore, is a wonderful being. To understand man, we must also consider the fall, a specific point in time and space in history where man fell. The Reformation man knew that, because of this, he was on the path to damnation. He also knew that, although morally guilty before God, he was not considered worthless.

Thus, the message of the Reformation to us is that God spoke to us from both the "higher" and "lower" levels in Scripture. In true revelation, He spoke about Himself—about heavenly things—and in equally true revelation, He spoke about nature—the universe and man. Therefore, the Reformation man had true, unified knowledge. In the matter of nature and grace, they found unity because God revealed both worlds to them in unity. The Reformation did not recognize autonomous realms. In Reformation thinking, man is someone who has rebelled against God, and his moral sin is real. The Reformers understood that Christ died on the cross in their place, fulfilling the penalty for their sins, in order to save man from the consequences of his real sins.

Francis Schaeffer "Szabadulás az értelemtől" Evangéliumi kiadó