Pelagianism: A Common Heresy

Among the varied heretical views of Christ that have existed since His death, perhaps none has been more prevalent--and dangerous--than that of Pelagianism. Pelagianism denies original sin, assumes man’s free will to choose good, and advocates salvation by good works.     

Not much is known about the life of Pelagius. What we mainly know of him is derived from his few writings and those of his followers. However he is also mentioned in writings by Augustine and St. Jerome among others.

            Pelagius taught that since the human will was created by God, humans have the ability to live a sinless life. He believed that man could achieve moral perfection, aside from God’s grace, through his own free will. Pelagius wrote, “God wished to bestow on the rational creature the gift of doing good of his own free will and the capacity to exercise free choice, by implanting in man the possibility of choosing either alternative”. He did assert, however, that it is God’s grace which assists in man’s good works.

Regarding sin, Pelagius did not believe that Adam’s sin brought guilt to all mankind, but that it was Adam’s example of sinfulness that had condemned mankind. Christ’s redeeming work on the cross was therefore merely a metaphor for Christian living, serving as a further example for His people.

The Council of Diospolis, finding Pelagius’ teachings to be contrary to the authors of the biblical texts, condemned Pelagianism at the Council of Carthage in 418 AD.

The denial of original sin in humanity is clearly not biblical. The Psalmist-King David wrote in Psalm 51:5, “Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, and in sin did my mother conceive me”. David believed that sin begins at conception. The Apostle Paul is the most notable New Testament author to argue for original sin. Particularly in his letter to the Romans, Paul lays out the framework for the doctrine. Throughout Romans chapter 3, Paul quotes numerous Old Testament passages to point out the sinfulness of all men, “None is righteous, no, not one; no one understands; no one seeks for God. All have turned aside; together they have become worthless; no one does good, not even one” (Romans 3:10-12). Skipping forward to chapter 5, Paul attributes guilt to Adam, “Therefore, just as sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned” (Romans 5:12). A denial of original sin could have implications in which a person could live their life without sinning, a theory which John says is antithetical to a belief in the Christ of Scripture: “If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us” (I John 1:8-10).

Pelagianism assumes that since man is inherently good, man can choose to do good in regards to salvation. But since the Bible states that all men are sinners, they are incapable of choosing to do good (Romans 3:10-12). Man does, in fact, have a will. But that will has been corrupted by sin. Therefore man can only choose evil. Man will never choose the path of righteousness. This is why Christ died for those who would never choose Him.

Salvation by good works is a further example of how the teachings of Pelagianism is contrary to those of the Bible. Paul wrote many times in his epistles that salvation comes only from faith in the finished work of Christ on the cross (Romans 3:28, 4:5, Galatians 2:16). This is what makes man at peace with God (Romans 5:1). God’s people have always been justified by their faith (Genesis 15:16). The Reformers, combatting the heretical teachings of the Roman Catholic Church, which is essentially an extension of modern Pelagianism, affirmed the justification by faith alone and adopted sola fide as one of the five solas of the Reformation.

            In conclusion, Pelagianism is a doctrine that exalts man over the work of Christ. Many modern churches have elements of Pelagian doctrine in their teachings. Christians must beware of the powerfully negative effect that Pelagianism has on the soul. Pelagianism is popular because it exalts man over the Creator. It comes in many forms and is especially prevalent in Humanist and Roman Catholic theologies. Like Adam, we are seeking any theology that will make us “like God”. We must firmly grasp the reality that man is totally sinful, not just a sick patient in need of treatment. We must realize that we have no power to choose good over evil. We must recognize that salvation can come only through faith alone in the finished work of Christ alone to the Glory of God alone.

Law Abiding Christians? A Look at the Ebionite Heresy

There is very little known about the Ebionites as they did not leave us many writings. What is known about them are the things that others have written or said about them throughout history. It is known that they had a small community in Qumran in the late first century A.D. The Ebionites may have migrated from Jerusalem to Qumran after the destruction of the temple in 70 A.D. The Ebionites suffered persecution by other Jewish groups as well as “Christians” who hi-jacked the name of Christ for their own selfish gains. As a result, the Ebionites lost influence and followers toward the middle of the second-century. However, Epiphanius noted the settlement of Ebionites in Cyprus in 375 A.D.

The highly ascetic Ebionite group received their name, meaning “poor ones” in Greek, from Irenaeus around the year 180. This was derived from the fact that they valued voluntary poverty.

The Ebionites believed that Jesus was the Messiah. They accepted His humanity, but rejected His deity, which is also a rejection of His pre-existence, virgin birth, atonement, and resurrection. They claimed that Jesus was the biological son of Joseph and Mary, and had been chosen by God to be the Messiah. Some Ebionites, however, believed that Jesus became God when the Holy Spirit descended upon Him at baptism, but that divinity left Him at His crucifixion. These are reasons why the early church fathers regarded them as heretics. 

The Ebionites reject every word of the New Testament except for a Hebrew version of Matthew, which of course had omitted the first two chapters. They believed that the Apostle Paul was an apostate to the Jewish faith because he did not mandate circumcision or obedience to the Law (among other things). Epiphanius claimed that the Ebionites alleged that Paul was a Greek who converted to Judaism only to marry a high priest’s daughter, but apostatized when she rejected him.

The Ebionites believed that Jewish laws must be strictly observed and that all people must observe the Law to become righteous. However, as their numbers dwindled, they departed from traditional Jewish practices, and began to engage in excessive ritual bathing, opposing animal sacrifices, and even denying the Law. Methodius, who died in 311 A.D., noted that at that time the Ebionites did not even believe that the Old Testament prophets were inspired.

A rejection of either the deity or humanity of Christ is clearly an errant view of our Savior. The Ebionites refused to believe the testimony of the Apostle John, who writes in chapter one of his gospel that “the Word was God…and the Word became flesh and dwelt among us” (John 1:1-14). Paul tells the Colossians that in Christ “the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily” (Colossians 2:9). He also exhorts Titus to wait “for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ” (Titus 2:13). Clearly, Scripture teaches that the man Jesus Christ was also fully God. 

Like the ancient Ebionites, there are currently certain spheres of evangelicalism that force restrictive, unnecessary, and unbiblical laws on its adherents. Paul tells the Galatians that laws cannot bring salvation. Only faith in Christ alone can save us (Galatians 2:16). The law of God is perfect (Psalm 19:7) and man is imperfect. Therefore, it is impossible for us to keep the law. As a matter of fact, if we keep every aspect of the law, but fail in one point, James writes that “we have become accountable for all of it” (James 2:10). 

The real issue with the Ebionites was that they refused to believe the eyewitness testimony of those who had not only seen Jesus’ ministry, but who worked closely alongside of Him. The Ebionites denied inspired Scripture and the testimony of the Apostles, choosing instead to strive to live a perfect life as imperfect sinners. They traded the clearly revealed God of Scripture for a created god of their own imperfect imaginations. 

Marcionism: The First Major Attack to Biblical Christianity

Marcion was a wealthy second-century Roman who studied Jewish scripture and compared it to the teachings of Christ. He maintained that the teachings of Christ were incompatible with that of the Old Testament. He believed that Jesus is the Messiah and that Paul is Jesus’ chief apostle. However, Marcion denied the humanity of Christ and held that He is not the God of the Old Testament. Marcion claimed that the God of the Old Testament is a demiurge, an evil being, who is separate and lower than the God of the New Testament. Marcion saw God in the New Testament portrayed as loving and forgiving, very unlike the God of the Old Testament, who Marcion viewed as jealous, wrathful, and genocidal. He taught that the demiurge created a world filled with suffering and imperfection. This, Marcion maintained, is not the true God. Furthermore, since the Old Testament God is the God of the Hebrews, Marcion maintained that any association with the Hebrew religion is evil.

            Regarding Christ’s work in salvation, Marcion claimed that Christ was not sent to save the Jews, but to bring salvation from the demiurge and to make known the truth of the good God, who may not have even been known by the demiurge. He claimed that those who were loyal to the demiurge crucified Christ.

            Marcion developed a canon, which included an edited version of Luke, called “Gospel of Christ”. His canon did not include any of the Old Testament, nor did it include certain parts of the New Testament such as the prophecies of Christ, His birth, His baptism, and His death. Marcion wanted to show that Christ was revealed as a man, but was not really a man. Thus, he eliminated parts of Scripture that attest to Christ’s humanity.

            Marcion’s teachings brought division in the early church. For the first time in the post-apostolic period, the church was led to formulate creeds in order to defend itself from these and other heresies. This also led to the adoption of the current canon of the New Testament.

            Marcion was also a legalist who imposed strict laws upon his followers. He believed in a strict moral structure and prohibited sex of any sort, even between married couples.

            Marcion was a heretic who did not believe in the inerrant, authoritative Word of God. He, just like many other heretics before and after him, chose which parts of Scripture to believe and which ones to deny. He claimed that Christ’s teachings contradict the Old Testament, but any knowledgeable reader of Scripture would know what Christ really said about the Old Testament. Jesus quoted Old Testament Scripture numerous times and accused the Jewish religious leaders of abusing the law. He even said that He did not come to destroy, contradict, or even revise the law, but that He came to fulfill the law (Matthew 5:17-18). Jesus spoke of the Old Testament often. He lived His life according to the law.

            The humanity of Christ is also clearly presented in Scripture. Two of the most notable references are John 1, in which Christ is presented as the eternal Word which took on flesh, and Hebrews 4:14-16, which presents Christ as the Great High Priest Who is able to sympathize with His people.

            The claim that the Old Testament God is a demiurge is nothing new. Marcion takes this belief from the Gnostics. Marcion cannot truly comprehend the justice and righteousness of God (Who can?) so he asserts that God is evil because he judges humans for their sins.

The majority of Marcionist teaching is based on human reasoning. Marcion struggled with the answers to difficult and confusing questions, such as how a just God can sentence people to death, or how a good God would allow evil to occur. His questions were unlike questions that are currently being asked in post-modern evangelicalism. They are legitimate questions. But Marcion was not satisfied by the answers he found in Scripture, so he sought to form his own conclusions apart from Scripture and based on conjecture and reasoning. This is the problem that occurs when we stray from Biblical teaching. Scripture teaches that man is totally depraved and unable to find the answers to life’s difficult questions on his own (Jeremiah 17:9). Therefore we cannot find truth outside of Christ and His inspired, infallible, and authoritative Word.