The reformation slogan "sola gratia", or grace alone, in today's world is under constant attack. What is it about being saved by God's grace alone that is so hard to swallow. The scriptures are clear that our deliverance from hell is due to the goodness of God, despite the lack of good in our fallen nature. Americans, especially, because of our belief in our own good and innate nature to do good, struggle to think of ourselves as totally depraved in our own nature and unable to do good on our own. We carry this democratic ideal into our theology that each individual has the ability to make things better.  To an American grace alone is senseless because the condition of man is not so bad. Without a recognition of the human condition we will find Arminius' opposition to 'grace alone' is much more palatable. It gives a much better view of self.
   As a result of man in Adam we are all born sinful and impure, and thus subjected to the wrath of God (cf Job 14:1-4) from the time we are conceived (cf Ps 51:5). As Isaiah asked, can a leopard change its spots? Obviously not, but the creator can if he so desires. Those of us who may claim to not have sinned deceive ourselves, for Jesus tells us that if our mind even conceives a sinful thought then we have sinned the sin and are therefore guilty. Our human condition is one of guilt. Those deceived else wise, as Paul states in Eph 4:18, are shown to be sinful for it is their lack of understanding of their sin that is darkness itself.
   In John's recording of Jesus' discourse with Nicodemus he is not explaining the new birth as something that one is to do (for we cannot) but therein explaining the changed condition required; like the leopards spots. The new birth does not come from preaching the new birth, but from that of Christ crucified. Flesh gives birth to flesh, spirit to spirit. It blows where it will, and not where we direct it.
   There is not any manner by which even the most optimistic American can avoid Paul's statement that without being born of God we are dead in our transgressions (Eph 1:1-10) Thus is our need for a savior because we are incapable of any action which changes our spots, in fact all of our good works are as filthy rags. Only the creator can make that change. Even our best intentioned act of goodwill will carry an element of selfishness. Does it not feel good to do a good deed for someone? We even talk of our love of God in terms of his blessngs, his joyful chastisements, even his sending his son to die for us. We can find many reasons to love God, but most are related to us. God deserves our love, so to speak; we owe it to him. We, on the other hand, do not deserve his love but rather we deserve his wrath. Grace itself is our receiving his mercy while doing nothing to merit it. Making a decision to let Christ into our hearts cannot, and does not, save us. Receiving it from God as a gift in being chosen by him because of his goodness, not ours; this is His salavtion.
   We Americans, largely, cannot accept someone else being in control, leaving us out of the decision; especially with the possibility of being told no. There is always this underlying feeling that there is something I can do. Even our political system leaves room for the belief that we are in control and are in on the decision. Our culture is driven by personal and individual choices whereby leaving us susceptible to a theology of choice, one where Arminianism can thrive as it does in the US. God having complete and utter sovereignty over our salvation, or not, is indeed problematic in American theology today
   Charles Finney, the father of decisionism in theology and of the altar call that is still prevalent today says this, "Regeneration consists in the sinner changing his ultimate choice...changing from sinfulness to love." So then a leopard can change his spots? Hog-wash !! The church-growth, seeker-friendly movements, along with the easy believism of American theology are but recent installments of this pernicious attack upon the grace of God. By removing such things that can be offensive (such as God's complete sovereignty) the grace of God in its biblical sense can be tossed aside. They will still use the term, but not in its true context.
   Satan, as our accuser, despises the grace of God becuase no matter how well he builds a case against us before God as to our sinful condition, God bestows his grace undeservedly on those who are in Christ Jesus, and is free to withhold it from those who are not. Exactly what that means we will explore at another time. As God said to Moses, " I will be gracious to whom I will show mercy (Ex 33:19) therefore he has mercy on whom he will, and on whom he will he hardens. (Rom 9:18)
   This indeed is the root of the problem of grace in American theology. Satan wages war against it and infiltrates the very church of Christ by puffing up humans as he did in the garden. Let us find hope and joy in that those of us who recognize HIm hear the master's voice. Now let us open the ears of others.