Does the Bible teach total depravity?

WHAT DOES THE BIBLE SAY?

The doctrine of total depravity shows how humankind rebelled against God and since then, has been born with sin by nature and by choice (Genesis 3:1-6; Psalm 51:5). It teaches that before salvation, people are unable to do anything that pleases God. The word “total” does not mean people are “as sinfully depraved as possible,” but that they are depraved in their totality. Every part of their being is corrupted by sin, including emotions, intelligence, and will. Total depravity makes people unable and unwilling to be saved.

The Bible says that no one understands, does righteousness, or seeks God on their own (Romans 3:10–12). It explains that despite everyone knowing God exists (Romans 1:19–20), they willfully and sinfully suppress that knowledge (Romans 1:18). It also teaches that, without faith, it’s impossible to please God (Hebrews 11:6). But the problem is that sin prevents such faith (Romans 8:7–8). This is why it refers to unbelievers as spiritually dead (Ephesians 2:1), incapable of understanding spiritual things (1 Corinthians 2:14).

If total depravity is true, then how can anyone be saved? It is by God electing (Ephesians 1:4–5), calling (Romans 8:30), and drawing (John 6:44) those who were previously dead, making them alive (Ephesians 2:4–5). When He does, He gifts them belief (Ephesians 2:8–9), and they respond in faith through which He saves them (Romans 10:9–10).

FROM THE OLD TESTAMENT

• When God created us, we were made “very good” (Genesis 1:31), meaning perfect, but that changed when Adam and Eve rebelled against God (Genesis 3:1–6). God responded to our rebellion by judging us with corruption and death (Genesis 3:19; cf. Romans 5:12).
• The result is that we are conceived already sinful (Psalm 51:5) with our hearts being always inclined towards evil (Genesis 6:5, 8:21). That judgment of corruption is the foundation for the doctrine of total depravity.
• Our corruption is so deep that even we do not know its depths. Jeremiah wrote, “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it?” (Jeremiah 17:9). Indeed, “the hearts of the children of man are full of evil, and madness is in their hearts while they live” (Ecclesiastes 9:3b).
• Because of our corrupted and sinful hearts, we are so foolish that we say, “There is no God” (Psalm 14:1a). We do that every time we sin because we are effectively saying that, despite all the evidence to the contrary, God doesn’t see or know our sin.
• David stated, “The LORD looks down from heaven on the children of man, to see if there are any who understand, who seek after God. They have all turned aside; together they have become corrupt; there is none who does good, not even one” (Psalm 14:2–3). Humanity’s corruption is so thorough that not a single person is inherently righteous.

FROM THE NEW TESTAMENT

• Paul expressed the essence of total depravity after making the argument that Jews and Gentiles alike were sinful: “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).
• "[N]o one does good” and “no one seeks for God” because our sinful nature rises against the knowledge of God and suppresses it so that we can continue to sin. Paul wrote, “the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth” (Romans 1:18).
• Despite seeing God in nature and in conscience (Romans 1:19–20; cf. Romans 2:14–15), people remain unwilling to respond rightly to God on their own. That is the effect of total depravity.
• Sin makes us incapable of pleasing God on our own. Paul wrote, "For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God's law; indeed, it cannot. Those who are in the flesh cannot please God" (Romans 8:7–8). God is pleased only by faith in Christ (Hebrews 11:6), but in our sin, we try to earn His good pleasure by what we do.
• Unbelievers aren’t able to even understand the spiritual things they need to know to escape God’s wrath. Paul noted that “the natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned” (1 Corinthians 2:14). The “natural man” is an unbeliever, someone in whom the Holy Spirit is not dwelling. Elsewhere, Paul refers to that individual as spiritually “dead” (Ephesians 2:1).
• Though we were helplessly and spiritually dead, God mercifully intervened: “But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved” (Ephesians 2:4–5).
• This process began even before creation, when He elected (chose) people to be saved (Ephesians 1:4–5). He has since been calling and drawing His people to Him (Romans 8:30; John 6:44). As part of that process, He gives them the gift of belief (Ephesians 2:8–9), and they respond in faith, through which He saves them (Romans 10:9–10). In short, God overcomes our total depravity by making us a new creation (2 Corinthians 5:17) with a new heart willing to respond to Him (see Ezekiel 36:26).

IMPLICATIONS FOR TODAY

Are you depraved? Many of us wouldn't take on that label because it brings to mind something demonic or particularly evil. Yet it fits all of us. Depravity is any deviation from how God made us. What we consider small things, God sees as entirely wicked.

And our depravity is not just what we do but what we think and feel, too. Everything about us flows out of our sinful hearts (Mark 7:21–23), which are more wicked than we recognize (Jeremiah 17:9), let alone admit to others.

Consider for a moment if God were to play a video at the next Super Bowl that revealed your every sinful thought, inclination, and intention that you managed to hide. You would be horrified by what people would learn about you. But the reality is that everyone else in that stadium would be glad it wasn’t a video of them, because we’re all depraved.

Depravity requires punishment, which is an eternity of God’s wrath (Matthew 25:46). We cannot escape due to our efforts since they are tainted by the same depravity affecting everything else about us (cf. Isaiah 64:6).

This is why God sent His Son, Jesus. Being fully God, Jesus is holy. He then took on human nature and lived a fully human life without ever sinning once (Hebrews 4:15). That means there were not even hidden thoughts, lusts, or depraved emotions in Him. Since sin requires death (Romans 6:23), He did not have to die. But He chose to do so willingly so that the Father could punish Him in the place of sinful human beings (Isaiah 53:5). He loved the world so much that He willingly gave His life so that all who believe in Him will not perish but have eternal life (John 3:16).

You are like the rest of us: totally depraved. Yet, God offers you an escape from His wrath in Jesus. Please, make today your day of salvation by repenting of your sin and trusting in Jesus (Romans 10:9–10).

UNDERSTAND

• Total depravity teaches that sin has corrupted every part of human nature, leaving people unable and unwilling to seek God or please Him on their own.
• Because of humanity's total depravity, salvation cannot begin with human effort but with God’s gracious action to give new life and enable faith.
• The doctrine of total depravity ultimately highlights God’s mercy, showing that salvation is entirely the result of His grace rather than human ability.

REFLECT

• How does understanding the depth of human sinfulness change the way you think about your need for God’s grace?
• How does recognizing your spiritual dependence on God cultivate humility and gratitude in your walk with Him?
• How should the truth that salvation begins with God’s work affect the way you pray for those who do not yet believe?

ENGAGE

• What passages of Scripture most clearly explain humanity’s inability to save itself, and how do they contribute to the doctrine of grace?
• How does the doctrine of total depravity transform the way we think about humanity and our need for God?
• How does recognizing the reality of humanity's depravity impact the way we share the gospel and disciple others?