A Word from Bob 

For an updated, expanded version of this post, with over 32,500 words of quotes from Reformed theologians on common grace, see:

Common Grace and Biblical Counseling: Wisdom from Reformed Theologians. 

For all the posts in this series on common grace, see:

1. What Is Common Grace?
2. 7 Reformed Theologians on “Common Grace.”
3. John Calvin on Common Grace.
4. John Calvin: “Integrationist?”
5. Herman Bavinck on “Common Grace,” Part 1.
6. Herman Bavinck on “Common Grace,” Part 2.
7. Abraham Kuyper on Common Grace.
8. Every Square Inch of Human Existence: Kuyper on God’s All-Encompassing Common Grace.
9. Van Til, Kuyper, Bavinck, and Biblical Counselors: An Assessment.
10. Cornelius Van Til on Common Grace: In His Own Words.
11. Cornelius Van Til: “Zombie-Infected”?
12. David Powlison on Common Grace, Biblical Counseling and Secular Psychology
13. John Frame on Common Grace, Biblical Counseling, and Christian Integrative Counseling.
14. Common Grace and Biblical Counseling: Wisdom from Reformed Theologians.

What Is Common Grace?

For a post that more fully defines and describes common grace, see: What Is Common Grace?

In Reformed Christian theology, unregenerate persons are totally depraved and all of their thinking is seen as under the noetic (mind) impact of sin and fallenness.

Yet, also in Reformed thinking, the unregenerate/unsaved person can make valid contributions to society, culture, the arts, research, science, and more.

How can these two truths be held together at one time?

The Reformed doctrine of common grace explains how we can hold to both of these truths. It also explains how to engage with and evaluate common grace resources using the lens/spectacles of God’s all-sufficient Word.

Today’s post begins a series of post on a Reformed theology of common grace, focusing on summary statements from Reformed theologians.

#1: John Calvin 

For expanded information on John Calvin and common grace, see:

• John Calvin on Common Grace.
• John Calvin: “Integrationist?”

The reformer, John Calvin, insisted that it is the Spirit of God who establishes all human competence in arts and sciences “for the common good of mankind” and that common grace is a tool given by God that should not be neglected. In the Institutes of the Christian Religion, Calvin taught that the Bible draws a distinction between God’s special or saving grace and His common or non-saving grace. Calvin described the capacity for goodness in the non-Christian as a gift from God. He said that an unbelieving mind:

“Though fallen and perverted from its wholeness, is nevertheless clothed and ornamented with God’s excellent gifts” (Calvin, Institutes of the Christian Religion, 2.2.15).

Regarding “understanding,” Calvin wrote:

“When we so condemn human understanding for its perpetual blindness as to leave it no perception of any object whatever, we not only go against God’s Word, but also run counter to the experience of common sense” (Calvin, Institutes of the Christian Religion, II.ii.12).

While a weakened human understanding stumbles around, according to Calvin:

“Its efforts do not always become so worthless as to have no effect, especially when it turns its attention to things below” (Calvin, Institutes of the Christian Religion, II.ii.13).

Here, Calvin hints at the distinction that clarifies much of his thinking on this subject. He then explained himself more fully:

“To perceive more clearly how far the mind can proceed in any matter according to the degree of its ability, we must here set forth a distinction. This, then, is the distinction: that there is one kind of understanding of earthly things; another of heavenly” (Calvin, Institutes of the Christian Religion, II.ii.13). (Note: Among “earthly things” Calvin includes government, household management, mechanical skills, and the liberal arts and sciences. Among the “heavenly things” are the pure knowledge of God, the nature of true righteousness, and the mysteries of the kingdom (Calvin, Institutes of the Christian Religion, II.ii.13).

According to Calvin, despite the Fall, unbelievers can come to a knowledge of earthly things, and he provides numerous examples. Regarding knowledge of the sciences, he wrote:

“Those men whom Scripture (1 Corinthians 2:14) calls ‘natural men’ were, indeed, sharp and penetrating in their investigation of inferior things” (Calvin, Institutes of the Christian Religion, II.ii.15).

In the next section, he continued along the same lines, even more forcefully admonishing Christians not to neglect the scientific studies of the ungodly:

“But if the Lord has willed that we be helped in physics, dialectic, mathematics, and other like disciplines, by the work and ministry of the ungodly, let us use this assistance. For if we neglect God’s gift freely offered in these arts, we ought to suffer just punishment for our sloths” (Calvin, Institutes of the Christian Religion, II.ii.16).

Similarly, Calvin made a startling case, in his Institutes (Beveridge ed.), 2.2.15–16, for Christians availing themselves of “the work and ministry of the ungodly”:

“Therefore, in reading profane authors, the admirable light of truth displayed in them should remind us that the human mind, however much fallen and perverted from its original integrity, is still adorned and invested with admirable gifts from its Creator. If we reflect that the Spirit of God is the only fountain of truth, we will be careful, as we would avoid offering insult to him, not to reject or condemn truth wherever it appears…. If the Lord has been pleased to assist us by the work and ministry of the ungodly in physics, dialectics, mathematics, and other similar sciences, let us avail ourselves of it.”

#2: Abraham Kuyper

For additional quotes from Kuyper, see:

• Abraham Kuyper on Common Grace. 
• Every Square Inch of Human Existence: Kuyper on God’s All-Encompassing Common Grace.

Abraham Kuyper defined common grace as:

“That act of God by which negatively He curbs the operations of Satan, death, and sin, and by which positively He creates an intermediate state for this cosmos, as well as for our human race, which is and continues to be deeply and radically sinful, but in which sin cannot work out its end” (see Principles of Sacred Theology, 279).

Kuyper added:

“God is glorified in the total development toward which human life and power over nature gradually march on under the guardianship of ‘common grace.’ It is His created order, His work, that unfold here. It was He who seeded the field of humanity with all these powers. Without a ‘Common Grace’ the seed which lay hidden in that field would never have come up and blossomed. Thanks to ‘Common Grace,’ it germinated, burgeoned, shot up high and will one day be in full flower, to reward not man but the heavenly Farmer. . . . A finished world will glorify God as builder and supreme Craftsman. What paradise was in bud will appear in full bloom.

In Wisdom and Wonder, Kuyper further develops the doctrine of common grace.

“Common grace is God’s restraint of the full effect of sin after the Fall, preservation and maintenance of the created order, and distribution of talents to human beings. As a result of this merciful activity of God through the Holy Spirit’s work in creation, it remains possible for humans to obey God’s first commandment for stewardly dominion over the creation (see Gen. 1:28)” (26).

#3: John Murray

First, Murray introduces the tension that exists between the depravity of sinners and the realities we witness in the world and in the lives of non-Christians. Acknowledging this tension, Murray asks a series of very insistent questions:

“How is it that men who still lie under the wrath and curse of God and are heirs of hell enjoy so many good gifts at the hand of God? How is it that men who are not savingly renewed by the Spirit of God nevertheless exhibit so many qualities, gifts and accomplishments that promote the preservation, temporal happiness, cultural progress, social and economic improvement of themselves and of others? How is it that races and peoples that have been apparently untouched by the redemptive and regenerative influences of the gospel contribute so much to what we call human civilization? To put the question most comprehensively: how is it that this sin-cursed world enjoys so much favour and kindness at the hand of its holy and ever-blessed Creator?” (“Common Grace,” in the Collected Writings of John Murray, II:93).

Murray answers his own questions by explaining that in goodness and as an expression of his kindness toward the material creation, God holds in check the destructive tendencies that are part of the curse of sin upon nature—fallen human nature as well as fallen creation.

“Sin introduces disintegration and disorganization in every realm. While it is true that only in the sphere of rationality does sin have meaning – it originates in mind, it develops in mind, it resides in mind – yet sin works out disastrous effects outside the sphere of the rational and moral as well as within it. God places restraint upon these effects, he prevents the full development of this disintegration. He brings to bear upon this world in all its spheres correcting and preserving influences so that the ravages of sin might not be allowed to work out the full measure of their destructive power” (“Common Grace,” II:101).

This work of God is “common grace,” which Murray defines as:

“Every favour of whatever kind or degree, falling short of salvation, which this undeserving and sin-cursed world enjoys at the hand of God” (“Common Grace,” in the Collected Writings of John Murray, II:96).

Murray then develops common grace further, noting that through it, God endows men and women with gifts, talents, and opportunities they don’t deserve. God grants them:

“Gifts, talents, and aptitudes; he stimulates them with interest and purpose to the practice of virtues, the pursuance of worthy tasks, and the cultivation of arts and sciences that occupy the time, activity and energy of men and that make for the benefit and civilization of the human race. He ordains institutions for the protection and promotion of right, the preservation of liberty, the advance of knowledge and the improvement of physical and moral conditions. We may regard these interests, pursuits and institutions as exercising both an expulsive and impulsive influence. Occupying the energy, activity and time of men they prevent the indulgence of less noble and ignoble pursuits and they exercise an ameliorating, moralizing, stabilizing and civilizing influence upon the social organism” (“Common Grace,” in the Collected Writings of John Murray, II:102–03).

Importantly, common grace provides the sphere for special grace. Murray explains:

“Without common grace special grace would not be possible because special grace would have no material out of which to erect its structure. It is common grace that provides not only the sphere in which, but also the material out of which, the building fitly framed together may grow up into a holy temple in the Lord. It is the human race preserved by God, endowed with various gifts by God, in a world upheld and enriched by God, subsisting through the means of various pursuits and fields of labour, that provides the subjects for redemptive and regenerative grace” (Murray, “Common Grace,” 113).

 #4: John Frame

John Frame defines common grace succinctly:

“Common grace is God’s favor and gifts given to those who will not be finally saved” (Systematic Theology, 68, n 16).

He then offers six categories related to the biblical doctrine of common grace:

• God restrains sin (Gen 4:15; 11:6; 20:6; 2 Kings 27:28; 2 Thess 2:7).
• God restrains his wrath (Matt 19:8; Acts 17:30; Rom 3:25).
• God gives temporal blessings to all (Matt 5:45; Ps 65:5-13; 104; 136:25).
• Unregenerate people do good (2 Kings 10:29-31; Luke 6:33).
• Unregenerate people know truth (Rom 1:20; Matt 23:3-4).
• Unregenerate people experience the blessings of the Holy Spirit (Num 22:1-24:25; 1 Sam 10:9-11; Matt 10:5-8) (Systematic Theology, 247-248).

Frame relates common grace to the concept of “civic righteousness”:

“Some people contribute much to the well-being of society—by helping the poor, by becoming great artists, musicians, authors, and public servants, and in other ways—without a heart to serve God. This is often called civic righteousness in the theological literature” Systematic Theology, 247-248).

In his book The Doctrine of the Christian Life, Frame writes that:

“…unbelievers are able to do things that look good to us. They don’t look good to God, for God knows the heart. But they look good to us, and they often bring benefits to society. So non-Christians often improve society through their skills and ideas. They make scientific discoveries, produce labor-saving inventions, develop businesses that supply jobs, produce works of art and entertainment.

He nuances his understanding with these words:

“We should acknowledge from the outset that the adjective “common” does not appear in the Bible as a modifier of the noun ‘grace.’ But we are justified in making use of it in view of how God’s dealings with non-Christian people is portrayed for us in Scripture. Our task will be to determine in what sense, if any at all, the grace of God is given to or is operative in the lives of those who persist throughout life in unbelief and rebellion against God. (For a discussion of common ‘goodness’ or ‘love’ vs. common ‘grace,’ see John Frame, The Doctrine of God, 429–30.)

On a Twitter/X Thread on October 14, 2024 (@DrJohnFrame https://x.com/DrJohnFrame/status/1845936741779152971) Frame wrote:

• Couple aspects of common grace. Unregenerate people do good: In one sense, no one can do good apart from the saving grace of God. We have seen that man is depraved (Gen. 6:5; 8:21; Rom. 3:9–18). “Those who are in the flesh [instead of God’s Spirit] cannot please God” (Rom.8:8).
• But Scripture does attribute good, in lesser senses, to the unregenerate, such as King Jehu (2 Kings 10:29–31). Jesus said that even the wicked do good things to those who do good to them (Luke 6:33).
• Unregenerate people know truth: In Scripture, knowledge is ethical, something that we engage in either obediently or disobediently (see chapters 29–32). So although all people know God (Rom. 1:21), they suppress that knowledge. Cf. 1 Cor. 1:18–2:15.
• But Jesus says the Pharisees, for all their disobedience, are able in some measure to teach correctly (Matt. 23:2–3).

 #5: Charles Hodge

Charles Hodge, 19^th century Reformed theologian, introduces common grace, with an emphasis upon the work of the Holy Spirit:

“The Bible therefore teaches that the Holy Spirit as the Spirit of truth, of holiness, and of life in all its forms, is present with every human mind, enforcing truth, restraining from evil, exciting to good, and imparting wisdom or strength, when, where, and in what measure seemeth to Him good. In this sphere also He divides ‘to every man severally as He will.’ (1 Cor. xii. 11.) This is what in theology is called common grace” (Systematic Theology, II:667).

Hodge further develops his view of common grace and the work of the Spirit:

“All Christians believe that as God is everywhere present in the material world, guiding the operation of second causes so that they secure the results which He designs; so his Spirit is everywhere present with the minds of men, exciting to good and restraining from evil, effectually controlling human character and conduct, consistently with the laws of rational beings” (Systematic Theology, 1:69).

What are the effects of common grace?

“There is a sense in which, as all evangelical Christians believe, the Spirit is given to every man. He is present with every human mind exciting to good and restraining from evil. To this the order, and what there is of morality in the world, are due. Without this ‘common grace,’ or general influence of the Spirit, there would be no difference between our world and hell; for hell is a place or state in which men are finally given up of God. In like manner, there is a general providential efficiency of God by which He cooperates with second causes, in the productions of the wonderful phenomena of the external world. Without that cooperation—the continued guidance of mind—the cosmos would become chaos” (Systematic Theology, 1:101).

#6: Tim Keller

The Apostle James wrote, “Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows” (James 1:17). Referring to this passage, Tim Keller writes in his book The Reason for God:

“This means that no matter who performs it, every act of goodness, wisdom, justice, and beauty is empowered by God. God gives out good gifts of wisdom, talent, beauty, and skill “graciously”— that is, in a completely unmerited way. He casts them across all humanity, regardless of religious conviction, race, gender, or any other attribute to enrich, brighten, and preserve the world” (Keller, The Reason for God, 53).

In 2003, Keller and Redeemer Presbyterian Church published a four-page document entitled, What Is Common Grace? In it, Keller introduces common grace with these words:

“The doctrine of common grace helps us to acknowledge God’s goodness in all of creation and enables us to pursue mission with love in a fallen world.”

“The Bible consistently teaches what theologians have come to call ‘common grace,’ a non-saving grace that is at work in the broader reaches of human cultural interaction. This gift of God’s grace to humanity in general demonstrates a desire on God’s part to bestow certain blessings on all human beings, believer and non-believer alike. Understanding common grace provides the basis for Christians to cooperate with and learn from nonChristians.”

In this document, Keller emphasizes the Old and New Testament basis for the doctrine of common grace, including these words:

“God also shows common grace by revealing knowledge of himself through human culture, for human culture is simply a wise recognition and cultivation of nature. Isaiah 28:23–29 states, ‘When a farmer plows for planting . . . when he has leveled the surface . . . does he not plant wheat in its place, barley in its plot, and spelt in its field? His God instructs him and teaches him the right way . . . Grain must be ground to make bread . . . all this also comes from the Lord Almighty, wonderful in counsel and magnificent in wisdom.’ This is remarkable. Isaiah tells us that anyone who becomes a skillful farmer or excels in agricultural science is being taught by God. One commentator writes about this text: ‘What appears as a discovery (the proper season and conditions for sowing, farm management, rotation of crops, etc.) is actually the Creator opening his book of creation and revealing his truth’” (quoting here: J. Alec Motyer, The Prophecy of Isaiah: An Introduction and Commentary, 235).

Keller then elaborates:

“It is important to note that all human culture ultimately follows the same pattern as farming. Every advancement in human learning, every work of art, and every scientific discovery is simply God ‘opening his book of creation and revealing his truth’ to us. Of course, the vast majority of farmers in the history of the world did not know that God was doing this, but Isaiah says that God was at work. This is general revelation, or as theologians call it ‘the doctrine of common grace.’ All artistic expressions, skillful farming, scientific discoveries, medical and technological advances are expressions of God’s grace. An example from Scripture is found in Exodus 31, where we read how Bezalel was ‘filled with the Spirit of God, with skill, ability, and knowledge in all kinds of crafts to make artistic designs.’ Here we see that artistic skill is something that comes from God.”

“In Isaiah 45:1 we read of Cyrus, a pagan king that God anointed with his Spirit and chose for world leadership. In Genesis 20:6ff we read how God prevents another pagan king from falling into sin. This is an indication of how God’s Spirit does not only function as a non-saving ennobling force in the world, but also as a non-saving restraining force in the world. This is not the Spirit working as a converting or sanctifying agent but rather working to give wisdom, courage, creativity and insight—another facet of common grace.”

#7: R. C. Sproul

After stating that the church’s understanding of special revelation had been corrected by students of natural revelation, R. C. Sproul illustrated his point with a reference to the introduction of new astronomical ideas in the sixteenth century.

“Both Calvin and Luther rejected Copernicus as a heretic in the 16th century. I don’t know anybody in orthodox Christianity today who’s pleading for geocentricity. Do you? Do you know anybody? In that case the church has said, ‘Look, we misinterpreted the teaching of the Bible with respect to the solar system, and thank you scientists for correcting our misunderstanding.’ And so I think that we can learn from nonbelieving scientists who are studying natural revelation. They may get a better sense of the truth from their study of natural revelation than I get from ignoring natural revelation. So I have a high view of natural revelation is what I’m saying” (Luther, Calvin, and Copernicus: A Reformed Approach to Science and Scripture). (Note: This quote is technically less specifically related to “common grace” and more specifically related to “natural revelation”—which is able to be studied because of common grace.)

R. C. Sproul and Ligonier Ministries have addressed the doctrine of common grace in many places, including:

• A Loving Provision.
• Common Grace (Article).
• Common Grace (Audio).

In A Loving Provision, Sproul distinguishes common grace from special grace.

“Common grace is distinguished not so much from what we might call uncommon grace, but rather from what we call ‘special grace.’ Common grace refers to several concepts or experiences that we observe as Christians. On the one hand, we realize that in God’s divine providence He pours out benefits that are enjoyed not simply by believers, but by believers and non-believers alike.”

In the Common Grace article, Sproul defines common grace as:

“The doctrine of common grace encompasses the biblical teaching about the universal and undeserved goodness of God toward sinners. By common grace, God restrains sin, evil, misery, and wrath in this fallen world, while conferring general, nonredemptive blessings on all mankind. As distinguished from special (saving) grace, common grace is a necessary aspect of the continuance of life in this fallen world. It restrains evil and confers goodness on mankind as a whole, reflecting God’s attributes of goodness, mercy, and justice. God confers common grace on mankind to encourage sinners to repent and trust in Christ. On judgment day, the common grace experienced by the unrepentant and their failure to thank God for it will factor into their punishment.”

Sproul goes on to explain:

“The Reformed doctrine of common grace is implicitly taught throughout the Scriptures. In short, common grace includes every undeserved providential act of God’s restraint, goodness, and mercy toward the sinful inhabitants of this fallen world. The general principles of common grace are evident throughout Scripture (e.g., Ps. 145:9; Ezek. 18:23; 33:11; Rom. 2:4; Acts 14:16–17; 1 Tim. 4:10). The Lord Jesus taught one aspect of this doctrine when He appealed to God’s goodness in sending rain and making the sun shine on the righteous and the wicked alike (Matt. 5:44–45; Luke 6:35–36). The restraint of sin and evil is a particular work of God’s common grace. God reveals that He has kept men from sinning against Him (e.g., Gen. 20:6), but this restraint has limits, for there are times when the Lord ceases to continue His former restraint of sinners (e.g., Gen. 6:3; Ps. 81:11–12; Acts 7:42; Rom. 1:24–28; 2 Thess. 2:6–7). Common grace also enables the unregenerate to pursue virtue in their external and civic relations (Luke 6:33; Rom. 2:14). The Holy Spirit is the agent of God’s common grace operations in the world and on humanity, as well as of the general operations in members of the covenant community (Heb. 6:4–5).”

“The Reformed tradition understands this doctrine as a supplement to the doctrine of total depravity. Since man is pervasively depraved, no continuance of human history, development of culture, or growth in common virtue can occur without some operation of God’s common grace. Despite the fact that all people are ‘dead in trespasses and sins’ by nature (Eph. 2:1–4), God has not removed the general operations of His Spirit from among them. He is constantly restraining evil and manifesting His goodness in this fallen world and among sin-cursed individuals.”

“The common grace purposes of both restraint and goodness are at work in the institution of civil government and the nuclear family. These two aspects of common grace help explain why there is good in a pervasively fallen world.”

In Luther, Calvin, and Copernicus: A Reformed Approach to Science and Scripture, Sproul addresses the question of whether believers can learn from non-believers. After stating that the church’s interpretation of special revelation passages had been corrected by students of natural revelation, Sproul illustrates his point with a reference to the introduction of new astronomical ideas in the sixteenth century.

“Both Calvin and Luther rejected Copernicus as a heretic in the 16th century. I don’t know anybody in orthodox Christianity today who’s pleading for geocentricity. Do you? Do you know anybody? In that case the church has said, ‘Look, we misinterpreted the teaching of the Bible with respect to the solar system, and thank you scientists for correcting our misunderstanding.’ And so I think that we can learn from nonbelieving scientists who are studying natural revelation. They may get a better sense of the truth from their study of natural revelation than I get from ignoring natural revelation. So I have a high view of natural revelation is what I’m saying” (Luther, Calvin, and Copernicus: A Reformed Approach to Science and Scripture). (Note: This quote is technically less specifically related to “common grace” and more specifically related to “natural revelation”—which is able to be studied because of common grace.)

Addendum: #8—Cornelius Van Til 

For much more on Van Til’s views on common grace, see:

• Van Til, Kuyper, Bavinck, and Biblical Counselors: An Assessment.
• Cornelius Van Til on Common Grace: In His Own Words.
• Cornelius Van Til: “Zombie-Infected”?

Cornelius Van Til, the man on whose work many biblical counselors base their epistemology, had a strong view of total depravity, the noetic effect of sin on the unregenerate mind, and of the role of God’s sovereign use of common grace. Ponder Van Til’s thinking from his work, A Survey of Christian Epistemology, 1969, p. 22:

“As far as the principle of interpretation is concerned, the natural man makes himself the final point of reference. So far then, as he carries through this principle, he interprets all things without God. In principle he is hostile to God. But he cannot carry through his principle completely. He is restrained by God from doing so. Being restrained by God from doing so, he is enabled to make contributions to the edifice of human knowledge. The forces of creative power implanted in him are to some extent released by God’s common grace. He therefore makes positive contributions to science in spite of his principles and because both he and the universe are the exact opposite of what he, by his principles thinks they are.”

Join the Conversation

 The preceding quotes are from just two hours of searching this morning. There is much more written by Reformed thinkers on “common grace.” So…

What quotes would you add from Reformed thinkers/theologians on “common grace”?