Warfield: The Impossibility of Salvation

At our candlelight service, we read from Benjamin Warfield's book The Power of God Unto Salvation on the impossibility of Salvation. Here is that quote in its entirety:

Let each of us to-day look within his own heart; let each of us permit to roll before the mind’s eye the history of his soul’s struggles - its hopes, its fears, its despairs. How much of it is a history of doubt, discouragement, and despondency! We know we cannot save ourselves. Our best efforts – have they not always ended in disillusionment? Our best hopes – have they not always gone out in failure? Our best determinations – have they not always sunk in gloom? Salvation - do we not ourselves know that it is impossible with men? Is it possible even with God? Then comes, like balm to our bruised hearts, our Lord’s gracious assurance, ‘It is impossible with men, but not with God: for all things are possible with God.’ What an assurance! We are to trust in God for the salvation of our souls not because their salvation is easy. So soon as our eyes are open to what sin is, and to what God is, and to what we are, we know it is not easy. We are to trust in God for the salvation of our souls because He is one who does the impossible.

Do we clearly see that salvation is impossible to us, that a load of guilt rests upon us which we can never expiate? Our Saviour says, not that we are mistaken, not that if we will but try hard enough we may roll off the burden. No; He does not mock our despair. He fully recognizes the impossibility which our hearts have found. He says, ‘It is impossible with men, but not with God: for all things are possible with God.’ Thus He places the rock under our feet - the rock of the omnipotence of God. To nothing less than omnipotence can we trust to do this impossible thing. But we may well believe that there is no impossible to it. And resting on it our fretted souls may at last find peace.”