Jesus' View on Human Free Will and Birth Pains
The question of Jesus' view on human free will and the concept of "birth pains" involves distinct theological discussions, each with varying interpretations across Christian traditions.
Regarding human free will, different perspectives exist concerning its scope and nature. The Jewish tradition, as articulated by Maimonides in the Mishneh Torah, asserts that free will is granted to all people, allowing them to choose between good and evil on their own initiative [7]. This view emphasizes human agency in moral decisions. In contrast, the Reformed tradition, represented by John Calvin, acknowledges a form of free will but clarifies that it does not imply an equal inclination to good and evil. Instead, human freedom is understood as freedom from compulsion, even while humanity is considered depraved and enslaved to sin, unable to do good apart from divine intervention [5]. The Lutheran Augsburg Confession similarly states that while human will has some liberty in civil righteousness and matters subject to reason, it lacks the power to achieve spiritual righteousness without the Holy Spirit [8]. Catholic scholastic thought, exemplified by Aquinas, discusses Christ's human free will, asserting that He possessed the use of free will from the first instant of His conception, achieving spiritual perfection not through progress but by receiving it immediately [4]. Eastern Orthodox theology, through John of Damascus, posits that Christ, having two natures, also possesses two natural wills and two natural energies, operating without separation as a united whole [6].
The concept of "birth pains" in the New Testament, particularly in Mark 13:8, refers to a period of tribulation preceding significant eschatological events [2]. Jesus states, "For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be earthquakes in various places. There will be famines and troubles. These things are the beginning of birth pains" [2]. This imagery draws a parallel between the suffering and distress of labor and the difficult events that will precede the coming of the Kingdom of God. The term "birth pains" itself originates from the Old Testament, where Genesis 3:16 describes the multiplication of pain in childbirth as a consequence of the fall [1]. While the New Testament usage in Mark 13:8 is clearly eschatological, it evokes the physical suffering associated with birth.
Despite these differing views on free will and the specific application of "birth pains," traditions generally agree on the full humanity of Jesus, including His capacity for human experiences such as weeping, hungering, thirsting, and weariness [3]. This shared understanding of Jesus' human nature is foundational to Christian theology, even as interpretations of specific doctrines diverge. The Apostles' Creed, an ecumenical statement of faith, affirms Jesus' conception by the Holy Spirit, birth from the Virgin Mary, suffering, death, and resurrection, underscoring His full participation in human experience [9].
Sources
- Genesis “To the woman he said, “I will greatly multiply your pain in childbirth. In pain you will bear children. Your desire will be for your husband, and he will rule over you.” -- Genesis 3:16”
- Mark “For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be earthquakes in various places. There will be famines and troubles. These things are the beginning of birth pains. -- Mark 13:8”
- Torrey's Topical Textbook “Torrey's Topical Textbook: Human Nature of Christ, The — Was necessary to his mediatorial office -- 1Ti 2:5; Heb 2:17; Ga 4:4,5; 1Co 15:21; Ro 6:15,19. Is proved by his Conception in the Virgin's womb. -- Mt 1:18; Lu 1:31. Birth. -- Mt 1:16,25; 2:2; Lu 2:7,11. Partaking of flesh and blood. -- Joh 1:14; Heb 2:14. Having a human soul. -- Mt 26:38; Lu 23:46; Ac 2:31. Circumcision. -- Lu 2:21. Increase in wisdom and stature. -- Lu 2:52. Weeping. -- Lu 19:41; Joh 11:35. Hungering. -- Mt 4:2; 21:18. Thirsting. -- Joh 4:7; 19:28. Sleeping. -- Mt 8:24; Mr 4:38. Being subject to weariness. -- Joh 4:6. ”
- theology (Catholic (Scholastic)) “Aquinas, Summa Theologica, Third Part (Tertia Pars), Of the Perfection of the Child Conceived, Art. 2: Article: Whether Christ as man had the use of free-will in the first instant of His conception? I answer that, As stated above (Article [1]), spiritual perfection was becoming to the human nature which Christ took, which perfection He attained not by making progress, but by receiving it from the very first. Now ultimate perfection does not consist in power or habit, but in operation; wherefore it is said (De Anima ii, text. 5) that operation is a "second act." We must, therefore, say that in”
- CCEL (Reformed) “John Calvin, Institutes of the Christian Religion, section 38: Schoolmen from the ancient doctrine. The division, however, shows in what respect free will is attributed to man. For Lombard ultimately declares (lib. 2 Dist. 25), that our freedom is not to the extent of leaving us equally inclined to good and evil in act or in thought, but only to the extent of freeing us from compulsion. This liberty is compatible with our being depraved, the servants of sin, able to do nothing but sin. 7. In this way, then, man is said to have free will, not because he has a free choice of good and evil, but b”
- CCEL (Eastern Orthodox) “John of Damascus, An Exact Exposition of the Orthodox Faith, section 60: Chapter XIV .— Concerning the volitions and free-will of our Lord Jesus Christ. Since, then, Christ has two natures, we hold that He has also two natural wills and two natural energies. But since His two natures have one subsistence, we hold that it is one and the same person who wills and energises naturally in both natures, of which, and in which, and also which is Christ our Lord: and moreover that He wills and energises without separation but as a united whole. For He wills and energises in either form in close commun”
- Mishneh Torah (Maimonides) (Jewish (Rabbinic)) “Mishneh Torah (Maimonides), Mishneh Torah%2C Repentance 5:1: Free will is granted to all men. If one desires to turn himself to the path of good and be righteous, the choice is his. Should he desire to turn to the path of evil and be wicked, the choice is his. This is [the intent of] the Torah's statement (Genesis 3:22 : "Behold, man has become unique as ourselves, knowing good and evil," i.e., the human species became singular in the world with no other species resembling it in the following quality: that man can, on his own initiative, with his knowledge and thought, know good and evil, and ”
- Augsburg Confession (Lutheran) “Augsburg Confession (Lutheran, 1530), 1 Of Free Will they teach that man’s will has some liberty to: 1 Of Free Will they teach that man’s will has some liberty to choose civil righteousness, and to work 2 things subject to reason. But it has no power, without the Holy Ghost, to work the righteousness of God, that is, spiritual righteousness; since the natural man 3 receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God, 1 Cor. 2:14; but this righteousness is wrought in the heart when the Holy Ghost is received 4 through the Word. These things are said in as many words by Augustine in his Hypognosticon,”
- Apostles' Creed (Ecumenical) “Apostles' Creed (Ecumenical, c. 2nd-4th century AD), Section 2: I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried; he descended to the dead. On the third day he rose again; he ascended into heaven, he is seated at the right hand of the Father, and he will come to judge the living and the dead.”