Although the conversion of man is a work of God’s omnipotent power, Eph. 1, 19; 2 Cor. 4, 6, divine converting grace nevertheless is not irresistible (gratia irresistibilis), as the Calvinists teach, but resistible (gratia resistibilis), as Holy Scripture affirms. Matt. 23, 37; Acts 7, 51. The reason for this is evident. Though God is irresistible whenever He deals with man according to His sovereign power (in nuda maiestate), Matt. 25, 31. 32, He can be resisted whenever He exercises His omnipotent power through means. Matt. 11, 28; 23, 37. Both in His Kingdom of Power and in the Kingdom of Grace the means by which He purposes to bless man can be rejected. Thus life, the greatest of God’s earthly gifts, though created and sustained by divine omnipotence, can nevertheless be destroyed by man. Similarly spiritual life, or conversion, though offered through the means of the omnipotent Word of God, can be rejected by man through malicious resistance.
Maintaining the resistibility of converting grace (gratia conversionis), the confessional Lutheran Church disavows both Calvinism and synergism. Denying the universality of grace, the Calvinists declare that the elect are regenerated by irresistible grace, while to the non-elect only common grace is granted. The synergists, on the other hand, conclude from the resistibility of grace that, as the sinner can reject the divine grace offered to him, so also he can cooperate with the Holy Spirit in his conversion, by rightly using the spiritual powers granted to him. Both errors are opposed to the clear teaching of Holy Scripture on this point, 1 Tim. 2, 4; Phil. 2, 13.