Free Will?
There's a debate that has been raging for centuries among the church over two little words that can send some people into a complete tizzy: free will. Does it exist? How much of it do we have? Does God choose us or do we choose God?
I'll be honest, I don't really know why this is such a debated topic, because I think the bible is obnoxiously clear on this one, haha. I think the obvious reason for the controversy is our own human arrogance...we want to play a part in everything - especially things that concern us and our futures. We use human rationalization to try to explain the mind of God, and well...that doesn't really work. "For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts." Isaiah 55:8-9. Sometimes we just need to accept things because God said so and try not to make excuses for God or explain what or why he does what he does. He is God. Do you believe that he is sovereign? Then...be still. Be cool. Trust him.
So here's my answer to the question of whether or not we have a free will: Based on countless examples in scripture and his own words, I believe that God allows us to have as much or little say in our own situations as he want us to have at any given time. And there are definitely things we get no say in whatsoever.
:D
Is that really free will? I guess that depends on your definition! Yes, I believe we have a free will to make our own everyday decisions, but I believe that God is a heavy handed guide in all of it. If God wants you to have something, you will have it. If he doesn't want you to have something, you will not have it. If he wants you to do something, you will do it. If he doesn't want you to do something, he will not allow it. If he wants you to be a child of God, you will be a child of God. And here's the one that makes ALL of the people squirm: If you are not called to be a child of God, you will not be one.
I don't know why or how he chooses some and not others. I am not God. I came to terms with that a loooooong time ago, and it's helped strengthen my faith in so many other areas. It takes us back to the whole thought that we cannot begin to understand God's ways or reasoning on all things. And faith means being okay with that. And...it is fair, after all...when you consider that not ONE of us is worthy to spend eternity with him, and if he only saved ONE, it would make him just as holy and gracious and just as it would if he saved all or none. We do not WANT God to be fair on this one. If he were fair, we would all be going straight to hell. He is more than fair and generous.
But if you need PROOF....let's look at the proof that maybe we don't have as much control over the ultimate outcomes in our lives or our eternity as we think we do. Proverbs has a lot to say about this:
The plans of the heart belong to man, but the answer of the tongue is from the Lord. Proverbs 16:1
The heart of a man plans his way, but the Lord establishes his steps. Proverbs 16:9
Many are the plans in the mind of a man, but it is the purpose of the Lord that will stand. Proverbs 19:21
What we have here are a lot of plans and a lot of BUTS. It is God's answer, God's way, and the purpose of the Lord which prevails in the end every single time. We can plan all day long. We can plan our entire lives out if we want. But God! His plans trump our plans. Do you know what happens when you try to fight God's plans? He laughs! And it's not a haha funny laugh, it's a watch what happens when you try to cross me laugh. (Psalms 2:4) God doesn't mess around when it comes to his will! And it's his will, his way, all day long.
Did God ask Pharaoh his opinion when he hardened his heart to chase after Moses and the Israelites, ultimately costing him and his entire army their lives? Nope.
Did God lovingly tap Saul on the road to Damascus and hand him a bible tract asking him whether or not he would like to accept the Lord? Nope.
"It does not, therefore depend on human desire or effort, but on God's mercy. For Scripture says to Pharaoh: "I raised you up for this very purpose, that I might display my power in you and that my name might be proclaimed in all the earth." Therefore God has mercy on whom he wants to have mercy, and he hardens whom he wants to harden. One of you will say to me: "Then why does God still blame us? For who is able to resist his will?" But who are you, a human being, to talk back to God? Shall what is formed say to the one who formed it, "Why did you make me like this?" Does not the potter have the right to make out of the same lump of clay some pottery for special purposes and some for common use?" Romans 9:16-21
^^ I mean, we can just wrap it up and call it a day right there, can't we? :) That's pretty gosh darned black and white!
Did God ask the citizens of Jericho whether or not they were cool with their wall tumbling down? Nope. God doesn't need anyone's permission to do anything. Not then, and certainly not now. God does whatever he pleases!
"Our God is in heaven. He does whatever pleases him." Psalm 115:3
"Whatever the Lord pleases, he does, in heaven and on earth, in the seas and all deeps." Psalm 135:6
He doesn't need our approval to do anything in our lives, thankyouverymuch.
God chooses whomever he wants to choose to do whatever he wants them to do whenever he wants them to do it:
"For I have chosen him, that he may command his children and his household after him to keep the way of the Lord by doing righteousness and justice, so that the Lord may bring to Abraham what he has promised him." Genesis 18:19
"He said to me, 'It is Solomon your son who shall build my house and my courts, for I have chosen him to be my son, and I will be his father." 1 Chronicles 28:6
"but I have chosen Jerusalem that my name may be there, and I have chosen David to be over my people Israel." 2 Chronicles 6:6
"But you, Israel, my servant Jacob, whom I have chosen, the offspring of Abraham, my friend;" Isaiah 41:8
"[The Lord's Chosen Servant] Behold my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen, in whom my soul delights; I have put my Spirit upon him; he will bring forth justice to the nations." Isaiah 42:1
Yes, God chooses! And he doesn't ask first. Tag, you're it! How can we deny it?
Shall we continue? (Are we still unconvinced? Haha.) What about when Zerubbabel was chosen as a signet?
"The word of the Lord came a second time to Haggai on the twenty-fourth day of the month, "Speak to Zerubbabel, governor of Judah, saying, I am about to shake the heavens and the earth, and to overthrow the throne of kingdoms. I am about to destroy the strength of the kingdoms of the nations, and overthrow the chariots and their riders. And the horses and their riders shall go down, every one by the sword of his brother. On that day, declares the Lord of hosts, I will take you, O Zerubbabel my servant, the son of Shealtiel, declares the Lord, and make you like a signet ring, for I have chosen you, declares the Lord of hosts."
God had a plan. He declared what he was going to do, how he was going to do it, who he was going to do it to, and who he was going to call out and choose to represent him. Bing, bang, boom... this is how it's going to be, and I'm just letting you know my plans.
None of this is to say that God never considers our requests and our desires... also understand though that many of our (good) desires were put there by God himself! God created us and gave us our unique personalities and talents which shape our dreams and everything that we are. He chose our parents and he chose our gender and nationality. He put us where we live, which affects...well, pretty much everything about what we're into and how we speak, who our friends are and what hobbies we're involved in. Is there anything that God doesn't have his hands all over?
When it comes to salvation, yes, we are called to repent and believe in the gospel (Mark 1:15) but understand that no one who makes that choice does so out of their own volition. I wish I knew the author of this quote, because I love it..."It does not happen because they considered all the alternatives and with their innate brilliance, they saw that it made the most sense to trust in Christ. The natural mind is blinded by Satan and by sin, so that it cannot see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ (2 Cor. 4:4). The natural mind cannot understand or accept the things of the spirit of God, because they are spiritually discerned (1 Cor. 2:14). So when anyone chooses to trust Christ, it is only because God has sovereignly chosen them and because Jesus willed to reveal the Father to them (Luke 10:22). Salvation is of the Lord (Jonah2:9)."
We make choices every single day, but God can put stimuli in our path that is so great we cannot resist it even with our own will. The best way I have ever heard it explained is like this: If someone put a tack in your chair and you sat on it, do you have the free will to sit there and act like nothing just happened to you? Sure, you could. But would you? No! That would hurt, and you would jump up and scream. Haha. God puts spiritual tacks in our paths every day to guide and direct our way. His will is too great to resist. I think Proverbs 21:1 says it most eloquently: "The king's heart is like a stream of water directed by the Lord; he guides it wherever he pleases." God moves us and guides us wherever he pleases, and the less we fight it, the smoother our ride will be!
God will let you choose things when he wants you to choose things, and sometimes he'll even let you choose wrong when it's time for a little refinement! But scripture is clear that it is God's will that prevails in the end. Scripture is clear that God pursues us, not the other way around. Scripture is clear that God is God and it's okay if we don't know it all, because we can't (Job 11:7-9). And if you need even MORE prospective, just consider this:
"This is the confidence which we have before Him, that, if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us." John 5:14
"We know that God does not hear sinners; but if anyone is God-fearing and does His will, He hears him." John 9:31
"and He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because He intercedes for the saints according to the will of God." Romans 8:27
When we are inside of GOD'S will, not trying to fight him by claiming our own will on our own strength, we will have the ear and attention of the Father. And the Holy Spirit will only intercede for us according to the will of God.
So yes...I believe we have exactly as much freedom of will as God allows each of us to have at any given moment. The rest of the time, we're riding HIS well planned watercourse! I am 100% okay and at peace with that, because I know me...I don't even trust me most of the time...and I would much rather be in God's will for my life any day! I don't have all of the answers, and I cannot see into the future. He has the big picture, one that stretches far into eternity, and I trust in him.
Happy day!
I'll be honest, I don't really know why this is such a debated topic, because I think the bible is obnoxiously clear on this one, haha. I think the obvious reason for the controversy is our own human arrogance...we want to play a part in everything - especially things that concern us and our futures. We use human rationalization to try to explain the mind of God, and well...that doesn't really work. "For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts." Isaiah 55:8-9. Sometimes we just need to accept things because God said so and try not to make excuses for God or explain what or why he does what he does. He is God. Do you believe that he is sovereign? Then...be still. Be cool. Trust him.
So here's my answer to the question of whether or not we have a free will: Based on countless examples in scripture and his own words, I believe that God allows us to have as much or little say in our own situations as he want us to have at any given time. And there are definitely things we get no say in whatsoever.
:D
Is that really free will? I guess that depends on your definition! Yes, I believe we have a free will to make our own everyday decisions, but I believe that God is a heavy handed guide in all of it. If God wants you to have something, you will have it. If he doesn't want you to have something, you will not have it. If he wants you to do something, you will do it. If he doesn't want you to do something, he will not allow it. If he wants you to be a child of God, you will be a child of God. And here's the one that makes ALL of the people squirm: If you are not called to be a child of God, you will not be one.
I don't know why or how he chooses some and not others. I am not God. I came to terms with that a loooooong time ago, and it's helped strengthen my faith in so many other areas. It takes us back to the whole thought that we cannot begin to understand God's ways or reasoning on all things. And faith means being okay with that. And...it is fair, after all...when you consider that not ONE of us is worthy to spend eternity with him, and if he only saved ONE, it would make him just as holy and gracious and just as it would if he saved all or none. We do not WANT God to be fair on this one. If he were fair, we would all be going straight to hell. He is more than fair and generous.
But if you need PROOF....let's look at the proof that maybe we don't have as much control over the ultimate outcomes in our lives or our eternity as we think we do. Proverbs has a lot to say about this:
The plans of the heart belong to man, but the answer of the tongue is from the Lord. Proverbs 16:1
The heart of a man plans his way, but the Lord establishes his steps. Proverbs 16:9
Many are the plans in the mind of a man, but it is the purpose of the Lord that will stand. Proverbs 19:21
What we have here are a lot of plans and a lot of BUTS. It is God's answer, God's way, and the purpose of the Lord which prevails in the end every single time. We can plan all day long. We can plan our entire lives out if we want. But God! His plans trump our plans. Do you know what happens when you try to fight God's plans? He laughs! And it's not a haha funny laugh, it's a watch what happens when you try to cross me laugh. (Psalms 2:4) God doesn't mess around when it comes to his will! And it's his will, his way, all day long.
Did God ask Pharaoh his opinion when he hardened his heart to chase after Moses and the Israelites, ultimately costing him and his entire army their lives? Nope.
Did God lovingly tap Saul on the road to Damascus and hand him a bible tract asking him whether or not he would like to accept the Lord? Nope.
"It does not, therefore depend on human desire or effort, but on God's mercy. For Scripture says to Pharaoh: "I raised you up for this very purpose, that I might display my power in you and that my name might be proclaimed in all the earth." Therefore God has mercy on whom he wants to have mercy, and he hardens whom he wants to harden. One of you will say to me: "Then why does God still blame us? For who is able to resist his will?" But who are you, a human being, to talk back to God? Shall what is formed say to the one who formed it, "Why did you make me like this?" Does not the potter have the right to make out of the same lump of clay some pottery for special purposes and some for common use?" Romans 9:16-21
^^ I mean, we can just wrap it up and call it a day right there, can't we? :) That's pretty gosh darned black and white!
"Our God is in heaven. He does whatever pleases him." Psalm 115:3
"Whatever the Lord pleases, he does, in heaven and on earth, in the seas and all deeps." Psalm 135:6
He doesn't need our approval to do anything in our lives, thankyouverymuch.
God chooses whomever he wants to choose to do whatever he wants them to do whenever he wants them to do it:
"For I have chosen him, that he may command his children and his household after him to keep the way of the Lord by doing righteousness and justice, so that the Lord may bring to Abraham what he has promised him." Genesis 18:19
"He said to me, 'It is Solomon your son who shall build my house and my courts, for I have chosen him to be my son, and I will be his father." 1 Chronicles 28:6
"but I have chosen Jerusalem that my name may be there, and I have chosen David to be over my people Israel." 2 Chronicles 6:6
"But you, Israel, my servant Jacob, whom I have chosen, the offspring of Abraham, my friend;" Isaiah 41:8
"[The Lord's Chosen Servant] Behold my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen, in whom my soul delights; I have put my Spirit upon him; he will bring forth justice to the nations." Isaiah 42:1
Yes, God chooses! And he doesn't ask first. Tag, you're it! How can we deny it?
Shall we continue? (Are we still unconvinced? Haha.) What about when Zerubbabel was chosen as a signet?
"The word of the Lord came a second time to Haggai on the twenty-fourth day of the month, "Speak to Zerubbabel, governor of Judah, saying, I am about to shake the heavens and the earth, and to overthrow the throne of kingdoms. I am about to destroy the strength of the kingdoms of the nations, and overthrow the chariots and their riders. And the horses and their riders shall go down, every one by the sword of his brother. On that day, declares the Lord of hosts, I will take you, O Zerubbabel my servant, the son of Shealtiel, declares the Lord, and make you like a signet ring, for I have chosen you, declares the Lord of hosts."
God had a plan. He declared what he was going to do, how he was going to do it, who he was going to do it to, and who he was going to call out and choose to represent him. Bing, bang, boom... this is how it's going to be, and I'm just letting you know my plans.
None of this is to say that God never considers our requests and our desires... also understand though that many of our (good) desires were put there by God himself! God created us and gave us our unique personalities and talents which shape our dreams and everything that we are. He chose our parents and he chose our gender and nationality. He put us where we live, which affects...well, pretty much everything about what we're into and how we speak, who our friends are and what hobbies we're involved in. Is there anything that God doesn't have his hands all over?
When it comes to salvation, yes, we are called to repent and believe in the gospel (Mark 1:15) but understand that no one who makes that choice does so out of their own volition. I wish I knew the author of this quote, because I love it..."It does not happen because they considered all the alternatives and with their innate brilliance, they saw that it made the most sense to trust in Christ. The natural mind is blinded by Satan and by sin, so that it cannot see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ (2 Cor. 4:4). The natural mind cannot understand or accept the things of the spirit of God, because they are spiritually discerned (1 Cor. 2:14). So when anyone chooses to trust Christ, it is only because God has sovereignly chosen them and because Jesus willed to reveal the Father to them (Luke 10:22). Salvation is of the Lord (Jonah2:9)."
We make choices every single day, but God can put stimuli in our path that is so great we cannot resist it even with our own will. The best way I have ever heard it explained is like this: If someone put a tack in your chair and you sat on it, do you have the free will to sit there and act like nothing just happened to you? Sure, you could. But would you? No! That would hurt, and you would jump up and scream. Haha. God puts spiritual tacks in our paths every day to guide and direct our way. His will is too great to resist. I think Proverbs 21:1 says it most eloquently: "The king's heart is like a stream of water directed by the Lord; he guides it wherever he pleases." God moves us and guides us wherever he pleases, and the less we fight it, the smoother our ride will be!
God will let you choose things when he wants you to choose things, and sometimes he'll even let you choose wrong when it's time for a little refinement! But scripture is clear that it is God's will that prevails in the end. Scripture is clear that God pursues us, not the other way around. Scripture is clear that God is God and it's okay if we don't know it all, because we can't (Job 11:7-9). And if you need even MORE prospective, just consider this:
"This is the confidence which we have before Him, that, if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us." John 5:14
"We know that God does not hear sinners; but if anyone is God-fearing and does His will, He hears him." John 9:31
"and He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because He intercedes for the saints according to the will of God." Romans 8:27
When we are inside of GOD'S will, not trying to fight him by claiming our own will on our own strength, we will have the ear and attention of the Father. And the Holy Spirit will only intercede for us according to the will of God.
So yes...I believe we have exactly as much freedom of will as God allows each of us to have at any given moment. The rest of the time, we're riding HIS well planned watercourse! I am 100% okay and at peace with that, because I know me...I don't even trust me most of the time...and I would much rather be in God's will for my life any day! I don't have all of the answers, and I cannot see into the future. He has the big picture, one that stretches far into eternity, and I trust in him.
Happy day!
Girl. So many thoughts about free will. I'm still forming my "opinion..." not gonna lie. There's so much internal debate in my heart and head over free will. Some days I would happily agree with calvinists and others I am the complete opposite.
ReplyDeleteI will probably debate this one until I can get a direct answer from the man upstairs on our meeting day!
I'm so glad you have the confidence to take a firm stance on it though, seriously! I cannot emphasize enough how much internal debate there seriously is in my head and heart over this!
You are definitely not alone! It's okay if you are wrestling with it! Despite my obvious stance (haha) God gave you a mind to think with and mull things over with. It's why I can believe with confidence that, while God has the final say, we aren't like little robots who aren't allowed to question and ponder!
DeleteI was looking at Charlotte right after I posted this and thinking how very much our relationship is like the Father's relationship with us. We are free thinking people with the ability to make our own day to to day choices, but when it comes to the "big" things, Charlotte has very little say in what her day looks like. If I say we're going to the store, we're going. If I decide the family is taking a vacation, she's taking a vacation. I'll decide where she goes to school, when we eat and what we're eating...she can choose to disobey me, throw fits, and make our day harder, but in the end, what I say goes! She has no concept of time, but I have a pretty good idea of what our whole week looks like. I don't know if this is making any sense, but it did to me, haha! I'm happy to let her pick out her clothes and I happily give her a drink or a snack when she asks...always providing for her needs and sometimes her wants, too. Am I saying we're like God's toddlers, totally dependent on him? Maybe so. :D
Weirdly, that made so much sense (light bulb moment!). I still don't feel easy saying I "understand" it completely because I don't. I think it's one of those things I will keep grappling with and God teaching me about the big and small picture areas of this. But for real, that analogy made it make 67% more understandable in my mind!
DeleteHa - I love it! 67% :D
Delete