Romans 8:28-30 (HCSB)
28 We know that all things work
together for the good of those who love God: those who are called according to
His purpose. 29 For those He foreknew He
also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be
the firstborn among many brothers. 30 And those He predestined, He also called; and those He called, He also
justified; and those He justified, He also glorified.
Ephesians 1:4-6
(HCSB) 4 For He chose us in Him,
before the foundation of the world, to be holy and blameless in His sight. In
love 5 He predestined us to be adopted
through Jesus Christ for Himself, according to His favor and will, 6 to the praise of His glorious grace that He
favored us with in the Beloved.
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| Predestination: What Is It? |
Do these two and similar scriptures mean that God determined
beforehand who will be saved to eternal life and who will be eternally damned,
separated from God? If true then what
about free will to choose? If true why
evangelize? If true then why should I
be concerned about my sin because it was predestined by God?
Predestination or freewill? This question has fueled debate among Christians for
centuries. This post will in no way end
this debate or prove which is true. By
the time you finish reading you will
have a pretty good idea of where I stand in the debate.
One important point before I continue. Your salvation doesn’t depend whether you
believe in predestination determining your salvation or if you have free will
to choose. Your salvation is by God’s grace, whether
predestined, or by your free will. You
are saved because Jesus paid the penalty for your sins on the cross.
Predestination
- : the act of predestinating : the state of being predestinated
- : the doctrine that God in consequence of his foreknowledge of all events infallibly guides those who are destined for salvation
- : the belief that everything that will happen has already been decided by God or fate and cannot be changed the decree of God by which certain souls are foreordained to salvation.
This word is properly
used only with reference to God's plan or purpose of salvation. The Greek word
rendered "predestinate" is found only in these six passages, Acts
4:28; Rom 8:29, 30; 1Co 2:7; Eph 1:5, 11; and in all of them it has the same meaning.
They teach that the eternal, sovereign, immutable, and unconditional decree or
"determinate purpose" of God governs all events.
This doctrine of
predestination or election is beset with many difficulties. It belongs to the
"secret things" of God. But if we take the revealed word of God as
our guide, we must accept this doctrine with all its mysteriousness, and settle
all our questionings in the humble, devout acknowledgment, "Even so,
Father: for so it seemed good in thy sight."
Predestination is often equated with or sometimes referred
to as election. There are two views on
election which correspond to predestination and free will;
·
Unconditional election (predestination) is the
belief that God chooses whomever He will, based solely on His purposes and
apart from an individual's free will.
·
Conditional election (free will) is the belief
that God chooses, for eternal salvation, those whom He foresees will have faith
in Christ. This belief emphasizes the importance of a person's free will
The Debate
Predestination
The belief in predestination or unconditional election is
based on God's sovereignty and omniscience. Sovereignty meaning “in authority
over” or “in control over.” We believe God to be in control over everything that
happens. So if God is in control over everything, he must also be in control
over who is saved and who is not.
Omniscience means “all-knowing.” We believe that God knows the past, present,
and future. So, if God knows what will happen in the future, there is no
possible way that what he knows will happen could not happen. His knowledge of
the future effectively determines the future.
Proponents of predestination say that before creation God
chose who would be saved and who would not.
Ephesians 1:4-6 (HCSB) 4
For He chose us in Him, before the foundation of the world, to be holy
and blameless in His sight. In love 5 He
predestined us to be adopted through Jesus Christ for Himself, according to His
favor and will, 6 to the praise of His
glorious grace that He favored us with in the Beloved.
Perhaps the best known proponents of predestination were St.
Augustine and John Calvin. Calvin’s
views on predestination are known as Calvinism.
(Click this LINK for information on Calvin and Calvinsim)
Other scriptures in addition to Ephesians 4:1-6 and Romans
8:28-30 used to support predestination are;
Matthew 24:31 (HCSB)
He will send out His angels with a loud
trumpet, and they will gather His elect from the four winds, from one end of
the sky to the other.
Romans 8:33 (HCSB)
Who can bring an accusation against God’s elect? God is the One who justifies.
Romans 11:5-6 (HCSB)
5 In the same way, then, there is also
at the present time a remnant chosen by grace. 6 Now if by grace, then it is not by works;
otherwise grace ceases to be grace.
Ephesians 1:11 (HCSB) 11 We have
also received an inheritance in Him, predestined according to the purpose of
the One who works out everything in agreement with the decision of His will,
2 Peter 1:10 (HCSB) Therefore, brothers, make every effort to
confirm your calling and election, because if you do these things you will
never stumble.
Revelation 3:5 (HCSB)
In the same way, the victor will be dressed
in white clothes, and I will never erase his name from the book of life but
will acknowledge his name before My Father and before His angels.
Free will
Critics of predestination argue that this view eliminates
humanity's free will because it denies human beings the ability to choose
salvation or reject it.
From the Holman Bible Dictionary (http://www.studylight.org/dictionaries/hbd/view.cgi?n=2896)
Human Free Will
The ability the
Creator gave people to make meaningful decisions, especially concerning their
relationship to God. Because humanity was created in the image of God, freedom
is an inherent part of human nature (Genesis 1:26 ). Since this freedom is like
God's freedom, it includes the power of choice. Mankind's actions thus derive
from the voluntary actions of the human will. Outside forces can influence the
human will to take a particular course of action but cannot force it to do so.
Free will has been the subject of considerable debate over the years. Biblical
evidence indicates that God Himself does not predetermine the choices that
mankind will make. This is especially true in relation to God's will (Matthew
23:37; John 7:17 ).
Since God gave mankind
the privilege of a free will and then intervened through Jesus Christ when sin
changed this freedom to bondage, He gives mankind the privilege to make
individual choices. This includes the relation of mankind to God. Salvation and
obedience are left to mankind's free will (Romans 10:12-13 ). God elects all
people to be saved who will call upon His name (Romans 10:1-21 ). It is left up
to the individual's free choice to accept or reject salvation and to accept the
consequences of the choice. - Bob Sheffield
Here are some scriptures that proponents of free will use as
proof of their argument;
Isaiah 45:22 (HCSB)
Turn to Me and be saved, all the ends of the earth. For I am God, and there is
no other.
John 3:16 (HCSB) “For
God loved the world in this way: He gave His One and Only Son, so that everyone
who believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life.
John 12:32 (HCSB)
As for Me, if I am lifted up from the earth I will draw all ⌊people⌋
to Myself.”
Romans 8:28-29 (HCSB)
28 We know that all things work together for the good of those who love God:
those who are called according to His purpose.
29 For those He foreknew He also predestined to be conformed
to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brothers.
2 Peter 3:9 (HCSB) The Lord does not delay His promise, as some
understand delay, but is patient with you, not wanting any to perish but all to
come to repentance.
Revelation 22:17
(HCSB) Both the Spirit and the bride say, “Come!” Anyone who hears should
say, “Come!” And the one who is thirsty should come. Whoever desires should
take the living water as a gift.
My Thoughts
Did God predetermine or predestine specific people to be
saved and specific people to be damned?
I say Absolutely Not!
The Bible clearly teaches that God is not willing that any
man should perish, but rather that all of mankind to come to the knowledge of
truth and be saved.
2 Peter 3:9 (HCSB)
The Lord does not delay His promise, as some understand delay, but is patient
with you, not wanting any to perish but all to come to repentance.
1 Timothy 2:3-4
(HCSB) This is good, and it pleases God our Savior, 4 who wants everyone to be saved and to come to
the knowledge of the truth.
These scriptures and others tell us that it is God’s perfect
will at all mankind be saved. That is
what would please God most.
Scripture also tells us that God takes no pleasure in the
death of the wicked.
Ezekiel 33:11 (HCSB)
Tell them: As I live”—the declaration
of the Lord GOD—“I take no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but rather that
the wicked person should turn from his way and live. Repent, repent of your
evil ways! Why will you die, house of Israel?
So if those scriptures are true, and they are, and it’s true that God is sovereign, and He
is, and he predetermines who is saved and who’s not, then he would make absolutely sure that every
person who ever lived “..will not perish but have eternal life.”
Let’s take a look at the verse both sides use in the debate
of predestination or free will.
Romans 8:29 (NKJV) For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be
conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many
brethren. brethren.”
This from an article, “What Does the Bible Teach about Predestination
and Free Will”, by Jack Wellman on the website What Christians Want to Know
Freewill and God’s
sovereignty are not opposed to each other but run parallel with one
other. Imagine that you are a slave on a ship. You are chained to the deck below. It is determined that you row for the
captain of this ship. You have no choice
but to be chained to this ship. This is
like God’s sovereignty. But even here
you have freewill. You are free to row
or not to row. If you do not row you
choose to receive beatings by the quartermaster, but if you row, you choose not
to be beaten. You might even chose to
break free of the ship by escaping your chains, but God’s sovereignty is not
diminished.
God’s sovereignty does
not diminish man’s freewill. God never
twists anyone’s arm into heaven. God is
all knowing of the past, present, and future.
He alone knows what we will do.
One example is that there are said to be over 600 prophecies in the
Bible regarding Jesus Christ. God alone
is able to know the future and the means to bring about what He desires to come
to pass. God knew that I would be saved
and come to a saving faith in Christ.
The very fact that you are reading this may be an indication that He is
or has called you for salvation. You
have freewill to either reject Him or to accept this saving grace. Either way,
He knew it, He planned it, He purposed it, He desired it, and He predestined
the very thing that you are now reading.
Here is another that I found, on the Social Media site Quora. It is an
answer to the question “What are your views on predestination?”
I see no conflict
between the fact that God can know the results of our future decisions and the
fact that we can make a decision freely. God's knowledge does not negate our
freedom. He created us; he knows us more intimately than we even know
ourselves.
For example, think of
your closest friend or relative, or your spouse. Let's say you're trying to
decide what movie to watch that night. Your choices are an action/adventure, a
drama, a comedy, and a thriller. You know in your head which movie your friend
will prefer, and you even know if those preferences will come out if you try to
convince them otherwise. But you knowing which movie your friend will prefer
does not remove the freedom of the choice from him or her. I believe God's
relationship to us is similar in this regard: that he knows us perfectly, but we
are still free and responsible for our own choices.
Because God is sovereign and omniscient or all-knowing He
has known from before the foundation of the world who will be saved and have
eternal life in His presence, and who will not be saved and be in eternal
torment. Foreknowledge of those who will
and will not be saved is not the same as predetermining who will and will not
be saved. What is predestined, as shown
in Romans 8:29, is that those who God foreknew would be saved, will be
conformed to the image of His Son Jesus.
The choice of acceptance of that salvation is yours. Just like the slave who is confined to the
slave ship has the choice to row or not row and to accept the penalty of not rowing, we have the choice to accept the sacrifice of Jesus as payment for our
sins or to reject it and accept the penalty.
The choice is yours. It’s God’s
desire that all men be saved, but He has given us the free will to accept or reject
salvation. Eternal life with God or
eternal separation from Him is your choice.
I urge and pray that if you haven’t done so please choose life.
It Doesn’t Matter Whether You Believe In Predestination Or Free Will
John 14:6 (HCSB) Jesus told him, “I am the way, the truth,
and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.
If you want to receive God’s grace all the benefits that God
has promised to His children then pray this prayer in all sincerity (only you
and God know if you’re really sincere);
“Dear God, I am a sinner and need forgiveness. I believe
that Jesus Christ shed His precious blood and died for my sin. I am willing to
turn from sin. I now invite Christ to come into my heart and life as my
personal Savior.”
If you have just prayed this prayer, in all sincerity, call,
text, email, Tweet, change your Facebook status and tell somebody, leave me a
comment here or send me an email with this Link. Then find a bible believing church and start
to fellowship with other believers.
Welcome to the family of God.
I would also like to hear from you and your thoughts and opinions on my view of predestination versus free will. Please comment whether you agree or disagree and I will respond within 24 hours. God bless you.
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