Posted on 06/12/2002 8:04:36 PM PDT by rwfromkansas
Predestination: The Potter Bestows Grace to Fallen Clay
By Roy Waggoner
Predestination causes much controversy in the Christian community. I grew up in the mainline Presbyterian denomination, but never heard of the doctrine. When I first heard of it, I hated it with passion and believed it made God into some kind of ogre. Fortunately, God put His hand on me and caused me to submit to His truth of predestination, a truth of a great love beyond compare. As a believer in sovereign, unconditional predestination to salvation, I am called a Calvinist for this theological position. Those that believe in man being able to choose God via free will are called Arminians.
Not everyone on Earth has received Christ and by saving many, not all, I believe God has intended to only work His gospel offer effectually in a group of people, not every person on Earth. As the famous Bible passage goes, "Many are called, but few are chosen (Matthew 22:14)." Many receive the Gospel call, but only some come. God never fails and if it was His will to bring everyone to Christ, He would have done so. Another rather famous passage supporting God’s selection in salvation is in Romans 9, where it says, "Therefore God has mercy on whom he wants to have mercy, and he hardens whom he wants to harden." Verses 1 Thessalonians 5:9 and Acts 13:48 both say Christian believers are "appointed to" salvation and eternal life. Both passages, in their context and textual statements exclude this appointment from being given to everybody (and logic would argue for only some being appointed since not all are saved and an appointment is an act of decree). At the Garden of Gethsemene, Jesus prayed for the salvation of some people, not everyone. Why would Jesus do this if it was God's will to save everyone? This supports the conclusion that Jesus did not die for everyone, but only a group of predestined people. It says in John 17:1-2:
Jesus spoke these words, lifted up His eyes to heaven, and said: "Father, the hour has come. Glorify Your Son, that Your Son also may glorify You, as You have given Him authority over all flesh, that He should give eternal life to as many as You have given Him."
This passage is one of several in the NT that emphasize the will of God involving "giving" people to Christ to save. Also, man can’t choose God by himself because his nature is enslaved to corruption. It says in 1 Corinthians 2:14 that "The man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned." The Gospel of salvation in Christ comes from the Holy Spirit. This only makes sense because it is a spiritual truth and Scripture declares God chooses to use the "foolishness of preaching to save (1 Corinthians 1:21)." The Gospel is what is preached to the nations and if preaching is foolishness to human minds, how much more so would the truth of the Gospel itself be. It could not be possible for a man without the Spirit residing in him to love or even understand the Gospel, much less receive Christ. So, there obviously is a way God decides whom He will change and save: predestination, also known as election.
Since not everyone has received Christ, the only conclusion that can be reached is that God only intended to save some people, not all. We do not know why, but it glorifies God and that should satisfy any wonderings we have about the matter. In election, God has decreed who will be saved from the beginning of time. Then, when it is time to follow through with this election, the Holy Spirit comes and changes the sinful heart of the person, converting him or her. In other words, the Holy Spirit comes and goes around the world, converting God’s chosen people after they hear the Gospel. It would not work if God simply elected a person to salvation at the foundation of the world because that only marks out a person to be saved; it does not actually save. Due to their depravity, the elect are just like every other human being before salvation: filthy, corrupt, and loving evil. They would not come to God by themselves if they heard the Gospel because it is foolishness to them. But, in his graciousness, God follows through with his election – he sends the Holy Spirit to convert the elected ones after they hear the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
Some Christians argue fellow believers like myself misinterpret the meanings of election and predestination in Scripture. But, looking at Bible dictionaries, it is very clear that the term "elect" (which is used in Scripture to refer to Christians) means very simply, "chosen" or "singled out." Looking at a Bible passage itself, 1 Peter 1:1-2 uses the term elect, which is translated in the NIV as "chosen." In this selection, Paul says, "To God’s elect...who have been chosen according to the foreknowledge of God the Father." Foreknowledge is a term that does not simply mean to know beforehand, though a person would think so on first glance. According to Thayer’s Lexicon, it also implies a sense of "forethought, pre-arrangement." The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia says it can not simply mean knowing something would happen beforehand:
Also in <1 Pet 1:2> those to whom the apostle is writing are characterized as "elect according to the foreknowledge (prognosis) of God," where the election is based on the "foreknowledge." By the prognosis or foreknowledge, however, far more is meant than prescience. It has the idea of a purpose which determines the course of the Divine procedure. If it meant simply pre-vision of faith or love or any quality in the objects of the election, Peter would not only flatly contradict Paul <Rom 9:11; Eph 1:3-4; 2 Tim 1:9>; but also such a rendering would conflict with the context of this passage, because the objects of election are chosen "unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of .... Christ," so that their new obedience and relation to Christ are determined by their election by God, which election springs from a "foreknowledge" which therefore cannot mean a mere prescience.
Another verse that speaks of foreknowledge and predestination is in Romans 8:29-30. It says:
For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified.
This passage is known as the "order of salvation," since it shows how God works salvation in people. What is particularly interesting is where it says those that were predestined were called. There are several types of calling. In the famous Bible verse that says "many are called, but few are chosen," that call is non-effectual and is the outward call of evangelism. However, the calling mentioned here in Romans 8 simply can not be an outward calling, but has to be an inward, effectual call that is done to convert a person after the outward call of the Gospel. I say this because the passage speaks of this calling definitely resulting in justification, and only a saved person is justified. This passage is important because it shows the Holy Spirit does this calling in those that were predestined only. It is also important because it shows only God's direct calls of conversion are effectual. God is ultimately responsible in working salvation, not man. All of this lends support for the Calvinistic view of predestination.
Previously, I noted that mankind is enslaved to sin and is not able to choose God. The Holy Spirit must convert a person and do all the work. Some Christians in the Holiness/John Wesley tradition assert that while mankind is enslaved to sin, God has enabled every person to be saved by sending the Holy Spirit to enable them to choose salvation if they so desire. This doctrine is called prevenient grace. Essentially, they believe that the results of the Fall no longer apply by this mystical "partial conversion" by the Holy Spirit. They believe that man’s will is restored. There are several problems with this attempt at getting around the deep state of depravity that mankind is in from birth. These Wesleyans have no Biblical backing, for one thing. In fact, the Bible supports the conclusion that mankind still has an enslaved nature before salvation. In 1 Corinthians 2:14, quoted earlier, there are men "without the spirit" and the passage makes it clear that these men can’t choose God. The NT calls mankind "a slave to sin" elsewhere (Romans 6:16-17). Their ability to see past their own desires and see God of their own volition has not been restored. If prevenient grace was true, we would see evidence that the Holy Spirit has touched every man and enabled them to choose God. But, by saying a person does not always have the Spirit of God, and that such a person is not able to come to God, prevenient grace is found to be faulty. Believers in prevenient grace will point to examples of emotional outcries in a handful of Biblical verses. At least one verse I have seen, Acts 2:37, can not even possibly be an act of prevenient grace, but is definitely EFFECTUAL grace bringing conversion (the grace that believers in predestination, as well as all Arminians except those that buy into prevenient grace, see solely in Scripture). Any other verses can simply be explained as an emotional appeal that is not truly repentant. Even the demons believe and tremble. The Biblical support is so lacking it is almost laughable. There is not the slightest evidence that God has made it possible for men to choose Him through prevenient grace or any other method. Therefore, mankind still has to be enslaved to his worldly desires.
Prevenient grace is wrong for several other reasons. There still is a sinful nature present. In the doctrine, the Holy Spirit has not actually converted anyone, but only "helped" people cover up the extreme nastiness of their nature. The testimony of Scripture is that only the transforming power of the Holy Spirit at conversion can make mankind turn around and love God and the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Prevenient grace would mean that the Holy Spirit can just do a "little" work and manage to turn a person around to see the love and beauty of God so we can "choose" to be saved ourselves. Only by being born again are we a "new creation (2 Corinthians 5:17)." Without regeneration, a person still has a part of that old nature, even if prevenient grace were true. It is clear that mankind will ALWAYS choose to continue to sin if given the chance because of our enslavement to sin and the fallen nature will win out on the Holy Spirit unless a complete conversion is accomplished by Him in a person’s soul. Prevenient grace would have us believe a complete transformation is not necessary to overcome the Fall.
Furthermore, prevenient grace (as well as all Arminian/free will thinking) makes Jesus a liar when he said "it is finished (John 19:30)." I say this because salvation is not actually purchased through the death of Christ, but only made possible to every man in such theology. On the contrary, Scripture makes it clear that Jesus purchased salvation for his elect. Jesus is the "ransom for many" (Mark 10:45) in the NT. Jesus said in John that He would die for "the sheep" and that some did not believe BECAUSE they were not his "sheep," his elect (both in John 10). In Wesleyan doctrine, instead of dying in an act of true atonement, taking care of everything but conversion, His death did not complete the work needed for salvation. With prevenient grace, the Holy Spirit is still needed to water down man's nature to make it possible to choose God. Also, if Jesus died only to make salvation possible, He was dying for a POSSIBILITY, not a REALITY. Everyone could reject salvation if they so chose and His death would have accomplished nothing. He didn't die to do anything of worth in Arminianism since it could have come to naught. Since Jesus was not actually doing any work to secure salvation for people, just making salvation possible, Jesus didn't have any work to finish! Jesus could not say "it is finished" if prevenient grace and Arminianism were true. This is a serious blow to free will theology.
Widening the scope of discussion to all Arminianism, not just the Wesleyan doctrine of prevenient grace, I have a problem with the man-centered nature of free will/Arminian theology. Grider says in A Wesleyan-Holiness Theology that "God voted for me, the devil voted against me, and I cast the deciding ballot for myself" (p. 353). On the surface, it certainly seems like a nice concept. However, it is wrong. Even though our sinful, enslaved nature that has not been "helped" by any type of prevenient grace makes his quote false, there are several other major issues I have with such a man-centered doctrine. First, it makes God into a weak little dog pleading with humans to come seek salvation in Christ. Arminians believe that God wants all to be saved (and use incorrect context in a NT passage to try to prove so). But, if Grider is correct, then God is not able to accomplish his will. Free will theology is nothing less than heresy because God never fails. In Psalm 135:6, it says "Whatever the LORD pleases He does, in heaven and in earth, in the seas and in all deep places." In Daniel 4:35, it says this: "All the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing; he does according to His will in the army of heaven and among the inhabitants of the earth. No one can restrain His hand or say to Him, "What have You done?" Jeremiah 32:27 says there is NOTHING too hard for the Lord. So, if God wanted to save everyone, He would. Since He has not, it can only be concluded that He has intended to only save some. The only way of explaining whom He intended to save is predestination. If the statement that people get to "cast the deciding ballot" were true, it would make the focus of the Christian faith on us, on our "good works," as choosing salvation certainly would be a work. While other religions certainly place a lot of focus on the works of people, Christianity is all about one great work. It is all about the Cross. Therefore, any doctrine such as free will in salvation that places man as the focus is in error. Christianity is not about our ability to choose, as we can't choose God. It is all about God choosing to send His Son to die for us. It is all about Jesus' work on that Cross and His love for us. This is the beauty of the Gospel...the focus is upon the great mercy of the Living God. The Gospel has nothing to do with us and everything to do with the Sovereign King and Lord of Hosts. Our righteousness is of rags. Salvation is not of works, of something WE do, but of GRACE, what GOD does in us by the Holy Spirit. Calvinism, and predestination in particular, puts the focus on God, as it properly should be. Ultimately, Calvinism is focused on giving glory to God, while Arminian free will thinking seeks to exalt man by making man the determiner of his own salvation. Man can thwart God's will on a whim in Arminianism, a very man-exalting theological outcome. In Calvinism, God is firmly on His throne, lifted up and exalted in unimaginable power and glory.
Another point of which Calvinistic predestination, instead of Arminian free will, is proven to be true is when one looks at who is considered to have innate worthiness to be saved. There is nothing in myself or anyone else that merits salvation. Since salvation is of grace, it is freely worked out by God in an act of mercy to those that are not deserving. Romans 5:17 says a Christian receives a "gift of righteousness." God bestows upon us worthiness to come before his throne; there is nothing in us that gives us worthiness. It says in Ephesians 2:4-9:
But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions--it is by grace you have been saved. And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus. For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith--and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God-- not by works, so that no one can boast.
Thus, anything which makes salvation into something "from yourselves," partially responsible from something in us that makes us "worthy," is a false view of salvation. Calvinistic predestination recognizes that there is nothing in us that is worthy of salvation. We have no righteousness, but are given a gift of Christ’s righteousness to make us pure in God’s sight despite our sin. Predestination is a complete gift, done without man’s nature having anything good and pure in him. However, believing in man’s ability to exercise free will in salvation does lead to salvation being more than a gift. It becomes a work by having man cast the deciding ballot in his sovereign mind and heart. It denies God the ability to make it an act of true grace to a person that could never understand God’s ways or choose God by himself. Also, salvation is not a true gift in Arminianism because people have to choose it. This choosing leads to a class of people that have managed, of their own ability, to see through their sin and see benefit in Christ's death. The other class of people was not smart enough to see through their sin and stayed enslaved to it. Free will believers claim this is fair. I must disagree, as it makes people fundamentally unequal with God, something which is not possible since it makes Him a "respecter of persons" (Acts 10:34). Some people achieve standing with God of their own strivings, while others were not intelligent enough to see the benefit of choosing God. Thus, those that chose God saw something wonderful in God prior to salvation (which is impossible Biblically). This is the outcome of Arminianism and it exalts the man who exercised his will and had enough luck to get to wade through his sinful nature. Something inside him is given the glory for choosing God instead of God getting his glory for saving him. This is an evil outcome of a belief in free will and is detestable. On the opposite side, Calvinists like myself assert God does not treat men unequally. We refuse to believe God would divide up the sheep from the wolves based on the whims of people. He does not send any prevenient grace to let humans create a class of people better than others, but leaves man in his fallen state to leave the field equal. Nobody can choose God. Then, He predestined in His sovereign will based on nothing in man, but solely based on His grace. Yes, there are again two groups, one chosen and one not, but this time the groups come not from the whim of man, but from the holy, perfect, and unceasingly wise will of God. The outcome is not the exaltation of man, as a Calvinist recognizes that except for God's divine election, he would be lost without hope like the neighbor down the street. What a humbling theological outcome and how truly amazing is this grace! How could anything but predestination be true?
This is the longest predestination paper I have written. It won't be the best you have seen I am sure, but I hope I have done a good job for a person that just graduated high school.
Hopefully, this will be a constructive and instructive thread.
His blessings to you.
drstevej
But that's all nitpicking, overall I thought it was a good starting point.
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