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NASB | Psalm 103:19 ¶ The LORD has established His throne in the heavens, And His sovereignty rules over all. |
AMPLIFIED 2015 | Psalm 103:19 ¶ The LORD has established His throne in the heavens, And His sovereignty rules over all [the universe]. |
Subject: The Sovereignty of God |
Bible Note: 'Sloppy Slogans' continued 'One truism I've heard regarding the problem of God's sovereignty versus man's freedom goes something like this: "God is a gentleman. He won't tamper with your free will." The statement has a ring of truth to it, and as a slogan it has populist appeal. Yet, more often than not, the statement is like a roof hanging in mid-air; the more demanding foundational work needed to support it simply has not been done. 'For example, this maxim is vulnerable to a couple of simple observations. First, the Scripture doesn't make this particular claim about human freedom. It doesn't even imply that God is a gentleman who won't interfere with our lives. To the contrary, there are a number of biblical examples that indicate just the opposite. (...) 'Prayer and Free Will 'Second, the notion that God doesn't tamper with our free will presents problems in the area of prayer. For example, what exactly are we asking for when we pray for someone's salvation? Aren't our very words, "God, change this person"? Aren't we asking God to intervene by influencing a person's will in order to elicit a response of faith? It seems difficult to argue that God doesn't tamper with free will and then pray this prayer. 'The problem doesn't just present itself when praying for someone's salvation, though. It includes prayer for anything involving human agency. 'God answers prayer in two ways. He can respond directly, like he did when Peter was in jail and an angel released him. Since there was no human involvement, no one's will was violated. The same is true when Jesus multiplied the loaves and fishes or raised Lazarus from the dead. 'It seems, however, that most of our requests entail God's mediate action, in which the answer involves the agency of another person. Characteristically, we're not rescued by angels. Usually, God doesn't multiply food or raise the dead in direct, immediate response to our prayers. Instead, the garden variety of prayer sets the will of God against the will of man. 'Our prayers for a new job involve a human decision to hire. Our requests for the protection of the unborn speak to intentions of legislators and judges. Our petitions for good grades relate, in part, to the benevolence of a professor. In fact, with many prayer requests, the contrary will of a person is the precise issue of concern. Most prayers appeal to God to prevail upon other human wills. In effect we're praying, "God, use Your will and Your power to overcome the power and will of others." 'Did God Do It? 'I have a friend who was on her way to India with Youth With a Mission when she was diverted to Thailand because of an air-traffic controller's strike. Upon her arrival, she discovered that the YWAM team there had been praying for more helpers. They hailed her rerouting as a wonderful answer to their prayers. 'Consider this, though. Labor strikes happen when individuals with grievances agree together not to go to work. If a strike is the result of human choices, in what sense did God answer the missionaries' prayers? It seems that without the direct agency of God on the wills of men, apparent answers to prayer are mere accidents. 'This illustration points to an even larger issue: Does God have a plan? Is His plan something He merely desires, or is it something He decides will happen? Does God guarantee the outcome of His desires, at least in some cases? 'If God cannot determine people's actions in some way, how is it possible for Him to have a plan? Clearly, God does have a plan. Therefore, it follows that our understanding of human freedom is not accurately expressed by the slogan, "God won't tamper with free will." 'However we resolve this issue, we must give fair consideration to the fact that God does seem to tamper with the wills of men. Sometimes He does so aggressively, even in ways (like causing air-traffic controller strikes) that seriously inconvenience a lot of other people. If He didn't, history would simply be the chaotic record of human impulse instead of the grand unfolding of God's design. 'Beliefs Worth Having '...Ad hoc assessments and theological slogans aren't adequate. It's easy to state a belief. It's much more difficult to build an argument that will weather rigorous scrutiny. 'That's the only way to have a belief worth holding, though.' ____________________ Faith and Philosophy by Gregory Koukl. To read more go to: (www.str.org) |