Subject: What is Free Will? |
Bible Note: Lion, Regarding the extent to which God influences our "choices", here is some food for thought. My focus recently has been on the sovereignty of God... questioning in my own life whether I really view God as sovereign over everything in my life, or just over my salvation. Bear with me here, as this takes a bit to develop. First, as to our ability to seek after righteousness, Paul says: Romans 3 10 As it is written: "There is no one righteous, not even one; 11 there is no one who understands, no one who seeks God. We cannot seek God unless He puts it on our heart to do so. Even after salvation, if we desire to do good, we are powerless to do it: Romans 7 18 I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. 19 For what I do is not the good I want to do; no, the evil I do not want to do--this I keep on doing. After salvation, our power to be righteous comes from God's spirit within us: Romans 8 6 The mind of sinful man is death, but the mind controlled by the Spirit is life and peace; … 9 You, however, are controlled not by the sinful nature but by the Spirit, if the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Christ. Not only is it God's power, but we are controlled by His spirit Romans 1 5 Through him and for his name's sake, we received grace and apostleship to call people from among all the Gentiles to the obedience that comes from faith. Our obedience come from faith, not "self righteousness" (ie choosing to do good) Romans 3 22 This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. Our obedience (righteousness) is the result of His sovereign will: Philippians 2 13 for it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose. God effects His will in and through us. 2 Corinthians 4 6 For God, who said, "Let light shine out of darkness," made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ. 7 But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us. Paul teaches us that our power over the things of this world comes from God, not our own ability to do good. Ephesians 3 20 Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, Our righteousness is not evidence of "choosing wisely", it is evidence of God's power within us… His sovereignty. 1 Corinthians 2 4 My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit's power, 5 so that your faith might not rest on men's wisdom, but on God's power. Faith is the result of God's power, not the wisdom of men. Thus, that which flows from faith is also the result of God, not us. Galatians 2 20 I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. Our life is not one of wise choices, but one of faith... of Christ in us, living through us. Living a life of righteousness is not a matter of us making wise choices, but a matter of living by faith that "the one who is in us is greater than the one who is in the world". It is He who is our strength. Therefore, the key to "working out our salvation" is asking God for more faith... trusting that He is sovereign over my life and the world. It is not by my own power that I choose to do good, but by the power of Christ who lives in me. I ask myself... Do I really believe this, or do I try to do it all myself? If God is sovereign... really sovereign... why do I rely on me to overcome sin? It is He who is sovereign over my life, not me. If I rely on myself to make "right choices", am I not denying God's power and sovereignty? Should I not, rather, ask God for more faith and thereby rely on His power in my life to be righteous and holy? Finally, I will concede that, at some point, I must "choose" to do the right thing. But... and this is a big but... I think I have been operating under a misconception that "choosing to do good" is the result of my "trying harder", rather than the result of God's gift of faith and power working in me. I am coming to believe that this is a denial of God's sovereignty in my life, and the likely cause of my failure to overcome sin. The good news is that, whatever we ask in HIS name, He will give us. It seems to me that it is not a matter of aligning our will with His... its a matter of opening the door wide, letting Him in, and letting our will be replaced by His. Then righteousness happens. Thoughts? Curt |