When I first came to Liberty University as a freshman staying on the dorms, I never really thought of the importance in the difference between Armenianism and Calvinism until I heard the overwhelming rush of debates over the topic in the hallway. Predestination versus free-will has always been a topic that has been less interesting to me because all I really cared about growing up was believing in a God who I know had perfect will and would not leave us in a misunderstanding here on earth. In Norman Geisler’s , Chosen But Free, the old controversy between free will and predestination has been looked at, analyzed, researched and prayed about as he explains a moderate view from both sides.
In chapter two, Geisler brings to attention the three basic views of divine sovereignty and human free choice. First off, there is the extreme sovereignty view, which I do not agree with for many reasons, that says that God is in complete control and nothing we do can change the way he planned everything to happen. I personally cannot agree with this view because then I would have no purpose in being here. It would almost be as if God is playing a giant board game and we are the pieces that he moves along the board and all we are here for is for him to play around with. There is no room in this view to show God’s love. The second view is the extreme free will view, which I think is nearly as silly as the extreme sovereignty view, which describes the idea that God gave away some of his sovereignty to his creation so that they would have complete free will. The reason that I cannot agree with this is because in Jeremiah 29:11 God says that he has a plan for us and if he gave us all complete free will and he has no control, then there is no way that he has a plan for us. Then there is the third view, which is the balanced view, a view that I can agree with, which balances out the ideas of sovereignty and free will. I can agree with this view because of the verse found in 1 Corinthians 10:13 that says that God will not let us be tempted beyond what we are able to bear. To me this verse means that God is allowing us to make our own decisions but he is there to guide and protect us along the way.
I think that the reason there is so much controversy is because free will and predestination creates a dilemma. If both those terms were used in one sentence it would pretty much be an oxymoron. As humans, we are simple-minded creatures who can never fully understand God. We will never be able to fully understand what God has revealed to us. Geisler uses many passages in scripture to support what he says within his book, and provides great detail as to what the different views are. As a personal believer in Christ, I believe that God loves us so much that he wants us to make our own choices and that he will be there to protect us along the way.
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