Avoiding Responsibility

Norman Geisler wrote a book about the popular free will versus sovereignty debate called Chosen but Free. I would like to start off my post by stating my position. I would call myself, based on this book, a moderate Calvinist. I believe in a balanced view of God’s sovereignty and man’s free will. The Bible talks about both; so there is no denying that both have its place in Theology.  I lean more toward a moderate Calvinist more than a moderate Armenian because I tend to believe once saved, always saved. I have to be careful, here, to admit that I am still “working out my salvation” in regards to this point. I have heard more that once saved, always saved so I tend toward that view. I realize that I need to work this out myself and not rely just on what others interpretations of the Scriptures are.

            When I was reading the beginning chapters I felt my stomach turn when the author was mentioning both extreme views. I value his non-judgmental approach, bringing balance to a controversial subject. I want to focus on chapter four and briefly state my opinion. Geisler’s premise was this: if God knows everything we are going to do and our free will cannot change that, then the future cannot be changed. Therefore, the conclusion is, we are not responsible for any of our actions whether good or bad. This is an extreme view of God’s sovereignty and does not take into account man’s free will. Given this premise, the human race is completely “off the hook.” It negates that all of mankind knows we are responsible for our own actions. When a bad deed goes unpunished, we are quick to seek justice. Why? Because we believe that person should be held responsible for his/her actions. Geisler points this out and I agree with his positions that all humans are responsible for their own sinful condition.

            Another interesting concept is that Christians sometimes say “God allowed this [bad thing] to happen.” They say God did not cause the evil, but just allowed it to happen. An extreme Calvinist could never hold to this viewpoint. God could have given the person who caused the bad thing the desire to always do good therefore avoiding the sin. Because He did not do this and He controls all things God has to be held responsible for the sinful act. The Bible clearly states in James 1:13-14 that God is not the author of sin but mankind is.

            Frequently, the devil is blamed as the person behind the sin. Who made Lucifer sin? By using the same argument above, God would have to ultimately be blamed. God cannot be against God; that is a contradiction. Therefore, Lucifer had to sin on his own free will showing that we too have a free will.

            The bible, from start to finish, from before the Fall and after the Fall have free will. You cannot deny this fact. The truth then is this: “God nor the devil made me do it, I did.” Mankind has always tried to explain away his/her sense of responsibility, but our actions are, in fact, ours.

Husband of One Wife: Worship in the Church

The church will always have disagreements on how to interpret the Bible and how to run or operate a church. When discussing these issues the church needs to be careful not to fight one another, but healthily encourage and edify one another through questioning. To begin, one must realize that he/she is there for the church; the church is not there for him/her. If Christians can grasp this fact many of the quarrels among members of the same body would dissipate. To key in on a specific disagreement among many churches, let’s look at 1 Timothy 3: 2, 12. In this chapter Paul is giving the qualifications of an elder and a deacon. An elder is supposed to be a mature Christian in the church according to John Calvin. Luther says they are to be strictly preachers. Deacons are to be the servants of the church aiding the widows and orphans. Churches will sometimes distinguish the two from each other by voting. Deacons, sometimes will not vote. One specific phrase in these verses brings a great amount of debate to the Christian community- “husband of one wife”. What does this mean? It has become a modern day scarlet letter and requires attention. There are only nine different ways possible to interpret this little phrase. It means either (1) single pastors are not allowed, (2) spouse of pastor cannot be divorced either, (3) pastor cannot remarry even if his spouse dies, (4) the wife must be living, (5) only one wife after salvation and it does not matter how may before salvation, (6) if the wife leaves the pastor cannot remarry, (7) one wife except if left the pastor can remarry, (8) one wife except for infidelity, or finally (9) one wife at a time. Regardless of what position taken, while looking at the options it is important to remember to take into account God’s laws and also His grace. While this is definitely a rule that must be considered, we need to realize that God’s grace can cover sin. Empathetically, put yourself in a situation where you need a job as a pastor, are called to do so, but are also divorced. Your wife left you and you fought to keep the marriage. Would God not have grace and mercy on that person? If the answer is “yes, God would have mercy”, then the church should as well. Remember, Jesus gave mercy to the adulterer who was caught in the act. The church is too quick to condemn others forgetting we are all sinners. It is my belief that as long as the husband was honoring the sanctity of marriage by fighting against divorce, the church cannot fault him for his wife’s actions and should be given the position if the other requirements are also met.

My Testimony

When I was six years old my church held a Vacation Bible School or VBS. A VBS is a week long event that some churches hold every summer for children. There are arts and crafts, games, competition, singing, and at the end of each night a sermon. At the end of each night the pastor of my church would get up in front of us and talk to us about the Bible and what it meant to us. Wednesday night was a special night of the week because my pastor would not only talk to us about the Bible but would draw us a picture using chalk. He was a very talented chalk artist. He picked a story out of the Bible and drew it out for us. He divided the canvas in half and on the top side he drew a castle shining with angels with wings flying around it. It was very beautiful and bright. A place anyone would want to vacation. On the lower half was completely the opposite of that. He drew flames licking the faces of people who looked to be burning and screaming. No one, as far as I was concerned wanted to go there. Then he turned off all the lights and drew something on the canvas that didn't show up. Then he turned the black light on and the words he wrote shown up. On the top he wrote heaven and the bottom hell. So he presented us with two places and said that Jesus lives in heaven and Satan lives in hell. They both want you to come and live with them, but you have a choice to make. He said that automatically we are going to hell because we are sinners; we have lied and cheated and done wrong. But, Jesus knowing we didn't want to go there made a way to save us from that place. All we have to do is believe in that way and we will be saved from hell. He made me see that night that I was a bad person and was going to hell and needed Jesus to get my out; be my Savior. My cousins were there with me and I was scared to accept Jesus as my Savior in front of them. The pastor asked everyone to close their eyes and the people who wanted Jesus to come forward. Despite my fear, I did. Someone took me to a room and read from the Bible the verses that tell me I am a sinner and need Jesus. Then I prayed to God asking Him to be with me throughout my life and when I die to take me to heaven and not hell. I asked Him to forgive me from all the bad things I have done. It was the best decision I ever made!

I'M BACK!

I got tired of blogging and took off for a year but now I'm back. My love for blogging was revived by a forced project in my Theology class :)