Skip to main content

Free Will and God's Sovereignty (Molinism)

Like other Christians, I've wondered how it could be true that God both directs the course of history and gives humans the freedom to make their own choices. More specifically, I asked the common question, "Do we choose salvation, or does God choose it for us?" Calvinists in the Reformation argued that God determined, or predestined, who would be saved and who would not be saved, but like many others, this led to what I thought of as an unjust God because it meant he condemned some and saved others. Putting aside for the moment this false assumption of God's possible injustice-- indeed, none of us deserves salvation, and God's choosing salvation for anyone is a grace those saved didn't deserve-- what I ultimately wondered about was God's sovereignty versus our free will.

In my late teenage years, I thought I had solved the problem easily with a single verse: Romans 8:29, which reads, "For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters." I thought this made it clear that God knew who would choose him and who would reject him, so that he simply determined that those who would choose him had the opportunity to do so, so that they would in fact become Christians. This allowed me to believe our free will operated within God's sovereignty. God knows Person A would not choose him, and so he makes it impossible for that person to choose him; while he also knows Person B would choose him, and makes it impossible for that person not to choose him.

What I did not realize was that this Scripture is referring not to who would be saved and who would be condemned, but to Christians who are already saved being made in the likeness of Christ. Paul speaks not of salvation, but of sanctification. He foreknew who would be conformed, or made like, Christ. Paul is showing these believers that God sends his Spirit to help us in our weakness (Romans 8:26)-- a Spirit who intercedes for his followers (Romans 8:27)-- works for their good (Romans 8:28), and conforms them to Christ (Romans 8:29) (1)

A few years ago, I was introduced to molinism, a doctrine by a Catholic in the counter-Reformation named Luis Molina, who argued that God knew exactly what each person would do in each set of circumstances. William Lane Craig cites Acts 4:27-28 in an article titled "Arminian and Molinist Accounts of Divine Sovereignty and Human Freedom:"(2)

"for truly in this city there were gathered together against your holy servant Jesus, whom you anointed, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, along with the Gentiles and the peoples of Israel, to do whatever your hand and your plan had predestined to take place."

Here, God, Craig points out, put two specific people in place--Herod and Pilate--to do his will. He acted in a very specific way on human history. Molinism, Craig shows, means that God knew that Herod and Pilate would have made this choice,whereas another two people would have freed Jesus. Therefore, God placed Herod and Pilate in those circumstances so that his will would be done. God retained his sovereignty, while Herod and Pilate (who would have freely made that choice in those conditions) retained their free will. In the same way, God knows that you or I would do in a situation, and may have placed us in that situation so that we freely choose what God intended. (3)

This is the extent of my understanding of how free will and God's sovereignty can coexist, and therefore is just the beginning. In short, it's a start.

1. I am influenced here by the following sources:
*"Romans 8:29-30." Free Will and Predestination. Wordpress. Web. 25 May 2020. https://freewillpredestination.wordpress.com/romans-829-30/

*Boyd, Greg. "How Do You Respond to Romans 8:29-30?" ReKnew. 17 January 2008. Web. 25 May 2020. https://reknew.org/2008/01/what-about-romans-829-30/

*"What Does Romans 8:29 Mean?" BibleRef. GotQuestions.org. Web. 25 May 2020. https://www.bibleref.com/Romans/8/Romans-8-29.html

*Tonydisciple. "Romans 8:29-30 Refuting Calvinism." ChristianChat. Christian Chat. 18 July 2012. Web. 25 May 2020. https://christianchat.com/bible-discussion-forum/romans-8-29-30-refuting-calvanism-free-will.44992/

2. Craig, William Lane. "What is Molinism?" drcraigvideos. YouTube. 6 December 2019. Web. 25 May 2020.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IurPYaB0JGs

3. Craig, William Lane. "Doctrine of Creation (Part 12): Arminian and Molinist Accounts of Divine Sovereignty and Human Freedom." Reasonable Faith. Reasonable Faith. 22 August 2018. Web. 25 May 2020. https://www.reasonablefaith.org/podcasts/defenders-podcast-series-3/s3-doctrine-of-creation/doctrine-of-creation-part-12

Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Savior

This wasteland cold and dark runs free Its fearful creatures speak to me One fateful day one nudged my hand To set my eyes upon a tree He knew I could not understand For I was in his native land His signs became our common speech To lead me through the deadly sand Now stuck I saw him me beseech He could not lift me out to reach The firm foundation of a cave Outside the boundaries of this beach Withal, the beast became more brave To risk his own my life to save To carry me, its life it gave To carry me, its life it gave. This poem was inspired by Robert Frost's "Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening." That poem, like this one, has four four-line stanzas of eight syllables per stanza. Its rhyme scheme is AABA BBCB CCDC DDDD.
Post a Comment
Read more

Soul and Spirit

As a friend told me about a conversation she had with one of our pastors about whether animals go to heaven, she told me about the Hebrew word nephesh ("soul"). I wondered, then, what the difference was between soul and spirit. After a little research, I came across what many seem to agree is a main difference. The soul of a person is that person's being--personality and life--while the spirit is that part of us that connects with God. There are several verses that refer to spirit in this way:* "The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned." (1 Corinthians 2:14) "But I, brothers, could not address you as spiritual people, but as people of the flesh, as infants in Christ." (1 Corinthians 3:1) "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly p...
Post a Comment
Read more

Evil, According to Republicans and Democrats

Please note that the following thoughts are only my observations. Please consider the evidence you see in the behavior of both parties for yourself. In our politically polarized climate, I was thinking about how Democrats and Republicans are different, and where those differences come from. Democrats seem to place more hope in institutions, and seek to reform those institutions when there is something wrong in society. Hence, there is more willingness to levy taxes to offer more social services as a support to those with less than others. They see the state as a way to equalize society. Thus, evil, to Democrats, seems to be a social issue: if there is a problem in society--poverty, racism, climate change, etc.--it is a problem with the structure of society and must be addressed as such: repair the system, and you will solve the problem. They are generally accepting of a larger state bureaucracy because they believe that increased accountability within a state structure will prevent evi...
Post a Comment
Read more