Saturday, December 01, 2018

Hyper-Calvinism 4

Hyper-Calvinism also tends to claim that everything we do and say is the direct result of God's control. So the decisions and choices we make every day (not "free will"), are really the decisions and choices of God. Rather than take personal responsibility for the screw ups in our lives, Hyper-Calvinism will attempt to blame it all on God. "I had no control over it. God made it happen. After all, He is sovereign."

Yes, God is sovereign. Yes, all things are in His control. However, that does not mean that He steps in and personally directs every little detail of our lives. While there is no such thing as a "free will," we do make decisions and choices in our life, even if influenced by our circumstances and surroundings. I still get to decided whether I want to eat liver or not, or whether I like it or not. God does not decide that for me. My decision might be influenced by my circumstances and surroundings, but it is nevertheless my decision.

Hyper-Calvinism will even attempt to claim that God chooses who goes to Heaven and Hell; that God chooses who to save and who to damn. That is not true. God only chooses those to whom He will save, because otherwise all men (each and every individual) would end up going to Hell. We have imputed sin, inherited sin, and personal sin. We deserve to go to Hell 100 times over. Anyone who denies this does not know themselves, let alone their Bible. If it were not for the saving grace of God, all of us (each and every one of us) would be destined for Hell. God chooses whom to save by His free grace for His glory, so that all of creation sees what a good and kind God He is. If God chose to let us all go to Hell, not only would we absolutely deserve it, but God would still be a good and kind God and His justice will have been served. His holiness will not have been marred.

The actions in your life will not be the fault of God. If you wind up in prison for your decisions, God is not to blame. If you have a failed marriage, God is not to blame. Sure, God could have supernaturally reached down and prevented you from pulling the trigger or stabbing someone or robbing a place. Sure, God could have supernaturally reached down and prevented your spouse from leaving, or you from screwing up your marriage. But if that is how God did things, then you would be nothing more than a mere plaything for God. God does not make certain men rape certain women. That choice is of their own doing. Why did you do the things that led to your being in prison? Why did the things happen that led to your failed marriage? All these questions stem from the skeptic/doubter/atheist question, "If God is good, why is there evil in the world?"

Because sin exists. Because you are a sinner. Because you sin.

If you honestly want God to supernaturally reach down and fix the problems with the world (which He will do, when Jesus returns to judge the world), to get rid of sin and evil, guess what? You would no longer be here. You would be among the first to go because of your wretched sinfulness. Oh, you do not think you have committed any heinous sinful acts? Your self-righteousness, like that of the Pharisees, would be your condemnation. You have no direct line into Heaven apart from the saving grace of Christ Jesus. If you do not have that, then you would be part of the problem that you are asking God to fix.

Adam and Eve were the only human beings to have absolute free will. God placed them in the Garden of Eden and gave them one simple command: "Do not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil." Eve was deceived into eating the fruit, but Adam was not. Adam freely chose to eat. Because Adam was our representative, his sin is our sin. Had we been placed in the garden, we would have done the exact same thing. Do not lie to yourself and claim that you would have done anything different when you can look inside yourself and see the kinds of sins you have freely committed of your own accord.

Since Adam, we are born with a tendency toward sin. We love to sin. Just look inside yourself at all your planned and habitual sin. Look inside your mind at the lies you concoct in your mind should you be caught for the sin you commit. That is called premeditation. Not only are you planning on sinning, but you are also planning on sinning further by trying to cover up your sin if ever found out.

God does not put the thoughts that go through your mind in your head. Neither does the devil; stop giving him more credit than he deserves. God did not make you do the foolish things you have done in your life. Neither did the devil; again, stop giving him more credit than he deserves. Rather than take personal responsibility, people attempt to say, "The devil made me do it." Trust me, the devil has bigger things on his plate than being concerned about you. You are nothing and nobody to the devil.

If you are walking down a corridor and you arrive at a T-intersection, going left and right, your decision is already set. God did not choose which way you would turn. You did. The question gets asked, "Could you have chosen differently?" Yes, you could have. But a further question asks, " Would you have chosen differently?" No, you would not have. Every choice you would ever make in life is already seen and know because God is outside of time and sees it all at once. From God's point of view, you have already made those decisions. So the decisions and choices you make are already set in stone because God has seen them all. He did not make them for you. The only decision that God makes on a person's behalf is salvation, because if God did not intervene and left it up to us, each and every one of us would reject God because of our hatred and sin. God is not to be blamed for our going to Hell; that is all our doing. But all the glory for us going to Heaven belongs to God, because if it was not for Him, none of us would be there.