God's sovereignty and Meaningful Human Choices

[Bami Betiku]

Happy New Year People!

 

Why is this tough and controversial issue worth studying and discussing? What good can come from this? Bukky Bassey and I briefly discussed a similar issue on Facebook 2 weeks ago, as well as other discussion group I have participated in. many believers who are keen on living rightly are stuck on what they should accept as God’s own will (because of His sovereignty), and what they should accept as their own freewill (choices, also provided by God). You hear many Christians say “I’ll pray about it” whereas God may have given them the ability to choose and choose rightly (or even wrongly) out of their own freewill. In small-group Bible studies in campuses and on social media platforms, sovereignty and free will are bantered about. Some people even recognize these issues as hugely important. Convinced of their position, they look for opportunities to make their case. In our Navigators Bible study group discussion on campus last semester, this issue kept coming after our study on ‘Knowing God’s will.’

 

I believe one compelling reason to study this issue is to better understand what we cannot fully understand. And in the case of God’s sovereignty and human choice, while it’s not imperative that I understand everything, it is important that I believe in both. If I don’t believe in God’s sovereignty, I’ll either despair or imagine that I must carve out my own path. If I don’t believe in my freedom to make meaningful choices, I’ll either give up on life or take responsibility for my decisions. What other reasons are important in this? A much closer look!

1.       To develop a deeper appreciation for God and His word, which reveals Him to us – Psalm 19:8; 119:30, 105; 2 Peter 1:19.

2.       To help us mirror Christ’s humility – 1 Cor. 13:9,12 – True humility and wisdom consist of recognizing how little we really know. God is honoured when we go to His word to learn more about Him and His ways. We’re to bow to the wisdom of Scripture, even when its mysteries are hard to wrap our minds around.

3.       To embrace all of God’s inspired word, not just parts of it – Ecc. 7:18 – We must compare Scripture with Scripture to discern the whole counsel of God. If we have a hard time handling parallel or complex ideas such as Grace and Truth, or God’s sovereignty and free will or meaningful choice, we need to stretch our undersized minds to hold them both at once.

4.       To foster Unity in the body of Christ – I am sometimes impatient with other fellow Christians who believe God’s word but understand it differently than I do. I have been so critical on people physically and on social media on basic Scriptural truths. I have also learnt. From this experience. I’ll encourage you to carefully examine your own positions and inconsistencies before subjecting fellow Christians to blistering critique. Foster peace and Unity rather than division and rancour (John 17:20-21).

5.       To prevent us from becoming trivial people in a shallow age – 2 Tim. 2:7 – Though surrounded with sweeping superficiality and slavery to what’s trending on Facebook, Twitter, BBM, blogs, etc., we must learn to think deeply (2Tim. 4:3-4). If we devote our lives to dealing only with trivial issues, we can’t help but to become trivial people.

If you want truth and depth, you have to spend time in God’s word, allowing it to make the ‘crucial sixteen-inch journey’ from your head to your heart. The relationship of God’s sovereignty and our meaningful choice is both intriguing and beautiful. May the Lord help us not to undermine His Sovereignty while faced with the mundane of our lives.

 

Thank you Bukky Bassey for helping me go revisit this issue more closely. God bless you.

 

Bami Betiku

The Navigators Ibadan

P.O.Box 30729, Secretariat

Ibadan. Oyo State, Nigeria.

bamib...@gmail.com

+2348065321303

 

Men will not be lost because of their sins,

but because they have failed to make use of God’s remedy for sin…

 

[Onalaja 'Gbenga]

Hi Bami, 

Thank you for sharing this. Useful action points as we try to know God better. 

I have had personal battle reconciling our free will / meaning choices and God's sovereignty / omnipresence. Of course, we know the argument, if God knows the end from the beginning, then we really don't have any meaningful contribution to make anyway. 

As you aptly put, either of two things can happen:

"If I don’t believe in God’s sovereignty, I’ll either despair or imagine that I must carve out my own path. If I don’t believe in my freedom to make meaningful choices, I’ll either give up on life or take responsibility for my decisions."

The implication of not being able to hold these two 'truths' at the same time runs deeper that the ones you've mentioned, but those are good enough reasons to investigate really how God's will and our free will complement, or oppose each other. 

I happen to be reading an interesting thought experiment on this by Scott Adams. I attached the book for anyone interested in reading it.  (Caveat, I am not done reading the book and I don't know what the conclusion is on the book, but it has so far made me think).  

Again, thanks for sharing this. Praying that you will continue to grow in the knowledge and understanding of his word. Pray for me too. 

Warm regards, 

Gbenga

[Bami Betiku]

Thank you Gbenga for sharing this, and especially for the book. I have reattached it here for the ‘readthroughthebible’ group members who may want to take a look at it.

 

Honestly, you have expressed most people’s mind, including me. It’s very easy to conclude that since God is sovereign and determines everything, my choices are useless. And that will make God an authoritarian who expects unquestioning obedience, and we become just ‘a thing’ that cannot even think or be responsible for him/herself. Would God hold a supreme hold over our lives and still want us to make meaningful choices? On a pivot point of human responsibility rest God’s supreme authority and His gracious allowance of man’s freewill.

Holding these two in the light of the Scriptures (God’s word) will make a lot of sense.

Acts 17:26-27.

 

Blessings!

 

Bami Betiku

The Navigators Ibadan

P.O.Box 30729, Secretariat

Ibadan. Oyo State, Nigeria.

bamib...@gmail.com

+2348065321303

 

Men will not be lost because of their sins,

but because they have failed to make use of God’s remedy for sin…