Building U: Fall 2004
It's My Will...Or Is It God's?
Chip Crush
Lesson 5 of 5
How Does This Affect Me?

Last week, we finished up our study of Calvinism and Arminianism.  Today, we will end our course with a Q&A session after briefing discussing the problems of good and evil, why we engage in prayer, and why we evangelize, etc.

First, why do we pray?

Both Calvinists and Arminians pray because:

  1. God commands us to pray
  2. We believe prayer has real effective power

Both Calvinists and Arminians pray despite believing that God has absolute foreknowledge – that the future is fixed, because God knows it with certainty.

   Why pray for the salvation of others?

  1. The Arminian argues that Calvinists need not pray for the salvation of others, because according to Calvinist theology:
    1. Only the elect are made willing and able to believe.
    2. All of the elect are certain to come to Christ.
    3. Therefore, Calvinist prayer cannot be effective.

    The Calvinist replies: Prayer is like a carrier pigeon, sent by God to us and back to God.  He ordains the ends and the means to those ends.  Prayer is a PRIMARY means ordained by God to bring Him Glory.  Every prayer is ordained by God to bring about His desired outcome.  Believers should want to be used by God!  Prayer is a PRIMARY way that we can be used by God.

    Example 1: God elected Joe before creation; Christ died for Joe; God ordains that Sally will pray for Joe’s salvation; when that occurs, at the time of God’s choosing, the Holy Spirit will regenerate Joe and make him willing to receive Christ. Joe then becomes a Christian, in a sense, thanks to the prayer of Sally.

    Example 2: Johnny can’t decide whether or not to study for a test, because he believes that the grade he will get is already determined or certainly known by God. Johnny doesn’t realize that God not only determines the grade (ends), but also the means to achieve that grade – that Johnny will study hard and earn an A, or decline to study and earn a D.

  2. The Calvinist argues that Arminians are inconsistent with their theology when they pray for the salvation of others, because according to Arminian theology:
    1. God is already wooing each person to the maximum of His willingness.
    2. He will not violate the free-will of any person.
    3. Arminians end up asking God for something they do not believe He will do.

    “Prayer is powerful not because it changes God or the future, but because it changes us.”

An excerpt from one of last week's homework assignments by John Piper:

Until we embrace the sovereignty of God, we cannot pray consistently that God would actually save lost sinners. We can't do what Paul does so passionately in Romans 10:1, "Brothers, my heart's desire and prayer to God for them is that they might be saved." Paul's heart's desire is for the salvation of his fellow Jews. When our hearts ache for something, we pray for it. And so he says that his prayer to God is that they be saved. He wants something accomplished in his mission the salvation of Jews as he preaches in the synagogues. So he prays to God that this would happen. He asks God to save them. "O God, that they might be saved! Do it God! Do what you need to do!"

Now my point is this: that kind of praying is inconsistent if you do not believe in the sovereignty of God. And what I mean by the sovereignty of God here is that he has the right and the power to save unbelieving, unrepentant, hardened sinners. Now there are a lot of people who do not believe God has that right. They do not believe that God has the right to intrude upon a person's rebellion, and overcome it, and draw that person effectually to faith and salvation. They don't believe that God dare exert himself so powerfully in grace as to overcome all the resistance of a hardened sinner. Instead they believe that man himself has the sole right of final determination in the choices and affections of his heart toward God. Every person, they say, has the final self-determination in whether they will overcome the hardness of their hearts and come to Christ. And so it is finally in the hands of man, not God, who will be saved and how many will inhabit the Kingdom.

The effects on prayer for such people are devastating if they try to pray in a manner consistent with this rejection of the sovereignty of God. They can't ask God to actually save anybody. They cannot pray, "God, take out their heart of stone and give them a new heart of flesh" (Ezekiel 11:19). They can't pray, "Lord, circumcise their heart so that they love you" (Deuteronomy 30:6). They can't pray, "Father, put your Spirit within them and cause them to walk in your statutes" (Ezekiel 36:27). They can't pray, "Lord, grant them repentance and a knowledge of the truth" (2 Timothy 2:25-26). They can't pray, "Open their eyes so that they believe to the Gospel" (Acts 16:14).

The reason they can't is that all these prayers give God a right that they have reserved for man - namely the ultimate, decisive determination of his destiny. If they ask God to do any of these things, He would be the one who actually saves.

How then do you pray, if you really believe that man and not God must make the ultimate decisions about salvation in the universe? I take an example from a well-known book on prayer that does reject God's sovereignty in the salvation of sinners. This writer says that the way to pray is to "Ask God to cause a specific person to begin questioning whom they can really trust in life." But my question then is: Why is right for God to cause a person to think a question and wrong for God to cause that person to think an answer? Why is it legitimate for God to take control of a person to the degree that He cause the person to ask a question he would not have otherwise asked, but it is not legitimate for God to exert that same influence to cause the person to give an answer that he would not otherwise have given - namely that Jesus should be trusted?

Here is another example of how this writer thinks we should pray for unbelievers: "Pray that God will plant in the hearts of these people ... an inner unrest, together with a longing to know the 'Truth.'" Now my question is, If it is legitimate for God to "plant a longing" in a person's heart, how strong can the longing be that God chooses to plant?

There are two kinds of longings God could plant in an unbeliever's heart. One is so strong that it leads the person to pursue and embrace Christ. The other is not strong enough to lead a person to embrace Christ. Which do you pray for? If you pray for the strong longing, then you are praying that the Lord work effectually and get that person saved. If you pray for the weak longing, then you are praying for an ineffectual longing that leaves the person in sin (but preserves his self-determination). Do you see where this leads? People who really believe that man must have the ultimate power of self-determination can't consistently pray that God would convert unbelieving sinners. Why? Because if they pray for divine influence in a sinner's life, they are either praying for a successful influence (which takes away the sinner's ultimate self-determination), or they are praying for an unsuccessful influence, (which is not praying for conversion). So either you give up praying for conversion or you give up ultimate human self-determination.

Paul leaves no doubt where he stands on that issue in Romans 9:16, "It depends not upon man's will or exertion, but upon God's mercy." So he prays that God would convert Israel! He prays for her salvation! He does not pray for ineffectual influences, but for effectual influences. And that is how we should pray, too.

In other words, when you believe in the sovereignty of God - in the right and power of God to bring hardened sinners to faith and salvation - then you will be able be able to pray with no inconsistency and with great Biblical promises for the conversion of the lost.

 Second, why do we evangelize?

Both Calvinists and Arminians evangelize because:

  1. God commands us to spread the Gospel (The Great Commission)
  2. We believe evangelism has real effective power

Both Calvinists and Arminians evangelize despite believing that God has absolute foreknowledge – that God knows who will spend eternity in heaven and who will not.

  1. The Arminian argues that Calvinists need not evangelize, because according to Calvinist theology:
    1. Only the elect are made willing and able to believe.
    2. All of the elect are certain to come to Christ.
    3. Therefore, Calvinist evangelism cannot be effective.
    4. Furthermore, Calvinists cannot say, “Christ died for you.” They don’t know if He did or not.

    The Calvinist replies: God ordains the ends and the means to those ends. Evangelism is a PRIMARY means ordained by God to bring Him Glory. Every Gospel-sharing encounter is ordained by God to accomplish His desired ends. Believers should want to be used by God! Evangelism is a PRIMARY way that we can be used by God. Calvinists say, “Christ died for sinners.”

    Example 1: God elected Joe before creation; Christ died for Joe; God ordains that Sally will share the Gospel with Joe; when that occurs, at the time of God’s choosing, the Holy Spirit will regenerate Joe and make him willing to receive Christ. Joe then becomes a Christian, in a sense, thanks to the evangelism of Sally.

  2. The Calvinist argues that Arminians are inconsistent with their theology when they evangelize, because according to Arminian theology:
    1. God already knows who will accept Christ and who will reject Christ. (He elected men to salvation based on this foreknowledge.)
    2. No one can be persuaded to do otherwise by the evangelistic efforts of men.

    When we understand that our responsibility is simply sharing the message of the Gospel, our burden for bringing people to faith is lifted. We are working with Christ, not merely for Christ. We can get caught up in our presentation of the Gospel, trying to make it as inoffensive as possible. If a loved one denies Christ, we continue to pray and evangelize. It’s not our fault if they don’t receive Christ. The Holy Spirit will bring all the elect to faith at the time of His choosing.

    “The message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved, it is the power of God.” See 1 Corinthians 1:17-31; 2:1-16.

Third, why is there good in the world?

  1. The Arminian says: The fact that good exists in the world proves that man is not totally corrupt, as Calvinism claims. People do good things, even unbelievers. People do bad things too, and it’s those bad things that require forgiveness.

  2. The Calvinist says: God sustains all of creation all the time. There is good in the world only because God prevents evil from taking its desired course, which would destroy all of creation. Much of the good we perceive is not good, according to God. When a pagan does a kind act, it is certainly done with an evil motive (from God’s perspective). God’s standards are so immeasurably beyond our perceptions of good that we will never comprehend true goodness this side of eternity. “Everything that does not come from faith is sin.” “Without faith it is impossible to please God.” “Every good and perfect gift is from above.” Every good thing comes from God.

Fourth, what about the problem of evil?

  1. Arminians accuse Calvinists of saying that God is the author of sin. Arminians suggest that God made man with the ability to sin or to not sin so that man could choose to truly love God.

    Here we come back to the libertarian free will / compatibilistic free will issue. It was a shame that Adam chose to sin against God, but before creation, by foresight, God knew that would happen and provided a way out in Jesus Christ. But God also foresaw that not everyone would believe in Christ, leaving open the answer to this question: Why did God create those He foresaw spending eternity in hell, though He desired for them to have faith in Christ?

  2. Calvinism again says that God ordains the means and the ends for His glory. Believers should want God to be glorified to the maximum! And evil is a primary way that God glorifies Himself – by overcoming it! God is more glorified by overcoming evil with Christ’s sacrifice and saving grace than He would be if there was no evil. See Luke 15:3-7.

    Since evil exists, we get to see the mercy and justice of God. Without evil, we would not witness these aspects of God’s glorious, perfect character. God did indeed create Adam with the ability to sin or to not sin, but God was not hoping that man would choose to not sin. God determined that man should sin so that Christ would be revealed to the world for the glory of God. This does not make God the author of sin.

    Furthermore, countering the Arminian position that true love requires the ability to not love, Calvinists say that God could have certainly created Adam in a way that would still allow him to willing love and obey God without the capability to sin.

    In fact, that’s how it will be in eternity for the believer!  Believers will willingly love God without the possibility of sinning!  Wow!  How awesome!

Conclusion: Q & A - concerns and questions...
An analogy of Calvinism & Arminianism

Is Christ a life preserver tossed to us who are drowning in the ocean of sin with hopes that we will grab on for life?

Or is Christ a lifeguard who jumps in the ocean of sin to pull our dead bodies to shore and resuscitate us to new life?

Is my SALVATION by my will?
Or is my SALVATION by God’s will?

  1. The Calvinist Answer:  Jonah 2:9 – “Salvation comes from the LORD.”

    1. It is God’s will from eternity past to save the elect!  Be thankful that He chose to save anybody, as He was not obligated to do so!
    2. It is also my will, but only after my nature has been made new and willing, regenerated by the Holy Spirit to receive the salvation of God the Father, provided by the work of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.

  2. The Arminian Answer:  Titus 2:11 – “The grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men.”

    1. It is my will, cooperating with God’s wooing, persuasive grace, which appeared to all men and to which I responded in faith to be reborn and gain salvation.
    2. It is also God’s will to offer all men saving grace.  Be thankful for God’s offer, because He was not obligated to offer salvation!

Homework for week 5 and beyond

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