Monday, February 29, 2016

Thoughts on Free Will and the Work of the Holy Spirit

A falsehood commonly conveyed and regarded as truth amongst many professing Christ today, (that the Holy Spirit takes possession of men, or that He controls men, similarly as when a hand takes control of a glove when inserted, and consequently the glove takes on the will of the hand), this falsehood charges God with one of two blasphemies: That God was ignorant of this option in the beginning of Creation, and consequently many evils ie. wars, adulteries, greed, etc. resulted from His ignorance. Or, that God was not ignorant, but knew His own will to take possession of men by the Holy Spirit, but desired that men should first sin, provoke Him to wrath, and then be destroyed. That He knew how to avoid all of these evils, and to create men who needed no improvement, but were altogether perfect and inherently virtuous, but for some mysterious reason chose not to produce this until years of much misery were accomplished.

Those who think that "if God knew these things would happen, then why did He grieve, weep, or become angry when they happened ie. men chose to live wickedly. It seems to have caught Him by surprise." I would ask you, "Why did Jesus weep in John 11? Or why would a woman weep for the slow death of her son? Or why weep for any who die? We all know we're going to die, this doesn't surprise us." Just because you know something is going to happen, before it happens, doesn't mean you do not cry or rejoice when it happens. Likewise, if God knows who is going to repent or sin, this doesn't prevent heaven from rejoicing when one has repented, or Him from grief when men live wickedly.

Evil only exists because of the longsuffering of God. Rather than destroying those presently living in rebellion immediately, He gives them breath. He is patient with men, and desires the repentance, not the death of the sinner.

If Adam was created to “fall”, then he needed no forgiveness from God. He would have been perfect, free from fault, and without blame, for he would only have done what he was designed by God to do. God would not have told Adam to not eat of the tree, if that was the reason Adam was created. Both God’s spoken and eternal plan would have been in conflict with each other, the one being an illusion, and the other God's true design.

If man is not the one who chooses each time to obey, to endure, to believe, to suffer long while being kind, to really love his neighbor as himself, to turn the other cheek, bear his cross, to give and to forgive; if God is really the One doing all of these things in each man by His grace and through the Holy Spirit [without any cooperation from man], then God made a mistake by placing man in Eden, and telling him not to eat of the tree, and for allowing him to err as he did [For then God's own will would accuse Him, and He would become the Author of sin, the Lover of what He hates, the blame for all evil, and incompetent to retain absolute control over His creature; if God had absolute control over man, then [in Eden] He willed against His own will, and His kingdom being divided against itself, could not stand]. And, if man had no will of his own, then it would not be possible for man to ever love God. God would be served by creatures that could not do otherwise. But the fact that it is possible for each man to do otherwise [than to lovingly serve God] is what makes our relationship to God, distinct from other creatures.

Again, if it was God's will for man to obey God, by being controlled by the Holy Spirit, God's grace, or any other power than man's own free choice, then God, lacking wisdom, must have overlooked this option in the beginning of creation; or even worse, played a cruel game with man while He withheld His power.

If somebody were to ask, “If God is so holy, so perfect, all wise and all knowing, then why did He create an imperfect man, who would make a wrong choice, bringing death to all humanity, causing every person to run the risk of hell for eternity?” The answer could be explained as: Love is a complicated thing. For some it is too complex but for others it is not. God created man as perfectly as He could have within the confines of love. God would not be that which He is not, nor would He do that which He would not; therefore the essence of God is faithfulness, being that God is love. So, it would be against His nature to behave or act contrary to that nature. God, through being, upholds the entire universe. The eternal seams which hold the cosmos together would suddenly come undone if He were to reverse Who He is. Therefore, it was expedient that He established freedom in the will of man. This grand creation of His was placed in a garden with two trees. The trees represented two choices and two realities. The wise choice would make man immortal; but to err would mean the gravest mistake, resulting in mortality. Man erred. However, God foreknew the choice His creation would make, so He prepared redemption for humanity long before man ever became a living soul. Is there then, injustice with God, who knew that man would fall, yet made him anyway? Certainly not! For He was willing to suffer the loss of all those who would perish in their own unbelief and rejection of what is good, that He might have those who would believe in Him of their own volition and love what is true and good.

"As for why evil exists, it is understood as the direct and indirect results of humanity’s abuse of a free will. Thus free will is the gift that makes it possible for us to do evil and is what makes it meaningful when we choose to do good. Apparently our Creator believes that a universe in which evil is possible would still be better than a universe where free will, love, and meaningful relationships are not possible [Hatzier]."

If humanity does not possess "free will" then everyone is perfect...and the only Person to be blamed for the evil in the world is God...However, the problem has never been with God, but with our own free will, as one early Christian stated, “We were not created to die, but we die by our own fault. Our free-will has destroyed us; we who were free have become slaves; we have been sold through sin. Nothing evil has been created by God; we ourselves have manifested wickedness; but we, who have manifested it, are able again to reject it.” (Tatian A.D. 160)

Let it be known that loving God and doing is will is not so important to Him because of vain mortal ambitions. Some may accuse God of being vain, standing in need of recognition and love, etc., because it is all about His will (Him). These accusations would only be true if He does not have the most perfect will, or if His will is selfish. But who does doing His will benefit? Who benefits if you take the command to "love your neighbor as yourself seriously"? Who benefits if you turn the other cheek, help the poor, and purify your heart from lustful looks and carnal desires? Who benefits from knowing God, acknowledging Him, and doing His will? Doubtless, above all, humanity is blessed in doing His will, obeying His commands, acknowledging Him, pursuing holiness, and from knowing God. He is the source of all life, love, righteousness, true joy, and peace! It is when the human race rebels and seeks its own that morality declines, and men suffer, which effects not only humanity, but in short, even animals, and the environment.

"And there went great multitudes with him: and he turned, and said unto them, 'If any man WILL come after Me, let him deny himself, take up his cross, and follow Me.'" It is absurd to think that He declared such a statement to men, when such a statement would belong to God only; If God alone had the ability to choose. The fact that He proclaimed those words to great multitudes of MEN who were with Him, "If any man WILL," demonstrates His understanding of what is in men: A will able to choose to deny themselves, take up the cross, and follow Him. The Lord's Prayer, "Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done," is how he taught His disciples to pray. If it were not possible for another will to be done, this prayer makes no sense. If His example in the garden applies to us, "Nevertheless not My WILL, but Thy will be done," then it is because we have a choice to do "Thy will," or our own will.

"The Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with his mighty angels, In flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ: Who shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of his power." [2 Thess. 1] If men have no free will, then men are not going to be punished for not obeying the gospel of our Lord Jesus. They have no choice in the matter. The very evil works they do would be the will of God, not theirs. Such a blasphemous view of God debases the mind, and produces totally depraved men.

Is God going to cast Himself into hell? Is He going to render to Himself according to His works? Is He going to tell Himself "Well done thou good and faithful servant? or depart from Me ye cursed into the everlasting fire?" Certainly not!

Moreover, Wisdom says, "When he prepared the heavens, I was there: when he set a compass upon the face of the depth: When he established the clouds above: when he strengthened the fountains of the deep: When he gave to the sea his decree, that the waters should not pass his commandment: when he appointed the foundations of the earth." [Proverbs 8] The waters do not transgress His commandments because the waters have no choice in the matter. Men will be punished for transgressing His commandments, because men (unlike the waters) are capable of performing them, but choosing not to obey they are guilty of transgression. If God is completely Sovereign and ruling over man in the same way as He does the aforementioned waters, then He will not be punishing men for transgressions. However, God does not rule over men the same way He does the waters, for He has commanded men not to transgress His commands yet they do it anyways.

"My doctrine is not mine, but his that sent me. If any man will do his will, he shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God, or whether I speak of myself." [John 7] Again, if any man WILL do his will.

"For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it." Notice: whosoever WILL.

"For the Son of man shall come in the glory of his Father with his angels; and then he shall reward every man according to his works." The Son of Man will never be able to do this if the works men do are not their own works. If men are not doing what it appears they are doing (if the works they perform are not the results of their own free choice) then the works are not their own, and Jesus made no sense when He said that He will reward every man according to HIS works.

But let it be known that we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous; Who is the propitiation for our sins, not for ours only but also for the whole world. This is needed, not because the Holy Spirit takes possession of men slowly, and therefore, the inherent evil in men manifests from time to time; but because the Holy Spirit does not take possession of men, but rather men choose to walk after the flesh, and not after the spirit. This is why God calls men everywhere to repent, warning those who don't, and promising eternal life to those who do. “Wherefore we labour, that, whether present or absent, we may be accepted of him,” says the apostle. For the Holy Spirit does not steer men, rather He guides them into all truth; for God is a Teacher, not a puppet master.

If God alone has the power of choice, then He alone is responsible for everything, whether good or bad, not the men He promises to bless or punish for the good or bad done in the body. And all of the wrath kindled in Him by wicked works would be the consequence of His actions, not ours; in fact, He would be blaming man for His own mistakes! If God alone has the power to choose, then man is wholly innocent, and the only Good God does not punish the innocent!

Additionally God waited until the fullness of time to send His Son to be born of a Virgin, that time when all of the free choices of men and all circumstances would all work according to the counsel of His own will, from Caesar Augustus’ decree for every man to return to his native region, thus fulfilling the prophecy that Christ was to be born in Bethlehem of Judah, to the envious Pharisees and leaders who had Jesus crucified, who gathered against Christ to pierce His hands and His feet, thus fulfilling the 2nd and 22nd Psalm.



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