Prayer Tents Bible References - Prayer Tents

PREDESTINATION

In its broad definition, the theological affirmation that God has sovereignly and graciously planned for the unfolding history of all things. It is more commonly known according to a narrower definition, that God has decreed either the final salvation or the final reprobation of each person. Election and reprobation, then, are subcategories of the doctrine of predestination. This doctrine is associated primarily with John Calvin and Calvinism, although it finds its biblical roots in a variety of OT and NT texts, was given classic form by Augustine, and was treated by many Patristic and medieval theologians as well as the Reformers. The doctrine of predestination has a number of vexing logical difficulties, having to do mainly with the issues of divine sovereignty and human freedom. It also raises acute pastoral difficulties. Because of these difficulties, the doctrine has frequently come under attack.

In the OT the doctrine of predestination is related to call or election. God corporately calls the people of Israel to be the covenant people (cf. Deut. 7:6-10) and individually calls persons (cf. Exod. 3, , Moses; Judg. 2:16, judges; Jer. 1:4-8, Jeremiah). This election was for the purpose of fulfilling the will of God, for blessing the nations, and for executing the judgment of God. Several Psalms also express the confidence, comfort, and wonder of God’s election and foreknowledge (e.g., Ps.139:16; 115:1, 3, 12, 13). In the NT the several Greek words which are translated variously as “predestine,” “decree,” “foreordain,” or “foresee” indicate a wide range of God’s activity which centers on Jesus Christ as the means of salvation and includes human persons in this saving plan. The classic predestination texts include Rom. 8:28-30; Gal. 1:15; Eph. 1:4, 5; 2 Thess. 2:13. In these texts the background of predestination is humanity’s disobedience and rebellion against God; humanity thus earns God’s rightful condemnation. However, God does not leave humanity bereft. God graciously elects those whom God wills to elect. The implications of election, for humanity, are gratitude and service to God and all God’s people.

Several options exist in the Christian tradition on stating and understanding the doctrine of predestination. One version, which might be called the “softer” version, states that God elects on the basis of God’s foreknowledge. That is, either election or reprobation is contingent on God foreseeing how each person would freely respond to the gospel. On this reading of the doctrine, the justice and fairness issues are somewhat mitigated. Each person, so to speak, gets what he or she deserves. An example of a theologian who has taken, or has tended to take, the approach of identifying God’s foreknowledge with predestination is John Wesley, as well as the broad Arminian tradition.

Another option in the history of this doctrine can be identified with Martin Luther. Although Luther had a very strong understanding of election, with related affirmations of the sovereignty of God, he did not wish to state a corresponding doctrine of reprobation. His can perhaps be called a “middle” position, a position with the necessary ingredients for a stronger stand, but one which avoids the most excruciating questions and dilemmas by simply moving them off to one side.

The “harder” version of predestination asserts that God does not merely foresee but actually foreordains. That is, God’s election or reprobation is a primal divine decree and does not depend on God’s foreknowledge of free human action or decision. Calvin is the name most identified with this position. Although Calvin constantly emphasized the primary purpose of the doctrine of predestination as a call to gratitude and praise, he did not hold back from a full statement of both election and reprobation. The pastoral difficulties of this version of predestination are immediate and extremely difficult. Why does God choose only some and reject others? Calvin said that to ask such questions was to stretch well beyond the limited capabilities of the human mind. The best course of action, according to Calvin, is for believers to thank God for their election and not to probe further the mysteries of God. Calvin’s approach to predestination affirms a full and undiluted divine sovereignty; it nonetheless holds human beings responsible and then warns against the folly of a morbid curiosity about these matters.

A bold new approach to the doctrine of election was offered by Karl Barth. As a theologian of the Reformed tradition, Barth shared with Calvin the convictions concerning God’s sovereignty and the reality of sin. However, he interpreted election as accomplished through Jesus Christ, who is the elect of God. Humanity, as united with Jesus Christ, shares in that election.

At its best, the doctrine of predestination emphasizes the free gracious saving activity of God and the grateful response of the believer. At its worst, it suggests that God arbitrarily saves some and condemns others, thus implying a God with lower standards of neighborly love than Christians are enjoined to display. The most helpful way of approaching the doctrine of predestination is to cast its conceptual net widely: it affirms a divine plan and determination for all humanity that conforms to God’s eternal will. In these terms, predestination doctrine is not so much interested in the final fate of individual persons, but is a broad affirmation that the love of God, the wisdom of God, and the righteousness of God are the underlying realities of all created life, including each human person. It is God who has made us, and we belong to God.

Leanne VanDyke

Prayer Tents Bible References - Prayer Tents

PREDESTINATION

Eerdmans Dictionary of the Bible (2000)