As a teacher, I’m always on the lookout for new perspectives.
There are a few pastors whose sermons I will listen to from time to time, some of who have long since gone home to be with the Lord. These men often give me things to think about and I often walk away with a new perspective. Maybe they presented a familiar doctrine a certain way, or maybe they had a story to tell, or maybe they just used a different inflection in their voice while reading a passage in the Bible. I love when this happens because it gives me the opportunity to incorporate a new perspective into my own and then into a sermon or two, God permitting.
Case in point, I was listening to one pastor’s message the other day and the concept of God’s sovereignty was being preached. He took his audience to the following passage:
For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified.
– Romans 8:29-30
In his sermon, he stated the title of this blog, “God has never learned anything.” You may say, “No dah, He’s omniscient.” But focus on the implications of this truth. God has never learned anything. How does this affect your concept of salvation? Has God ever had to wait on one of His creatures before asserting His divine will? Or does He have the sovereign right to do what He wants, whenever He wants, to whomever He wants? More specifically, as Paul propositioned in Romans 9, does God have the right to have mercy on whomever He wills? If He wants someone saved, will He save them? If He doesn’t, will He not?
You either believe that God is sovereign, or you don’t. There’s no in-between or negotiating from human viewpoint. Either you believe God can and does whatever He wills, or you don’t. It’s a binary position. There are no ifs, ands, or buts, regardless of how much your flesh despises what I just wrote. The plain, inescapable truth is that God is sovereign, which means He can do whatever He pleases. Have you read the Old Testament lately? Do you remember how gruesome parts of it are? I mean, how could God wipe out generations of people, babies even? And yet, He did. To this day, He allows heinous crimes to be perpetrated on innocent people, doesn’t He? Indeed. Can you explain why? You must trust in His sovereignty and perfect will. In His perfect plan, it all makes sense (Isaiah 55:8), to His glory.
It doesn’t matter whether or not your piddly human mind can reconcile all that God chooses to do. You must accept His sovereign choices.
Here’s a question for you. What happens to the guy in a remote part of the world who never hears the Gospel of Jesus Christ and then dies an unbeliever? Does God have the “right” to sentence him to eternity in Hell? Yes. What about the example that Paul gives in Romans 9 with Pharaoh? (Read this blog I wrote for more on him: Pharaoh’s Hardened Heart).
Again, God has never learned anything. Let that sink in before you read the next paragraph.
From eternity past, God decreed all that has/will ever happen throughout human history. He didn’t have to wait and consult with His creatures to decide what to do. He didn’t look down the corridors of time to see who would believe in Jesus and then decide. He’s never had to learn that about anyone – He’s always known who would believe and be saved, and who wouldn’t because it’s His plan. He decreed it.
Again, is He just in sentencing people to Hell who’ve never even heard the Gospel of Jesus Christ? Yes. We all deserve Hell, remember? Is He righteous in saving some and not others? Yes. According to the Bible, He has mercy on whom He has mercy. As the sovereign, holy God of the Universe, He has that unquestionable right. Do you have a problem with that?
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. In love he predestined us for adoption to himself as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will, to the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in the Beloved.
In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace, which he lavished upon us, in all wisdom and insight making known to us the mystery of his will, according to his purpose, which he set forth in Christ as a plan for the fullness of time, to unite all things in him, things in heaven and things on earth.
In him we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to the purpose of him who works all things according to the counsel of his will, so that we who were the first to hope in Christ might be to the praise of his glory.
– Ephesians 1:3-12
One last question for you. Do you believe God is omniscient? Of course, you do! Well, that’s tantamount to saying, “God has never learned anything.” If you’re ever going to understand what predestination is, then you’ll first have to accept that He is omniscient and “works all things according to the counsel of his will” (v11). He didn’t have to sit back and hope for the best. He knew who would murder and be murdered, and He ordained all of it. Consider the murder which took place on a cross two thousand years ago for starters. Was God glorified in the end? Did He have to wait from eternity past with fingers crossed and hope things played out the way they did, or did He have absolute control over all of it? You know the correct answer. Then, why is it that lots of people will accept portions of God’s sovereignty (e.g., His will at the Cross), but not all of it? That’s the plague of contemporary Christianity – it’s lost its respect for God.
God has never learned anything because His own wisdom is sufficient. He doesn’t need man’s input, rationale, or human viewpoint to make His decisions about the destiny of His creatures. The sooner you accept that the better off you’ll be.
If there’s one thing the Bible teaches us, it’s that God is in control. You either believe that or you don’t. There’s no in-between, even though your human flesh is looking for loopholes and answers to questions only faith can answer.
If you struggled with this blog, then pray for what the apostles asked for. “The apostles said to the Lord, “Increase our faith” (Luke 17:5)!
Love in Christ,
Ed Collins