God is sovereign. King. Creator. Owner of everything. And we are His creation. He can do as He wishes. But that doesn’t mean He moves every blade of grass, orchestrates every heartbeat, or dictates every human choice. Just because He can doesn’t mean He always does.

In His majesty, God permits us to choose a relationship with Him … or not. Choice and consequences, freedom with blessings and curses. This has always been God’s gracious, relational nature. Yet some will say we cannot choose God on our own or play a role in a salvific relationship with Him through Jesus. If you disagree, they’ll say you believe God controls nothing. To them, only two extremes exist: you believe God controls everything, including choice … or that God controls nothing. “Ron! How on earth did this thinking come about?” Fourth-century Augustine and the Reformer he inspired: John Calvin.

Like most of us, Saint Augustine’s Christian worldview was shaped by perceptions and experiences. Sadly, it was also influenced by various philosophies, including Stoicism. Although he and the early church fathers emphasized human free will in seeking God, Augustine’s position later shifted. His doctrine of an inability to choose God evolved into a theology asserting that all people are destined for hell, with God saving only a few souls. According to this view, Jesus ‘effectively’ died only for some—not everyone—and hope is reserved for those whom God draws out of the fire. In contrast, the Bible presents choice, consequences, and genuine hope. Note: Subsequent Scripture quotes are without references for brevity. They are easy to find.

The first significant choice and consequence we encounter is with Adam and Eve, who chose to disobey God. You’ll find countless ‘if-then’ conditional statements in the Old Testament that echo “I will if you will!” and “If you go here, then such-and-such will happen; otherwise …” Of course, 3,000 people lost their lives in the aftermath of the golden calf because they chose not to align with Moses. Another sobering choice: “Choose this day whom you will serve.” There are many more in the Old Testament! Let’s move to the New Testament.

“God is now declaring to men that all people everywhere should repent.” In fact, “… our Savior … desires all men to be saved …” Why? “[God is] not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance.” And who does God draw or call, and how? “And I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to Myself.” Yet the Jews of Jesus’ day rejected Him: “Jerusalem … How often I wanted to gather your children together … and you were unwilling.”

To summarize, a sovereign God with free will has granted you free will as His imager. Choose wisely and live! Next, let’s meet some of the ‘heroes of the faith.’ In the meantime, honor God and love people in your freedom.

Blessings and peace,

Dr. Ron Braley (MDiv; DMin)