In foundational theology courses students are confronted with schools of thought which provoke serious debate and introduce stress. The tension between fundamental viewpoints initiated a lifetime of pondering for me. Two dominant schools of theology emphasize truth to an extreme. Calvanism, stresses election and the sovereignty of God, the other, Arminianism, emphasizes the will of man, or free moral agency. One speaks often of the way God plans history, chooses who He will employ in bringing about His desired ends, and how little man has to do with the outcomes. On the other hand, the other points to man’s gift of choice and responsibility to decide.
After years of musing, I have concluded that there is enough Biblical support for both views and I am right in the middle! The arrangement works for me because I have friends who embrace each view, and by being in the center, can reach both! The image is of ligaments in the human body which exist in a healthy tension, connected on opposite ends to allow proper function in the body. The opposite ends are complimentary, not contesting, and allow the body to operate as it should.
The stories of King David and the prophets Isaiah and Jeremiah are frequently cited in discussions between the complimentary schools. Psalm 139 is David’s song celebrating God’s sovereignty.
1O LORD, you have searched me and you know me.
2You know when I sit and when I rise; you perceive my thoughts from afar.
3You discern my going out and my lying down; you are familiar with all my ways.
4Before a word is on my tongue you know it completely, O LORD.
5You hem me in—behind and before; you have laid your hand upon me.
6Such knowledge is too wonderful for me, too lofty for me to attain.
7Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence?
8If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are there ...
13For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb.
14I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.
15My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place. When I was woven together in the depths of the earth,
16your eyes saw my unformed body. All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be.
17How precious to me are your thoughts, O God! How vast is the sum of them!
18Were I to count them, they would outnumber the grains of sand. When I awake, I am still with you ...
Each time I read the song I am filled with wonder, awe, and marvel. God knows! I don’t!
Isaiah and Jeremiah speak of being known and having the course of their life established while still in their mothers’ womb. Consider Isaiah’s understanding of God’s sovereignty and his calling.
Chapter 49
1 Listen to me, you islands; hear this, you distant nations: Before I was born the LORD called me; from my birth he has made mention of my name. 2 He made my mouth like a sharpened sword, in the shadow of his hand he hid me; he made me into a polished arrow and concealed me in his quiver.
Chapter 44
24“This is what the LORD says— your Redeemer, who formed you in the womb: I am the LORD, who has made all things, who alone stretched out the heavens, who spread out the earth by myself,
Isaiah’s self-awareness and confidence in the context of God’s revelation is rooted in God’s sovereignty and empowered the prophet with an authority to minister.
Jeremiah was likewise aware of God’s election.
Chapter 1
4 The word of the LORD came to me, saying,
5 “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations.”
A careful reading of the prophets reinforces God’s activity in the world, and specifically, how He chooses, or elects, those useful in advancing His purposes.
In my experience, while exploring the purpose of life and desiring to fulfill God’s assignment or vocation for me, I read John 15. I was arrested by the Holy Spirit who spoke with a thundering, powerful authority and undeniable clarity, You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit — fruit that will last. Then the Father will give you whatever you ask in my name. (Verse 16)
Hundreds of complimentary experiences, confirming voices, and Spirit encounters were used by Sovereign Lord to unfold a lifetime of satisfying assignments. The call to follow Him is clearly His initiative. So, our hats are doffed to the Calvanist. Since we are allowed to obey or rebel, it is right to salute Arminianism.
Tomorrow I may dare to share a few specifics of my personal journey, how Sovereign Lord communicated His unfathomable wisdom and design for my life in bite sized pieces.
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