Deuteronomy 28:63
A comment to my last post used Deut 28:63 as a counter of sorts to the original post. Yet upon closer inspection, the verse proves unconducive to a Calvinist argument:
Deut 28:63 teaches:
if X then Y:
If you rebel, then God will take pleasure in destroying you.
X = your freewill response
Y = God’s contingent response
Calvinism inverts and teaches:
if Y then X
If God is pleased to destroy you, then you will rebel.
Y = God’s freewill response
X = your contingent response
This is contradictory to the verse, as is their theology:
If you are reprobate then you will rebel.
If you are elect then you will persevere.
According to their system, God’s good pleasure determines our response. But the verse teaches otherwise.
Although some non-Calvinists may be faulted for teaching that there is never any sense in which God is pleased to destroy sinners (for there is a sense), Calvinists are faulted for inverting the nature of the contingent agency.
Deut 28:63 teaches:
if X then Y:
If you rebel, then God will take pleasure in destroying you.
X = your freewill response
Y = God’s contingent response
Calvinism inverts and teaches:
if Y then X
If God is pleased to destroy you, then you will rebel.
Y = God’s freewill response
X = your contingent response
This is contradictory to the verse, as is their theology:
If you are reprobate then you will rebel.
If you are elect then you will persevere.
According to their system, God’s good pleasure determines our response. But the verse teaches otherwise.
Although some non-Calvinists may be faulted for teaching that there is never any sense in which God is pleased to destroy sinners (for there is a sense), Calvinists are faulted for inverting the nature of the contingent agency.
posted by Antonio at 2:38 PM
3 Comments:
Antonio, I still do not see how you have answered the question here. Maybe I am missing something, but your view of God seems to be about as unpalatable as that of Calvinism. Why?
God knows these people will be damned and does not do anything about it. He even chose to create them knowing this would be the case (unless you are an Open Theist). Then, he actually takes pleasure in destroying them.
Maybe he created humanity, unregenerate and regenerate, for the same reason that Jesus endured the cross, for the joy set before him. He is redeeming his people, because of joy, using only his mercy and grace to decide who will be redeemed.
I don't think it is sadistic for God to relegate to a place of torment people I love because I'm convinced that that place of torment is what all of humanity, including and especially me, justly deserve. That he's done so unbelievably much for the world (see Antonio's choice of hymns!), shouldn't open God up to the charge that he could do those extra things that our self-involved human imaginations get fixed on, like showing everyone we care about the truth of the Gospel.
This is from the Law and has no relationship to New Covenant truth.
58 If you do not carefully follow all the words of this law, which are written in this book, and do not revere this glorious and awesome name-the LORD your God-
The Law worked through the volition and not with the will. The will is held captive to sin...yet volition allows choices while a captive.
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