The Freedom of Choice of Man (2)

Good to see you here tonight. I received word this week someone called me on Monday and said they had listened to the Wednesday night study online. The reason they had listened to it, they were not able to be here. The reason they had listened to it is because someone had told them that it was very confusing and said, you know, John, you're usually pretty clear, but he just talked in circles that night. And you know, I've been known to do that from time to time. I will do that. So, and I'm going to do a little bit more of that tonight. But I think the person who listened to it online said it sounded fine to me. So here's the moral of that story. If it's confusing in person, go listen to it online and maybe that will clear it up. I don't know. Seriously, we are talking about some issues that are not real clear to logical thinking. And there's a good reason for that. And we'll talk about that a little bit more tonight. We're talking about freedom of choice of man. As we kind of finish up the section of our study on man and sin that has to do with man, we're dealing with this issue of freedom of choice. And I'm not wanting to deal with it as much as it relates to salvation because when we finish this entire study on man and sin, we'll get into a study of what the Bible teaches about salvation and we'll deal more with topics like predestination as it affects salvation, election calling and so forth. So we'll deal with all that then. So that's not really the purview of this study. But this study basically is related to just the overall flow of human history and our lives and human activity. And that's really what we're talking about. The question that we began to deal with last week was is man free to make choices in life. And how is that affected by what the Bible teaches about predestination? Which again, predestination is a much broader concept in salvation. Predestination has to do with all of human history and how much of that God controls. Okay, that's the concept of predestination. And then a lot of people just don't want to talk about predestination because they think it just means five point Calvinism that God only saves the elect and Christ did not die for anybody else. And so by the way, God does save only the elect but Christ died for all men. So we'll get to that when we get to document salvation. But predestination is much broader than that. And it's a good biblical concept. The words used often in the Bible. And so there's nothing wrong with talking about predestination. Some people don't even like that word. That's a good Bible word. We just need to understand what it means. So we're talking about human freedom and what effect this predestination have on that. And also what effect does our bondage to sin have on our freedom of choice? Those two concepts. So last week, what we did is we dealt with some basic views of human freedom. Tonight we're going to deal with some basic views of predestination. Let me just summarize for you what we talked about last week. And maybe I should turn in circles again as I talk about this. Basic views of human freedom. We talked last week about one view is determinism which basically says actions and decisions are totally determined by outside sources. There is a naturalistic view of that and there is a theistic view of that. Naturalistic being basically a psychological, psychiatry type view, BF Skinner was the proponent of that. That heredity and environment are the reasons why we do everything. We're not responsible for our own actions. But we also saw there's a theistic determinism which basically says that instead of impersonal conditions, God is God predetermined or four ordains, all things. And we saw that there's a lot of truth to that. But those who believe in determinism do not take into account any part of human freedom or decision making or will. And so we said, you know, determinism is an extreme. It's way out here on the extreme. But the other extreme is indeterminism which basically says actions and decisions are not at all determined by outside sources. Basically again, there's a naturalistic and a theistic slant to that. The theistic slant which basically is an attempt to to have a biblical view is that God has completely limited his sovereignty that really man and his decisions and will are totally in control. Now we saw that's the other extreme. That doesn't really sound biblical either. So we saw a middle ground, something of a middle ground that finds strains of both in the Bible as a view called self-determination. And that's the view that basically a person's actions are caused by ourselves. We are responsible for our own actions. We'll be judged for our own actions, factors like corretity and environment may influence but do not determine those actions since we are created in God's image. He created us with a will, the ability to choose. And there is a certain amount of freedom there. It does not however, as we saw last week, contradict predestination. We looked at at several passages that indicate the freedom of the human will to make choices. We'll talk about how sin affected that later tonight. But we also talked about some strong passages that deal with predestination, particularly Ephesians 111 and Romans 8, 28, 30. I referenced Romans 9. We didn't get into that passage and we're not going to try to tonight either. But we ended with this and this is where it may have sounded like I was talking in circles. There is an unexplainable mystery, a seeming paradox that must simply be accepted. And that is that the Bible does teach, as Jesus said, I'll draw some drew some how often, I would I have gathered you under my wings but you would not. The Bible does teach that we have a choice that we do make decisions. But the Bible also teaches that God marks out ahead of time, works all things after the Council of His own will, Ephesians 111, and where we cannot logically bring those two things together, we just have to accept them both and believe both strains of teaching in the scriptures. So that kind of middle ground view seems to be the most biblical balance between human responsibility and divine sovereignty. Now that's just a summary of what we did last last week. Tonight we're going to talk about some basic views of predestination. But before we move on, any remaining questions from that summary of last week. Okay, good, good. Either you don't have any questions or you just have no clue what to ask. So that's okay. Basic views of predestination. There are two categories of views and we're going to talk about both of those. And then if you're just kind of allow me to talk through them and explain them, then at the end of the explanation, I will give you opportunity to ask questions if you want to. But at the end of this explanation, what I would like to do is talk through a biblical story that I think illustrates the beautiful balance and the commingling of what I think is a balanced biblical view. And the story itself occurred to me as I was studying this today that this story may really help us to understand what we're trying to get across tonight. Okay, so maybe the story will kind of piece it together in our minds. Two basic positions on the idea of predestination or sovereignty of God. One is called, as you see in your notes, specific sovereignty. That's what theologians call it. The common term for it is Calvinism. Now don't be afraid of that term. Calvinism, some people use in a general way to refer to only one particular kind of Calvinism. Some people think of Calvinism as just meaning what is often referred to as five point Calvinism. I don't have time to go into all what explanation of that. But it is a very strict form that says Christ did not die for all people in any form, any fashion, but only for a certain group, the elect. That is not the only form of Calvinism. Okay, so don't use that word just to key in on that. We're going to look at two different kinds of what's often called Calvinism, a strict form and a moderate form. Now the strict form of specific sovereignty or if Calvinism is this and that is God is the ultimate cause of all things. Key word is cause. God is the ultimate cause of all things, including evil. Very strict Calvinists will teach that God is the originator of evil. God is the cause of evil because he is the determining cause of all things. Well that creates some very difficult moral dilemmas and I think unbiblical views of God. So let me present to you a moderate form of specific sovereignty and it's this. Again, here's a balance. It's this. God has decreed and determined all things so that all things are certain to occur as they do. Now that's the first part of this piece of a moderate form of specific sovereignty that God does have a plan. An overall purpose for all of human history and like Ephesians 111 says, he is working all things in accordance with the purpose of his plan, which indicates he has a plan, a purpose and all things in human history. He is working toward that plan and working out that plan. So this is a very strong view of sovereignty that God has decreed in his plan, purpose in his plan and determined all things. So all things are certain to occur as they do. However, this form of moderate Calvinism, if you want to call it that, allows for the possibility of evil and the freedom of human choice to commit evil without God being the cause of that evil. And here's the way that works. Within God's bigger purpose and plan, he has as a part of that decree, as a part of that purpose and plan, which Ephesians 111 clearly talks about. Let me read it to you again. In him, we were also chosen having been predestined, according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will. Very strong statement talking about all of those ideas of chosen predestined, the plan of God and everything is worked out in conformity with the purpose of his will to accomplish that plan. So that's what we're talking about here. But within that larger plan and purpose of God, which he's moving everything in human history along that purpose and plan, God has allowed for the possibility of evil because that plan, that decree, includes that humans will have the will to choose. So they can choose evil, sin if they choose, or they can choose obedience and righteousness if they choose. So God is not the cause of evil. God does not originate evil. That cannot happen. But God allows or permits evil to allow for true human freedom. Here's the important distinction. This kind of this moderate form of specific sovereignty or moderate Calvinism basically makes a distinction between the certainty of all things in the purpose and plan of God. This is basically where I would fall, where I believe the Bible, with the Bible teaches, that God is sovereign in the sense that he's in control of all things. And his plan and purpose will be accomplished. Nothing will frustrate that. God will accomplish his plan and purpose. And he's working all things in accordance with the purpose of his plan and his will. However, he is not the cause of all things. So it maintains the certainty of all things without God being the cause of all things. Man does what he desires. So he is free and responsible. But God allows that so God is not responsible for sin. God doesn't cause evil but he allows evil. He has built that possibility into his plan but he's in control of the outcome. Now we're going to see a Bible story in this little bit that beautifully illustrates the fact that God has a big plan. And in that purpose and plan, he's working all of human history to accomplish his plan. He is sovereign. He is in control. But within that big plan, there's a lot of room for people to make choices. And we are made the image of God to have the freedom to make those choices. But God has already worked all of that into his plan. And it's all going to work out for his purpose, his glory. We'll see a beautiful story in a few minutes that really illustrates how those two work together. Any questions about that moderate form of specific sovereignty or moderate form of what's called Calvinism? Okay? Okay. Now I'm throwing some theological terms out tonight. That's okay. It doesn't hurt to learn a little bit of the language that is used to describe all of these things. The second overall view is called general sovereignty. And it is known more frequently in the theological literature by the name of Arminianism. It was started by a man by the name of James or Jacobus Arminius in Europe in the 1600s. We get an explanation of this general sovereignty. To the extent that God gives people freedom, this you teach is God does not control earthly affairs. Because man has freedom, God's not in control. He does not control earthly affairs. Now he may have the ability to accomplish some general purposes like the death of Christ or the general way that history will end or the ultimate triumph of good, over evil, but God's really not in control of what happens in human history. What this view teaches is that God knows ahead, his omniscience requires that he knows ahead what people will do, what their choices will do, will be. And then he reacts and makes his plan accordingly. Do you see the difference? This view basically says man is in control of everything. He makes his decisions. God knows ahead of time what he's going to do. So God reacts. And that's what God's plan is. A reaction to what we do. So that's the way he makes prophecies. He looks ahead and sees this is what's going to be done. So I'll prophesy that. That's the way this view teaches he saves people. He looks ahead and he knows this person will get saved. So that'll be my plan. I'll make my plan now based on what I know ahead of time. That's the way he answers prayer this view teaches. That he knows ahead of time what we're going to do. So then he decides this is how I'll answer prayer. Now there are some problems with this view. I think you can probably see that the biggest problem, well next to the biggest, the next one will be the biggest one, but the next the biggest problem is this. This makes man the ultimate decider. This puts man in control of everything. And God is relegated to a submissive status of just responding to situations. And basically trying to figure out how do I respond to this? How do I respond to that? Man is really the determiner of things and God is simply a submissive responder to what's happening. I don't think that's a view of God we really want to hold to. I don't think that's a view of God that the Bible teaches. Now when you carry that to its logical conclusion, here's what you come to and this is really dangerous. That view basically makes it uncertain that God can actually guarantee anything. Because with everything in human history there are human choices involved. So if we're in charge of the direction of human history and how it's going to go, then God can't really guarantee anything. God can't guarantee that you'll be saved and you'll be in heaven someday. And Arminianism teaches you cannot know for sure that you're saved. You do not have eternal security. So basically this view puts man in the driver's seat of everything and God really cannot guarantee anything. It flies in the face of biblical passages which teach that God is in control of all things. And God does determine everything in human history versus like the one I read earlier will put it on the screen now Ephesians 1, 11. In him we were also chosen having been predestined marked out ahead of time. Who determined what would happen ahead of time? Did we? No, according to the plan of him who works everything in conformity with the purpose of his will. So God's in the driver's seat, God's in control, God is sovereign. He determines what will be done but within that larger plan of God's control of all of human history, he has worked into that plan. Human freedom to make decisions. Now let me give you an illustration of that that I hope will make this clear because I realize we're talking about two things that seem contradictory here. Do I really have the freedom to choose or is God determining everything? Well God is not to cause it everything. He is sovereign overall things so that all things certainly will happen according to his plan. But within that big plan there's plenty of freedom for human beings to make decisions and have the freedom to choose. The best I think biblical example of that is the book of Esther. So let me just remind you of this story. In the story of the book of Esther, Heyman, a wicked ungodly man makes some choices. A God is not the cause of evil. James 1 tells us that. God cannot be tempted with either evil, neither tempteth he and he man. God is not the cause of evil. So God did not cause Heyman to make those wicked decisions that he wanted to exterminate the Jewish people. He made that decision of his own free will, free, although limited and enslaved to Sam as we'll see later. But he had the freedom to choose. He made that choice that was his own will but it all fit into the big purpose and plan of God. And it's not just that God knew ahead of time what was going to happen. God was already determining what was going to happen and already putting into place the pieces of his plan that would make sure that even Heyman's evil plot would work into God's plan. Even though Heyman was free to make those choices and did choose evil which God was not responsible for. God did not cause him to do that. That was Heyman's choice. Heyman is responsible for that choice. Heyman will be judged for that choice. But it all worked into the purpose and plan of God. Because long before God or long before Heyman had even come up with that plan, God was at work to put a Jewish queen on the throne. Long before Heyman ever made the decision as to what he was going to do, God's already accomplishing his purpose and plan. He's already putting the pieces into place by putting Esther on the throne that will tie into his purpose and plan. Long before Heyman ever makes any decision about what he's going to do, there is a plot to overthrow King Hajiwares, King Zerksis, Mordekai, Esther's relative. Learns about that plan alerts the king's security and the king is saved. That story is recorded in the king's journals. This is long before Heyman's ever made any decision or any plans to destroy the Jewish nation. But God's purpose is already at work. You see? Because God's purpose is from eternity. He's the one in control of what happens. He is sovereign. He's on the throne, not Heyman. But Heyman will within the purpose of God's plan and the big picture of God's plan, Heyman will still be responsible to make his own choices. So as the story goes on, this hideous plot to destroy the Jews, obviously Mordekai finds out about when it's announced, makes Esther aware of it. And you remember the story, Esther decides she will take her life into her own hands, if you will. And she will go in before the king, even when she's not invited. And we'll let God take charge of what happens to her, but she will make her plea to him. She does. God is already in control of how the king will respond. When the king does respond, by letting her tell her concern, she sets up a banquet. But remember, she kind of chickens out that first banquet and doesn't want to tell the king what the real problem is, Heyman's invited this banquet. So she asked him to come to a banquet the next day. Well, you remember what happens the night between those two days, those two banquets. The king has a dream or he can't sleep. And so he wakes up, he can't sleep. He asks for the king's books to be brought in so he can read those. Surely there's a put him to sleep. And of all things, he reads the account of Mordekai exposing the plot against his life. Now, who do you think was in control of that? Who do you think caused him to turn to exactly that spot in the king's stories at exactly that time between the night, between the two banquets? Because Heyman's going to come in the next morning and demand the life of Mordekai. But when he comes in, the king is just read about Mordekai, wants to honor Mordekai. Heyman's plot is exposed that the banquet that second day, Heyman is hanged, not Mordekai, and God saves the Jewish people. Now, who's in control? Not Heyman, God's in control. God is sovereign. And you can see that before Heyman ever made any choices, God was already at work putting all the pieces of his plan into place. According to Ephesians 111, he was working all things after the counsel of his own will. According to the purpose of his own plan, that plan devised an eternity past was being worked out. But within the context of that plan, Heyman was still responsible and free to make sinful choices. It's just that those choices, God in His sovereignty and in His omniscience, has already worked into His plan. And He knows exactly, and is already determined by virtue of putting everything else in His plan into place, exactly how that's going to work out, even how Heyman's sinful decisions will work into His plan. So you see, within the big plan of God, there's plenty of room for human freedom and decisions to either obey or disobey, but it didn't catch God by surprise. It's not the Armenian view that God is somehow ringing His hands responding, thinking, oh no, now I've got to change my plans or make a new plan. No, no, God's plan has already been determined. And He's just putting all the pieces into place to work it out. So to me, the book of Esther is a beautiful illustration of this balance that I'm trying to get across here in the idea that God is sovereign and we cannot dilute that one bit. All things will work out according to the purpose of His plan, but within that doesn't mean He determines our choices. We still have choices. It's just those choices, which He knows in His omniscience and has already accounted for in His plan will all work out for His glory. Okay? Questions? Yeah. You think of the martyrs in Ecuador and so forth. At first glance, when that happens, it looks like a terrible mistake. How could God have ever involved that in His plan? But were those Indians responsible? Did they make their choices? Yes, they were responsible. They did make choices to commit simple acts, but God was already at work. Working that all out for the glory of God so that that would be the means that would be used to reach that tribe. God is in control. He knows what He's doing. I think we have to hold those two things in tension, but I think the way to see them is that yes, we do have a human will. We're made in the image of God. We do choose. We're not robots that are pre-programmed that had no freedom. We do choose. We make choices, but all of that is just a small piece of the larger plan and purpose of God, which is so big. None of us can really grasp, but we see little snippets like a book of Esther as to how it's all working out in human history. See, that's the combination of those two things. I'm going to summarize that when we get to the conclusion, but before we do, let me talk about the bearing of sin on the fall of human fruit, on the fall. The bearing of the fall on human freedom. What part does the fall or sin have to play in our ability to choose in our human freedom? Is our freedom limited by the fall or by our sin? Now, we're going to discuss that more later when we talk about sin. The next phase of our study is getting into what the biblical words for sin and the biblical teaching about sin. We'll get into a little more detail as to how sin has affected us in every way, totally. But tonight, what I want to do is just give you, overall, bird's eye view, if you will, of four stages of human experience and how sin affects our freedom in each of those four stages. This is kind of a big picture view, and then we'll narrow it down, get more detail later in our study. Four phases, four stages of human experience. First of all, and these little statements that I've got in your notes have been used for years to help kind of sort out this idea of how the fall and sin affects our ability to choose. At creation, God created us, noticed expression, able not to sin, able not to sin. Now, the reason I've written these out for you on your outline is because it's only when you put all four of these together that you understand how it all works. But let me explain them one by one. Able not to sin, we were created with the capacity for choice. That's part of being in the image of God. We're created with the capacity for choice. When Adam was created, he was capable at that point of not sinning because he was created perfect. So he was capable of not sinning, and that condition prevailed until he gave into temptation, ate to forbid and fruit, disobeyed God. But when man was created, he was created with the ability not to sin. Does that make sense? He had the ability to choose, and if he chose to be disobedient, he would become a sinner. But at the point of creation, he was able not to sin. Now, here's what happens at the fall. Here's how it changes. At the fall, we are not able to not sin, or we are not able not to sin. Here's what I mean to that. The fall plunged all of us into a bondage to sin. Now, this is how our will and our choices now in our current state without Christ are affected by sin. We are in bondage to sin before we come to Christ. We're in bondage. We're in slavery to sin. So the best way to describe that is we are not able not to sin. We are no longer able to live without sin. Can't do it. You cannot in your own humanity go back to the Garden of Eden and live in that condition where you're able not to sin. You are not able to not sin. Romans teaches this very clearly. Just look at these three verses on the screen. Romans 6.6 for we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body ruled by sin might be done away with. This is the transaction that happens in salvation. We'll get to that in a moment. That we should no longer be slaves to sin, which indicates that before we came to Christ, before this transaction was made, where the old self or the old person was crucified with Christ, that's our union with Christ in salvation. Before that happened, we were slaves to sin, which means my freedom is seriously limited. I'm slave. I am not really free. I'm not free to live a holy and righteous life. I'm enslaved to sin. I cannot live a holy and righteous life in God's sight. I cannot do anything to please him or earn my salvation because I'm a slave to sin. Verse 17 says it again, but thanks be to God that though you used to be slaves to sin, you have come to obey from your heart the pattern of teaching that has now claimed your allegiance, talking about the gospel. In the end of verse 21, or 20, excuse me, he says, when you were slaves to sin, you were free from the control of righteousness. So you see, our human freedom is not really free. We are not really free in the sense that we are not bound in any way so that we can choose whatever we want to. We can choose to please God. We can choose to live perfect if we wanted to and thus we could earn our way into heaven. Uh-uh. We are slaves to sin. The Bible teaches before we come to Christ. So at creation, man was able not to sin. That was Adam in his perfect state before he fell. Once we fell, we're not able not to sin. Did that change on the screen? Okay, I know what happened. Sorry. Um, I caught that mistake and asked that it would be changed and the wrong version got put in the PowerPoint. So, okay, it should be not able to not sin or not able not to sin. Okay. Boy, I'm really confused in you now. Right? Sorry. We can do all to do that. Okay, at regeneration, when we get saved, then we are able not to sin. We are able not to sin because at regeneration, we're given a new nature which continually pulls us toward God. Now in the fall, when we were plunged into slavery to sin, we had a sin nature that continually pulled us away from God. We're impossible to move toward God as a sinner, but at regeneration, when we get saved, we're given a new nature which now pulls us continually toward God so that now we are able not to sin. Wow, what's going on on the screen now? Can we get to regeneration at all? We've got to get this guy saved. I think it's getting fixed. At regeneration, there we go. We are able not to sin because we have a new nature. Now we are able not to sin. We are still plagued by sin. It's not like Adam. We are still plagued by sin, but if we yield to the Holy Spirit, once again, we are able not to sin. And here's the verses, Galatians 5. Let's look at these verses, Galatians 5, verses 1 and 16. It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm then and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery. But look at verse 16, which tells us how this happens. Verse 16 says, so I say, walk by the Spirit and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. Now before you got saved, you were in slavery to sin. After you get saved, you now are able not to sin. As long as you live in the power of the Spirit, you won't gratify the desires of the flesh. Now none of us do that all the time. So we're still plagued by sin, but we are able not to sin. Now at glorification, when we get to heaven, here's what we'll describe us. Not able to sin. Not able to sin. When you receive a glorified body, sin will be eradicated completely and you will be like Jesus. First John 3, 2 says it this way, dear friends, now we are the children of God, and what we will, and what we will be has not yet been made known, but we know that when Christ appears, we shall be like Him. So sin will be eradicated. We'll have a glorified body. We will be a part from sin. We will not be able to sin in heaven because the Bible teaches there is no sin in heaven. Revelation 21, 27. Nothing impure, this is about the New Jerusalem, our eternal dwelling place. Nothing impure will ever enter it nor will anyone who does what is shameful or deceitful, but only those whose names are written in the Lamb's book of life. Only those who are saved. Nothing impure, nothing sinful in heaven. There's no sin in heaven. So when we get to heaven, we will not be able to sin. When Adam was created, he was able not to sin. The fall made us not able not to sin. Regeneration once again makes it possible for us to not sin because of the spirit of God. We're not going to be perfect at that, but the spirit of God enables us to overcome the pull of the flesh, but the glorification sin will be totally eradicated and we will not be able to sin. Won't want to sin, won't be able to sin. Thank God for that. So that's a little summary of the bearing of sin on our freedom. So here's my point. We talk about human freedom. None of us are totally free. Now in the sense that we are capable of making choices, yes, we have freedom, but our freedom really is in bondage to our sin nature. So we are not totally free. We're in bondage for our sin nature. It is only as we are walking by the spirit that we are able to overcome the pull of the sin nature and we're able to not sin. That's accomplished in regeneration, but it is only when we get to heaven that will be totally, totally away from sin and never be able to sin again. I'll have any sin to worry about at all. Okay, does that help a little bit with understanding how sin affects our freedom? So are we free? People talk about total freedom? No, we're not because we're enslaved to sin. Well, the sin nature is always pulling us away from God, but are we capable of making choices? Of course, we're still in the image of God. So it depends on what you mean by human freedom. Okay. Comments, questions? Kissed? Yeah, that's a good question. Kisses is asking common a little bit more on the able not to sin because there is teaching after the seizure able to become completely sanctified without any sin. And that's not what we're saying. Basically, that's Wesley in tradition, basically, that that teaches you can reach a point of sinless perfection where you don't sin anymore. And that's not what we're saying. All we're saying is that as long as we are walking in the spirit, we're not sinning. Do we always walk in the spirit? No, nobody does. So we are going to sin. First, John 1 says, if we say that we are without sin, we deceive ourselves. We call God a liar. Nobody can say I'm sinless or I've reached to point in my life where I never sin anymore. But whatever degree of time in your life where you're walking in the power of the Holy Spirit, in that time, you're not sinning. Now, the problem is, we still have the pull of the old simple nature. So we don't always walk by the spirit. We get pulled away from obedience. And we're going to struggle with that till we get to heaven because it is only at glorification that we, the sin nature is eradicated and we are sinless and perfect. That's when that happens. So, yeah, we need to make sure we make that distinction. Thanks for pointing that out, Kisti. Yeah, he's the other enemy that pulls us into sin and the world system as well. All three of those enemies, we will battle with until we get to heaven. So we're not done with sin yet. Okay, I just want to quickly summarize. We only got a minute or two. I want to quickly summarize, give a conclusion on human freedom. If you put together everything we've talked about, I think the best balanced biblical view on human freedom is a combination of self-determination and specific sovereignty. Okay, if you go back to those two views, combination of those two, I think fits the biblical database and biblical data best. And here's what we're talking about. Self-determination means that we do have the capacity to make choices. We do have human freedom. You have to understand that within the context of being slaves to sin. Okay, so it's not total freedom. But we do have freedom to make choices because we are in the image of God. But specific sovereignty teaches that God is in control of all things and he's working according to the purpose of his plan. He is the one on the throne. He is the one in control. That does the most justice to the character of God. So sovereignty means that God is certainly in control of all things. Everything will certainly work out according to his purpose in history. But it does not imply restraints on our will at the time decisions are made. We do make legitimate decisions. We are fully responsible for our actions. We are not robots, but God is still in control of everything that is taking place to fulfill his purpose. That means that there are some mysteries. And here I want to end again with this idea of holding two truths in balance, a full logical reasoning of those two things I just mentioned. Self-determination but sovereignty of God. In other words, human responsibility but God, God's sovereignty. A full logical reasoning of those two things is not possible. And those whose God is logic will have trouble with that. If your God is logic, then you're going to have trouble with that. And you're going to think, I've got to fit these two together. No, you don't. There are some things you just have to hold in tension. I'm going to close with these two verses which remind us of this. First of all, Isaiah 55 verses 8 and 9, for my thoughts are not your thoughts. Neither are your ways, my ways declares the Lord. As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts. You can see what that's saying. We can't understand everything in God's mind. We can't understand all of his purposes. We cannot understand the grandeur of his plan. And to be quite honest, I cannot understand completely how God's plan and purpose includes my opportunity to make choices and my responsibility. I get a picture of it in the book of Esther. I can see it there, but I can't logically explain it in a way that satisfies everybody's need for logic. The other passage is this. I love this passage. At the end of the book of Deuteronomy, Moses is kind of summarizing the law and he says, the secret things belong to God, the Lord our God, but the things revealed, the things revealed, the Word of God, belong to us and to our children forever that we may follow all the words of this law. In other words, what God has revealed to us in His Word, we treasure, we study, we seek to understand, we pass along to our children, but there's some things God has not revealed. And those things belong to Him. Only He knows those things. Only He can understand those things. If I try to figure out everything that's in the mind of God, there's nothing more arrogant than that. And that's where we have to kind of leave things. That there are some things I cannot logically put together because I don't understand all of God's ways. I don't know all of His thoughts. They're higher than mine and there's some secrets that only God knows. There are some mysteries. So we have to leave it at that and be content with that. Okay. So this whole idea of human responsibility, God's sovereignty, which is true both both. If you want to say what's the overall controller of all things, God's sovereignty. That's clear. He works all things after the Council of His own will, purpose of His plan, but within that big plan, there's a lot of room for me to make choices and decisions. And I have the freedom to do that. God is working all that according to His plan. Fits all that into His plan. How? I don't get all that. That's part of the mysteries. That's part of His thoughts above my thoughts. And I'll leave that with Him. Okay. Times up. Kids are running loose. You better go find Him. Let's pray.