All About Reading

Saturday, November 14, 2009

Chosen by God - a Review

My daughter had to read Chosen by God written by RC Sproul.  Since she would be asking questions, I decided to read the book before her so that I could be prepared.  I did not realize how much I would enjoy it and get into it.

It is not what you would call a "pleasure book".  You don't just pick it up and think that you will have a good rest by the fire.  It is a book that could cause confusion, deep thought, and even a fight or two.  The topic it addresses is predestination.

Predestination is the thought that God has chosen you before you were even born.  Now, there are variations of that thought that Mr. Sproul discusses in his book.  This topic has caused many a fight in Christian and even non-Christian circles.  It can get a discussion going and can get it heated just as fast. 

Before reading this book, my thoughts on the subject was that since God knows our hearts and since He exists outside our dimensions, He can see ahead and knows whether or not we will accept Him and acts accordingly.   Mr. Sproul takes a different stance.  He feels that God decides ahead of time who will accept Him and those and only those He calls and they will answer.

I was not too sure how to take much of this as I read it.  But in several sections, he was able to give me food for thought.  The verses he pulled seemed to support his stance.  Being a dedicated student of the Bible, I looked up the verses myself, read the passages before and and after, and even checked various translations.  They still seemed to support His stance. 

In this work, Mr. Sproul also gets more into the Calvinistic view and discusses the acronym "TULIP".  I had heard about it before, but never really fully understood it.  He really laid it out plainly and explained it very well.  I learned a lot from that section. 

One of the things I enjoyed about his work was that he discusses the other views on predestination.  I got a better understanding of them all and got a deeper look at free will.  When it came to my stance, I actually read it a couple of times to understand why he believed that stance was wrong.

I'm not perfect, and I'm still learning.  Just because I was taught something does not make it completely right.  I need to get the full story and decide for myself.  Even the Apostle Paul said that we were to test our believes to make sure that man-made ones have not crept in and tradition has not taken over the basic believes.

My husband is the one I turn to much of the time to ask the deep questions since he has attended seminary.  We had several discussions that were very educational.  I learned a lot.  When I was done, I actually wanted to re-read the book to get deeper into and chew on it some more.

In the end, where did I end up?  Did Mr. Sproul change my stance?  Not really.  I'm not saying that I'm still right and he is wrong.  But I am thinking more on the subject of predestination than I ever have.  In that regard, I would say that Mr. Sproul was successful.  Predestination is not a subject I run from now.  It is something I want to dig into and learn more about.  But as my loving husband says, "In the end it is all in God's hands anyway."

Thank you Mr. Sproul for an excellent book and some thought-provoking topics.

Saturday, November 7, 2009

God Using Sinful People

A great question that have been asked is if God can use sinful people in accomplishing His will.  Does He?

From my research and studies, I would have to answer "yes".  Throughout the Bible there is so much evidence of Him using people and their sinful natures.  One of the earliest ones that gets discussed is Pharaoh.  I think that everyone can agree Pharaoh had a little bit of a sinful nature.  He wasn't what you would call a righteous person. But the question then comes down to if God actually used him.  Read Exodus again.  God knew Pharaoh's heart.  He knew when the ruler would cave in and when his stubbornness would rule.  He knew the final result.  And He used the sinful man to accomplish His will.  The Hebrew people were released.  God was glorified. 

Proverbs 16:9 says, "In his heart a man plans his course, but the LORD determines his steps."  In the end, God's will wins out.  There are always sinful people in this world.  You cannot avoid them.  They are in every aspect of our lives.  What wonderful way to show God's glory by His use of them!  Not even they can avoid His power and His plan.

The sinful people used?  Herod, Judas, and Pilot.  How about the ones in your own life?  God uses sinful people to teach us lessons, help us grow, and advance to the next level of our spiritual growth. 

Why would God avoid using sinful people?  Some would argue because He is so holy and righteous therefore He cannot use the sin of other people.  Why not?  Is that His weakness?  All someone has to do is be evil enough that God won't be able to touch them and use them?  There is the hole in the argument.

You have to ask yourself these questions:
  • Is God's power limited?
  • Does anyone have power over God?
  • Can anyone thwart God?
  • Who has complete power?

If you answer "no" to the first three and God for the last, then how can you take a stand that God cannot use sinful people to accomplish His will?

This is a question to spark hours of theological discussions.  It also leads to the fact that God can use your own sinful actions to accomplish His will and show His glory.  How humbling!  Not even my own acts can alter the plan.  In the end He will prevail and I will witness His glory!