At the very beginning of creation, God gave man a choice. Everything was perfect. The garden of Eden included every feature of paradise that man could comprehend. There was every reason to obey God’s word and preserve the paradise in which Adam and Eve were living. Yet, God in His sovereign wisdom decided to give them the choice to obey Him. The question as to whether mankind truly has free will to make decisions has been debated for as long as we have had philosophers. Plato believed that all of life was an illusion. Yes, I know that I wrote on this topic just a few months ago, but I continue to be confronted with this kind of thinking. It seems that there has been a new resurgence in recent years that has entered our Bible-believing, conservative churches. It is not a philosophical threat, but a theological one. Reformed or Calvinistic theology has been on the rise and proponents of these doctrines have been infiltrating the ranks of those churches would have historically rejected the tenets of this theology. Therefore, I have chosen to address the topic once again.

There are lots of facets to this can of worms. However, one of the central things which people wrestle with is the sovereignty of God versus the free will of man. Human logic dictates that both can’t be true. If God is completely powerful and in control of all things, then it can’t be possible for mankind to truly have a free will of their own. Free will is just an illusion to us. We may believe we are making life choices for ourselves, but God is silently and transparently pulling the strings of our circumstances and lives in the background. The logic is compelling and, when you look at Scripture with this mindset, it is possible to draw out a variety of verses that seem to support that point. While there is a lot of truth in the statements above, let’s look at a few points from Scripture to see if it is what God has revealed about Himself (and us).

1. Free Will got us into this mess – The opening pages of scripture reveal that God planned for mankind to have a choice. He wanted Adam and Eve to trust His Word, obey His will, and stay away from a single tree in the garden. He made it much easier for them to sit back and enjoy the good life than to choose disobedience. Yet, He still gave them the choice – and they made the wrong one.


2. Free Will doesn’t diminish God’s sovereignty – We often think of our ability to make free choices as something that reduces God’s control over the universe in some way. It has been said that a grandmaster of chess can envision all of the possible moves on the board many plays ahead in the game. Now imagine having a chess board the size of the universe with billions of people on earth all making choices of free will for their next move. God in his omniscience and sovereignty is able to do just that. He keeps track of all of our moves until the end of the game. He is all powerful and His will shall be accomplished (just read Revelation). Our belief in God’s sovereignty is only strengthened by a belief in our own free will.


3. Free Will offers true worship to God – The Bible is clear that God wants a relationship with mankind. He loves us. He sent His Son to die for us. He wants us to love Him as well. Can we truly love a God where our choices are just an illusion? It is His will that “all come to repentance” (2 Peter 3:9). If that is His will, why doesn’t He just save everyone and make us worship Him? Because worship, love, devotion, and obedience are choices that we must make.

No, free will is not an illusion. We have a choice to make about our relationship with God. Yes, we can be assured that God is in control (and that’s a good thing!). Yes, God knows what choices you are going to make and He also draws you to Himself. Christ has offered you a free gift of salvation and God has made it easy for you to make the right choice. God has chosen you. Christ has died for you. The question is whether you will choose Him, love Him, worship Him, and be devoted to Him in all things. So let’s take a lesson from Adam and Eve and make the right choice. Choose Christ!