ࡱ> 130b 'jbjb "&' $>DDDDDDDD,RFDDDDDDDDRDD4"Di8 QX0>,The Decrees and the Providence of God The decrees of God refer to the decisions that God made concerning the creation before the world was created. The providence of God refers to the sovereign rule of God over his creation. 1. Providence means that continuous activity of God whereby he makes all the events of the physical, mental and moral realms work out his purpose, and this purpose is nothing short of the original design of God in creation. To be sure, evil has entered the universe, but it is not allowed to thwart Gods original, benevolent, wise, and holy purpose. Thiessen 2. The divine decrees- Reformed theology stresses the sovereignty of God in the sense that He determined from all eternity whatsoever will come to pass and works his sovereign will in his entire creation, both natural and spiritual according to his pre-determined plan. Louis Berkhof God in eternity past decreed that there should be a world inhabited by man. That man should sin, and that God should elect some men to be saved and pass by others, for good and wise reasons known only to himself. That He should punish those He passes by, for their sins, and that all of this results in the greatest possible glory to God. The decree of God is defined by the Westminster Shorter Catechism, as His eternal purpose according to the counsel of his will, whereby, for His own glory, He hath foreordained whatsoever comes to pass. a. Whatsoever will come to pass both natural and spiritual. This can mean one of two things depending on who you read. Everything that happens is literally under the direct control of God, both natural and spiritual, good and evil. (i.e.) When Adam sinned, he sinned because it was Gods will. When an earthquake kills hundreds of thousands of people, God did it. When the Twin Towers were destroyed, God did it. When a child is kidnapped and murdered, God did it. Ultimately there is only one will in the universe. Quote Piper- Why I Do Not Say, God Did Not Cause the Calamity, but He Can Use It for Good. From the smallest thing to the greatest thing, good and evil, happy and sad, pagan and Christian, pain and pleasure- God governs them all for his just and wise purposes. 2. Everything is under the indirect control of God. God works his will through secondary causes, nonetheless, whatever happens good or evil is his perfect will. This is an attempt to soften the harsh tone of the first position, but in actuality it says the same thing. b. The non- Reformed view- God did not will the fall of man, nor does God will the sinful acts of man, but rather He in his sovereignty allowed the fall of man, and allowed that other wills would operate in the universe and yet through it all He still will accomplish His ultimate purpose in the end. 3. The Calvinist declares that the ultimate goal of all Gods acts is to glorify himself. The Calvinist then becomes the judge of what will or will not glorify God. a. If sin came about through the free choice of man that somehow indicates that God is not in complete control, which of course does not glorify God. Therefore, man was decreed by God to sin. The world that is, is the very world that God planned. Adam did not choose to sin, he was ordained to sin, he could do nothing but sin, because by ordaining sin God could best demonstrate His glory. b. If man has any part in salvation, that does not glorify God. Therefore choice is eliminated, and election is emphasized. Faith itself becomes a gift given only to the elect. c. If Christ died for some who will not be saved, that implies failure on Christ part, which obviously does not glorify God. Therefore, Christ must have died only for the elect. Limited atonement. The Calvinistic view of foreknowledge is the same as foreordination or predestination, to plan what will happen before it occurs in time. The non-Calvinistic view of foreknowledge is to know what will happen before it comes to pass in time. Now such a foreknowledge of the free actions of man may be possible but it would seem to be impossible to foreknow events which are entirely dependent on the chance decision of an unprincipled will, which can at any time, irrespective of the state of the soul, of existing conditions, and of the motives that present themselves to the mind, turn in the different directions. Berkhof Berkhof seems to place his limitations as a finite creature upon God. What would be impossible for Berkhof or any other human being would not be so for God. Omniscience based on predetermination is less impressive than Omniscience in the face of human freedom. Omniscience in the face of human freedom glorifies God in a much greater way to me. 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