The Biblical doctrine of Predestination

The challenge that I was offered this week is the theological to present my understanding of the biblical doctrine of predestination. I want to make clear that I do not want to raise personal controversy or hurt anyone who thinks different from the position I advocate here in this paper.Above all, I am a Christian who seeks to live in a manner consistent with the teachings of the Word of God and knows that the term predestination raises controversy. So why deal with a topic so delicate? Is not it better we settled on what is essential and not what may divide us? I think we, as students of theology, we can not avoid to look deeply into this theme. We must define our position as well, even dissenting from that adopted for this work.The main issues are presented to us: God from all eternity foreordained all things that have come and will come to pass? If yes, what evidence we have of it, and how can the fact be consistent with the free will of rational creatures, and with His own perfections? If we were destined, where is our personal responsibility? God would not be unfair to declare that some people would be saved, while others remain in their sins and be lost forever?What will be discussed in this paper is the classical opposition between the human will and divine determination. During the reform era, Martin Luther and Desiderius Erasmus, the great humanist Catholic, faced off in a written debate on this topic.After being pressed to provide a response to Reformed theology, Erasmus wrote a book, Free Will, which was a refutation monergistic Lutheran theology in this work he defended the free will of human being as cooperative force for salvation. Luther, in turn, retorted:I congratulate Erasmus, because you alone, unlike the others, attacked the right thing, that is, the essential problem. You do not have my ramblings on those bored with the papacy, purgatory, indulgences and the like, instead of nonsense problems. You and only you have seen the point where everything comes together, pointing to a focus of life. [1]Luther's reply to Erasmus reaffirmed the biblical position of predestination.Defining the conceptsModern Christianity has adapted many pagan concepts in its constitution and unscriptural doctrine of predestination and the topic has not escaped. You must present the Biblical definitions that I accept on each of these topics. So, as I understand Predestination: The appearance of foreordination of God, through which the believer's salvation is considered made in accordance with the will of God, who called and chosen in Christ to eternal life, and the their voluntary acceptance of the person and sacrifice of Christ, a result of this election and the work of the Holy Spirit, that effective this election, touching his heart and opened his eyes to the spiritual.According to popular thinking, free will means the ability of humans to perform random actions, undetermined, no framework in a model of behavior or external force. The internal capacity of humans to choose and determine alternatives based on their own will.However, I understand that the biblical definition of free will is different from the popular thought. Free Will is to be understood as the power to freely choose what we prefer or desire (according to our nature or predisposition). For this reason the unregenerate or natural man, which is by nature hostile to God, love sin and therefore apart from the grace of regeneration does not seek God in terms of God (1 Cor 2:14, Rom 8:7) . He will invariably use their "free will" to suppress and evade the truth of God (Romans 1:18).When regenerated (the one that quickened the Spirit), on the other hand, is given by a provision which he has restored new desires and affections for God. Thus, our natural hostility to God and so is removed, we exercise our free will to trust in Jesus, who is now the supreme object of our affection.The chart below is a theological model of man in the four states: the man in the state of innocence (pre-fall), the man in the state of slavery (post-fall), the man in the state of grace (regenerated man) and man the state of glory (in the presence of God). Before the Fall, man was capable of sinning and not sinning. Fallen, unregenerate man was not able not to sin. Fallen, but regenerated man is capable of sinning and not sinning. Glory, the man is not capable of sinning. Both faith and obedience to the wishes of our new spring from nature, not the will of natural man (John 1:13, Romans 9:16, 1 Corinthians 2:14, John 6:63-65). [3]State of Man in HistoryMorally Able to DoInclined by nature toWELLEVILWELLEVILCreatedyesyesnotnotFallennotyesnotyesRedeemedyesyesyesnotGloryyesnotyesnot

Commenting on the implications of the popular sense of free will, the celebrated English Baptist preacher, Charles Spurgeon, said: [4]According to this scheme, the Lord has good intentions, but as a servant to wait, the initiative of His creature to know what the intent of it. God wants to do and good, but can not because of a sick man, who did not want to deliver the good things of God.What do you do, if not dethrone the Eternal and put in its place a fallen creature, man? For, according to this theory, man approves, and he approves it becomes your destiny. There must be a destination somewhere, or is it God or is the man who decides. If it is God who decides, then Jehovah sits sovereign on his throne of glory, and all hosts obey him, and the world is safe.Otherwise, the lords put people in a position to say, "I want" or "I do not. If I want, I get into heaven if you like, despise the grace of God. You may want to conquer the Holy Spirit, for I am stronger than God and stronger than omnipotence. If I decide to spoil the blood of Christ, for I am more powerful than the blood, the blood of the Son of God. Although God's purpose stipulates me laugh this purpose ; will be my purpose that will make him realize it or not. " Gentlemen, if this is not atheism, is idolatry is putting man where God should be. I retreat, with solemn awe and horror, that this doctrine does most of the works of God - the salvation of man - the discretion of the creature, to be held or not. I can and I will I glory in this text the word in its broadest sense: "So then it does not depend on anyone or him that runneth, but of God who shows mercy" (Romans 9:16).

I admit that the words of Spurgeon are contudentes and raise the spirits of those who think differently, however, they should encourage our definition in relation to a subject so deep. No use evade the question, but we must stand. I present the following is a diagram showing the different alternatives, positions and some biblical references, showing how we can organize the data of Scripture and how far some thoughts and take deductions: [5]