Why Predestination?

One of the most hotly debated topics between Christian theologians is the topic of predestination. Simply put, this is the idea that God knows ahead of time who will be saved. Within this view there are two subviews that are also contested; Calvinist double predestination and Arminianism. The double pre-destination view states that God knows who will be saved and those who will be going to hell, independent of human action. The Arminian view states that God predestines based on His prior knowledge of who will freely choose to believe in Jesus Christ. The key distinction between the two is that the Calvinist view argues that God actively reprobates the damned, whereas the Arminian view holds more agency for humanity. 

With this introductory information established, we can talk about why this matters. Predestination is worth our consideration because it seeks to answer these two questions: Is God all powerful? and is God fully sovereign? Though simple on the surface, theologians have grappled with these questions for hundreds of years. We know God is powerful enough to resurrect the dead (2 Corinthians 1:9 ESV), destroy whole cities (Genesis 19:24–25 ESV), and imbue the power to part seas (Exodus 14:21-22 ESV). And, throughout the Bible, we have never seen God’s power limited. So is His power limitless? Judging from the fact that he created the Heavens and Earth, if there are bounds to his power, they are outside the scale of our understanding. From God’s immense displays of power in the Bible, it seems fair to say God is all powerful–or at least all powerful in a sense that humans can understand. 

But being all powerful isn’t the same as orchestrating all things. Which brings us to the second question: is God fully sovereign? Sovereignty not only asks whether or not God is capable of an act, but if there is anything that can stop Him from acting. Scripture affirms that nothing can (Daniel 4:35 ESV, Isaiah 46:10 ESV). It is precisely because God's sovereignty is absolute that predestination demands our attention. If nothing can thwart His will, then the question of whether He has already determined who is saved cuts to the heart of human existence itself. Sovereignty also raises the question of whether, under God's absolute will, humans retain any genuine agency of their own. Predestination is where that question gets most personal for mankind, for predestination is where we see the sovereignty of God collide with our decisions.

Sovereignty and omnipotence also require omniscience. God's omniscience is central to predestination. To sovereignly elect individuals across all of human history, God would require complete knowledge of every life ever lived.The disciple John would seem to have an answer about God’s omniscience: “For whenever our heart condemns us, God is greater than our heart, and he knows everything” (1 John 3:20 ESV). This idea of God knowing of everyone's sins and shame is echoed throughout the bible, both in the Old Testament (Proverbs 15:3 ESV) and New (Hebrews 4:13 ESV). So if God is all powerful and all knowing, can we change God’s mind? 

The answer has to be no, right? Because if God has absolute sovereignty, that would mean that we can’t alter His actions. But if we can’t change God’s mind, why does He command us to pray? Several explanations have been offered. One is that we pray as an act of devotion, out of obedience to God and not with any expectations that God will answer our prayers. But for a lot of people this answer can seem unconvincing. Thus, another explanation of God’s commandments to prayer is that God knows the ends, but he also dictates the means to achieve the ends. So when God instructs us to pray perhaps us praying is a metaphorical key that opens the lock for God to do any specific action on our behalf.

Given God's omnipotence, sovereignty, and omniscience, it follows that He already knows who will believe and who will not. This idea encapsulates the motivation behind belief in predestination: the belief that God already elects those who are saved and those who aren’t from the start of time. Some might think that this means there is no point in spreading the gospel.

But the thing about predestination is that while God knows the identity of the elect, we don’t. As Paul writes in Romans 8:29 (ESV) God foreknew and predestined his people before they ever knew him. God always knows who his elect are, even if we are doubting or confused. Which means that we should still spread the faith because we have no human way of knowing who is part of the elect and who is not. And on that same note, perhaps us spreading the faith is part of God’s plan to save an individual. So why predestination? 

For me, the simple answer is peace. The peace to know that God has a plan for me. That God is all powerful and all knowing. And because of that, I know that no matter how far I fall I cannot disrupt God’s plan. But while this answer works for me, it isn’t convincing to everyone. Which is why the debate still ensues.