~ A place to find answers to gnawing spiritual questions ~
Question: Our Sunday School class has been asking questions about predestination. I read your commentary in "Ask a Minister," but my question is, was Jesus not predestined to be born of a virgin, to live as a man, and to die on the cross for our sins? As a human, he did ask God the Father to "Lift this cup" in the garden of Gethsemane but God already had determined that he would be a sacrifice for our sins. David was a man after God's own heart. Jonah was swallowed by a whale. Noah built the ark and saved God's creatures. Were these peoples lives not predestined? Were these not the purposes in which they were created, to follow God's law so that others would come to believe in him?Answer: Predestination is, indeed, a Biblical doctrine. It has, however, been grossly distorted by UN-Biblical hyper-Calvinistic teaching.
The hyper-Calvinists teach that God predetermined, completely independent of every human being's free moral agency, those who would ultimately go to heaven, as well as those who would ultimately go to hell. This is absolutely contrary to Scripture. We are taught that God is "not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance" (2 Peter 3:9b). In other words, it is not by God's choice, (for the "will" is defined as the power and ability to choose) that any man EVER perishes. If it were entirely up to the Lord, He would choose that "all should come to repentance."
So it is very clear that man chooses his own destiny by the life he chooses to live. The invitation is to "whosoever will." Choosing the Lord and a life of self-sacrifice ends in eternal bliss in the Father's house. Choosing sin and a life of temporal pleasure ends in eternal damnation in the Lake of Fire.
On the other hand, it is true that God KNOWS who will go to hell and who will go to heaven. Predestination based upon foreknowledge is an entirely different matter than complete "sovereign" predestination. It would not necessarily be contrary to the character of God for him to make a visible example out of a sinful man who has already sealed his own doom. Take, for example, Pharaoh in the story of Moses. At the first, Pharaoh hardened his own heart (Exodus 8:15,32). Later, God hardened Pharaoh's heart (Exodus 9:12; 10:20, 27; etc) so that He might show His great glory and power in the plagues against Egypt.
On the positive side of this issue, remember that "whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son" (Romans 8:29a).
To finally get to your question, it would be inconsistent with the character of God to "create" (your word) such men for such purposes, for to do so would also be predetermining their eternal destiny. It is NOT inconsistent with God's character, however, to look in His foreknowledge upon such men who would be most suitable to accomplish these tantamount tasks, and to put His plan into action in their lives. Paul said that he was "separated ... from my mother's womb, and called ... by his grace" (Galatians 1:15b). Although his conversion was indeed a powerful conversion, Paul was NOT forced into conversion. He was converted after surrendering to the Lord Jesus Christ -- purely an act of the human will! God, who knows all men, knew that Paul would be thoroughly converted, and (on that basis) chose him even before his birth to do a great work for the Gospel of the New Covenant.
Jesus Christ, being literally God (though manifest in the flesh), is an example to be set apart from all others. That he was "slain before the foundation of the world" is expressive of the foreknowledge of God. It also shows us that when God makes a plan; it is as good as if it were already done -- for it cannot be thwarted by any creature.
This is certainly not a comprehensive answer to your question, as literally volumes have been compiled on this controversial topic. Hopefully it will, however, offer a starting point for a healthy discussion of this topic in your Sunday School class.
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