Sovereignty and Free Will
The questions concerning the sovereignty of God and man’s free will has been an enigma for centuries. There are five major categories that address this topic. They include deterministic Calvinism, moderate Calvinism, a mediate theological view, moderate Arminianism, and open theism. I will briefly discuss each view.
Determinists who are Calvinists believe that God alone determines every event independently of man’s will, and that man’s choices occur as a result of God’s plan. Moderate Calvinists argue that man has limited free will but God is still sovereign over who He elects to be saved.
The mediate or middle view is God is fully sovereign and man is fully responsible. Both work together in such a way that God’s will is accomplished through human choices. Moderate Arminianism suggests that God has limited his sovereignty so that humans are free to accept or reject the gift of grace by repentance and faith. Lastly, open theists insist that God is limited in His foreknowledge so that man’s freedom can’t be interrupted.
I believe categories can be helpful in understanding this theological conundrum. It challenges believers to think more clearly concerning what each position teaches while recognizing there are strengths and weaknesses.
Unfortunately, categories can be divisive among Christian brothers and sisters who negatively caricature the position that is different from theirs rather than building up the body of Christ. The best way to eradicate this problem is for leaders, teachers, and pastors to educate their congregation on each issue to determine which position is most biblical.
Restrictivism and Inclusivism
Restrictivism and Inclusivism are on opposite ends of the spectrum. Restrictivists believes that people who do not hear the good news of Jesus Christ in this life will be lost and Inclusivists believe that salvation can be accessible apart from the special revelation of Jesus Christ found in the Scriptures.
Moreover, some scholars believe that an individual can receive general revelation through (creation, conscience, society) and understand God in this way, leading to an avenue of saving faith. Others who hold a universalist view suggest that at the end of the world, all people, regardless of their religion, will be saved.
What is the most biblical answer? Scripture clearly teaches that there is only one name under heaven by which man can be saved (Acts 4:12). Furthermore, general revelation may point you to the idea of a Creator, but it is only through the saving knowledge of Jesus Christ that reconciles a person back to God. That is why Jesus commands us to go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature (Mark 16).
Finally, the inclusivists view is self-defeating. While they claim that all religions have the truth to be saved, they deny the biblical view that only through Jesus Christ can man be saved. This will continue to be an important topic as globalization continues and more people are exposed to different religions and philosophies in their community, workplace, and families.
Common Ground and Enemy Territory
As Christians, how should we approach people of other faiths? First, we need to recognize that trying to establish a common ground with different belief systems will confuse people. For example, if a Christian says that the Muslim god “Allah” is the same as the Christian God because He is monotheistic, that is simply not true.
However, there can be points of contact that may be beneficial, such as the golden rule: “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.” Most would agree with this statement, but we must always remember that only the gospel of Christ has the saving power; not any of the other religions who teach this idea. Whenever we share the gospel, its always important to share the truth of the gospel with love, respect, and humility without compromising our faith.
Holism and Prioritism
This chapter focuses on the objective for evangelism. There are three major theologies involved in this discussion. They are liberation, holism, and prioritism theology. Liberationists believe that the mission of the church is to promote justice in society and establish peace on Earth, especially to the poor and needy.
Jesus does call us to serve our community, the poor, and do good works for them. However, the most important piece of information that any society can receive is the grace and mercy found in Jesus Christ.
The second theological position is holism theology. It teaches that the mission of God is to minister to society and individuals socially while giving a certain priority to evangelism. I believe this is what Jesus did throughout his ministry. He healed the lame, ministered to the poor, raised the dead, fed the thousands, but all of his good works was to point to the greater cause of his mission: to glorify God. The reason we serve our community and do good works is because we have a good God.
The third position is prioritism. It teaches that the mission of the church is to primarily make disciples of all nations, even though ministering to society and individuals is still a good thing. Yes, the ultimate goal is to make disciples. However, God calls us to two great commandments. To love God with all your heart, mind, soul, and strength, and your neighbor as yourself.
If we are not focused on our neighbors needs in the community through good works, then we won’t even have a good relationship with God. He cares for his people. Therefore, its our responsibility as Christians to demonstrate our love in a practical way by doing good works while also sharing the gospel as the motivating factor.
Incarnationalism and Representationalism
There are three fundamental questions that both missionary models ask: What are missionaries supposed to be? What are they to say? What are they to do? The incarnationalism model would state that Jesus is the model. We are to emulate him by first becoming a liberator of society.
Jesus went from place to place, healing the lame, giving sight to the blind, and helping the poor and needy. Next, Jesus was a transformer of culture by bringing both the Jews and the Gentiles together and confronting the religious hypocrisy of his day. Lastly, Jesus was the Savior of people. He died for their sins and saved them from the wrath of God.
Are we, as Christians, able to do the same? No. We are not able to become incarnations or reincarnations of Christ. As much as we want to conform into His image, we are fallen creatures. Instead, we must represent Him by being his ambassador. We want to let others know that even if we do a good deed for them, ultimately our hope is in Christ.
Second, let’s be like Paul who was an evangelist and church planter for God. Paul went throughout the Mediterranean world to expose others to Christ and represent him through the way Paul lived his life. We are not called to be the Savior or the changer of culture, but we are called as ambassadors of Christ, to point others to the one who can, Jesus Christ.
Power Encounter and Truth Encounter
What is essential to spiritual warfare? Does God work through experience or through the truth of His Word? Let’s take a look at both options and decide which is most biblical. Power encounters highlight weaknesses of the spiritual realm which Christ has defeated, it opens demonstrations of power, makes use of spiritual gifts, and involves numerous Holy Spirit related activities. Truth encounter focuses on the spirit of the truth, which is inspired by the written word of God, convicts the world, enables missionary witness, and unifies believers through the proclamation of the gospel.
God does work through power and truth. However, the truth of God takes first priority over any emotional experiences. The Bible warns us that even Satan can masquerade as an angel of light. We need to be careful to discern what type of spirit we are being influenced by. In ministry, this is especially important. We want to encourage the congregation that God’s spirit will move but we must do this with the love for God’s truth.
The example in the book is a sobering reminder. There was a missionary that heard about some Christians praying in Toyama, Japan for God to send a revival. He came to meet with them and began praying until God gave him the assurance that large numbers of people would come when he started preaching. Failing to receive this assurance, the missionary soon left the field and so did the Toyama colleagues.
Amateurization and Professionalization
There are two ways of looking at missions, from an amateur and professional perspective. First, an amateur is a call for voluntary workers who have not been trained to go to the mission field. This mission focus has inadequate preparation, short-term goals, and is based on supporter appeal. When these missionaries go to the field, they lack the long range goals and biblical competence to successfully have an impact on their mission field.
The professional missionary has a divine calling, is adequately prepared, is biblically grounded, are learners before they are teachers, have a multi cultural competence, have a solid education, and are interdependent on others. These are the strengths that most missionaries need if they want to be successful on the field.
There are exceptions. Some individuals are so naturally gifted that they do not need formal education. Most of us, however, need to learn how to teach, prepare, and understand biblical principles before we begin to engage in missions. In the end, it is God who teaches us through His Spirit and Word, but its also wise to seek guidance and counsel from the local church, the seminary, and other godly men before launching into the mission field.
Form and Meaning
The scripture teaches that not one jot or title shall pass from the law until all is fulfilled and that all scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, correcting, and training in righteousness (Matt. 5:18; 2 Tim. 3:16-18). What does this mean for us today?
There is a difference between a divine writing and a divinely inspired writing. Both the Koran and the Book of Mormon teach that the actual words and phrases of the divine occurred through a human medium. This makes the divine will available and understandable to those who know the language but a mystery to those who don’t know it. If you want to know the god of Islam Allah, you will need to learn the Arabic language since that is the language Allah spoke through.
How is this different from the Holy Bible of the Old and New Testament? As we read above, God’s word is inspired in such a way to assure the writings to be the Word of God and that is why its profitable for teaching, correction, and training in righteousness. Therefore, we don’t have the exact form like the Koran and book of Mormon argue for, but we do have the exact meaning that was intended by the authors.
In our congregations, its important to remind them that that God’s word can be completely trustworthy. Absolute truth does exist and we want Christians to have confidence in what is true versus what is false. As pastors, its our duty to expose the lies that the Bible is a myth or that it came down from heaven written by God. The miracle is that God used men to write what He intended for us to know in a perfect way.
Countdowns and Prophetic Alerts
We are familiar with the false prophets who attempt to predict the exact day when the end of the world will come. Jesus told us that no one knows the day or the hour, but should we look for signs? Yes, Jesus did tell us that the kingdom of God will be preached throughout the whole world, and then the end will come. He also stated that there will be famines, rumors of wars, earthquakes in various places; these are the “birth pangs” before the Son of Man return.
There are three main views that people hold about the end of times. The first is called premillenial. This view states that the Son of Man will return before the thousand year reign and set up his kingdom on Earth. The second view is postmillenialism. It believes that God’s kingdom will come to Earth one step at a time through the proclamation of the gospel.
The nations of the world will continue to grow in peace until the Kingdom is finally established. This view was popular until the twentieth century, when there were two world wars and the bloodiest century of all the other centuries combined. The last view is called amillennialism. It states that there is no millennium and after the destruction of Jerusalem in AD 70, we are in the transitional time between the millennium and the end of the world.
Eschatology or end times is an important theological concern. It shapes the way we think and examine the mission of the church, the culture of the secular world, and the future hope we have that peace will reign on the Earth. However, eschatology should not divide Christians because all three views believe that there will come a time when the Son of Man will return and set up the Kingdom of God.
The Kingdom of God and the Church of Christ
There are many views on the Kingdom of God and the Church of Christ. There is the moral kingdom idea that Immanuel Kant emphasizes, which places man at the apex of this kingdom rather than God. The ecclesiastical kingdom idea is different from the Roman Catholics and the Reformers.
The Catholics believe that the visible church is the kingdom of God whereas the Reformers believe that the invisible church (the individual members of the church who have been regenerated) is the kingdom of God. The first century Sadducees and modern Jews believed in a literal national kingdom (theocracy). The liberal Christians believe that the kingdom is about bringing heaven to Earth here through social reform.
Each of these perspectives have some truth in them. Ultimately, God’s kingdom is both a physical and a spiritual kingdom. At the end of the age, after the judgment, God will create a new heavens and a new earth. This place will be a city where believers will live. They will have glorified resurrected bodies and their spiritual relationship with God will be perfect. It will be a theocracy because God will be the King of the universe for eternity.
Since a perfect King will be on the throne, we won’t have to worry about social reform because it will take place. Let’s continue to pray “Our Father, who art in heaven; hallowed be your name. Your Kingdom come. Your will be done. On Earth as it is in heaven.”
Conform to Jesus 
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