For the most part, except for some old-line Calvinists, those who profess to be Christians believe in the free moral agency of man. That is, that God has created man in His image and has revealed to man His will and left it to man to choose whether or not he will follow that will. The consequences of his choice to follow God’s will or not to follow it are revealed.
Yet, many who recognize that one chooses to be saved or not will go on to speak in a way that virtually robs a Christian of his free will. They speak of “God’s plan for our lives” and it leaves the impression that God micromanages every step of life in a way that it could not be otherwise — thus predetermined or predestinated. Whatever happens to that person, even tragedies, he believes it to be a part of God’s detailed plan for his or her life.
While God promises the faithful Christian that He will be with him through all his trials and triumphs of life (Hebrews 13:5), it does not mean that every event in our lives has a “Made In Heaven” label on it. Some may be the result of the choices we have made (Judges 6:1; 1 Peter 4:15). Some may be a result of choices that others have made (Acts 10:34; Romans 2:11). Some may because we live on earth cursed by God as a result of sin (Genesis 3:14-19). Some may be as a result of chance or coincidence (2 Samuel 1:6; Ecclesiastes 9:11; Luke 10:31).
Edward O. Bragwell, Jr.
