Beyond the Walls with Jeremy Thomas
Jeremy approaches Bible teaching with a passion for getting the basic doctrines explained so that the individual can understand them and then apply them to circumstances in their life. These basic and important lessons are nestled in a framework of history and progression of revelation from the Bible so the whole of Scripture can be applied to your physical and spiritual life.
Beyond the Walls with Jeremy Thomas
NT Framework - God’s Will Doesn’t Mean Control
What kind of God are we trusting, One who micromanages every human choice, or the living God who invites faith? We tackle that question head-on by contrasting a control-heavy theology with the Bible’s portrait of divine love and human responsibility.
More information about Beyond the Walls, including additional resources can be found at www.beyondthewalls-ministry.com
This series included graphics to illustrate what is being taught, if you would like to watch the teachings you can do so on Rumble (https://rumble.com/user/SpokaneBibleChurch) or on YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLtV_KhFVZ_waBcnuywiRKIyEcDkiujRqP).
Jeremy Thomas is the pastor at Spokane Bible Church in Spokane, Washington and a professor at Chafer Theological Seminary. He has been teaching the Bible for over 20 years, always seeking to present its truths in a clear and understandable manner.
Welcome to Beyond the Walls with Jeremy Thomas and our series on the New Testament framework. Today, a smaller, bite-sized piece from the larger lesson. We hope you enjoy it.
SPEAKER_01:So it seems like their God is like a projection of finite man. He's just amplified humanity. It doesn't sound like the God of the Bible, though. It sounds like man amplified the God they talk about. I think Isaiah said, I'm positive Isaiah said, his ways are not our ways. He doesn't accomplish things the same way that we accomplish things. If I have to guarantee results at my workplace with 150 employees, I have to control all 150 employees. I mean, I have to control everything about them, don't I? Because that's the only way I can get the exact outcome that I'm wanting in my business. But God doesn't work like that. His ways are not our ways. See? He's different. He has other ways to work that we are not privy to. This God seems to be de-personalized. You know, before the foundation of the world, he selected certain people who'd never even been born to be saved, and the other people who'd never been born to go where? To hell. This seems like a depersonalized view of God, doesn't it? It doesn't sound like the God of Hosea. The God of Hosea is like, why do you die, O Israel? Why do you die? Because you made us to die. That's the logical Calvinist response of an Israeli. Why do you die? Because you made us to die. You determined us to die. See? That doesn't. That's not the God of the Bible. That's not the way the Bible reads. Look at the end of Romans 9. We want to make sure we worship the one true God, not a false God. Romans 9, verse 31. Israel, but Israel, pursuing a law of righteousness, did not arrive at that law. They did not arrive at righteousness. Why didn't they arrive at righteousness? Because they did not pursue it by faith, but as though it were by works. They stumbled over the stumbling stone, just as it is written, Behold, I lay in Zion a stone of stumbling and a rock of offense, and whoever believes he who believes in him will not be disappointed. They had the opportunity to believe in him. What did Jesus say at the end of Matthew 23, 37? Jerusalem, Jerusalem, I wanted to gather you under my wings as a hen gathers her chicks, but you were not willing. You didn't want to. Did Jesus want to? Yes, he wanted to gather them. Did they want to? No. But wait a minute. I thought Jesus always got what he wanted. You know, the will of God, it always happens, right? Jesus was God, so the will of God always happens. No, the will of God doesn't always happen. This is a confused idea. But all Calvinists will always say that God always gets his will done. No, he absolutely doesn't. In fact, we are told in Matthew chapter 6 that we should pray that his will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Aren't we? Aren't we supposed to pray that prayer? Well, if it's always done on earth, why do we need to pray for it? It's not is all this going on on earth right now, God's will? Is all this nastiness that's going on out there? Is that God's will? Is that what God wants? The word just means want, will, desire. That's the Greek word thello. No. Does God desire all men to be saved? 1 Timothy 2, 4. Well, they've got to get around that one too, don't they? Because they say, well, if God always gets what he wants, God's will will always be done. Then if God wanted everybody to be saved, everybody'd be saved. But obviously they're not. So God's will then must be not to save everyone, they would say, but to only save people from all types of group or groups. So this is a lot of talking around something to do what? To believe in a specific type of God that I think is more of a projection of finite humanity and how we might control outcomes. Um He holds this God holds humans responsible for what they're unable to do. Because they're going to say, you know, a person who is an unbeliever can't believe. Instead, what has to happen, the Holy Spirit has to irresistibly regenerate them and give them faith. But why then are humans held responsible for not believing and have to spend eternity in the lake of fire for something they can't do? If I tell my son, go pick up that car right now, or you're you're out of the house. And you'll never come back to this family. You're out of the family because you can't pick up the car. Is that does that make sense that that would be something our God would do to people? Say, you have to believe, but you can't, and therefore you have to spend eternity in the lake of fire for not doing something you can't do. See, that doesn't make any sense. And they said, well, it's just a mystery, it's just an antimony, it's just a paradox. No, it's a lie. It's just a lie. I mean, you can cook it up however you want, but that doesn't change the fact that it's a lie. Um, God doesn't love all people, but the Bible, isn't the Bible, the Bible says God even loves animals. At the end of Jonah, uh, if God loves animals, how much more does he love people that he made in his image? So it's it's it just it just seems this God seems to conflict with the God of the Bible. Another criticism is man does not seem responsible in this point of view. Again, he's told to do what he can't do, and then he's held responsible for not doing it, and he has to pay a penalty in the lake of fire. That doesn't make any sense. Um third, evangelism seems unimportant in this view. I mean, if God irresistibly regenerates the elect, then why do we need to pray for workers to go into the harvest? Why do we need to obey the Great Commission? And why do we need to be ambassadors for Jesus Christ? If God has his elect from before all eternity past, and his Holy Spirit's going to irresistibly regenerate them and give them faith, why do we need to send missionaries out there? I'm not saying that they don't have people who do evangelism who believe this. I'm not saying that at all. I'm just saying this uh makes evangelism seem unimportant in the grand scheme of things. What's really important is if you are the elect or not. Uh, fourth point, history seems unimportant or downplayed in this point of view. Uh what do I mean? Well, I mean that he selected certain individuals from before history even began, right? And that means that what happens in history is really just a playing out of an already determined situation where there's really no human freedom. Now, does God know everything? We believe in the omniscience of God. God knows all things actual and possible, even the what-ifs of history, right? That's not a problem. But his knowledge is not causative. His knowledge is not causative. For example, does God know if you're going to pray this afternoon for someone in your family or something? Sure. He does. Did he cause you to pray then because he knew you were going to do it? No. These are different concepts. Causation is different from knowledge. They're not the same. So don't get these ideas confused, right? But history seems downplayed, it seems not that important. Okay, it appears that if Calvinism is true, it appears that what people are doing in history is just what they were programmed to do. Whenever I've argued with Calvinists, right, and they want to disagree and say I've got the wrong theology or whatever, I usually end up saying something like this. Well, then God determined that I would have this theology. I can't do anything about it. I mean, what am I supposed to do about it? So that I mean that's where you end up. Well, this you see, that's obviously silly.
SPEAKER_00:You can find those on Rumble and on YouTube under Spokane Bible Church. That is where Jeremy is the pastor and teacher. We hope you found today's lesson productive and useful in growing closer to God and walking more obediently with Him. If you found this podcast to be useful and helpful, then please consider rating us in your favorite podcast app. And until next time, we hope you have a blessed and wonderful day.