Sovereignty and free will.

God ordains all to pass. Now if man had a entirely free will than God would still have to consent in allowing it to operate freely. This means that God wills everything himself or practices self-restraint in allowing man to act.

This presents a problem. How can a good and holy God with infinite wisdom and infinite power allow a worthless man to make infinitely foolish and damnable decision as he sits by and lets it happen? This shows a God who does not care. How can God let things that eternally matter be decided by those who cannot rightly judge it. This is to place power in someone who is blatently incompetent. How can a good God let something not good happen to a man if he does not know better. This is to charge God with neglence in his rule. These are bastardly charges. I hold that God does interfere to prevent such mishandling of events.

If God were to let men freely adopt those damning outcomes by choosing self-restraint. Man is far to sovereign. Other people charge that with absolute sovereignty, God forces men into those damnable decisions. Well this makes no sense since man is already condemned. God need not act to damn them!

The difference between the two is that God is ruling rather than man. 'Free will' has to answer why God would not care when people make eternally bad desicions. Absolute sovereignty has less to answer.

We know that the workings of God are beyond us. Still with absolute sovereignty God can still exercise his goodness, holiness, wisdom, and power on a greater scale. Whereas with self-restraint and free will, He cannot because man is in the driver's seat not God.

With self-restraint and free-will, there is no grace to interfere with the free will. With God's sovereignty, there is plenty of grace and unmerited favor possible. Furthermore, how can God work all things together for the good of those who believe (Romans 8:28) if sinful man is opposing him at every stop by working all things foolishly without understanding. Self-restraint means that God's hands are tied behind his back strangely by Himself. It is quite hilarious to even entertain the notion that God thwarts His own plans.

I do not believe God practices such self-restraint. How can a man make horrible free choices with eternal consequences within an active sovereignty? He cannot. God can maintain his goodness, wisdom, power, and knowledge by himself in this scheme. I don't see any comprehensible way He can by allowing man his freedom to be stupid.

See Part II