Every once in a while The Holy Spirit will show me a book to buy, so I’ll buy it.

It may sit on a shelf for days, weeks, maybe a month, but I don’t think any have languished for a year, yet.

Then it will be brought to mind and I will be ‘encouraged’ to read it.

Sometimes, I will get to a certain place and be directed to stop, and stop now. This happened only a few chapters in.

Such was the case with a book by Gregory A. Boyd titled “God at War”.

This has been an interesting read. In it, he makes a very strong case that Omnipotence does not require absolute predestination or meticulous control.

This makes sense to those who hold to the Armenian style of Faith, but to those that hold to Calvin’s Predestination, it smells of heresy.

 

I have used the illustration of having a train layout or having a pet.

I can have an entire basement layout with many tracks, towns, locomotives and cars. But, it will never interact with me. It can only do exactly what I build for it to do. It can never learn new things unless I build it into the layout. For me, and I believe for Jehovah, that is not enough, except maybe a point of pride among the model railroading community.

When we read of Jehovah walking with Adam in the garden, we see them talking and fellowshipping. Even though Adam is in a subordinate position, he is given total freedom and control over all aspects of The Garden, except one tree.

That doesn’t sound like a train layout to me.

On the other hand if I have a pet I can train it, if it’s a dog house train it, but if it’s a cat, not so much. Perhaps (even though we are considered the sheep of His Pasture) we tend to be more like cats than dogs when it comes to spiritual things. Aloof, independent, until we need something.

I have had some typical cats and I have had some that actively sought me out and made me their friend.

 

Two things contraindicate meticulous control, Free Will and the Delegated Authority of The Believer.

If you are unfamiliar with the term meticulous control, let me help. It means every, and I mean every, bit of minutia of our lives and of the entire universe is under Jehovah’s direct preordained active control.

Now, I will introduce a term from my science fiction reading, The Foundation series to be precise, called psychohistory. If applied to Jehovah, which is always a dangerous thing to do, you would have His omniscience and His omnipotence working together to know everything about everything before it happens and apply appropriate corrective measures when required. (This requires further development, possibly several more paragraphs?)

 

Now, before you get in a huff and call me a heretic, hear me out. Not everything is preordained, prophesied or spoken in His Word. This leaves a lot of room for change, based on His Adopted Children’s actions.

Remembering Free Will and The Believers Delegated Authority consider:

Genesis 2:19  And out of the ground the Lord God formed every [wild] beast and living creature of the field and every bird of the air and brought them to Adam to see what he would call them; and whatever Adam called every living creature, that was its name.

If Jehovah can remove our sins as far as the east is from the west and remember them no more, why is it hard to believe the Our Father has kept things from Himself, so that He can enjoy the activities and growth of His Children?

Try reading Zechariah 2 and ask yourself why Jerusalem would need to be measured by anyone from heaven. Or, talking face to face with Moses, or needing to verify reports of Sodom and Gomorrah.

 

Here’s my take, when you take Free Will and The Authority of The Believer away and replace them with absolute predestination and preordination, you take all the responsibility away from human kind… And, specifically from the believers He has called to be both His Children and His Army.

We know that there was a revolt in Heaven and a third of the angels were cast to the earth. This battle is still in progress, and although we are assured of the final outcome, there are still battles to fight both in the Heavenlies and on earth in the physical realm.

If meticulous control is a truth, as the Calvinists would assure us it is, then we are free to do as we please and ‘que sera sera’ prayers are just great…

And, Paul was a liar when he wrote, ‘For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places’… Ephesians 6:12

But, if meticulous control is not a truth, then we are accountable before El Shaddai and we’d better learn to pray as if our lives, the lives of our families, the health of our cities, states and nation rely on our prayers!

But, we are not powerless in this battle for Paul also wrote, ‘Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered.’ Romans 8:26

And, we aren’t talking que sera sear prayers here either, for James wrote, ‘…The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.’ James 5:16b

 

Another interesting read is Pastor Cho’s book, ‘The Fourth Dimension’ where he puts Paul’s words about, ‘We then, as workers together with him…’(2 Corinthians 6:1a), in a different light. Taking into account cultural differences, he makes the case that whatever we affect in prayer, praise or worship in the Heavenlies constrains that change in the physical realm because the spiritual realm (the fourth dimension) subsumes, contains or is the controlling factor for the physical realm.

Make no mistake about it, as believers we are going to be held accountable. And, the leaders who refuse to instruct and lead us where we should go will have the greater penalty.