Recap: We've completed our series on vexing questions with regard to the doctrine of election by looking at six perplexing questions: three questions that create difficulties for the non-Calvinist, and three challenging questions for the Calvinist's view of the doctrine.
In summary, the challenge for the Calvinist is that their understanding of election and predestination creates contradictions in Scripture which cannot be resolved. And since Scripture cannot contradict itself, it requires the Calvinist to shrug his/her shoulders and appeal to "mystery" or "tension" or "paradox". The problem for the non-Calvinist is the difficulty in explaining the verses that are clearly "Calvinistic" - those verses which reveal that individuals were called, chosen, appointed - while others were hardened, divinely stupefied, or simply left unenabled to believe the gospel. This difficulty generates some questionable exegesis on the part of the non-Calvinist in an attempt to rescue the beneficent and gracious nature of the God of the Bible from the cruel, disingenuous god of Calvinism.
Rest
I remember once reading about an interview with Mother Teresa. The interviewer asked her what she says to God when she prays. Her answer, "Mostly I just listen."
For the past few months, we have delved deep into the doctrinal "weeds" to try to gain a better understanding of the difficulties facing all the traditional interpretations of the doctrine of election. Despite more than 1600 years of debate, no consensus has been achieved, yet all agree that, while the doctrine of election and predestination is enigmatic and perplexing, it is biblical, and important. Warren Wiersby, the well-know Bible commentator, tells of a professor who described the importance of the doctrine this way: “Try to explain the doctrine of election and you may lose your mind. But try to explain it away and you may lose your soul!”
To ensure that no one loses his/her mind (or soul), the goal of this post is to take a moment, get off the theological highway, pull over, stretch our legs and seek some much-needed rest.
O LORD, my heart is not lifted up; my eyes are not raised too high;
I do not occupy myself with things too great and too marvelous for me.
But I have calmed and quieted my soul, like a weaned child with its mother;
like a weaned child is my soul within me.
O Israel, hope in the LORD from this time forth and forevermore.
(Psalm 131 ESV)
I sometimes think that all of our theological musings are pure folly in God’s eyes. I occasionally get the feeling that he is like a bemused father, looking down his reading glasses at his children with a wry, knowing smile on his face, kind of proud, yet amused by our simple ruminations. Yet I believe that God is always behind the scenes, revealing to each of us exactly what he desires for us to understand - guiding us along as he feeds us just enough to keep us hungry, growing, and desiring more.
On the one hand, we are exhorted by God himself, to examine His word and to seek wisdom. We are called upon to love knowledge, incline our hearts to understanding, call out for insight. In an impromptu Bible study on the road to Emmaus, Jesus rebukes Cleopas and his friend for being “foolish” and “slow of heart to believe” when they don’t connect the dots and fully grasp the teaching of the prophets from the Scriptures (Luke 24:25). And in the sixteenth chapter of Matthew, Jesus calls out Peter for his ignorance - not understanding and simply trusting the plan of God (Mat 16:23).
On the other hand, there are times when I sense that God is likely a bit annoyed at our attempts to go beyond that which he has revealed - attempting to plumb the unfathomable; to explain the things that are "too great and too wonderful" for us to comprehend. Often, I get the impression that God just wants us to trust him and to rest in him. At times, our quest to understand his inscrutable ways and unsearchable judgments gets in the way of God’s desire for us to simply adore him and marvel.
Please enjoy these verses - God's counsel regarding rest:
(from https://blog.compassion.com/5-more-ways-god-wants-you-to-rest/)
1. Rest from Work: God wants to give you refreshment.
“Six days do your work, but on the seventh day do not work, so that your ox and your donkey may rest, and so that the slave born in your household and the foreigner living among you may be refreshed.” Exodus 23:12, NIV
2. Rest from Troubles: God wants you to enjoy the gift of stillness.
“Be still before the LORD and wait patiently for him …” Psalm 37:7, NIV
3. Rest from Anxiety: God wants to bring you peace.
“Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” Phil 4:6-7, NIV
4. Rest from Busyness: God wants to give you time to recharge.
“Then, because so many people were coming and going that they did not even have a chance to eat, he said to them, “Come with me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest.” Mark 6:31, NIV
5. Rest from Stress: God wants to take away your burdens.
“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.” Matthew 11:28-29, NIV
Final Thought
Unfortunately most of us neither rest in him as we ought, nor do we seek him as we ought. Both activities are commanded because both are necessary for a rich, full relationship with the Almighty and a healthy understanding of our role as his subjects in the kingdom. Our Creator tells us that rest is important for us and he ought to know. We need to be sure that we are letting God minister to our souls by spending quiet time in daily meditation, worship and prayer, allowing God's still, small voice to get through the static of the world and speak to our hearts.
Next Post: In the next series of posts we'll jump back on the highway leading to a true-to-Scripture, non-contradictory understanding of the doctrine of election. We'll begin with a very foundational study: who the Bible says God is, and who the Bible says we are.
Here's a link to the next post: https://www.bibleinsights.net/post/post-17-error
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