A new thread bashing God's sovereignty in salvation was started.
Calvin & Arminius were both wrong
No matter how it's sliced, saying that one has natural power to say yes or no to grace is to say that those who say yes do so because they are inherently better than those who say no.
But God was wise to make Jacob and Esau twins. While yet in the womb. Each equally innocent. Neither having done any good or evil. Both conceived of the same act, under the same star, of the same heritage, both with the same nurturing and enviroment. In every way equal and level, and neither being given a choice, God accepted one, and rejected the other.
If Grace were resistible, no one would be saved.
Batter my heart, three-person'd God, for you
As yet but knock, breathe, shine, and seek to mend;
That I may rise and stand, o'erthrow me, and bend
Your force to break, blow, burn, and make me new.
I, like an usurp'd town to another due,
Labor to admit you, but oh, to no end;
Reason, your viceroy in me, me should defend,
But is captiv'd, and proves weak or untrue.
Yet dearly I love you, and would be lov'd fain,
But am betroth'd unto your enemy;
Divorce me, untie or break that knot again,
Take me to you, imprison me, for I,
Except you enthrall me, never shall be free,
Nor ever chaste, except you ravish me.
—John Donne
I'm not bashing God's Sovereignty... I"m explaining how His soverignty is much, much greater than ether Calvin or Arminius could have ever imagined.
Take this example: I offer my child a simple, binary choice (two options); do you want pancakes for breakfast or do you want waffles. My child doesn't have free will ... they can't choose steak and eggs... they can't choose candy. They have the choice, yet because I am completely sovereign over breakfast, I can offer more than one possibility without any damage to my sovereignty.
The Calvinist/Arminianist perspectives of sovereignty require such a weak God who could only bear one possible choice.
Deuteronomy 30:19
“I call heaven and earth to witness against you today, that I have set before you life and death, the blessing and the curse. So choose life in order that you may live, you and your descendants,
Not only does God not make this choice for us, but he commands us 3 times in this chapter to make this choice for ourselves... and He goes even further to say that it is not too difficult for us to make the choice, and the choice is not made in heaven by God.
Deu 30:11-15 NASB
11 "For this commandment which I command you today is not too difficult for you, nor is it out of reach. 12 "It is not in heaven, that you should say, 'Who will go up to heaven for us to get it for us and make us hear it, that we may observe it?' 13 "Nor is it beyond the sea, that you should say, 'Who will cross the sea for us to get it for us and make us hear it, that we may observe it?' 14 "But the word is very near you, in your mouth and in your heart, that you may observe it. 15 "See, I have set before you today life and prosperity, and death and adversity;
The Calvinist argument is that Deutermonomy 30 is only for the Jews are references The Law of Moses. This is directly contradicted by Paul in Romans 10 when he quotes this very passage and says undeniably that this is in regards to the righteousness which comes by faith.
Rom 10:5-11 NASB
5 For Moses writes that the man who practices the righteousness which is based on law shall live by that righteousness. 6 But the righteousness based on faith speaks as follows: "DO NOT SAY IN YOUR HEART, 'WHO WILL ASCEND INTO HEAVEN?' (that is, to bring Christ down), 7 or 'WHO WILL DESCEND INTO THE ABYSS?' (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead)." 8 But what does it say? "THE WORD IS NEAR YOU, IN YOUR MOUTH AND IN YOUR HEART"--that is, the word of faith which we are preaching, 9 that if you confess with your mouth Jesus [as] Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved; 10 for with the heart a person believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation. 11 For the Scripture says, "WHOEVER BELIEVES IN HIM WILL NOT BE DISAPPOINTED."
Complete free will is not Biblical. But God giving us a distinct binary choice - choose life or choose death - only shows God's soverignty to be greater and more powerful than we can imagine in that it can account for multiple scenarios and choices. And further when Deuteronomy 30:19 talks about the salvation through faith, it says he calls "heaven" and "earth" to "witness". This parallels the synergistic nature of salvation that Paul talks about in Romans 8:
Rom 8:16-17 NASB
16 The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are children of God, 17 and if children, heirs also, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with [Him] so that we may also be glorified with [Him.]
Notice that "the spirit himself" (heaven from Deu 30) and our spirit (earth from Deu 30), testifies (witnesses from Deu 30) that we are children of God. Note what the salvation choice qualifies the believer for; to be children and fellow heirs. It qualifies us for human adoption into the family of Abraham.
Gal 3:6-9 NASB
6 Even so Abraham BELIEVED GOD, AND IT WAS RECKONED TO HIM AS RIGHTEOUSNESS. 7 Therefore, be sure that it is those who are of faith who are sons of Abraham. 8 The Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, preached the gospel beforehand to Abraham, [saying,] "ALL THE NATIONS WILL BE BLESSED IN YOU." 9 So then those who are of faith are blessed with Abraham, the believer.
26 For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus. 27 For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. 28 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free man, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus. 29 And if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham's descendants, heirs according to promise.