What About Free Will?

 

One of the questions that often comes up in conversations about ultimate destinies is, “What about free will?” 

I’ve heard it expressed in various ways: 

“God doesn’t force anyone into heaven!” 

 

“How can you love someone if you’re not free to choose?”  

“God gets one vote. Satan gets one vote.  You cast the deciding vote.” 

 

“CS Lewis said that the door to hell is locked from the inside.”

This is definitely a foundational question that needs to be addressed by anyone who holds the view that God will ultimately restore all of creation to the perfection He initially intended.  So, here are a few observations.

Only God has absolute free will! 

Only God is free to accomplish all that He desires.  He gives each person a free will, but always within limits and in the context of His absolute free will. 

For example, none of us was given the freedom to choose when we were born . . . where we were born . . . who our parents would be . . . what our physical stature and mental capacities would be . . . whether we’re male or female . . . or even when and how we will die.  We have no control over many of the factors that directly impact our situations and our decisions every day. 

Joseph didn’t choose to be made second-in-command in Egypt.  God arranged the circumstances for that to happen.  Jonah ran away from God, but God’s will prevailed and Jonah found himself in Nineveh proclaiming the message God had given him. 

Scripture is clear when it says,

 “The king’s heart is in the hand of the Lord; He directs it like a watercourse wherever He wishes."

“The mind of man plans his way, but the Lord directs his steps.”

“Many are the plans in a person’s heart, but it is the Lord’s purpose that prevails.”

God is not helpless in the face of mankind’s free will. 

God specifically said that it is His desire that all people be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth.  He specifically said that one day every knee will bow in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue will freely and joyfully confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father. 

God can give free will because of the nature of love, the nature of sin, the nature of God and the nature of mankind.

Love is the most powerful force in the universe, because it is the only power that accomplishes its purposes without coercion.

Sin promises power, pleasure, success fulfillment, etc., but always leads to misery in one way or another.  There are always unwanted consequences to sin, and can be seen in the experiences of people with addictions who have lost their health, their families, their finances.

God is all-wise.  Like a Chess Master who plays against a novice, He doesn’t force any moves, but He always wins in part because He knows the game so much better than the novice. 

God also never gives up.  Physical death is not the end of when God’s grace is at work in the lives of people.  Like the Good Shepherd searching for the lost sheep, His grace continues working in the ages to come “until” the lost sheep is found.  As one friend said, “God is too holy to look upon sin without doing something about it, namely loving it out of existence with harsh discipline if necessary."

Members of the human race always act in what they perceive as their own best interests, except in love.  Ultimately they will come to a place where they recognize the nature of sin and their need for God’s saving grace in Christ. 

Evil will not remain a part of God’s creation forever.  At the end of time, all those God created in His image will enjoy the peace and joy of being in His presence.

Am I Really a False Teacher?

In my book, Heaven’s Doors . . . Wider Than You Ever Believed! I share about a sad experience of having a dear friend who I had known well for over a dozen years come up to me at a conference to inform me that, in essence, he didn’t want to be my friend anymore.  His reason?  He had concluded that I am a false teacher who is leading people astray by my blog posts and a then-to-be published book addressing the issue of ultimate destinies.

Neither my friend’s words nor the spirit in which they were communicated motivated me to change my beliefs.  However, his words did make me think. 

What Characterizes False Teachers?

Both Paul and Peter expressly warn us to stay away from false teachers.  And Jesus told us to watch out for ravenous wolves who dress in sheep’s clothing.  But, what exactly is it that makes someone a true “false teacher?” 

Are Calvinists false teachers because their theological understanding of God’s sovereignty and grace differs from that of Arminians?  Are Baptists heretics because they disagree with their Presbyterian friends about the mode or age at which people should be baptized?  Are Charismatics really wolves in sheep’s clothing because they disagree with non-Charismatics about whether or not the gifts of the Spirit are relevant to life today? 

False teachers are deceptive in their dealings.

It would seem reasonable from a quick look at the actual phrase itself to expect false teachers to teach something that is false.  Peter pointed out that the false teachers he was referring to lied by exploiting others with “stories they have made up.”  Wolves “who come to you in sheep’s clothing” are seeking to deceive those they are preying upon. 

In contrast, Calvinists and Arminians, Baptists and Presbyterians, and Charismatics and non-Charismatics who differ with one another do not generally lie to their followers about what Scripture actually says.  Rather, they each look at the text and come to different conclusions.  They definitely believe their theological opponents are mistaken, but they don’t usually see them as being deceitful.  As a result, they don’t generally call each other heretics or false teachers. 

In my particular situation, it has been my goal to point out truth.  In a former blog post for example, I noted that the original NIV translators inappropriately used the word “hell” to translate the Greek word “hades” in the parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus, and that those same translators never translated hades that way anywhere else in Scripture.  I didn’t lie.  I didn’t seek to deceive my readers.  I stated the truth.  And, in fact, the 2011 revision of the NIV actually corrected their error.  

False teachers are interested in profits.

The false teachers Peter speaks of are greedy for gain.  They “follow the way of Balaam son of Beor, who loved the wages of wickedness.” 

I have known – or known of – those within the religious community who have been motivated to a great degree by a desire to make money.  Some have built large empires that later collapsed when fraudulent fundraising and accounting practices were exposed. 

My motivation for writing my book and blog posts has not been to get rich.  In fact, I have lost far more money than what I have gained from what I have written.  I was terminated from a ministry that I had worked with for over ten years after passing along a copy of my manuscript to the head of the ministry to let him know my thinking on the issue. I was no longer able to speak and perform at various conferences and churches because of my views.

False teachers pursue sensual pleasure. 

They “carouse in broad daylight.”  Their eyes are “full of adultery.”  They “seduce the unstable,” and appeal to the “lustful desires of sinful human nature.” 

Major scandals have plagued the religious world in recent years involving well-known figures whose moral failures have brought disrepute on the gospel of Christ. 

My wife and I celebrated our 53rd wedding anniversary in 2024.  I have never been involved in an illicit affair.  And, I can honestly say that I love and admire my wife more today than when we were first married.

Who Decides?

I honestly love my friend – and, yes, as far as I am concerned he is still my friend.  I am honestly sad that he no longer wants to continue in fellowship with me.  But, I am also honestly convinced that I am not a heretic, and that my friend does not really understand what actually constitutes a false teacher. 

Jesus followed His warning about wolves in sheep’s clothing by explaining how we would be able to know who they are – “By their fruit you will recognize them.” 

Because someone disagrees with you on a theological issue doesn't automatically make that person a false teacher.

We need to look at their lives.  Are those we label as false teachers deceptive, or greedy, or immoral?  If not, we should be very careful about labeling them that way.

The views I have expressed on these blog posts and in my book are not new.  In fact, much of what I have written has been an attempt to inform people in this generation of ideas that were held by the Christian Church in the earliest years of its existence – when it was closest to the Apostles, when its leaders read the New Testament in their native language, and its influence on the surrounding culture was the greatest it has ever been.  

In a tract written in about AD 1627, a little known German divine named Rupertus Meldenius penned three short and very profound statements about how Christians should treat those with whom they disagree:

In essentials unity. In nonessentials liberty. In all things charity.

We would do well to follow that advice today.

Searching for Truth

People today desperately want to know what is true and authentic in a world increasingly characterized by cultural confusion and a loss of trust in established institutions. 

Are the answers to life found in the writings of secular scientists who tell us that we’re simply a product of chance – an accidental mixture of elements in one stage of development, no more important in the long range scheme of things than a rock, or a sea urchin? 

 Are the answers found in the philosophical musings of Eastern mystics who explain that we’re a very small part of an all-pervasive life force that in the end draws us into itself so that we lose our individuality and become nothing? 

Are we unique individuals created by an all-powerful Creator who has a purpose for each person?  But, if so, why is there so much pain and suffering in what should be a perfect world?

What Do You Think? 

As a Christian working in the media industry in the Boston and New York City metropolitan areas for over 40 years, I’ve had many meaningful conversations with actors, producers, directors, engineers, studio owners and many others about whether or not God is real and the Bible is true.

Some told me they clearly didn’t believe in God, thought the Bible was filled with fairy tales and wondered how I could possibly think that a Supreme Being did, in fact, exist.

Others weren’t sure. They thought there might be a God, but had never heard any clear arguments supporting that belief from what they were taught in school, what they saw or heard in museums and on TV or in conversations with friends and peers.  

Still others considered themselves believers, but had honest questions that about their faith, and especially why a good God would allow so much pain and suffering to exist in the world.

Often during those conversations, I wished I had a relatively short, easy-to-read book that I could give them that would provide honest answers to honest questions. Not finding any that I liked, I decided to write one.  

Thoughtful Answers to Thoughtful Questions

Searching for Truth in Vegas, Hollywood & Bethlehem . . . The Quest to Discover if God is Real addresses many of the questions thoughtful people often ask about the nature of God, the nature of life, and the validity of Biblical Christianity. 

For example: 

Is there a God?  What about evolution?  How about Eastern mysticism?  Is the Bible really God's Word?  How close is the Bible of today to the original Bible?  How does it differ from other great works of religious literature?  Did Jesus really rise from the dead?  If God is good and sovereign, why is there excessive pain and suffering in the world? 

John Warwick Montgomery, a lawyer, professor, theologian and author who has eleven earned degrees, including doctorates in philosophy, theology and law, has commented,

“Your MS is an excellent popular case for biblical faith.  It is carefully researched, very well written, and stylistically attractive.”

Searching for Truth in Vegas, Hollywood & Bethlehem is available in paperback, as an eBook and as an audiobook on Amazon.com

It provides honest answers to honest questions.  I hope you’ll enjoy reading it.  God bless.

Abortion . . . What's It Really All About?

 

With the current controversy swirling around the US Supreme Court decison to overturn Roe v. Wade and the role that decision is now playing in the current midterm elections, it’s important to understand what the root issue is in the abortion controversy. 

Abortion has very little to do with a woman's right to choose.  It has very much to do with allowing men to use women, and then abandon those women when they get pregnant with their child, not just her child.

Pro-Life Feminists 

Most people don’t realize it, but the women who began the Women’s Rights Movement in the nineteenth century were strongly pro-life.  Susan B. Anthony, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Matilda Joslyn Gage and others understood correctly that abortion then, as now, is sometimes injurious to women . . . and 100% fatal for their unborn children.

Gage, writing in the April 9, 1868 issue of The Revolution – the official newspaper of the National Woman Suffrage Association begun by Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton – wrote:

“. . .  the crime of abortion is not one in which the guilt lies solely or even chiefly with the woman . . . I hesitate not to assert that most of this crime of 'child murder,' 'abortion,' 'infanticide,' lies at the door of the male sex.”

Mattie Brinkerhoff wrote in that same publication a year later,

“When a man steals to satisfy hunger, we may safely conclude that there is something wrong in society – so when a woman destroys the life of her unborn child, it is an evidence that either by education or circumstances she has been greatly wronged.”

Susan B. Anthony commented, 

“Guilty?  Yes.  No matter what the motive, love of ease, or a desire to save from suffering the unborn innocent, the woman is awfully guilty who commits the deed.  It will burden her conscience in life, it will burden her soul in death.  But, oh, thrice guilty is he who drove her to desperation which impelled her to the crime!”

The reason why these women were opposed to abortion is actually quite obvious.  Abortion cuts to the core of what it means to be a woman.  For, unlike every biological male who has ever existed, only women can be the agents of one of the most miraculous events that can occur here on earth – the conception and birth of a child.   

Pro-Choice Feminists

The women’s movement became pro-choice during the height of the free-love movement in the 1960s out of self-defense. 

The fact is that free love produces babies.  And it is the woman who literally “bears” the responsibility of the sexual activity in the form of a child.

It was all too often the case in the sixties that irresponsible males abandoned their children and the mothers of their children in pursuit of greener pastures.  The question that was then asked over and over again by women was,

“Where were the men when the babies were born?!”

That pattern continues today, except that men can soothe their consciences to a certain degree by telling themselves that if she gets pregnant, she can always get an abortion!

Considering the abysmal record of some in high public office when it comes to personal morality, it’s no wonder abortion legislation passes.  The actions of these legislators are too often motivated not by a concern for the best interests of women, but by a concern for what they see as the best interests for themselves.

The Heart of the Issue

Abortion is the most important moral issue of our day, in much the same way that slavery was for America in the nineteenth century, and the “Final Solution” was for citizens of Nazi Germany in the twentieth century.  In each of those cases, as in the case of abortion today, it was deemed acceptable to deprive a certain group of people of their inherent rights as human beings – in the case of abortion, depriving a human being of the right to life itself.

A child inside the womb is not just a piece of tissue that is part of a woman’s body.  Every cell in an unborn child’s body is genetically distinct from its mother . . . just as every cell in the bodies of every child or adult outside the womb is genetically distinct from its mother.

The scientifically determined fact of the matter is that human life begins at conception and is continuous, whether inside or outside the womb, until death. 

The motives of many pro-choice people who want to help women in need are clearly honorable.  Unfortunately, the method they seek to employ is misguided.  Abortion often harms women physically and psychologically, and it’s always fatal for their unborn children, who, if they had been given the right to choose, would undoubtedly have chosen life.

Just like with slavery and the holocaust, there will come a time in the future when people will look back on this generation and wonder how a civilized people could ever have considered that the taking of an innocent human being’s life would be something that was not only allowed, but considered good.

How Many Will There Be?

Who is more powerful, God or the devil?  

Will the devil ultimately succeed in foiling God’s plan?  

Asked another way . . .  

“How many will there be, ultimately, in the number of the damned?”

More than 3,500 people watched as Lucifer confronted St. John, the author of the book of Revelation, with that very question in a theatrical performance at the Magnificat Day of Thanksgiving Saturday, October 6, at the Kings Theater in Brooklyn, NY.    

The Seven Mysteries of Salvation was written by Pierre-Marie Dumont – a French layman and founding publisher of Magnificat, a prayer and devotional magazine reaching hundreds of thousands of Catholics worldwide every month. The Mysteries were performed by a troupe of New York actors, a world-class symphony orchestra and choir . . . and me.  I had the privilege of playing St. John.

The Seventh Mystery – The Ultimate Triumph of Love begins with Guiseppe Verdi’s Day of Wrath, and ends with the orchestra, chorus and audience singing Sing With All The Saints by Ludwig van Beethoven.

So, how many do you think there will be, ultimately, in the number of the damned?  

It’s a question that affects not only each of us, but our families, our friends and literally billions of people we don’t even know.

Watch the performance here – https://youtu.be/DVIDtqJnTmQ?t=6427 – to see how John answered Lucifer! 

Not Just Fire Insurance!

In any discussion about the possibility that Hell may not be forever, one question always comes up:

 If everyone eventually gets to heaven, why share your faith?

Some time ago I received a fund appeal letter from a mission organization that directly related to this issue.  The letter explained,

"The work of missions is not a numbers game, but numbers don’t lie.  Statistically, in the time it probably took you to scan the envelope, open the letter, and read these first two sentences, 10 human beings died having never heard the good news about Jesus.  Gone forever.

I’m told that about 150,000 people will die today!  Nearly half of them will have never heard that Jesus came that they might have life.  In fact, most of them live in places where they have no reasonable access to that truth . . .

We can sensationalize the numbers, but people are not numbers.  Jesus died for people, and as Dr. Henry said, 'The gospel is only good news if it gets there in time.'”

Won’t proclaiming the message that God will ultimately restore all of His creation to its intended perfection strip people of the motivation to share the message of Christ with others?  Why should missionaries and other dedicated Christians subject themselves to ridicule and deprivation by going out of their way, often to distant and backward lands, to tell others the “Good News” if everyone will get to heaven someday, anyway?  Won’t the message that God will eventually restore all have a dangerously negative effect on missions and evangelism?

The “Good News” Really Is Good News!

The Gospel does much more than simply provide a fire insurance policy to keep people out of Hell. 

People are not individuals whose lives may be important for a while, or even for a lifetime, but who are ultimately meant to be burned up or thrown away.  People are created beings of inestimable worth who need to be rescued by God from pursuing wasted, meaningless lives.

The Great Commission that Jesus gave commands us to make disciples, not just to make converts.  Evangelism is a by-product of making disciples and loving your neighbor.  If you are a true disciple of Jesus Christ who is growing in faith and in your relationship with God, you will be prepared and have a desire to share the truths you have learned with others.  If you genuinely love your neighbor, you will be alert to opportunities to not only try to convert them, but to help the whole person by ministering to the various needs in their lives that the Gospel addresses. 

Jesus came to give people an abundant and meaningful life.  The eternal life that He gives begins in the here and now, not just the hereafter.  As people fit in with God’s plan for their lives, they will experience reconciliation with God and one another, forgiveness of their sins and the ability to forgive those who have wronged them, power to overcome sinful patterns and behaviors, freedom from bondage to addictions, and true purpose.  The result is the greatest joy and true fulfillment possible. 

The “Good News” really is Good News!  And as the prophet Jeremiah explained when lamenting the fall of Jerusalem, God’s goodness doesn’t have a time limit attached to it.

“No one is cast off by the Lord forever.  Though He brings grief, He will show compassion, so great is His unfailing love.”

Adapted from Heaven's doors . . . Wider Than You Ever Believed!

Available in Paperback, eBook and Audiobook formats

Is the "Good News" . . . Good News?

On a trip to the Middle East some time ago, it became increasingly clear to me that the traditional concept of endless suffering in Hell is not good news! 

It’s not good news for a Muslim to hear that every ancestor, relative, friend or loved one who has died, and the vast majority of those still alive, have no hope.  It’s not good news for a Hindu or Buddhist to be told that all or almost all of the people they love and honor are experiencing or will experience endless, conscious suffering at the hands of the God you are telling them about.  For them, the message of never-ending punishment in Hell is not the most joyful news ever announced.  It’s the most dreadful news ever announced. 

That is one of the reasons it has been so hard for the gospel to take root in cultures that place a high value on family relationships.  The first Christian missionary to Japan, St. Francis Xavier, experienced this response to the message he preached.  He sent the following letter back to the Vatican in 1552:

One of things that most of all pains and torments these Japanese is that we teach them that the prison of hell is irrevocably shut.  For they grieve over the fate of their departed children, of their parents and relatives, and they often show their grief by their tears.  So they ask us if there is any hope, any way to free them by prayer from that eternal misery, and I am obliged to answer that there is absolutely none …

They often ask if God cannot take their fathers out of hell, and why their punishment must never have an end.  We gave them a satisfactory answer, but they did not cease to grieve over the misfortune of their relatives; and I can hardly restrain my tears sometimes at seeing men so dear to my heart suffer such intense pain about a thing which is already done with and can never be undone.

Not Then  . . . Not Now

The greatest time of expansion in the Christian Church was in the first few centuries after Christ, when the dominant view of the Church was that God would ultimately restore all of His creation to its intended perfection.  For them, Hell was real, but it didn’t last forever.  And it had a positive purpose.  They knew something about God's sovereign power coupled with His unfailing love for all that we have forgotten.

Punishment for sin is not the issue.  The real issue is whether or not suffering in Hell goes on forever, and the true teaching of Scripture is that it does not.

Over the years, I have listened to many people share testimonies of how and why they became Christians. 

Many have mentioned the example of a friend or acquaintance who demonstrated an inner strength, power over sin, or quality of life that impressed them.  Others have said that entering into a personal relationship with God gave them a sense of purpose in a world that seemed to have no direction, or that He provided a solid source of security at a time in their lives when everything else was falling apart.  A number have mentioned that Biblical Christianity provided clear answers to questions about life and the world around them that had a ring of truth to them.  

I can honestly say, however, that very few of the people I’ve talked to have said that they came to faith because they were afraid they would suffer endlessly in Hell if they did not believe, and becoming a Christian gave them peace of mind in that area.  In fact, in my experience, the doctrine of never-ending suffering has caused far more people to be driven away from the faith than drawn to it.

The experience of a friend speaks to the issue very well.

I used to be afraid to share the gospel, for fear that the conversation would come around to the subject of hell. I was afraid that someone would ask, “What about those who have never heard?” or “How can a good God allow billions of people to be tormented forever?” or “What’s the point of bringing people into existence only to suffer in this life, die, and then suffer forever with no hope of relief?” I had no good answers. Sure, I knew all the standard answers, but they didn’t satisfy me any more than they satisfied those who asked the questions.

Now I am free to share the gospel without worrying about getting trapped by good questions that have no good answers.  I can confidently proclaim that God is Love, that He is not a monster who allows people to spend eternity in perpetual suffering apart from Him.  At the same time, I can confidently proclaim that He is holy and righteous.  He is a consuming fire, and He will not let anyone get away with anything.  He will do whatever it takes to make sinners holy, fit for spending eternity in His presence.

Now that is Good News!

Adapted from Heaven's doors . . . Wider Than You Ever Believed!

Available in Paperback, eBook and Audiobook formats