Auto-generated Transcript:
Hello and welcome to another five good minutes, in which I answer your theological questions in five minutes or less. Today’s question addresses God’s sovereignty and human freedom: Do we have free will even if God is sovereign, and does He order our steps even when we sin?
Before I fully explain, the 1689 Second London Baptist Confession of Faith summarizes it beautifully in Paragraph 1 of Chapter 3: “From all eternity, God decreed everything that occurs without reference to anything outside himself. He did this by the perfectly wise and holy counsel of his own will, freely and unchangeably.” Yes, from eternity past, God decreed—that is, determined—everything that occurs, without reference to anything outside Himself. He doesn’t make decisions based on our decisions; He has a plan, tells a story, and accomplishes it regardless of anything or anyone else. He does this freely and unchangeably according to His own perfectly wise and holy counsel. In fact, we could say God is the only One with ultimate free will.
But you may ask, “What about our sin?” The confession continues: “Yet God did this in such a way that He is neither the author of sin nor has fellowship with any in their sin.” Even though we struggle with our freedom versus God’s sovereignty—thinking, “I chose that; I wanted to do that; no one forced me!”—you’re correct. You act in accordance with your will, but even your will is ordered by God. Even the decisions you make are decreed and allowed by God.
A classic example is Joseph in the Book of Genesis. It was God’s plan for Joseph to get to Egypt; he was sold as a slave, hated by his brothers, falsely accused, and imprisoned, yet rose to power in Pharaoh’s house. All of it was ordained by God. At the end of the story, Joseph confronts his brothers who fear for their lives, and he says, “As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good….” Joseph acknowledges that while his brothers intended evil, God ordained those events to bring about a greater purpose.
Proverbs 21:1 says, “The king’s heart is a stream of water in the hand of the Lord; he turns it wherever he will.” God is the first cause of all things; we are the second cause. He does not author or participate in sin, yet He ordains—even our sin—to fulfill His perfect plan. The greatest example is Jesus on the cross. Acts 4:27–28 tells us that Herod, Pontius Pilate, the Gentiles, and the people of Israel did what God’s hand and plan had predestined to take place. They acted in their own freedom, yet ultimately fulfilled God’s sovereign will.
If you could do whatever you want outside of God’s will, James 4:15 would not say, “Instead you ought to say, ‘If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that.’” We live tomorrow because God ordains it, and we do this or that because He decrees it. God is sovereign in a way that does not violate human freedom, because even our freedom is ordained by Him.
This has been another five good minutes.