Final Paper_Grace and Free Will
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JOHN W. RAWLINGS SCHOOL OF DIVINITY
Research Paper: Final Assignment
Grace and Free Will
Submitted to Dr. Goza /Professor
in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the completion of
CHHI 510 – D06
Survey of the History of Christianity
by
Shaneil A. Guidry
December 12, 2021
Table of Content
Thesis Statement…………………………………………………………………….…3
Introduction…………………………………………………………………………
....
3
What is Determined as Free Will……………………………………………..………..4
A Difference of Opinion………………………..……………...………………………6
Who’s to Blame…………………..………………………………………….………...8
His Grace Alone……………………………………………………………………….9
Understanding God’s Role and Our Role……………………………………………..11
Conclusion………………………………………………………………………..…...12
Bibliography…………………………………………………………………..………13
Thesis Statement
2
Obtaining a clearer understanding of God’s grace and one’s will to make decisions can
assist in one seeing how the two go hand and hand when abiding by the will of God but a
disconnection when there is no alignment at all.
Introduction
It continuously amazes me to hear the grumbles of those that willingly make unfavorable
choices and then turn to Christ to ask, “Lord, where was your favor or grace in my time of
need?”
Often there seems to be this expectation of one having their cake and being able to eat it
as well when the action of their free will does not pan out the way they may have expected it to.
This is when the moment of blame shifting from oneself is then projected onto God and the
possible thought of God not loving us enough comes into play.
How ridiculously selfish we have
become.
At that consequential moment, our arrogance takes over our thought process and hearts,
causing us to believe that our act of “free will” should have an insurance policy that is fully
covered by the grace of God without correction. God has provided a plethora of resources to
enable us to stay on track, despite granting us with free will.
Resources such as the Bible, clergy,
places of worship, etc.
Obtaining a clearer understanding of God’s grace and our will to make
decisions can assist in one seeing how the two go hand and hand when abiding by the will of
God yet disconnect when there is no alignment at all.
What is Determined as Free Will
Author John Cowburn sums up the “free will” doctrine as a person’s ability to mentally
and emotionally reason and make conscious decisions.
“
The free will doctrine, loosely
formulated, is that in general human beings who have reached the age of reason, and who are not
suffering from severe mental or emotional disturbance, by nature have free will with respect to
3
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their attitudes and to actions which are in their power, which they are able to think about.”
1
John
Cowburn goes deeper in explaining the definition in such a rudimentary way to ensure a greater
understanding.
Cowburn presents examples that enables readers to see those things that are
within our very control and those things/situations that are not.
“There are some things which
people do involuntarily: for instance, we all press down on whatever we are standing or sitting
on, and a person may involuntarily react in a certain way if a loud noise (say a gun going off or a
plate falling and breaking) sounds near them: the clause “which they are able to think about”
excludes such reactions from the assertion of free will.”
2
In other words, we must come to
understand that our free will is not subjected to neither random or determined acts.
Yet again, Aristotelian diachronic goes against theologians like Cowburn.
Aristotle
believed that this matter is very cut and dry.
Meaning, Aristotle wanted individuals to see that
will has nothing to do with our outcomes and that life is what it is.
“It rests on the claim that,
according to the Aristotelian diachronic contingency model found in Aquinas, things and events
must either be necessary or impossible— namely, if something exists, it must exist; and if
something does not exist, it cannot exist: as Vos paraphrases the Aristotelian ontology, “What is,
is necessary and what is not, is impossible.”
3
In layman’s terms, it is, what it is and there is
nothing you or I can do about it!
While we have come to learn that philosophers such as Aristotle and Plato gave very little
credit to God, one can only conclude that their perspectives carried a very bias undertone.
Yet
when we seek out theologians that provide a more balanced prospective, we can see how the
1
Cowburn.
Free Will, Predestination, And Determinism
. 17.
2
Ibid., 18.
3
Muller.
Divine Will and Human Choice
Baker Academic. 56.
4
conversation of free will dates back beyond the mentioned philosophers and commenced with
early Christians.
However, if one was to dig up the initial roots regarding the concept of “free
will”, one may ask the question of, “Did God himself have free will?”
Again, this was a question
presented by early Christians before Aristotle and Plato even stepped into the picture.
Author George Karamanolis presents such a question that had plagued the minds of many
early Christians to his modern-day Christian readers, as he emphasizes that the topic of “free
will” will never be viewed as a new topic, nor will it ever be a past one.
Where did this concept
of “free will” originate?
“Was God free to make the world as he wished, or was he constrained
by external exigencies, such as those set by matter, as is the case in the Timaeus, for instance?”
4
Many early Christians believed that clarification was not necessarily needed, as God is all
mighty and has no constraints on what he can or will do.
In other words, we mere mortals are
the ones that are subservient, not God.
However, not everyone would accept such an
explanation.
Despite early Christians and pagans having two completely different outlooks on free
will, the two groups nonetheless could not help but to agree on how to solidify monism.
There
must be one ultimate being or for the pagan’s it was just cosmic elements/matter.
A question of,
“How could there be a creator that is all good, yet he enables individuals to have the free will of
doing evil things?”
This to many early Christians seems contradictory; however, this is still a
question that is brought up by many modern-day Christians.
“The question was how human vice
is possible if the world was created good by a good creator. This was a problem for Christians
and pagans alike, but it was particularly acute for the former, because they believed that man is
created in the image of God (Genesis 1:26).”
5
4
Karamanolis.
The Philosophy of Early Christianity
. 130
.
5
Ibid., 132.
5
As much as early Christians did not want to be seen in agreement with pagan views, it
became harder to fully extract themselves from sharing similar thoughts due to some of the
philosophers were also theologians.
“Early Christian thinkers were concerned with refuting both
views, those of the astral determinists and those of Valentinian Gnostics, who were themselves
fellow Christians. The reason for their concern was mainly that such views severely distorted the
way God relates to man and to the world.”
6
Distorting God to the world was not an option and
delving deeper into Scripture and not being consumed by the science of it all was what the early
Christian knew needed to be done to seek a more faith-based explanation.
A Difference of Opinion
While there are theologians and philosophers dating back centuries that believe our will
had never been our own if we include God into the equation. Aristotle and Plato were among
those philosophers, as they did not believe in one god but multiple gods with specific powers, yet
none of which had overall control of our very outcome.
“Among the first Greek philosophers,
Plato and Aristotle based their theories of free will on the concept that humans are free agents
who possessed the intellect and the necessary free will to make decisions.”
7
Nonetheless, those
that did believe in the Heavenly Father, would gladly debate that God is in control, yet he has
given us mere mortals the option to make decisions over our lives but was there to catch us when
fell.
Some would say that it is a contradiction in terms to believe that we have free will but
also believe that God has the final say at the end of the day.
Can it be that God is toying with us
and our lives are a series of episodes that we are looking forward to seeing the outcome to in the
6
Ibid., 132.
7
Dodson.
Free Will, Neuroethics, Psychology and Theology
. 14.
6
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weeks to come?
Is freedom actually free? What is so great about a “will” that is not actually our
own?
These are questions that have been vocalized amongst both believers and non-believers
alike. “
But if God has always known just how each person will decide in the future, then those
future decisions appear to be necessary or fixed in some way. And if those decisions are
necessary or
fixed, then they are not free, because someone makes a free decision only if she is
able to decide otherwise.”
8
This thought process is not far off from the ideology of philosopher Harry Frankfurt.
Harry Frankfurt was a fervent believer that our moral responsibility and/or sense of obligation is
completely separate from that of our free will.
“Harry Frankfurt’s arguments have shown that
moral responsibility does not require free will (in the sense of being able to act otherwise than
one does).”
9
Author Jansen speak of Harry Frankfurt concept of free will within his book titled,
“Peter Van Inwagen: Materialism, Free Will, and God.
Jansen brings us Frankfurt’s concept on
free will as he states that the thought of “free will” has become so convoluted that philosopher’s
such as Frankfurt became feed up with the amount of confusion these twisted ideologies were
creating.
Combating with “libertarians” regarding free will and “compatibilists” concept of free
will has saturated this topic for so long that God either became the villain or just faded out of the
conversation all together.
Who’s to Blame?
When decisions that we have made do not quite pan out the way that we have hoped, we
as humans have a tendency of blame shifting.
Becoming sucked into the abbreviation trend of
our current society, I would call my friends BS’ers; however, that was short lived, as people
8
Vicens and Kittle.
God And Human Freedom
. 3.
9
Jansen.
Peter Van Inwagen: Materialism, Free Will, And God
. 19.
7
thought that I was using profanity.
In actuality, my BS abbreviation stood for “blame shifter.”
Having a sister that dislike taking responsibility for her actions, I coined the term essentially for
her.
However, she is not the only one that practiced this behavior so frequently. We all have a
tendency of doing this. Stepping back into history, researchers can see that blame shifting came
in handy when free will choices became questionable.
There are many philosophers over centuries that argue the point that God is the author of
sin and therefore he causes humans to sin.
In other words, according to philosophers such as
Aristotle and Plato, it is like God cutting the limb off the tree that we are standing on and then
telling us to make the decision to stand there or jump.
“In claiming that God is the author of sin,
one might be expressing any of the following propositions:
Determined
: God has determined
human agents to sin.
Caused
: God causes human sins.
Blameworthy
: God is blameworthy for
human sin in virtue of determining its occurrence.”
10
With such a thought process, are we only
taking credit for the good that transpires within our lives, or do we give credit/accolades to God
for extending his grace?
Often times we are the ones taking the credit, as we start patting ourselves on the back for
dodging a major bullet; rarely thanking God for his grace and mercy that enabled us to avoid
such a tragic event.
Have we adopted the blameworthy attitude for when it is convenient?
“
Through the Lord’s mercies we are not consumed. Because His compassions fail not. They
are new every morning; Great is Your faithfulness
, Lam. 3:22-23, NKJV.” This selective attitude
that has become embedded within us has cause us to become incapable of understanding grace
and free will’s relationship.
Author Machuga thought that it was high time to dispel such inaccuracy.
Machuga
provide a clear distinction between the anti-god philosophers and the divine determinists.
The
10
Machuga.
Three Theological Mistakes
. 86.
8
anti-god philosophers continuously presented question such as, “If God is perfect goodness, then
how can he be such a destructive element within our lives?”
According to Machuga, divine
determinists will not just accept the argument or questions that were presented by their
counterparts.
“
It is clear that divine determinists must accept the truth of
Determined
(although
they might well argue that the phrase “author of sin” is misleading and should not be used as a
way of expressing this point).”
11
To dispel this blameworthy way of thinking, one must
understand the role of God in our lives and the role that God enables us to play within our own
lives.
His Grace Alone
Now that we have gain a perspective on how we as humans try so eloquently to describe
the “free will" of man/woman, we must also seek to understand the grace of God and how it ties
into all of this. When one thinks of the grace of God, one may interpret his grace as gentleness,
kindness, and lovingness, just to name a few.
To bring an even more vivid image to mind, one
can think of a child scraping their knee and being held in the warmth of their mother’s bosom to
help take their mind away from the pain.
Falling to our “free will” that is unpleasing to God can be like the child scraping their
knee or in some casing an even more egregious outcome.
However, the grace of God is like the
bosom in which the child is nestled.
Regardless of the parent telling the child to be careful
leaping, as they may get hurt, the child will make the decision to leap or safely lower themselves.
Again, this is no different than God giving us the free will to make decisions in which the
outcome may or may not be positive.
Yet, there is a lesson in the journey and regardless of the
lesson, the grace of God is there through it all.
“And the God of all grace, who called you
to his
11
Ibid., 87.
9
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eternal glory
in Christ, after you have suffered a little while,
will himself restore you and make
you strong, firm, and steadfast, 1 Pet. 5:10, NIV.”
Augustine’s concept of God’s grace or the grace of God is a constant need in our lives as
Christians.
We are constantly surrounded by sin, tempted by sin, and our ability to use our free
will to make decisions that leaves us riddled in bad choices.
“
Augustine’s insistence on the
continual need for grace, not just in the conversion process, but for every moment of the
Christian life, delivered the church from this dreary fate and emphasized the completely
gratuitous nature of salvation.”
12
Author Eric Jenkins shares with his readers that Christians
today see grace as positive motivator that assist in keeping their free will aligned with God.
Understanding that God is always attached to the grace that is spoken of throughout
Scripture brought validity to Augustine’s doctrine of grace.
“Christians now believe grace is
strong enough to break every bondage of sin and all the habitual chains that have dominated their
lives because of sin. They have hope that their prayers and efforts to evangelize the lost will be
answered with a grace that is strong enough to bring light to the darkest heart. New believers are
encouraged by the knowledge that grace can give them victory in the struggle with their divided
wills.”
13
Jenkins fervently believes that this thought process would have not taking hold if
Pelagius would have overshadowed Augustine in the doctrine of grace debate. While the doctrine
of grace brought an understanding of free will for the Christians, what did/does this mean for the
non-believers?
When Christians holdfast to what Christ has called them to do, which is to be
disciple-makers, then this presents an opportunity to bring clarity to the relationship of the grace
of God and free will can be conveyed to the non-believer.
12
Jenkins.
Free To Say No?. 101
.
13
Ibid., 102.
10
Understanding God’s Role and Our Role
It is important for believers to grasping the concept that there is a difference between
“free will” and the “will of God.”
The “will of God” is the blueprint for ensuring that believers
are living according to what God had designed for them, while operating in the lives that God
has given to them.
As confusing as this may seem, there is indeed a method to the madness.
This blueprint lays out for the believers the design in which God is expecting for us to live our
lives and once we have grasped that concept, we can then teach others to live according to
Christ, becoming disciple-makers.
Our “free will” shows that we as humans have the ability to choose the path that God has
laid out for us without force.
It shows that we can align with the morals and ethics that enable us
to live a structure life that is pleasing to God.
“
The FWD (Free Will Defense) proceeds by
suggesting that exercises of free will (and goods for which such exercises are a precondition) are
especially valuable. In particular, free choices to act in keeping with the moral law – what we
might call upright morally significant choices
– are of great value.”
14
Aligning our “free will” to
the “will of God” is pleasing in his sight and this is what God is hoping for us to do.
While God
knows our weaknesses as men and women, God is also aware that we are in need of his
guidance, and he will assist believers with staying the course.
Conclusion
Ultimately, it is extremely important to understand the difference between the “free will”
that God so graciously gives us and living according to “the will” of God.
Many will continue to
argue the point that our will is not actually ours.
Meaning, God ultimately decides our very
outcome and so we are given the illusion of having a “free will.” “Prevailing opinion holds that if
14
Furlong.
The Challenges of Divine Determinism: A Philosophical Analysis
. 135.
11
creaturely acts are caused by God, then they cannot be free in the libertarian sense.”
15
While
there may be logic in that thought process, we much remember that God provides us with a
guideline for life. He knows the outcome of both the good and the bad of our decisions; however,
he does not get in the way of allowing us to make our own choice.
Bibliography
Balaguer, Mark.
Free Will
. The MIT Press, 2014.
Cowburn, John.
Free Will, Predestination, and Determinism
. Milwaukee: Marquette University
Press, 2008.
Dodson, Geran F.
Free Will, Neuroethics, Psychology and Theology
. Vernon Press, 2017.
Furlong, Peter.
The Challenges of Divine Determinism: A Philosophical Analysis
. Cambridge:
Cambridge University Press. 2019
Grant, W. Matthew.
In
Free Will and God’s Universal Causality: The Dual Sources Account
.
London: Bloomsbury Academic, 2019
15
Grant.
Free Will and God’s Universe of Causality
. 53.
12
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Jansen, Ludger.
Peter Van Inwagen: Materialism, Free Will, And God
. Springer International
Publishing AG, 2018.
Jenkins, Eric L.
Free to Say No? Free Will And Augustine's Evolving Doctrines Of Grace And
Election
. James Clarke Company, Limited, 2013.
Jensen, A.S. (2014).
Divine Providence and Human Agency: Trinity, Creation and Freedom
(1st
ed.). Routledge.
https://doi-org.ezproxy.liberty.edu/10.4324/9781315577821
Karamanolis, George.
The Philosophy of Early Christianity
. Milton: Taylor & Francis Group,
2021.
Machuga, Ric.
Three Theological Mistakes: How to Correct Enlightenment Assumptions about
God, Miracles, And Free Will
. James Clarke Company, Limited, 2015.
Muller, Richard A.
Divine Will and Human Choice
. Baker Academic, 2017.
Vicens, Leigh C, and Simon Kittle.
God And Human Freedom
. Cambridge University Press,
2019.
13