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Aug 28

Do We Have Free Will?

2009 | by Ryan Kelly | Category: Recommended Link

My friend, Andy Naselli (research asst. to D.A. Carson), has put together a few very helpful resources on the thorny topic, “Do We Have a Free Will?”:

  1. MP3 (1 hour and 45 minutes including Q&A)
  2. Handout (7-page PDF)
  3. Condensed Essay (4-page PDF, which Reformation 21 reprinted today)

His basic outline is this:

  • What is “free will”?
  • What have noteworthy theologians thought about “free will”?
  • What are biblical and theological reasons for “compatibilism”?
  • How does “free will” relate to the origin of both sin and conversion?
  • Concluding Applications on the Free-Will Debate
  • Recommended Reading

He gives the following theses to summarize the biblical teaching:

  • The Bible never says that humans are free in the sense that they are autonomously able to make decisions that are not caused by anything.
  • God is absolutely sovereign.
  • Humans are morally responsible, which requires that they be free.
  • God’s absolute sovereignty and human freedom and responsibility are simultaneously true.
  • The Bible condemns some people for acts not done with a libertarian free will.
  • God is omniscient (e.g., he predicts future events).
  • God breathed out Scripture through humans without violating their personalities.
  • God enables Christians to persevere: Christians work because God works.
  • God himself does not have a free will in the libertarian sense.
  • God’s people do not have free wills in heaven in the libertarian sense.

That’s just a quick overview. I highly recommend taking the time to work through some or all of Andy’s material. Some terms (like compatibilism or libertarian freedom) might be new to you or seem unnecessarily technical, but they are often a part of any thoughtful discussion of this issue, and Andy introduces and explains such technical terms gently and clearly.