Zeal For Truth

In the forth and final section of Decision Making and the Will of God (which I will review in two posts), the authors turn to explaining how their wisdom view of guidance and decision making applies in real life situations. In particular, they address the “Big 3″ of marriage, vocation, and education. The issue of giving is also addressed.

Throughout this section, the book refers to the couple highlighted in the first section of the book who managed to be facing all of the “Big 3″ at the same time. My review will focus more on the ideas presented however.

Marriage and the Wisdom View
In the traditional view, the pressure for decision-making regarding marriage is unbelievable. After all, if there’s an individual perfect will for us, then there is only one person that is eligible to be our spouse, and marriage is definitely something you don’t want to make a mistake on. In addition, a person’s “intended spouse” could marry someone else, thus making it impossible to follow God’s will. Even worse, a mistake regarding marriage cannot be undone (divorce being prohibited in most situations), and thus after making a wrong decision (or having one made for you) it is impossible to re-enter God’s perfect will.

The first issue regarding marriage that needs to be considered is whether we should get married at all. Both Jesus and Paul state that singleness is a valid, and in some ways, the preferred, option. However, according to Jesus, singleness is not for everyone: “not all men can accept this statement, but only those to whom it has been given.” Paul echoes this in 1st Cor. 7, and so it appears that scripture teaches that there is something like a “gift of singleness” and that people who possess it (presumably this included Jesus and Paul) should stay unmarried. The basis however, is not God’s individual will, but rather spiritual expediency. As, 1st Cor. 7:35 puts it: “This I say for your own benefit; not to put a restraint upon you, but to promote what is appropriate and to secure undistracted devotion to the Lord.”

The 2nd question concerning marriage is who we should marry. It should not be addressed until the first issue (whether or not to marry) is made. The book cites 2 Cor 6:14-16, amongst others, to show that Christians are to marry other Christians. This is a limitation, but it is not something that tells us specifically who to marry.

The book then gets into what one should consider when looking for a potential spouse:

1. Moral and Spiritual Characteristics - Men and women should look for those who demonstrate that they are able and willing to fulfill marital responsibilities, and the proposed spouse would be someone that it would be relatively easy for them to meet their commitments to. For example, a woman should not marry someone if she does not think it would be easy for her to submit to him.

2. Spiritual Console - People should seek the advice of mature Christians in this regard.

3. Common Sense - Things such as individual goals (if one person wants to be an overseas missionary and the other doesn’t, there might be a problem), interests (preferably one would not hate things the other really likes), and compatibility (desires for children, how to raise children, concern for possessions, etc) should not be overlooked.

I have to say that I found this section a bit weak, but perhaps I just want more details and specific methodology than is really available.

Vocation and the Wisdom View
The book then turns to addressing how decisions pertaining to a person’s vocation should be made, with a particular emphasis on ministry positions. According to the traditional view, the decision to enter the ministry (that is, full time “Christian work” jobs such as pastor or missionary) should not be made unless that person has felt a call to do so.

The authors object to that view. They note that the examples of people being called to ministry in scripture was by the means of supernatural revelation (audible voice of God, or through a prophet), which is not what is often meant by “call” today, which refers to an inward sense. Instead, a person should enter the ministry if they posses the biblical qualifications to do so (such as are found in 1 Tim 3 and many other places) and if they have the desire to do so for the right reasons.

The authors acknowledge that in fact all believers all called to ministry, whatever their job happens to be. The moral will of God as pertaining to our vocations can be found in scripture. There is a long list in the book that covers what that will is. It includes such things as working diligently and to show respect even to unreasonable masters. The basis of choosing a job should be wisdom and spiritual expediency. The question to ask, as the book puts it is:

Given my aptitudes, abilities, gifts, desires, and opportunities, which vocation would offer the greatest potential for my service to the Lord and my obedience to His moral will?

I found the section on vocation to be quite sound biblically, and far superior to the method some employ of having to “hear a call” before they can do a certain job (such as be a missionary).

Considerably less ink is spent on the third of the books’ big three decisions, education. The same guidelines apply to it that applied to vocations; choices should be made with wisdom on the basis of spiritual expediency.

Giving and the Wisdom View
Besides the “big three” issues, the authors specifically address the subject of giving. In their minds, the Traditional View sometimes distorts the scriptural view of giving. The first issue is the tithe. The book points out that there were at least two different tithes in the Old Testament. The first was ten percent of all one’s possessions (Lev 27:30-33) and was used to support the Levites and the temple ministry (Num 18:20-21). A second tithe was for a sacred meal in Jerusalem (Deut 12:17-18). It is less clear if there was a third tithe every third year for the poor (Deut 12:17-18), or if that is combined with the second tithe. The tithes functioned as a tax system, and they were required.

The command to tithe however is not found in the New Testament. Neither does the church act as a temple storehouse nor does it need a tax-like system. As the authors put it, “Believers today couldn’t obey Malachi 3:8-10 if they wanted to.” In contrast, the church is supported as each member gives “as he has purposed in his heart; not grudgingly or under compulsion (2 Cor 9:7).”

The traditional view also leads to “Faith Promise” type giving, where believers commit to giving a set amount of money beyond their tithes based on what they think God is calling them to do, and trust that God will provide this money so they can give it. This violates 2 Cor 8:12 - that a person should give according to what they have, not what they don’t have, as well as being a direct result of the traditional view, which the authors reject.

There is then a long lists of biblical principals upon which we actually should base are giving. Giving is according to various places in 2nd Corinthians characterized by: joy, cheerfulness, liberality, eagerness, willingness, perseverance, and integrity. The gift is not determined by the amount, but by its cost (2 Cor 8:2) and the greatest threat to giving is not poverty but covetousness (2 Cor 9:5). To quote the book, “The question should be … not ‘How much can I give?’ but, ‘How much can I give up?’”

I found the giving section pretty convincing, but then again I already shared this view, so perhaps I was biased a bit.

Next week: When Christians Differ

The Traditional View Critiqued
In the second part of Decision Making & the Will of God, Garry Friesen and J. Robin Maxson stop the fictional seminar form of the first part and proceed in a more typical fashion. The book contains many excellent summarization areas, which help to reinforce the main points. I found the critique of the traditional view quite convincing.

Individual Will Debunked: The Issue of Biblical Examples
The authors agree with the traditional view that God has a sovereign will, “God’s secret plan that determines everything that happens in the universe,” and a moral will, “God’s revealed commands in the Bible that teach how men ought to believe and live.” However, they disagree that God has an individual will, that is, an “ideal, detailed life-plan uniquely designed for each person.”

The traditional view argues from Biblical examples of God giving specific instructions to believers. Examples of this include the instruction to Peter to go to Cornelius’s house, and the instruction to Ananias to find Saul after his experience on the road to Damascus.

The book points out the problems with depending on these accounts to prove the traditional idea of God’s individual will. One problem is that there isn’t a sufficient number of examples of this type of leading, as most decisions made by people in the Bible were made without specific divine guidance. Another problem with the examples is that they are not comprehensive.

The traditional view holds that God’s individual will covers every decision a believer faces, but that is not shown in scripture. For instance, most of the examples of specific leading in Acts had to do directly with key decisions in the spread of the gospel, but not decisions of lesser import.

Perhaps a more serious problem is that the traditional view holds that special guidance is not to be a common experience for believers. However, all the examples of detailed guidance in the book of Acts did come through supernatural means, such as angels, visions, and God’s audible voice. Perhaps just as telling are the phrases used today by people who believe in the traditional view even though these phrases are not seen in Acts. For example, “I did thus and such because I knew it was God’s will for me,” or “I felt in my heart that God wanted me to do it.”

Individual Will Debunked: Is it Taught in Scripture?
The authors next turn to examine some of the various proof texts that people use to justify the traditional view of the individual will of God. They argue that the verses instead more correctly apply to God’s moral will. I’ll address just one of the specific passages, Proverbs 3:5-6 (quotations are from the NASB).

Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight.

The book points out that noun “path” is used by Hebrew writers to describe the general course of life. Thus, the verse basically means: “He shall make the course of your life successful.” This fits the immediate context and the general context of the book of Proverbs, exemplified by Proverbs 11:5:

The righteousness of the blameless will smooth his way, but the wicked will fall by his own wickedness.

The point then of Proverbs 3:5-6, is that those who trust in God’s wisdom and not their own, and acknowledge God in their whole life, “will reap a life that is successful by God’s standard.” It teaches God’s moral will, not an individual one, which the authors maintain is true of all the proof texts that are used to justify the traditional view (they examine many such passages).

Individual Will Debunked: Problems with the Traditional View
After examining the Biblical evidence, the authors then discuss some of the problems with the traditional idea of God’s individual will. One problem is the great anguish that faces believers when they earnestly seek specific direction from God and it is not forthcoming. Even more telling is that the traditional view cannot be used consistently. It takes considerable time and effort to discern what God’s will is, and thus cannot be used for everyday decisions. In practice, it has to be abandoned for most of life’s decisions.

Sometimes a choice will have options that are equally valid. The traditional view’s insistence on just one correct option leads to worries about missing God’s will rather than thankfulness for the opportunities.

The traditional view teaches that the “inner witness of the Holy Spirit” is available to all believers, but this can lead to unwise decisions justified on the grounds that “God told me to do it”, especially by new believers. It can also lead to costly delays due to uncertainty about God’s will.

Probably the biggest problem with the traditional view is its reliance on inward impressions. That is because of the subjectivity of inward impressions (which is addressed in the aptly named chapter “Impressions are Impressions”). People who use the signs that the traditional view recommends cannot be certain that they have actually found God’s will. Scripture often is not specific enough to provide the guidance they are looking for, supernatural guidance is not to be expected, circumstances, personal desire, and common sense cannot be trusted completely. In practice, the followers of the traditional view must depend upon inward impressions to make decisions. Yes, the Holy Spirit does lead believers (Romans 8:14, Galatians 5:18), but this leading is to assist believers in putting “to death the deeds of the flesh,” and is not guidance in the sense of the traditional view individual will.

Next week: The Wisdom View Explained