Exodus 4:21; Psalms
95:8; Deuteronomy 15:7
Understanding Free Will
Martin Luther struggled
greatly with the relationship of God's sovereignty to human free will and sin.
In fact, one of the greatest books ever written on the subject, The Bondage of
the Will, is from Luther's pen. When Luther grappled with this issue, he
especially struggled with the Old Testament passages where we read that God
hardened Pharaoh's heart (Ex. 4:21; 7:3–4, 13–14, 22–23; 8:15, 19, 30–32;
9:27–10:2; 10:16–20, 24–28).
When we read these
passages, we tend to think, "Doesn't this suggest that God not only works
through the desires and actions of humans, but that He actually forces evil
upon people?" After all, the Bible does say that God hardened Pharaoh's
heart.
When Luther discussed
this, he observed that when the Bible says that God hardened the heart of
Pharaoh, God did not create fresh evil in the heart of an innocent man. Luther
said that God didn't harden people by putting evil in their hearts. All that
God must do to harden anyone's heart is to withhold His own grace; that is, He
gives a person over to himself.
Coram deo: Living before the face of God
Is your heart open to
the needs of others? Is it responsive to spiritual things? Ask God to keep your
heart soft and pliable to His divine will and purposes.
