ROMANS: Predestined

** Much of this post comes from teaching I received from Ray VanderLaan in person and I would recommend watching the video that is referenced within the post.

I’m sure all of my theologically-minded readers thought I had conveniently skipped over the dialogue about predestination in our last conversation, but alas, I don’t like to skip over much. I simply didn’t want a silly theological argument based on western philosophy to detour us from what Paul was trying to accomplish and the greater truth that lies in Romans 8. But having dealt with that, let’s have a word about predestination.

For anybody who is familiar with the basic theological conversations swirling in the western world, they have probably come across and/or wrestled with the idea of predestination and determinism. Does God predestine and select a group of people — the “elect” — for salvation? How far does God’s sovereignty stretch? Do we still have free will? I can remember a younger version of myself causing endless problems in Bible College as a five-point hyper-Calvinist.

I have since come to learn that we often argue about questions the Bible isn’t asking.

Since learning to study the Bible from its original point of view — from the view of the original author and audience — I have discovered we usually misunderstand the concepts that perplex us the most in our worldview. The answers do not come in trying to “explain” the concept better; instead, the help lies in understanding the concept within the context of biblical conversation.

To be clear, if you would have asked an early Jewish believer (or Gentile convert) if God was sovereign, determining the future and intimately interacting with the details of our daily lives, they would have looked at you funny and said, “Of course.”  But if you would have asked them if we have free will and if the future is undetermined with endless possibilities, they would have also said, “Of course.” I know this is inconceivable in our world, but in the world of the Bible, they understand the nature of paradox and what we sometimes call “double-point truth.”

Or, to use the words of a rabbi I heard one day, “I’ve never thought about that before.” They just don’t think about those questions the way we do; they accept paradox for what it is and move on to better questions.

So let’s do that. Let’s move on to better questions.

What was the first-century understanding of predestination?

Their understanding of predestination revolved around the idea of “oracle.” In the ancient Greco-Roman world, they had oracles who received messages from the gods of the underworld. “Oracle” could refer to the temple building, the person receiving the messages, or the message itself. As my teacher says, “You go to an oracle, to get an oracle, from an oracle.” It seems confusing initially, but hopefully you understand the concept.

The ruins of the Oracle at Didyma (Turkey)

In the Roman Empire, there were four recognized oracles, one of the most famous being the Oracle at Delphi. When we travel to Turkey, I often take my students to the ruins of the Oracle at Didyma. The concept, while elaborate, is somewhat easy to explain. (I would recommend watching “The Very Words of God” faith lesson from Ray Vander Laan [Vol. 6 of the That the World May Know series produced by Focus on the Family] for a more in-depth look at the details.) People would travel sometimes hundreds of miles, bringing gifts, to get a message from the oracle. Once their question was posed, they would wait. Eventually, the oracle would be pronounced and the formula, as far as we can tell from history, was pretty straightforward.

“If you offer _____________ to the gods, and if you do this and that, then it is predestined that _________________ will happen.”

For the people of the Bible, they understood the discussion of predestination to be couched in an assumption of your obedience. If you choose to do what the gods demand, then it is predestined that you will find success.

Let’s return to Romans 8 and see how Paul talks about predestination and try to see it through the eyes of the audience in Rome.

And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified.

God has plans for all of us. And God is at work in the world, working all things out for the greater good of His redemptive purposes. And He has predestined us to partner with Him in this work; He declared we would be conformed into the image of Jesus so we could be the bechor (or the b’hor, as we wrote about before) — the firstborn, the child who partners with the father to spread Daddy’s values to the rest of His kids. Because this was His predetermined plan, He put a call on their lives and in their hearts. And because of this intention He also justified them freely through faith so they would be equipped for the task at hand. And because of this great work He also glorified them and raised them up from their low position.

Please remember that this is the passage leading into the pronouncement, “If God is for us, who can be against us?” Doesn’t it fit well?

But all of this talk presumes we would accept the call and recognize what we have been made for and the path laid out for us.

If you go to an oracle and receive your message, but decide not to follow instructions, then all bets are off. The “predestination” only matters (in their world) if you do what the oracle tells you. “IF you offer… and IF you do this… THEN…”

You have been made for an incredible partnership with God. If you choose to walk in faithfulness and trust His promises, it is predestined that you will be conformed into the image of Jesus. God believes so much in this predetermined plan that He extends this call to you now. He exonerates you, justifying you and declaring you righteous if you are willing to trust in His promise of love and grace. And for all those who agree to join Him, He raises them up out of their struggle and despair, glorifying them and setting them apart for the mission.