ASEITY

GOD IS SOVEREIGN

A God who is before all things, beyond all things, creates all things, upholds

all things, knows all things, and can do all things is also in control of all things.

This complete control of all things is called the sovereignty of God. As the

Westminster Confession of Faith puts it, “God, from all eternity, did, by the most

wise and holy counsel of His own will, freely, and unchangeably ordain

whatever comes to pass” (chapter 3). Nothing catches God by surprise. All

things come to pass as He ordained them from all eternity.

God created all things

Not only is God before all things, but He created all things. “In the beginning

God created the heaven and the earth” (Gen. 1:1 KJV). “Through him [Christ]

all things were made, without him nothing was made that has been made” (John

1:3). “For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible

and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were

created by him and for him” (Col. 1:16).

God upholds all things

God not only created all things, He also upholds all things. Hebrews declares

that God is “sustaining all things by his powerful word” (Heb. 1:3). Paul adds,

“He is before all things, and in him all things hold together” (Col. 1:17). John

informs us that God not only brought all things into existence but He keeps them

in existence. Both are true for “they were created and have their being” from

God (Rev. 4:11). There is “one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom all things came

and through whom we live” (1 Cor. 8:6; cf. Rom. 11:36). Hebrews asserts “it

was fitting that God, for whom and through whom everything exists, should

make the author of their salvation perfect through suffering” (Heb. 2:10).

God is above all things

The God who is before all things that He created and who is upholding all

things is also beyond them. He is transcendent. The apostle affirmed that there is

“one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all” (Eph. 4:6).

The psalmist declared: “O LORD, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the

earth! You have set your glory above the heavens” (Ps. 8:1). “Be exalted, O

God, above the heavens; let your glory be over all the earth” (Ps. 57:5). “For

you, O LORD, are the Most High over all the earth; you are exalted far above

all gods” (Ps. 97:9; cf. 108:5).

God knows all things

What is more, the God of the Bible knows all things. He has omniscience

(omni=all; science=knowledge). That God is all-knowing is clear from

numerous passages of Scripture. The psalmist declared: “Great is our Lord, and

mighty in power; His understanding is infinite” (Ps. 147:5 NKJV). God knows

“the end from the beginning” (Isa. 46:10). He knows the very secrets of our

heart. The psalmist confessed to God: “Before a word is on my tongue you know

it completely, O LORD.... Such knowledge is too wonderful for me, too lofty for

me to attain” (Ps. 139:4, 6). Indeed, “Nothing in all creation is hidden from

God’s sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to

whom we must give account” (Heb. 4:13). The apostle exclaimed: “Oh, the

depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable his

judgments, and his paths beyond tracing out!” (Rom. 11:33). Even those who

would eventually be saved were known by God (1 Peter 1:2) before the

foundation of the world (Eph. 1:4). By His limitless knowledge God is able to

predict the exact course of human history (Dan. 2, 7), including the names of

persons generations before they were born (cf. Isa. 45:1). Nearly two hundred

predictions were made by God about the Messiah, not one of which failed. God

knows all things past, present, and future.

God can do all things - OMNISPOTENT

Furthermore, God is all-powerful. He not only knows all things eternally and

unchangeably, but God is omnipotent (omni=all; potent =powerful) . Before

performing a great miracle, God promised Abraham, “ ‘Is anything too hard for

the LORD? I will return to you at the appointed time next year and Sarah will

have a son’ ” (Gen. 18:14). In fact, “Nothing is impossible with God” (Luke

1:37).

He is not only infinite (not limited) in His knowledge, He is also infinite in

His power. God declares: “ ‘I am the LORD, the God of all mankind. Is anything

too hard for me?’ ” (Jer. 32:27). God’s power is supernatural as is evident by the

miracles He performs that overpower the forces of nature. Jesus the Son of God

walked on water (John 6), stilled the storm (John 6), and even raised the dead

(John 11).

What is more, God’s omnipotent power is manifested in the creation of the

world from nothing. He simply spoke and things came into being (Gen. 1:3, 6, 9,

11). Paul describes Him as “God, who said, ‘Let light shine out of darkness’ ” (2

Cor. 4:6). The writer of Hebrews declares that God is “sustaining all things by

his powerful word” (Heb. 1:3).

Of course, God cannot do what is actually impossible to do. Since it is

impossible for God to do things contrary to His unchanging nature, it is

understandable that He cannot do any contradictory thing. The Bible says, “God

cannot lie” (Titus 1:2 NASB), because “it is impossible for God to lie” (Heb.

6:18). For “ ‘He who is the Glory of Israel does not lie or change his mind; for

he is not a man, that he should change his mind’ ” (1 Sam. 15:29).

For example, God cannot make a square circle. Nor can He make a triangle

with only two sides. Likewise, God cannot create another God equal to Himself.

It is literally impossible to create another being that is not created. There is only

one Uncreated Creator (Deut. 6:4; Isa. 45:18). Everything else is a creature.

Nonetheless, God can do whatever is possible to do. He can do anything that

does not involve a contradiction. There are no limits on His power. The Bible

describes Him as “the Almighty” (all-mighty) in numerous places (e.g., Gen.

17:1; Ex. 6:3; Num. 24:4; Job 5:17).

God accomplishes all things

God’s sovereignty over all things implies also that He accomplishes all things

that He wills. Isaiah declares, “The LORD Almighty has sworn, ‘Surely, as I

have planned, so it will be, and as I have purposed, so it will stand.... For the

LORD Almighty has purposed, and who can thwart him? His hand is stretched

out, and who can turn it back?’ ” (Isa. 14:24, 27). Again, “ ‘I am God, and there

is no other; I am God, and there is none like me.... My purpose will stand, and I

will do all that I please.... What I have said, that will I bring about; what I have

planned, that will I do’ ” (Isa. 46:9-11). Paul adds, “In him we were also chosen,

having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything

in conformity with the purpose of his will” (Eph. 1:11). Peter confirms this,

saying of Christ’s crucifiers that “ ‘they did what your [God’s] power and will

had decided beforehand should happen’ ”(Acts 4:28; cf. 2:23).

God rules over all things

The Bible affirms God’s sovereignty in many ways. Just as earthly sovereigns

control their domain, even so the heavenly King is in charge of His creation.

Isaiah’s vision of God was of a heavenly king whose train filled the temple (Isa.

6). Yahweh is called “the great King” (Ps. 48:2). His reign is eternal for “the

LORD is enthroned as King for ever” (Ps. 29:10). And He is King over all the

earth, for “The LORD is King for ever and ever, the nations will perish from his

land” (Ps. 10:16). He is also the almighty King: “Who is this King of glory? The

LORD strong and mighty, the LORD mighty in battle” (Ps. 24:8). As such, God

rules over all things: “Yours, O LORD, is the greatness and the power and the

glory and the majesty and the splendor, for everything in heaven and earth is

yours. Yours, O LORD, is the kingdom; you are exalted as head over all. Wealth

and honor come from you; you are the ruler of all things” (1 Chron. 29:11-12).

God is in control of all things

Not only is God in charge of all things, He is also in control of them. Job

confessed to God: “I know that you can do all things; no plan of yours can be

thwarted” (Job 42:2). The psalmist added, “Our God is in heaven; he does

whatever pleases him” (Ps. 115:3). Again, “The LORD does whatever pleases

him, in the heavens and on the earth, in the seas and all their depths” (Ps. 135:6).

As Daniel put it, “He does as he pleases with the powers of heaven and the

peoples of the earth. No one can hold back his hand or say to him: ‘What have

you done?’ ” (Dan. 4:35).

Earthly kings are under God’s control

Solomon declared that “The king’s heart is in the hand of the LORD; he

directs it like a watercourse wherever he pleases” (Prov. 21:1). God is the

Sovereign over all other sovereigns. He is “King of kings and Lord of lords”

(Rev. 19:16). There is no human that is not under God’s power.

Human events are under God’s control

God not only controls the hearts of kings, He is in charge of all human events.

He ordains the course of history before it occurs, as He predicted through Daniel

the great world kingdoms of Babylon, Medo-Persia, Greece, and Rome (Dan. 2,

7). Indeed, the great King Nebuchadnezzar learned the hard way that “ ‘the Most

High is sovereign over the kingdoms of men and gives them to anyone he wishes

and sets over them the lowliest of men’ ” (Dan. 4:17). The Lord says, “ ‘So is my

word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty, but [it] will

accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it’ ” (Isa.

55:11; cf. 46:9-11).

The good angels are under God’s control

God not only rules in the visible realm but also in the invisible domain. He is

“over all creation” including “visible and invisible, whether thrones or

dominions or principalities or powers” (Col. 1:15- 16). The angels come before

His throne to get their orders to obey (1 Kings 22; Job 1:6; 2:1). They constantly

worship God (Neh. 9:6). Indeed, they are positioned before the throne of God,

and “day and night they never stop saying: ‘Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God

Almighty, who was, and is, and is to come’ ” (Rev. 4:8).

The evil angels are under God’s control

God’s sovereign domain includes not only the good angels but also the evil

ones (Eph. 1:21). They too will bow before God’s throne one day in total

subjection to Him, for “at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven

and on earth and under the earth [evil spirits] ” (Phil. 2:10; cf. Isa. 45:22-23).

Indeed, the evil spirits who deceived King Ahab were dispatched from the very

throne of God. The Scriptures inform us:

I saw the LORD sitting on his throne with all the host of heaven standing

round him on his right and on his left. And the LORD said, “Who will

entice Ahab into attacking Ramoth Gilead and going to his death there?”

One suggested this, and another that. Finally, a spirit came forward, stood

before the LORD and said, “I will entice him.” “By what means?” the

LORD asked. “I will go out and be a lying spirit in the mouths of all his

prophets,” he said. “You will succeed in enticing him,” said the LORD. “Go

and do it” (1 Kings 22:19-22).

Even Satan is under God’s control

Even Satan came along with the good angels before God’s throne in the book

of Job (Job 1:6; 2:1). And although he wished to destroy Job, God would not

permit him. Satan complained, saying to God, “ ‘Have you not put a hedge

around him and his household and everything he has? You have blessed the work

of his hands, so that his flocks and herds are spread throughout the land’ ” (Job

1:10). God has power to bind Satan any time He desires, and He does it for a

thousand years in the book of Revelation (20:2).

Also, the devil’s demons who fell with him (Rev. 12:9; Jude 6) know they are

eventually doomed. One cried out to Jesus, “ ‘What do you want with us, Son of

God? ... Have you come here to torture us before the appointed time?’ ” (Matt.

8:29). And eventually Satan and all his hosts will be destroyed. The devil

himself “knows that his time is short” (Rev. 12:12). While he is presently

roaming the earth (1 Peter 5:8), he does so only on a leash held firmly by God’s

sovereign hand.

Christ came to destroy the works of the devil (Heb. 2:14), which He did

officially on the Cross (1 John 3:8). And Christ will return to defeat the devil

actually. John foretells how “the devil, who deceived them, was thrown into the

lake of burning sulfur, where the beast and the false prophet had been thrown.

They will be tormented day and night for ever and ever” (Rev. 20:10).

Even human decisions are under God’s control

Perhaps the most difficult thing to understand is that God is in sovereign

control of everything we choose, even our salvation. For “in him we were also

chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out

everything in conformity with the purpose of his will . . .” (Eph. 1:11). “For those

God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son,

that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. And those he predestined,

he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also

glorified” (Rom. 8:29-30). According to Paul, “he chose us in him before the

creation of the world” (Eph. 1:4). Peter said of Jesus to the Jews, “ ‘This man

was handed over to you by God’s set purpose and foreknowledge; and you, with

the help of wicked men, put him to death by nailing him to the cross’ ” (Acts

2:23). Indeed, only those who are elect will believe, for Luke wrote that “all who

were appointed for eternal life believed” (Acts 13:48).

Other verses affirm God’s actions on the human will, even in matters of

salvation. John declares that we are “children [of God] born not of natural

descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God” (John

1:13). Likewise, Paul affirms that “it is not of him who wills, nor of him who

runs, but of God who shows mercy” (Rom. 9:16 NKJV). He adds even stronger

words: “God has mercy on whom he wants to have mercy, and he hardens whom

he wants to harden” (Rom. 9:19; see appendix 1).

God’s sovereignty over human decisions includes both those for Him and

against Him. Peter, quoting from Isaiah (8:14), writes of Christ: He is “ ‘a stone

that causes men to stumble and a rock that makes them fall.’ They stumble

because they disobey the message—which is also what they were destined for”

(1 Peter 2:8). Likewise, God has destined the “vessels of wrath” who were

“prepared for destruction” (Rom. 9:22 NASB) as well as the “vessels of mercy”

(Rom. 9:23 NASB)—each according to His will.

Whatever else may be said, God’s sovereignty over the human will includes

His initiating, pursuing, persuading, and saving grace without which no one

would ever will to be saved. For “there is no one who understands, no one who

seeks God” (Rom. 3:11). “We love Him” only because “He first loved us” (1

John 4:19 NKJV). Indeed, no one comes to the Father unless he is drawn by God

(John 6:44).

HOW THEN ARE WE FREE?

If God is sovereign, how then can we be free? Does not divine sovereignty

make a sham of human responsibility? Is not a sovereign God a Giant Puppet

Master, pulling the strings of human “puppets” at His will? If God is in complete

control of everything, including human choice, then how can we be truly free?

Are not sovereignty and significant free will mutually exclusive?

Why Blame Me?

I have never forgotten a placard I saw in a Presbyterian church foyer over

forty years ago: “We believe in predestination, but drive carefully because you

may hit a Presbyterian!” On the other side of the coin from divine sovereignty

(see chapter 1) is human responsibility.

WHO DONE IT?

If God is in control of everything, then why should we be blamed for

anything? If an all-knowing God knows what we are going to do before we ever

do it—and if He cannot be wrong—then is not this the way it’s going to happen

regardless of what we do?

Or to put the problem another way, if God is in control of all events, then how

can I be responsible for anything that happens, even my evil actions? It would

seem that His sovereignty eliminates my responsibility.

THE DEVIL MADE ME DO IT

Some believers have been known to excuse their sin, claiming: “The devil

made me do it!” But the problem here is even greater, because logically one

cannot stop at this point. For if God is in sovereign control of all things, then

instead it would appear that, ultimately, “God made me do it.”

Indeed, one response to the problem of divine sovereignty and human

responsibility is that of extreme Calvinism.3

This response claims that free choice simply is doing what we desire, but that

no one ever desires to do anything unless God gives him the desire to do so.4 If

all of this were so, then it would follow that God would be responsible for all

human actions.

If it were true, then the Bible should say that God gave Judas the desire to

betray Christ. But it does not. Rather, it says, “the devil had already prompted5

Judas Iscariot, son of Simon, to betray Jesus” (John 13:2).

Nor does it help to claim that God gives only good desires but not evil ones

and that all other choices result from our evil natures. For neither Lucifer nor

Adam had an evil nature to begin with, and yet they sinned. Further, why doesn’t

God give a good desire to all?

WHO MADE THE DEVIL DO IT?

For the strong (extreme) Calvinists the ultimate question is: Who made the

devil do it? Or, more precisely, who caused Lucifer to sin? If free choice is doing

what one desires, and if all desires come from God, then it follows logically that

God made Lucifer sin against God!6 But it is contradictory to say that God ever

could be against God. God is essentially good. He cannot sin (Heb. 6:18). In

fact, He cannot even look with approval on sin. Habakkuk said to God: “Your

eyes are too pure to look on evil; you cannot tolerate wrong” (1:13). James

reminds us that “When tempted, no one should say, ‘God is tempting me.’ For

God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone” (1:13).

So, if for no other reason, the strong Calvinist’s position must be rejected

because it is contradictory. And the Bible exhorts us to “avoid contradictions” (1

Tim. 6:20 NKJV). Opposites cannot both be true at the same time and in the

same sense. God cannot be good and not good. He cannot be for His own

essential good and be against it by giving Lucifer the desire to sin against Him.

In short, God cannot be for Himself and against Himself at the same time and in

the same sense.

Consequently, some less strong Calvinists claim that God does not give any

evil desires but only good ones. However, this view has two problems. First,

why would God give a desire to do good only to some and not to all? If He is allloving,

then surely He would love all, as the Bible says He does (John 3:16; 1

Tim. 2:4; 2 Peter 3:9). Second, this does not explain where Lucifer got the desire

to sin. If it did not come from God, then it must have come from himself. But in

that case, his original evil act was self-caused, that is, caused by himself—which

is exactly the view of human free will the strong Calvinist rejects.7

WHO MADE THE DEVIL?

If God did not make the devil do it, then who did? More simply, who made the

devil? The biblical answers to these questions are: God did not make the devil,

and He did not make the devil do it. Rather, God made a good angel called

Lucifer, who became the devil by his own free choice to sin.

God made only good creatures

The Bible affirms that God made only good creatures. After almost every day

of Creation it says, “and it was good” (Gen. 1:4, 10, 12, 18, 21, 25). And after

the last day, it declares, “It was very good” (1:31). Solomon added, “This only

have I found: God made mankind upright ...” (Eccl. 7:29). We are told explicitly

that “every creature of God is good” (1 Tim. 4:4 KJV). And an absolutely good

God cannot make an evil thing. Only a perfect creature can come from the hands

of a perfect Creator.

God gave free choice to good creatures

One of the things God gave His good creatures was a good power called free

will. God said to Adam: “You are free ...” (Gen. 2:16). Mankind intuitively

recognizes freedom as being good; only those who usurp and abuse power deny

it, and yet even these value and seek it for themselves. And people never march

against freedom. One never sees a crowd carrying placards: “Down with

freedom!” or “Back to bondage!” And even if someone did speak against

freedom, he would thereby be speaking for it, since he values his freedom to

express that idea. In short, free choice is an undeniable good, since it affirms its

own good even when attempting to deny it.

Free choice is the origin of evil

However, the power of moral free choice entails the ability either to choose

the good God designed for us or to reject it. The latter is called evil. It is good to

be free, but freedom makes evil possible. Free will is good in itself, but entailed

in that good is the ability to choose the opposite of good, which then makes evil

possible.

If God made free creatures, and if it is good to be free, then the origin of evil

is in the misuse of freedom. This is not hard to understand. We all enjoy the

freedom to drive, but many abuse this freedom and drive recklessly. Yet we

should not blame the government that gives us the license to drive for all the evil

we do with our cars. Those whose irresponsible driving kills others are

responsible for what has happened. Remember: the government that gave us the

permission to drive has also informed us how to drive safely.8

Likewise, God is morally accountable for giving the good thing called free

will, but He is not morally responsible for all the evil we do with our freedom.

Solomon said it well: “This only have I found: God made mankind upright, but

men have gone in search of many schemes” (Eccl. 7:29). In brief, God made the

fact of freedom; we are responsible for the acts of freedom. The fact of freedom

is good, even though some acts of freedom are evil. God is the cause of the

former, and we are the cause of the latter.

God may foreknow an event and predestine that event, but such predestination does not necessarily include decisions that lead up to that event. In other words, God may know and predestine the end—that something is ultimately going to happen—without predestining the means to that end.

Michael S. Heiser

Character is built on decisions, and bad decisions will create bad character.

Warren W. Wiersbe

All humans are free agents in the sense that they make their own decisions as to what they will do, choosing as they please in the light of their sense of right and wrong and the inclinations they feel.

J. I. Packer

Scripture nowhere says that we are “free” in the sense of being outside of God’s control19 or of being able to make decisions that are not caused by anything.

Wayne Grudem

Decisions based only on opinions might be reconsidered, but decisions based on convictions must stand unless those convictions are changed.

Warren W. Wiersbe

God can decree something and then leave the means up to the decisions of other free-will agents. The end is sovereignly ordained; the means to that end may or may not be.

Michael S. Heiser

Does this mean that God controls even our free decisions? Certainly he does. Joseph’s brothers sold him into slavery in order to harm him. That was their free decision, and they are responsible for it. But, ultimately, it was God who used their evil deed to accomplish his good purpose (Gen. 45:5–8)

John Frame

Our capacity to choose changes constantly with our practice of life. The longer we continue to make the wrong decisions, the more our heart hardens; the more often we make the right decisions, the more our heart softens or better, perhaps, comes alive.

Erich Fromm