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Chosen By God: Know God's Perfect Plan for His Glory and His Children
Here is a clear scriptural case for the classic (and sometimes controversial) Christian doctrine of predestination. Through this view of a truly sovereign God, readers will see how sinfulness prevents man from choosing God on his own; instead, God must change people's hearts.
187 pages, Paperback
First published October 1, 1986
About the author
R.C. Sproul
587 books1,737 followersDr. R.C. Sproul (1939–2017) was founder of Ligonier Ministries, an international Christian discipleship organization located near Orlando, Fla. He was founding pastor of Saint Andrew’s Chapel in Sanford, Fla., first president of Reformation Bible College, and executive editor of Tabletalk magazine.
Ligonier Ministries began in 1971 as the Ligonier Valley Study Center in Ligonier, Pa. In an effort to respond more effectively to the growing demand for Dr. Sproul’s teachings and the ministry’s other educational resources, the general offices were moved to Orlando in 1984, and the ministry was renamed.
Dr. Sproul’s radio program, Renewing Your Mind, is still broadcast daily on hundreds of radio stations around the world and can also be heard online. Dr. Sproul produced hundreds of lecture series and recorded numerous video series on subjects such as the history of philosophy, theology, Bible study, apologetics, and Christian living.
He contributed dozens of articles to national evangelical publications, spoke at conferences, churches, and academic institutions around the world, and wrote more than one hundred books, including The Holiness of God, Chosen by God, and Everyone’s a Theologian. He signed the 1978 Chicago Statement on Biblical Inerrancy and wrote a commentary on that document. He also served as general editor of the Reformation Study Bible, previously known as the New Geneva Study Bible.
Dr. Sproul had a distinguished academic teaching career at various colleges and seminaries, including Reformed Theological Seminary in Orlando and Jackson, Miss. He was ordained as a teaching elder in the Presbyterian Church in America.
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May 21, 2021
With nearly 200,000 copies sold in its 25 years, Chosen by God by Dr. R. C. Sproul is a contemporary classic on predestination, a doctrine that isn't just for Calvinists, says Sproul. It is a doctrine for all biblical Christians. In this updated and expanded edition of Chosen by God, Sproul shows that the doctrine of predestination doesn't create a whimsical or spiteful picture of God, but paints a portrait of a loving God who provides redemption for radically corrupt humans. We choose God because he has opened our eyes to see his beauty; we love him because he first loved us. There is mystery in God's ways, but not contradiction.
Sproul has an easily identifiable reading style with his short, pithy sentences. Additionally he is able to concisely explain difficult philosophical ideas with clarity. His treatment on the compatibility of free will and divine sovereignty the most helpful I've seen.
My husband and I had the privilege of attending at least two of Dr Sproul's conferences in the past. He has always explained even sticky subjects where anyone could understand.
We were saddened when he passed away a couple of weeks ago, but He definitely fought the good fight and finished the race.
2 Timothy 4:7
He was truly a man of God.
Sproul has an easily identifiable reading style with his short, pithy sentences. Additionally he is able to concisely explain difficult philosophical ideas with clarity. His treatment on the compatibility of free will and divine sovereignty the most helpful I've seen.
My husband and I had the privilege of attending at least two of Dr Sproul's conferences in the past. He has always explained even sticky subjects where anyone could understand.
We were saddened when he passed away a couple of weeks ago, but He definitely fought the good fight and finished the race.
2 Timothy 4:7
He was truly a man of God.
March 5, 2012
There are a few questions you must settle in your mind to determine whether what is written in this book is true.
1. Is God all powerful, all knowing, and does He have the right to execute His Will at all times and in all situations?
2. Do you love Him, esteem Him, and desire Him to the point where you are willing to submit your life to Him, but also your will, your understanding, and your sense of right and wrong in exchange for His?
3. Are you willing to be content and at peace when God decrees something to happen that you do not understand, and do you trust that He controls all things and that nothing can happen outside his permission?
If so, you shouldn't have a problem agreeing to anything in this book.
1. Is God all powerful, all knowing, and does He have the right to execute His Will at all times and in all situations?
2. Do you love Him, esteem Him, and desire Him to the point where you are willing to submit your life to Him, but also your will, your understanding, and your sense of right and wrong in exchange for His?
3. Are you willing to be content and at peace when God decrees something to happen that you do not understand, and do you trust that He controls all things and that nothing can happen outside his permission?
If so, you shouldn't have a problem agreeing to anything in this book.
January 14, 2013
This is one of the few truly life-altering books I've ever read. It (along with scripture, some great sermons, and the Holy Spirit, of course) completely changed the way I think about God, not only in salvation, but in all things.
When I started this book I had recently joined a reformed church and was really reluctant to affirm their doctrines on the sovereignty of God in salvation. As a future missionary I saw reformed theology as a cop-out for people who didn't want to share the gospel with others. And i had many other practical objections as well (why do bad things happen to good people, etc.) When I finished this book (and it took a long time) all of my objections had been overruled and I was joyful about it! I was not only convinced that God was completely sovereign over my salvation, but I was thrilled because of it. And I love Sproul's short and sweet response to the missions/evangelism conundrum. This is the book that made reformed theology "click" in my head and my heart and the paradigm could never shift back. I thank God for this book.
When I started this book I had recently joined a reformed church and was really reluctant to affirm their doctrines on the sovereignty of God in salvation. As a future missionary I saw reformed theology as a cop-out for people who didn't want to share the gospel with others. And i had many other practical objections as well (why do bad things happen to good people, etc.) When I finished this book (and it took a long time) all of my objections had been overruled and I was joyful about it! I was not only convinced that God was completely sovereign over my salvation, but I was thrilled because of it. And I love Sproul's short and sweet response to the missions/evangelism conundrum. This is the book that made reformed theology "click" in my head and my heart and the paradigm could never shift back. I thank God for this book.
July 6, 2012
I was wondering if I actually needed to read this book, as I have already read other R C books and was familiar with the arguments. Needless to say, this book refreshed a few things I forgot. It is more philosophical than biblical, although the Scripture is there. Although short in size, it is not necessarily an easy read. Sproul does something in this book that I have not seen him do elsewhere: he uses diagrams. A few are:
Justice/Non-justice Mercy
and then there is the not able not to sin diagram
Sproul's definition of the will's freedom is crucial in this book. In doing so he borrows from Jonathan Edwards: "Edwards defined the will as `the mind choosing'...before we ever make moral choices we must have some idea of what we are choosing...my inclination and my motives are shaped by my mind....I act according to those inclinations...
Ergo:
The will always chooses according to its strongest inclination at the moment" (54)." So in reality, we are slaves to our own free-will.
In the next chapter he goes on to illustrate how any denial of original sin necessarily entails vicious question begging, especially if pressed on how society becomes bad.
But what practical value does the denial of free will have for evangelism? Sproul, Boice, and Van Til maintain that if the sinner believes that he can choose God today, then he can put it off and choose God tomorrow, ad infinitum. If he realizes that he cannot choose God, but is a slave to sin, then he has to come to grips with how DESPERATE his situation is! He is driven to his knees in awful desperation. Then, and only then,can he realize that he cannot save himself. Which is what the gospel is about.
Justice/Non-justice Mercy
and then there is the not able not to sin diagram
Sproul's definition of the will's freedom is crucial in this book. In doing so he borrows from Jonathan Edwards: "Edwards defined the will as `the mind choosing'...before we ever make moral choices we must have some idea of what we are choosing...my inclination and my motives are shaped by my mind....I act according to those inclinations...
Ergo:
The will always chooses according to its strongest inclination at the moment" (54)." So in reality, we are slaves to our own free-will.
In the next chapter he goes on to illustrate how any denial of original sin necessarily entails vicious question begging, especially if pressed on how society becomes bad.
But what practical value does the denial of free will have for evangelism? Sproul, Boice, and Van Til maintain that if the sinner believes that he can choose God today, then he can put it off and choose God tomorrow, ad infinitum. If he realizes that he cannot choose God, but is a slave to sin, then he has to come to grips with how DESPERATE his situation is! He is driven to his knees in awful desperation. Then, and only then,can he realize that he cannot save himself. Which is what the gospel is about.
April 12, 2012
Far be it from me to give good reviews to a book that argues for Calvinism, but this book really is excellent for a number of reasons.
First of all, it lacks the heat and vitriol and outrageous (at times even slanderous) statements that a lot of books that argue for the reformed view are unfortunately known for. Even if you don't end up agreeing with him, you don't feel on the defensive the way you would after reading something by James White or Robert Morey. The tone is very much like this: "This is what I believe, and it is right and biblical, so you should believe it too," not "go f**k yourselves, anyone who disagrees! You must all just hate God!"
Along these lines, his arguments are a lot more thoughtful. For example, he doesn't argue "I'm a Calvinist because I believe in a sovereign God." Calvinists, if you want to quickly make all non-Calvinists dismiss everything that you say, tell they that you believe in a sovereign God and they do not. Rather, Sproul early on points out that in fact, Calvinists and Arminians alike do believe that God is sovereign. Not only is this fair and Christlike, but he actually uses it to his advantage. Because we all agree that God is sovereign, many of the problems we associate with Calvinism are in fact just as much of a problem for Arminians (for example, how can a sovereign God who is completely good have created a universe with evil in it?).
He's not afraid to admit when he doesn't have an answers, and this shows both humility and insight. Humility is shown in that he is willing to admit these things. For example, he does admit that Hebrews 6:4-6 sounds like Christians are in view. Obviously, he ultimately believes that it can be consistent with Calvinism. Nevertheless, the fact that he didn't just jump on the "those aren't Christians because Christian's can't fall away; next question" bandwagon is encouraging. As I said before, he is thoughtful and thorough, not just parroting what everyone else says without even thinking about it just to save his position. The insight he possesses also becomes clear because, as was the case with the sovereignty of God issue, these paradoxes and mysteries are shared by Arminians as well, which is often overlooked.
He vehemently denies the idea that God actively takes part in hardening and blinding people so that they do not believe. I think he makes a good biblical explanation of this.
Although his explanation of original sin does not perfectly solve the problem of original sin, it is far better and more thoughtful than most. He argues for the typical reformed view that Adam was a representative of all humans. However, he doesn't just say "that may not sound fair, but if that's not fair, then it's not fair that Jesus is our reprsentive either" and think that that is adequate. He makes the point that if God is perfectly just, the representative he picks would be a perfect representative. It's not a perfect answer, because it doesn't explain why every human, if they weren't already sinful, would have chosen to so as Adam did. However, it is still better than most answers. It is my opinion that no answer that has ever been given perfectly solves the dilemma. The idea of a fall which has affected still seems a bit wrong on a core, intuitive level, and yet, even if the Bible didn't clearly say that such a thing was true, simple reason says that something of the sort must have happened. Why else would it be that all humans are undeniably evil at least to some extent? There comes a point where we have to assume either that God is just and there is something that we are missing, or that there just is no such thing as good and evil (and thus, nothing made men evil since there is no evil). While his explanation (including much which I have left out) is not perfect, he does successfully emphasize that we can trust that God would not do what was unjust, and that is the most important thing.
The biblical case for Calvinism he gives is very good, though not airtight. Compared to most, it is very coherent and clear. His reasoning is well thought out, and is not simply a list of prooftexts. That said, a committed Arminian could legitimately still hold to their view; as I said, it is not airtight. However, it is a very good case, and I might daresay he justifies a view which I previously thought could not be.
It's not without its flaws of course: at times, he makes arguments that I don't think are as successful as others. One important passages that he more or less just passes over is John 3:16. Pretty much, he says that even if it implied that God offered salvation to everyone, the clearer passages would override that. He also doesn't always have the clearest grasp on what others believe (as was clear when he argued against the view that God elects people for salvation based on how they would have replied to the gospel).
Overall, he paints Calvinism in a very positive light and explains a lot of misconceptions in clear and gentle manner. The book is worth reading, whatever your view on predestination.
First of all, it lacks the heat and vitriol and outrageous (at times even slanderous) statements that a lot of books that argue for the reformed view are unfortunately known for. Even if you don't end up agreeing with him, you don't feel on the defensive the way you would after reading something by James White or Robert Morey. The tone is very much like this: "This is what I believe, and it is right and biblical, so you should believe it too," not "go f**k yourselves, anyone who disagrees! You must all just hate God!"
Along these lines, his arguments are a lot more thoughtful. For example, he doesn't argue "I'm a Calvinist because I believe in a sovereign God." Calvinists, if you want to quickly make all non-Calvinists dismiss everything that you say, tell they that you believe in a sovereign God and they do not. Rather, Sproul early on points out that in fact, Calvinists and Arminians alike do believe that God is sovereign. Not only is this fair and Christlike, but he actually uses it to his advantage. Because we all agree that God is sovereign, many of the problems we associate with Calvinism are in fact just as much of a problem for Arminians (for example, how can a sovereign God who is completely good have created a universe with evil in it?).
He's not afraid to admit when he doesn't have an answers, and this shows both humility and insight. Humility is shown in that he is willing to admit these things. For example, he does admit that Hebrews 6:4-6 sounds like Christians are in view. Obviously, he ultimately believes that it can be consistent with Calvinism. Nevertheless, the fact that he didn't just jump on the "those aren't Christians because Christian's can't fall away; next question" bandwagon is encouraging. As I said before, he is thoughtful and thorough, not just parroting what everyone else says without even thinking about it just to save his position. The insight he possesses also becomes clear because, as was the case with the sovereignty of God issue, these paradoxes and mysteries are shared by Arminians as well, which is often overlooked.
He vehemently denies the idea that God actively takes part in hardening and blinding people so that they do not believe. I think he makes a good biblical explanation of this.
Although his explanation of original sin does not perfectly solve the problem of original sin, it is far better and more thoughtful than most. He argues for the typical reformed view that Adam was a representative of all humans. However, he doesn't just say "that may not sound fair, but if that's not fair, then it's not fair that Jesus is our reprsentive either" and think that that is adequate. He makes the point that if God is perfectly just, the representative he picks would be a perfect representative. It's not a perfect answer, because it doesn't explain why every human, if they weren't already sinful, would have chosen to so as Adam did. However, it is still better than most answers. It is my opinion that no answer that has ever been given perfectly solves the dilemma. The idea of a fall which has affected still seems a bit wrong on a core, intuitive level, and yet, even if the Bible didn't clearly say that such a thing was true, simple reason says that something of the sort must have happened. Why else would it be that all humans are undeniably evil at least to some extent? There comes a point where we have to assume either that God is just and there is something that we are missing, or that there just is no such thing as good and evil (and thus, nothing made men evil since there is no evil). While his explanation (including much which I have left out) is not perfect, he does successfully emphasize that we can trust that God would not do what was unjust, and that is the most important thing.
The biblical case for Calvinism he gives is very good, though not airtight. Compared to most, it is very coherent and clear. His reasoning is well thought out, and is not simply a list of prooftexts. That said, a committed Arminian could legitimately still hold to their view; as I said, it is not airtight. However, it is a very good case, and I might daresay he justifies a view which I previously thought could not be.
It's not without its flaws of course: at times, he makes arguments that I don't think are as successful as others. One important passages that he more or less just passes over is John 3:16. Pretty much, he says that even if it implied that God offered salvation to everyone, the clearer passages would override that. He also doesn't always have the clearest grasp on what others believe (as was clear when he argued against the view that God elects people for salvation based on how they would have replied to the gospel).
Overall, he paints Calvinism in a very positive light and explains a lot of misconceptions in clear and gentle manner. The book is worth reading, whatever your view on predestination.
April 10, 2016
One of the best explanations I've read of Reformed theology (Calvinism). Biblical, logical, and simple (yet deep). It explains several aspects of salvation: predestination, free will, original sin, assurance of salvation.
I read this because I've listened to Sproul's Renewing Your Mind podcast for years, and it's informed my thinking on salvation.
Notes follow.
Predestination and the Sovereignty of God
"It is not freedom that is canceled out by sovereignty; it is autonomy that cannot coexist with sovereignty." "Autonomy" means "self-law;" answerable to no one.
"One does not have to be autonomous to be free. Autonomy implies absolute freedom. We are free, but there are limits to our freedom. The ultimate limit is the sovereignty of God."
"God is free. I am free. God is more free than I am. If my freedom runs up against God's freedom, I lose." Analogy: parent and child have free free will; when wills clash, parent's authority overrules child's will.
Predestination and Free Will
Every choice is both free and self-determined, because we choose according to our strongest inclination at the moment.
Jonathan Edwards said we have a natural ability (mind and will) to choose what we desire. But fallen man has lost the moral ability to make choices pleasing to God because he has lost the ability to choose Christ (Gen 6:5).
Augustine said fallen man, before rebirth, has free will but not liberty; he can choose what he wants, but his desires are not at liberty due to original sin.
Infants are innocent of committing specific acts of sin but are guilty of original sin.
In John 6:65, Jesus is saying the ability to come to Him is a gift from God. Man alone lacks the ability. God must do something first.
In John 6:44, Greek word for "draw" means "to compel" (used in James 2:6, Acts 16:19).
John 3:3, 5 say that a person must be born again to see the Kingdom. Before a person can choose Christ, their heart must be changed.
The flesh profits nothing (John 6:63). See also Rom 8:7-9.
John 3:16 just says those who believe will be saved; it doesn't say who will believe.
Adam's Fall and Mine
God ordained the Fall in the sense that He allowed it, but not in the sense that He coerced it.
Spiritual Death and Spiritual Life: Rebirth and Faith
Human Corruption (Total Depravity)
Total depravity means our whole humanity is fallen (will, heart, mind, body); sin touches the root of our lives. It doesn't mean utter depravity (that all people are as evil as they could possibly be).
Rom 3:10-12, 18; Luke 18:19; Eph 2:1-10.
When the Bible says to seek God (Isa 55:6, Matt 7:7, Rev 3:20, etc.) it's addressing believers.
Regeneration is monergistic; only God does the work. Faith is not monergistic; we believe.
It's our faith but doesn't originate with us; God gives it to us.
Effectual Grace (Irresistible Grace)
"God's grace is resistible in the sense that we can and do resist it. It is irresistible in the sense that it achieves its purpose."
Rebirth causes a person to view Jesus as irresistible; they willingly desire to follow Him.
Is Predestination Double?
God actively intervenes in the lives of the elect to ensure their salvation. "The rest of mankind God leaves to themselves. He does not create unbelief in their hearts. That unbelief is already there. He does not coerce them to sin. They sin by their own choices."
When God hardens hearts (such as Pharaoh in Ex 7), it's a passive hardening. He removes the restraints, increasing their freedom, which they use to sin more.
In God's judgment, He gives sinners over to their sin (Rev 22:11).
Rom 9 is clearest expression of double predestination.
Unconditional Election
Election and salvation aren't synonymous. God elects to salvation. Salvation is complete work of redemption. Salvation does have conditions, including faith (justification is by faith). God ensures the conditions necessary for salvation are met.
God elects according to His pleasure (Eph 1:3-6).
Phil 2:12-13 refers to sanctification (growing in grace), not election.
Can We Know That We Are Saved?
It's our duty to seek assurance of salvation (2 Pet 1:10-11).
Paul was sure of his election; he frequently uses "we" when speaking of elect.
Assurance comes from: trust in God; inward evidence of faith (true love for Christ); outward evidence (sanctified behavior); witness of Holy Spirit (Rom 8:16), who testifies primarily through His Word.
Assurance can be temporarily diminished, as David after adultery and Peter after denying Christ.
Preservation (Perseverance) of the Saints (Eternal Security)
Phil 1:6; John 10:27-29; 1 Pet 3:5; Heb 10:14; Rom 8:23, 33-39; John 17:11-12, 24; 2 Tim 2:19; Eph 1:14; 1 John 2:19; Jer 32:40; Rom 15:5, 13.
God makes saints in Heaven incapable of sin, yet they are still free. Preservation doesn't destroy free will.
True Christians can fall seriously and radically, but not totally and finally.
Heb 6 seems to say believers can lose salvation, but this isn't the case due to v. 9. The author is likely using an ad hominem argument. He isn't saying believers fall away; he says the opposite.
Why does the Bible warn against falling away? It reminds us of our duty to persevere. Of ourselves, we could fall away. It's God who prevents it.
Questions and Objections Concerning Predestination
2 Pet 3:9 could have 2 meanings: 1) God takes no delight in anyone's perishing; 2) Peter is speaking to the elect as "us" and "any."
Limited Atonement
God's intention with atonement was to save the elect. Matt 1:21; John 10:15; John 6:39; John 17:9.
I read this because I've listened to Sproul's Renewing Your Mind podcast for years, and it's informed my thinking on salvation.
Notes follow.
Predestination and the Sovereignty of God
"It is not freedom that is canceled out by sovereignty; it is autonomy that cannot coexist with sovereignty." "Autonomy" means "self-law;" answerable to no one.
"One does not have to be autonomous to be free. Autonomy implies absolute freedom. We are free, but there are limits to our freedom. The ultimate limit is the sovereignty of God."
"God is free. I am free. God is more free than I am. If my freedom runs up against God's freedom, I lose." Analogy: parent and child have free free will; when wills clash, parent's authority overrules child's will.
Predestination and Free Will
Every choice is both free and self-determined, because we choose according to our strongest inclination at the moment.
Jonathan Edwards said we have a natural ability (mind and will) to choose what we desire. But fallen man has lost the moral ability to make choices pleasing to God because he has lost the ability to choose Christ (Gen 6:5).
Augustine said fallen man, before rebirth, has free will but not liberty; he can choose what he wants, but his desires are not at liberty due to original sin.
Infants are innocent of committing specific acts of sin but are guilty of original sin.
In John 6:65, Jesus is saying the ability to come to Him is a gift from God. Man alone lacks the ability. God must do something first.
In John 6:44, Greek word for "draw" means "to compel" (used in James 2:6, Acts 16:19).
John 3:3, 5 say that a person must be born again to see the Kingdom. Before a person can choose Christ, their heart must be changed.
The flesh profits nothing (John 6:63). See also Rom 8:7-9.
John 3:16 just says those who believe will be saved; it doesn't say who will believe.
Adam's Fall and Mine
God ordained the Fall in the sense that He allowed it, but not in the sense that He coerced it.
Spiritual Death and Spiritual Life: Rebirth and Faith
Human Corruption (Total Depravity)
Total depravity means our whole humanity is fallen (will, heart, mind, body); sin touches the root of our lives. It doesn't mean utter depravity (that all people are as evil as they could possibly be).
Rom 3:10-12, 18; Luke 18:19; Eph 2:1-10.
When the Bible says to seek God (Isa 55:6, Matt 7:7, Rev 3:20, etc.) it's addressing believers.
Regeneration is monergistic; only God does the work. Faith is not monergistic; we believe.
It's our faith but doesn't originate with us; God gives it to us.
Effectual Grace (Irresistible Grace)
"God's grace is resistible in the sense that we can and do resist it. It is irresistible in the sense that it achieves its purpose."
Rebirth causes a person to view Jesus as irresistible; they willingly desire to follow Him.
Is Predestination Double?
God actively intervenes in the lives of the elect to ensure their salvation. "The rest of mankind God leaves to themselves. He does not create unbelief in their hearts. That unbelief is already there. He does not coerce them to sin. They sin by their own choices."
When God hardens hearts (such as Pharaoh in Ex 7), it's a passive hardening. He removes the restraints, increasing their freedom, which they use to sin more.
In God's judgment, He gives sinners over to their sin (Rev 22:11).
Rom 9 is clearest expression of double predestination.
Unconditional Election
Election and salvation aren't synonymous. God elects to salvation. Salvation is complete work of redemption. Salvation does have conditions, including faith (justification is by faith). God ensures the conditions necessary for salvation are met.
God elects according to His pleasure (Eph 1:3-6).
Phil 2:12-13 refers to sanctification (growing in grace), not election.
Can We Know That We Are Saved?
It's our duty to seek assurance of salvation (2 Pet 1:10-11).
Paul was sure of his election; he frequently uses "we" when speaking of elect.
Assurance comes from: trust in God; inward evidence of faith (true love for Christ); outward evidence (sanctified behavior); witness of Holy Spirit (Rom 8:16), who testifies primarily through His Word.
Assurance can be temporarily diminished, as David after adultery and Peter after denying Christ.
Preservation (Perseverance) of the Saints (Eternal Security)
Phil 1:6; John 10:27-29; 1 Pet 3:5; Heb 10:14; Rom 8:23, 33-39; John 17:11-12, 24; 2 Tim 2:19; Eph 1:14; 1 John 2:19; Jer 32:40; Rom 15:5, 13.
God makes saints in Heaven incapable of sin, yet they are still free. Preservation doesn't destroy free will.
True Christians can fall seriously and radically, but not totally and finally.
Heb 6 seems to say believers can lose salvation, but this isn't the case due to v. 9. The author is likely using an ad hominem argument. He isn't saying believers fall away; he says the opposite.
Why does the Bible warn against falling away? It reminds us of our duty to persevere. Of ourselves, we could fall away. It's God who prevents it.
Questions and Objections Concerning Predestination
2 Pet 3:9 could have 2 meanings: 1) God takes no delight in anyone's perishing; 2) Peter is speaking to the elect as "us" and "any."
Limited Atonement
God's intention with atonement was to save the elect. Matt 1:21; John 10:15; John 6:39; John 17:9.
July 30, 2019
It is so weird that I am giving this book three stars. But alas, I am nothing if not fair.
For starters, let me state something. I have great difficulty reading C.S. Lewis. Half the time, I have absolutely no idea what he’s saying. I expected this author to be like C.S. Lewis but was pleasantly surprised. It was engaging, readable, easy to understand. My personal copy was a slim and fresh paperback with a modern cover. I genuinely enjoyed reading the first few chapters and even felt that Sproul was someone I wouldn’t mind spending a day with.
I learned more than I expected to. For example, the portion about God hardening Pharaoh’s heart. That was fabulous insight about a difficult passage.
Then about halfway through, the book become more judgmental and more angering. As the chapters went on, Sproul left no room for arguing. You are either a Calvinist or you are dreadfully wrong. There is no room for merely differences in interpretation (something I believe can coexist without one or the other being completely wrong), because there is one and only one correct interpretation. He also separated the whole of Protestants into two categories: Calvinists, and terribly misled Arminians. What about all the people who draw interpretations from both sides?
What surprised me the most was how in many of his “The Arminian believes...” sections, I found it to be wrong. I was correcting it in my mind. It was like he was arguing against Arminianism, but didn’t completely understand it. He would say “This is what Arminians believe” and I was like, well no actually.
Another thing that was really irritating and judgy was the frequent “This verse in no way supports Arminianism.” Well, yeah, it does. There are two ways to look at it.
In conclusion, the second half of this book was a woeful disappointment following the friendly beginning. Before this book, I wrestled with Calvinism. Now I understand it, and I hate it. I HATE it. I don’t think it is wrong, the way Sproul deems Arminianism wrong, but I think aspects are missing. I think God is 100000% percent capable of doing everything in this book. I also believe God CHOOSES not to do those things.
To illustrate, which picture is a more glorious God: Say there is a child dying in an orphanage having never heard the word of God. In life, they were unwanted and unloved. They die. God could save them if he chose to do so, but chooses instead to cast them into hell.
Or is it more glorious that God would stoop so low to the level of this unwanted child and bring them to his love?
Don’t tell me my argument is too emotional. Kids die in orphanages every day. I took this from a real-life story I read recently.
And don’t tell me that flinging the child into hell would be nothing but justice. I don’t want to hear that. I’ve heard it so many times.
How is flinging a child into eternal death more glorious than loving a child?
If many of the babies who are aborted will go to hell, why are Christians supposed to protect their life as though it is sacred? How are we supposed to live with the knowledge that we have looked into many sets of eyes connected to souls unloved by God?
If God does not love everyone, then why is love everything? Why can we not function under circumstances of reality without love, when so many people will never receive the ultimate love? If God IS love, but only loves one group, then the other half of God is hate. How can we reconcile with a God who hates the neighbor we are commanded to love?
If this was the only Protestantism, I would convert to Catholicism. If this is the gospel, I reject it.
For starters, let me state something. I have great difficulty reading C.S. Lewis. Half the time, I have absolutely no idea what he’s saying. I expected this author to be like C.S. Lewis but was pleasantly surprised. It was engaging, readable, easy to understand. My personal copy was a slim and fresh paperback with a modern cover. I genuinely enjoyed reading the first few chapters and even felt that Sproul was someone I wouldn’t mind spending a day with.
I learned more than I expected to. For example, the portion about God hardening Pharaoh’s heart. That was fabulous insight about a difficult passage.
Then about halfway through, the book become more judgmental and more angering. As the chapters went on, Sproul left no room for arguing. You are either a Calvinist or you are dreadfully wrong. There is no room for merely differences in interpretation (something I believe can coexist without one or the other being completely wrong), because there is one and only one correct interpretation. He also separated the whole of Protestants into two categories: Calvinists, and terribly misled Arminians. What about all the people who draw interpretations from both sides?
What surprised me the most was how in many of his “The Arminian believes...” sections, I found it to be wrong. I was correcting it in my mind. It was like he was arguing against Arminianism, but didn’t completely understand it. He would say “This is what Arminians believe” and I was like, well no actually.
Another thing that was really irritating and judgy was the frequent “This verse in no way supports Arminianism.” Well, yeah, it does. There are two ways to look at it.
In conclusion, the second half of this book was a woeful disappointment following the friendly beginning. Before this book, I wrestled with Calvinism. Now I understand it, and I hate it. I HATE it. I don’t think it is wrong, the way Sproul deems Arminianism wrong, but I think aspects are missing. I think God is 100000% percent capable of doing everything in this book. I also believe God CHOOSES not to do those things.
To illustrate, which picture is a more glorious God: Say there is a child dying in an orphanage having never heard the word of God. In life, they were unwanted and unloved. They die. God could save them if he chose to do so, but chooses instead to cast them into hell.
Or is it more glorious that God would stoop so low to the level of this unwanted child and bring them to his love?
Don’t tell me my argument is too emotional. Kids die in orphanages every day. I took this from a real-life story I read recently.
And don’t tell me that flinging the child into hell would be nothing but justice. I don’t want to hear that. I’ve heard it so many times.
How is flinging a child into eternal death more glorious than loving a child?
If many of the babies who are aborted will go to hell, why are Christians supposed to protect their life as though it is sacred? How are we supposed to live with the knowledge that we have looked into many sets of eyes connected to souls unloved by God?
If God does not love everyone, then why is love everything? Why can we not function under circumstances of reality without love, when so many people will never receive the ultimate love? If God IS love, but only loves one group, then the other half of God is hate. How can we reconcile with a God who hates the neighbor we are commanded to love?
If this was the only Protestantism, I would convert to Catholicism. If this is the gospel, I reject it.
November 13, 2016
Predestination. Foreknowledge. Election. Free Will. Reprobation. These are among some of the most controversial and misunderstood terms that come up in theological discussions amongst evangelical Christians, and they are the concepts that Dr. Sproul addresses in his most influential little book, Chosen by God. All of these concepts are linked very tightly to one truth that most if not all orthodox Christians claim to accept: the Sovereignty of God. This topic, though, can lead to another whole discussion, as the question is raised: Just how sovereign is God? This, in my opinion, is rather a pointless question, because if God is not completely sovereign in every area of life, both material and spiritual, then He’s not sovereign, period. And if He’s not sovereign, then He’s not God. But the next question becomes: Can or does God choose at times or in certain situations not to exercise His sovereign control?
Many believers are willing to accept God as sovereign, until the subject of salvation is raised. To say that God is completely sovereign in the salvation of individuals seems to offend them, stepping on the toes of their precious free will. Sproul explains that he didn’t always hold to the view of predestination, election and God’s sovereignty in salvation. In seminary, one of Sproul’s professor, John Gerstner, challenged his students with this idea: “You are required to believe, to preach, and to teach what the Bibles says is true, not what you want the Bible to say is true.” As Sproul the student seriously studied the Scriptures, he gradually became convinced:
"Once I began to see the cogency of the doctrine and its broader implications, my eyes were opened to the graciousness of grace and to the grand comfort of God’s sovereignty. I began to like the doctrine little by little, until it burst upon my soul that the doctrine revealed the depth and the riches of the mercy of God. I no longer feared the demons of fatalism or the ugly thought that I was being reduced to a puppet. Now I rejoiced in a gracious Savior who alone was immortal, invisible, the only wise God."
Sproul jumps right in at the start of this book by identifying one problem that exists: the varying views and understandings of the doctrine of predestination held by different Christian groups. To sum up:
"The Reformed view of predestination teaches that before a person can choose Christ his heart must be changed. Non-Reformed views have fallen people first choosing Christ and then being born again. Here we find unregenerate people seeing and entering the kingdom of God."
Actually every Christian has a personal view of predestination, whether or not he is able to articulate it or to defend it biblically. Since the subject is addressed in the Scriptures. Sproul comments,
"It is not enough to have just any view of predestination. It is our duty to seek the correct view of predestination, lest we be guilty of distorting or ignoring the Word of God. Here is where the real struggle begins, the struggle to sort out accurately all that the Bible teaches on this matter."
Throughout his book, Sproul often makes a distinction between reformed (or Calvinist) teachings and non-reformed (or Arminian). If you don’t understand what these two camps hold to doctrinally, you will have a pretty good idea after reading the book. Perhaps you have negative perceptions of Calvinism as a system of theology, or you may be a person who has championed man’s free will and strongly opposed the ideas of election and predestination. I strongly recommend that you read Chosen by God with an open Bible and an open mind if your doctrinal stance is represented by any (or all) of the following statements:
- God gave man a free will; it’s our choice whether or not to believe and accept Christ.
- Foreknowledge means that God looked ahead, “through the corridors of time” to see who would choose Him, and those are the ones He elects to save.
- If God is sovereignly in control of everything, then we are nothing but puppets.
- Unless we freely choose to love God, it’s not authentic love.
- It wouldn’t be fair if God chose only some people to be saved.
- Jesus died on the cross to make salvation a possibility for everyone.
- How can God hold anyone accountable for their sin, when they were born with it and have no choice or ability to do anything about it?
In this short book, Dr. Sproul addresses each of these statements. He discusses such important issues as God’s mercy vs. God’s justice, the fall of Adam/Man, man’s sin nature/depravity, spiritual death & rebirth, double predestination/reprobation, the unpardonable sin, and assurance of salvation/eternal security. Dr. Sproul walks the reader through the process of analyzing these topics in a logical order and showing what the Word of God says. He anticipates the questions and objections that may be raised and masterfully answers them using the Scriptures as his foundation.
The following excerpts provide a little sampling of some of the key ideas Sproul expands upon:
“Our nature is so corrupt, the power of sin is so great, that unless God does a supernatural work in our souls we will never choose Christ. We do not believe in order to be born again; we are born again in order that we may believe.”
“People do not seek God. They seek after the benefits that only God can give them. The sin of fallen man is this: Man seeks the benefits of God while at the same time fleeing from God himself. We are, by nature, fugitives.”
“God gives mercy to the elect by working faith in their hearts. He gives justice to the reprobate by leaving them in their own sins. One group receives mercy. The other group received justice. No one is a victim of injustice. None can complain that there is unrighteousness in God.”
“Do we love a God who is sovereign? Do we love a God who sends people to hell? Do we love a God who demands absolute obedience? Do we love a Christ who will say to some on the last day, ‘Depart from me, I never knew you’? I am not asking whether we love this God and this Christ perfectly; I am asking whether we love this God and this Christ at all.”
Each chapter ends with a summary of key points and a list of scripture passages to help review the material just covered. In Chosen by God, R. C. Sproul examines some of the weightiest theological subjects, biblically and with clarity and conciseness. It’s important that, like the Bereans, we each, “search the Scriptures daily to see if these things are so,” that we may be able to recognize the false gospels that are all around us and become knowledgeable and firmly convinced of what we believe.
Many believers are willing to accept God as sovereign, until the subject of salvation is raised. To say that God is completely sovereign in the salvation of individuals seems to offend them, stepping on the toes of their precious free will. Sproul explains that he didn’t always hold to the view of predestination, election and God’s sovereignty in salvation. In seminary, one of Sproul’s professor, John Gerstner, challenged his students with this idea: “You are required to believe, to preach, and to teach what the Bibles says is true, not what you want the Bible to say is true.” As Sproul the student seriously studied the Scriptures, he gradually became convinced:
"Once I began to see the cogency of the doctrine and its broader implications, my eyes were opened to the graciousness of grace and to the grand comfort of God’s sovereignty. I began to like the doctrine little by little, until it burst upon my soul that the doctrine revealed the depth and the riches of the mercy of God. I no longer feared the demons of fatalism or the ugly thought that I was being reduced to a puppet. Now I rejoiced in a gracious Savior who alone was immortal, invisible, the only wise God."
Sproul jumps right in at the start of this book by identifying one problem that exists: the varying views and understandings of the doctrine of predestination held by different Christian groups. To sum up:
"The Reformed view of predestination teaches that before a person can choose Christ his heart must be changed. Non-Reformed views have fallen people first choosing Christ and then being born again. Here we find unregenerate people seeing and entering the kingdom of God."
Actually every Christian has a personal view of predestination, whether or not he is able to articulate it or to defend it biblically. Since the subject is addressed in the Scriptures. Sproul comments,
"It is not enough to have just any view of predestination. It is our duty to seek the correct view of predestination, lest we be guilty of distorting or ignoring the Word of God. Here is where the real struggle begins, the struggle to sort out accurately all that the Bible teaches on this matter."
Throughout his book, Sproul often makes a distinction between reformed (or Calvinist) teachings and non-reformed (or Arminian). If you don’t understand what these two camps hold to doctrinally, you will have a pretty good idea after reading the book. Perhaps you have negative perceptions of Calvinism as a system of theology, or you may be a person who has championed man’s free will and strongly opposed the ideas of election and predestination. I strongly recommend that you read Chosen by God with an open Bible and an open mind if your doctrinal stance is represented by any (or all) of the following statements:
- God gave man a free will; it’s our choice whether or not to believe and accept Christ.
- Foreknowledge means that God looked ahead, “through the corridors of time” to see who would choose Him, and those are the ones He elects to save.
- If God is sovereignly in control of everything, then we are nothing but puppets.
- Unless we freely choose to love God, it’s not authentic love.
- It wouldn’t be fair if God chose only some people to be saved.
- Jesus died on the cross to make salvation a possibility for everyone.
- How can God hold anyone accountable for their sin, when they were born with it and have no choice or ability to do anything about it?
In this short book, Dr. Sproul addresses each of these statements. He discusses such important issues as God’s mercy vs. God’s justice, the fall of Adam/Man, man’s sin nature/depravity, spiritual death & rebirth, double predestination/reprobation, the unpardonable sin, and assurance of salvation/eternal security. Dr. Sproul walks the reader through the process of analyzing these topics in a logical order and showing what the Word of God says. He anticipates the questions and objections that may be raised and masterfully answers them using the Scriptures as his foundation.
The following excerpts provide a little sampling of some of the key ideas Sproul expands upon:
“Our nature is so corrupt, the power of sin is so great, that unless God does a supernatural work in our souls we will never choose Christ. We do not believe in order to be born again; we are born again in order that we may believe.”
“People do not seek God. They seek after the benefits that only God can give them. The sin of fallen man is this: Man seeks the benefits of God while at the same time fleeing from God himself. We are, by nature, fugitives.”
“God gives mercy to the elect by working faith in their hearts. He gives justice to the reprobate by leaving them in their own sins. One group receives mercy. The other group received justice. No one is a victim of injustice. None can complain that there is unrighteousness in God.”
“Do we love a God who is sovereign? Do we love a God who sends people to hell? Do we love a God who demands absolute obedience? Do we love a Christ who will say to some on the last day, ‘Depart from me, I never knew you’? I am not asking whether we love this God and this Christ perfectly; I am asking whether we love this God and this Christ at all.”
Each chapter ends with a summary of key points and a list of scripture passages to help review the material just covered. In Chosen by God, R. C. Sproul examines some of the weightiest theological subjects, biblically and with clarity and conciseness. It’s important that, like the Bereans, we each, “search the Scriptures daily to see if these things are so,” that we may be able to recognize the false gospels that are all around us and become knowledgeable and firmly convinced of what we believe.
October 29, 2021
This is my second read-through of this book, the first time being sometime in 2006 or 07. This is a classic little text on the doctrines of sovereignty and election in particular. Eminently readable. I strongly recommend this book to anyone new to or curious about Calvinism.
June 30, 2021
I’ve been in love with Dr. R.C. Sproul’s works from the beginning of my take on Christian theology + the other stuff. He has been a wonderful preacher of the word for many decades, and I’m just disappointed that I couldn’t have met him in real life at a conference.
Despite his position in the reformed community, this book was great. Perfect for those who are just getting into the porous and vivacious understanding of biblical christianity, imo. He goes through the famous acronym TULIP, which he used to dismantle other viewpoints (mainly arminians and universalist perspectives). These arguments were lucid, which gave no way for further interpretation outside of what he was trying to imply or convey.
Great. Just great expository stuff.
Despite his position in the reformed community, this book was great. Perfect for those who are just getting into the porous and vivacious understanding of biblical christianity, imo. He goes through the famous acronym TULIP, which he used to dismantle other viewpoints (mainly arminians and universalist perspectives). These arguments were lucid, which gave no way for further interpretation outside of what he was trying to imply or convey.
Great. Just great expository stuff.
March 2, 2011
This book was a life-changer. It was the book that slammed the door on my pretentions that men chose God, rather than Him choosing us. It explains the sovereignty of God in salvation better than any book I know of. I'm sure there are longer and more thorough books on the subject, but this is the best I know of to get into your soul and shake things up.
September 26, 2017
A staple of reformed theology. A quick and easy survey not only of predestination but of the doctrines of grace. R.C. Sproul is a man of great intelligence who can articulate deep theological truths in simple, easy-to-understand terms. By the end, I think I had more highlighted passages than not. :)
A must-read if you want to deepen your faith and your appreciation for God's work in your life.
A must-read if you want to deepen your faith and your appreciation for God's work in your life.
January 29, 2021
I went into this book expecting for it to simply shape my knowledge of Calvinism and why I believe it. However, this book did that and so much more. It shaped my heart. It gave me a deeper and richer love for God and His amazing grace, mercy, and sovereignty in my life.
September 20, 2014
"The sin of fallen man is this: man seeks the benefits of God while at the same time fleeing from God Himself."
December 30, 2023
A good introduction to the doctrine of predestination. The clear and concise sort of writing you would expect from Sproul.
February 13, 2023
First sentence: Baseball. Hot dogs. Apple pie. Chevrolet. These are all things American. To complete the mix we must add the great American motto: "We will not discuss religion or politics." Mottoes are made to be broken. Perhaps no American rule is broken more frequently than the one about not discussing religion or politics. We embark on such discussions repeatedly. And when the topic turns to religion it often gravitates to the issue of predestination. Sadly, that often means the end of discussion and the beginning of argument, yielding more heat than light. Arguing about predestination is virtually irresistible.
I've read and reread this one so many times. It was such a pivotal book in my life. It was full of "aha" moments, light bulb moments.
The book is divided into nine chapters: "The Struggle," "Predestination and the Sovereignty of God," "Predestination and Free Will," "Adam's Fall and Mine," "Spiritual Death and Spiritual Life: Rebirth and Faith," "Foreknowledge and Predestination," "Double, Double, Toil and Trouble: Is Predestination Double?", "Can We Know That We Are Saved?" and "Questions and Objections Concerning Predestination."
Is the book reader friendly? Yes and no. The theological subject is complex. Being complex doesn't make it more biblical OR less biblical. Because it can sound so absolutely foreign to our natural nature, our natural mind, to everything that we think we know, it can be tough to grasp. R.C. Sproul makes a point that this is the kind of knowledge that you almost fight against accepting. Depending on your background, depending on your church experience, depending on your theological leanings, of course. I absolutely love R.C. Sproul's approach to this:
Why do we speak of it? Because we enjoy unpleasantness? Not at all. We discuss it because we cannot avoid it. It is a doctrine plainly set forth in the Bible. We talk about predestination because the Bible talks about predestination. If we desire to build our theology on the Bible, we run head on into the concept. We soon discover that John Calvin did not invent it... (10)
If we are to be biblical, then, the issue is not whether we should have a doctrine of predestination or not, but what kind we should embrace. If the Bible is the Word of God, not mere human speculation, and if God himself declares that there is such a thing as predestination, then it follows irresistibly that we must embrace some doctrine of predestination. If we are to follow this line of thinking, then, of course, we must go one step further. It is not enough to have just any view of predestination. It is our duty to seek the correct view of predestination, lest we be guilty of distorting or ignoring the Word of God. (11)
I wrote a note to myself that I kept on my desk in a place where I could always see it: YOU ARE REQUIRED TO BELIEVE, TO PREACH, AND TO TEACH WHAT THE BIBLE SAYS IS TRUE, NOT WHAT YOU WANT THE BIBLE TO SAY IS TRUE. (12)
They say there is nothing more obnoxious than a converted drunk. Try a converted Arminian. Converted Arminians tend to become flaming Calvinists, zealots for the cause of predestination. You are reading the work of such a convert. (13)
To a Calvinist, to someone of the "Reformed" faith, the book is easier going. Once you connect the dots, once you have grasped the doctrines of grace, then it is hard to see what kept you blind to these "obvious" biblical truths.
Chosen by God is a book to read or perhaps reread slowly and thoughtfully. It is not necessarily a book to be rushed. It's a book to read side by side with the Bible, a book to be studied and pondered.
Favorite quotes:
The freedom of the sovereign is always greater than the freedom of his subjects. (24)
The very essence of grace is that it is undeserved. God always reserves the right to have mercy upon whom he will have mercy. God may owe people justice, but never mercy. (33)
Let us assume that all men are guilty of sin in the sight of God. From that mass of guilty humanity, God sovereignly decides to give mercy to some of them. What do the rest get? They get justice. The saved get mercy and the unsaved get justice. Nobody gets injustice. Mercy is not justice. But neither is it injustice. (37)
God is free. I am free. God is more free than I am. If my freedom runs up against God's freedom, I lose. His freedom restricts mine; my freedom does not restrict his. (43)
To have free will is to be able to choose according to our desires. Here desire plays the vital role of providing a motivation or a reason for making a choice... According to Edwards a human being is not only free to choose what he desires but he must choose what he desires to be able to choose at all. (54)
Our choices are determined by our desires. They remain our choices because they are motivated by our own desires. (54)
The will is a natural ability given to us by God. We have all the natural faculties necessary to make choices. We have a mind and we have a will. We have the natural ability to choose what we desire. What, then, is our problem? According to the Bible the location of our problem is clear. It is with the nature of our desires. This is the focal point of our fallenness. Scripture declares that the heart of fallen man continually harbors desires that are only wicked... Before a person can make a choice which is pleasing to God, he must first have a desire to please God. Before we can find God, we must first desire to seek him. Before we can choose the good, we must first have a desire for the good. Before we can choose Christ, we must first have a desire for Christ. The sum and and substance of the whole debate on predestination rests squarely on this point: Does fallen man, in and of himself, have a natural desire for Christ? (60-1)
Edwards insists that, in the Fall, man lost his original desire for God. When he lost that desire, something happened to his freedom. He lost the moral ability to choose Christ. In order to choose Christ, the sinner must first have a desire to choose Christ. Either he has that desire already within him or he must receive that desire from God. (61)
Original sin refers to the result of the sin of Adam and Eve. (63)
Before the Fall Adam was endowed with two possibilities: He had the ability to sin and the ability not to sin. After the Fall Adam had the ability to sin and the inability not to sin. The idea of "inability to not" is a bit confusing to us because in English it's a double negative. Augustine's Latin formula was non posse non peccare. Stated another way, it means that after the Fall man was morally incapable of living without sin. The ability to live without sin was lost in the Fall. This moral inability is the essence of what we call original sin. (65)
No human being can possibly come to Christ unless something happens that makes it possible for him to come. That necessary condition that Jesus declares is that "it has been granted to him by the Father." Jesus is saying here that the ability to come to him is a gift from God. Man does not have the ability in and of himself to come to Christ. God must do something first. (68) (John 6:65)
A cardinal point of Reformed theology is the maxim: "Regeneration precedes faith." Our nature is so corrupt the power of sin is so great, that unless God does a supernatural work in our souls we will never choose Christ. We do not believe in order to be born again; we are born again in order that we may believe. (72-3)
We see people searching desperately for peace of mind, relief from guilt, meaning and purpose to their lives, and loving acceptance. We know that ultimately these things can only be found in God. Therefore we conclude that since people are seeking these things they must be seeking after God. People do not seek God. They seek after the benefits that only God can give them. (110)
Seeking is the business of believers... The Christian life begins at conversion; it does not end where it begins. It grows; it moves from faith to faith, from grace to grace, from life to life. The movement of growth is prodded by a continual seeking after God. (111)
When God regenerates a human soul, when he makes us spiritually alive, we make choices. We believe. We have faith. We cling to Christ. God does not believe for us. (118)
Jesus is irresistible to those who have been made alive to the things of God. Every soul whose heart beats with the life of God within it longs for the living Christ. (123)
I learned one thing clearly in my experience in evangelism: The message of justification by faith alone has not penetrated our culture. Multitudes of people are resting their hopes for heaven on their own good works. They are quite willing to admit they are not perfect, but they assume they are good enough. They have done "their best" and that, they tragically assume, is good enough for God. (165)
I've read and reread this one so many times. It was such a pivotal book in my life. It was full of "aha" moments, light bulb moments.
The book is divided into nine chapters: "The Struggle," "Predestination and the Sovereignty of God," "Predestination and Free Will," "Adam's Fall and Mine," "Spiritual Death and Spiritual Life: Rebirth and Faith," "Foreknowledge and Predestination," "Double, Double, Toil and Trouble: Is Predestination Double?", "Can We Know That We Are Saved?" and "Questions and Objections Concerning Predestination."
Is the book reader friendly? Yes and no. The theological subject is complex. Being complex doesn't make it more biblical OR less biblical. Because it can sound so absolutely foreign to our natural nature, our natural mind, to everything that we think we know, it can be tough to grasp. R.C. Sproul makes a point that this is the kind of knowledge that you almost fight against accepting. Depending on your background, depending on your church experience, depending on your theological leanings, of course. I absolutely love R.C. Sproul's approach to this:
Why do we speak of it? Because we enjoy unpleasantness? Not at all. We discuss it because we cannot avoid it. It is a doctrine plainly set forth in the Bible. We talk about predestination because the Bible talks about predestination. If we desire to build our theology on the Bible, we run head on into the concept. We soon discover that John Calvin did not invent it... (10)
If we are to be biblical, then, the issue is not whether we should have a doctrine of predestination or not, but what kind we should embrace. If the Bible is the Word of God, not mere human speculation, and if God himself declares that there is such a thing as predestination, then it follows irresistibly that we must embrace some doctrine of predestination. If we are to follow this line of thinking, then, of course, we must go one step further. It is not enough to have just any view of predestination. It is our duty to seek the correct view of predestination, lest we be guilty of distorting or ignoring the Word of God. (11)
I wrote a note to myself that I kept on my desk in a place where I could always see it: YOU ARE REQUIRED TO BELIEVE, TO PREACH, AND TO TEACH WHAT THE BIBLE SAYS IS TRUE, NOT WHAT YOU WANT THE BIBLE TO SAY IS TRUE. (12)
They say there is nothing more obnoxious than a converted drunk. Try a converted Arminian. Converted Arminians tend to become flaming Calvinists, zealots for the cause of predestination. You are reading the work of such a convert. (13)
To a Calvinist, to someone of the "Reformed" faith, the book is easier going. Once you connect the dots, once you have grasped the doctrines of grace, then it is hard to see what kept you blind to these "obvious" biblical truths.
Chosen by God is a book to read or perhaps reread slowly and thoughtfully. It is not necessarily a book to be rushed. It's a book to read side by side with the Bible, a book to be studied and pondered.
Favorite quotes:
The freedom of the sovereign is always greater than the freedom of his subjects. (24)
The very essence of grace is that it is undeserved. God always reserves the right to have mercy upon whom he will have mercy. God may owe people justice, but never mercy. (33)
Let us assume that all men are guilty of sin in the sight of God. From that mass of guilty humanity, God sovereignly decides to give mercy to some of them. What do the rest get? They get justice. The saved get mercy and the unsaved get justice. Nobody gets injustice. Mercy is not justice. But neither is it injustice. (37)
God is free. I am free. God is more free than I am. If my freedom runs up against God's freedom, I lose. His freedom restricts mine; my freedom does not restrict his. (43)
To have free will is to be able to choose according to our desires. Here desire plays the vital role of providing a motivation or a reason for making a choice... According to Edwards a human being is not only free to choose what he desires but he must choose what he desires to be able to choose at all. (54)
Our choices are determined by our desires. They remain our choices because they are motivated by our own desires. (54)
The will is a natural ability given to us by God. We have all the natural faculties necessary to make choices. We have a mind and we have a will. We have the natural ability to choose what we desire. What, then, is our problem? According to the Bible the location of our problem is clear. It is with the nature of our desires. This is the focal point of our fallenness. Scripture declares that the heart of fallen man continually harbors desires that are only wicked... Before a person can make a choice which is pleasing to God, he must first have a desire to please God. Before we can find God, we must first desire to seek him. Before we can choose the good, we must first have a desire for the good. Before we can choose Christ, we must first have a desire for Christ. The sum and and substance of the whole debate on predestination rests squarely on this point: Does fallen man, in and of himself, have a natural desire for Christ? (60-1)
Edwards insists that, in the Fall, man lost his original desire for God. When he lost that desire, something happened to his freedom. He lost the moral ability to choose Christ. In order to choose Christ, the sinner must first have a desire to choose Christ. Either he has that desire already within him or he must receive that desire from God. (61)
Original sin refers to the result of the sin of Adam and Eve. (63)
Before the Fall Adam was endowed with two possibilities: He had the ability to sin and the ability not to sin. After the Fall Adam had the ability to sin and the inability not to sin. The idea of "inability to not" is a bit confusing to us because in English it's a double negative. Augustine's Latin formula was non posse non peccare. Stated another way, it means that after the Fall man was morally incapable of living without sin. The ability to live without sin was lost in the Fall. This moral inability is the essence of what we call original sin. (65)
No human being can possibly come to Christ unless something happens that makes it possible for him to come. That necessary condition that Jesus declares is that "it has been granted to him by the Father." Jesus is saying here that the ability to come to him is a gift from God. Man does not have the ability in and of himself to come to Christ. God must do something first. (68) (John 6:65)
A cardinal point of Reformed theology is the maxim: "Regeneration precedes faith." Our nature is so corrupt the power of sin is so great, that unless God does a supernatural work in our souls we will never choose Christ. We do not believe in order to be born again; we are born again in order that we may believe. (72-3)
We see people searching desperately for peace of mind, relief from guilt, meaning and purpose to their lives, and loving acceptance. We know that ultimately these things can only be found in God. Therefore we conclude that since people are seeking these things they must be seeking after God. People do not seek God. They seek after the benefits that only God can give them. (110)
Seeking is the business of believers... The Christian life begins at conversion; it does not end where it begins. It grows; it moves from faith to faith, from grace to grace, from life to life. The movement of growth is prodded by a continual seeking after God. (111)
When God regenerates a human soul, when he makes us spiritually alive, we make choices. We believe. We have faith. We cling to Christ. God does not believe for us. (118)
Jesus is irresistible to those who have been made alive to the things of God. Every soul whose heart beats with the life of God within it longs for the living Christ. (123)
I learned one thing clearly in my experience in evangelism: The message of justification by faith alone has not penetrated our culture. Multitudes of people are resting their hopes for heaven on their own good works. They are quite willing to admit they are not perfect, but they assume they are good enough. They have done "their best" and that, they tragically assume, is good enough for God. (165)
December 29, 2022
„We choose God because He has opened our eyes to see His beauty“ ?
Long and personal review incoming.
Rating and reviewing this book is very challenging to me, probably because I didn’t just read through it. Instead, along with the reading came hours of conversations with Calvinist and non-Calvinist friends, more hours of listening to debates and podcasts, 100 post-its and questions which lead me to other books and so I spent some months trying to figure out what I actually believe, in my mind, in prayer, in the Word.
I started reading the book because more and more questions came up that I didn’t seem to have answers to and which Calvinists seemed to be able to explain. As I got into the first few chapters I was pretty into the ideas, I thought that this might be the actual truth and that it all made so much sense.
I liked the idea of the „Sola’s“, predestination finally seemed to be comprehensible to me and Sproul fooled me, too, into believing that Calvinists are the only ones that „take the Bible by its word“. I believed that everyone else is just ignoring the truth because it would destroy their image of a loving God who came down to save everyone.
I started getting skeptical when I noticed how many unanswered questions Sproul himself brought up. Especially the unexplainable „why's“ were something I couldn’t get over. Sproul claims many things based on his interpretation of some verses but he so often wasn’t able to explain why God would act as He does. He uses „the mystery of God“ as an explanation for that, claiming that men are just not meant to comprehend the way God decides or thinks.
While I agree that we are limited in our thinking and our imagination, I refuse to believe in a God whose decisions are unreasonable and unexplainable. I don’t want to believe in a God who needs to condemn people to gain more glory and who destines people for hell.
I know that Sproul would disagree and say that God doesn’t actually do it and that He is always just, just not always merciful. But that is just one of the topics where I found Sproul to be very inconsistent in what he’s saying.
At some point, I just kept reading to see if I’d be able to give arguments to prove that what he was writing is wrong.
I was really curious about the last chapter where he tried to respond to critical questions. As for the rest of the book, I was rather disappointed. Most of the answers were just not convincing or answered by twisting the non-Calvinistic view into something nobody even believes.
Though I am aware that there are many more arguments and probably better Calvinist theologians than Sproul, I concluded that the base of Sproul’s theology is just not reasonable to me and not worth getting more into.
I am still happy that I read this book since it was the way for me to get a little more into theology and because it helped me to understand and question what I believe and why I do so.
In the end, the worst-case scenario is that all that Calvinists believe is right and that I just wasn’t determined to recognize the truth yet :)
So, looks like I’ll have to keep on searching for some kind of truth.
To end this review, here a quote I actually like:
„My hope is that we will all continue to struggle with the truth.
We must never assume that we have arrived.“
Long and personal review incoming.
Rating and reviewing this book is very challenging to me, probably because I didn’t just read through it. Instead, along with the reading came hours of conversations with Calvinist and non-Calvinist friends, more hours of listening to debates and podcasts, 100 post-its and questions which lead me to other books and so I spent some months trying to figure out what I actually believe, in my mind, in prayer, in the Word.
I started reading the book because more and more questions came up that I didn’t seem to have answers to and which Calvinists seemed to be able to explain. As I got into the first few chapters I was pretty into the ideas, I thought that this might be the actual truth and that it all made so much sense.
I liked the idea of the „Sola’s“, predestination finally seemed to be comprehensible to me and Sproul fooled me, too, into believing that Calvinists are the only ones that „take the Bible by its word“. I believed that everyone else is just ignoring the truth because it would destroy their image of a loving God who came down to save everyone.
I started getting skeptical when I noticed how many unanswered questions Sproul himself brought up. Especially the unexplainable „why's“ were something I couldn’t get over. Sproul claims many things based on his interpretation of some verses but he so often wasn’t able to explain why God would act as He does. He uses „the mystery of God“ as an explanation for that, claiming that men are just not meant to comprehend the way God decides or thinks.
While I agree that we are limited in our thinking and our imagination, I refuse to believe in a God whose decisions are unreasonable and unexplainable. I don’t want to believe in a God who needs to condemn people to gain more glory and who destines people for hell.
I know that Sproul would disagree and say that God doesn’t actually do it and that He is always just, just not always merciful. But that is just one of the topics where I found Sproul to be very inconsistent in what he’s saying.
At some point, I just kept reading to see if I’d be able to give arguments to prove that what he was writing is wrong.
I was really curious about the last chapter where he tried to respond to critical questions. As for the rest of the book, I was rather disappointed. Most of the answers were just not convincing or answered by twisting the non-Calvinistic view into something nobody even believes.
Though I am aware that there are many more arguments and probably better Calvinist theologians than Sproul, I concluded that the base of Sproul’s theology is just not reasonable to me and not worth getting more into.
I am still happy that I read this book since it was the way for me to get a little more into theology and because it helped me to understand and question what I believe and why I do so.
In the end, the worst-case scenario is that all that Calvinists believe is right and that I just wasn’t determined to recognize the truth yet :)
So, looks like I’ll have to keep on searching for some kind of truth.
To end this review, here a quote I actually like:
„My hope is that we will all continue to struggle with the truth.
We must never assume that we have arrived.“
May 4, 2018
At 25 years old, this book still delivers a clear and helpful presentation of the Reformed position on predestination.
Tackling what many critics describe as an abominable view of God, Sproul counters with a very precise and beautiful portrait mixing both the sovereignty of God and the free will of man. Noting that "the freedom of a sovereign is always greater than the freedom of his subjects", Sproul argues for the total control of God over all areas of creation.
But if God is totally in control of all things including the process of salvation, and if in fact he intervenes in the lives of the elect to make sure that they are saved, doesn't that mean that free will is destroyed? No, says Sproul. We need to first understand what it is we're describing when we say "freedom." What we cannot say, under the reign of a sovereign God, is that we are autonomous self-governing sovereigns. We have freedom, yes, but when our freedom runs up against an omnipotent God's freedom, it cannot be true that both of us can do whatever we want.
At the crux of the argument of predestination is this nature of choice and sovereignty. To answer this paradox, he takes us to the writings of Jonathan Edwards, who notes that for a choice to take place, there must first be a desire to choose. In fact, desires actually drive choices. To be sure, there can be no choices made disassociated from desires. Reformed theology teaches that predestination occurs in the workings of the regeneration of heart, giving it a new set of desires, which then drives new and freely acted upon choices - chief of these, being the desire to freely choose Christ.
Sproul summarizes:
"What I call Edwards’s Law of Choice is this: “The will always chooses according to its strongest inclination at the moment.” This means that every choice is free and every choice is determined."
"Our choices are determined by our desires. They remain our choices because they are motivated by our own desires. This is what we call self-determination, which is the essence of freedom."
So, does fallen, dead, depraved man have a natural desire in and of himself to choose Christ? Sproul arugues that Scripture answers that question with a resounding "NO." Man, in his sin, is free to choose whatever his broken sinful heart wants; he's perfectly free to do that. He just will never choose Christ. What is needed is regeneration, and the new heart with new desires.
That line of lucid thinking alone is worth the price of the book.
But Sproul's great work continues to address other sticking points in the Calvinist/Arminian debate:
Is predestination fatalism?
Doesn't the Bible say that God is not willing that any should perish?
If I can only choose what God has already decreed, then how can my choice be a real choice?
and even, What is the unpardonable sin?
All in all an exceptionally helpful and accessible book to drop into the hands of anyone questioning this doctrine.
Tackling what many critics describe as an abominable view of God, Sproul counters with a very precise and beautiful portrait mixing both the sovereignty of God and the free will of man. Noting that "the freedom of a sovereign is always greater than the freedom of his subjects", Sproul argues for the total control of God over all areas of creation.
But if God is totally in control of all things including the process of salvation, and if in fact he intervenes in the lives of the elect to make sure that they are saved, doesn't that mean that free will is destroyed? No, says Sproul. We need to first understand what it is we're describing when we say "freedom." What we cannot say, under the reign of a sovereign God, is that we are autonomous self-governing sovereigns. We have freedom, yes, but when our freedom runs up against an omnipotent God's freedom, it cannot be true that both of us can do whatever we want.
At the crux of the argument of predestination is this nature of choice and sovereignty. To answer this paradox, he takes us to the writings of Jonathan Edwards, who notes that for a choice to take place, there must first be a desire to choose. In fact, desires actually drive choices. To be sure, there can be no choices made disassociated from desires. Reformed theology teaches that predestination occurs in the workings of the regeneration of heart, giving it a new set of desires, which then drives new and freely acted upon choices - chief of these, being the desire to freely choose Christ.
Sproul summarizes:
"What I call Edwards’s Law of Choice is this: “The will always chooses according to its strongest inclination at the moment.” This means that every choice is free and every choice is determined."
"Our choices are determined by our desires. They remain our choices because they are motivated by our own desires. This is what we call self-determination, which is the essence of freedom."
So, does fallen, dead, depraved man have a natural desire in and of himself to choose Christ? Sproul arugues that Scripture answers that question with a resounding "NO." Man, in his sin, is free to choose whatever his broken sinful heart wants; he's perfectly free to do that. He just will never choose Christ. What is needed is regeneration, and the new heart with new desires.
That line of lucid thinking alone is worth the price of the book.
But Sproul's great work continues to address other sticking points in the Calvinist/Arminian debate:
Is predestination fatalism?
Doesn't the Bible say that God is not willing that any should perish?
If I can only choose what God has already decreed, then how can my choice be a real choice?
and even, What is the unpardonable sin?
All in all an exceptionally helpful and accessible book to drop into the hands of anyone questioning this doctrine.
January 30, 2024
Excellent book, concise, honest, and clear. Great for equipping anyone who has a reformed view of salvation but hasn’t quite organized or articulated it. Chapter 4 especially was good, regarding the fall, and what a federal view of Adam really means. I also appreciated the grace and humility with which he writes, as pride is a very common sin among those who hold this view (myself being a prime display in the past), and I appreciate the emphasis on the necessary wonder and amazement at the grace and wisdom of God when you start to really understand what He did, also an excellent weapon for the killing of pride. Side note but that reminds me of a quote from a pastor by the name of Parker Moore, “If you are growing in pride while studying the gospel, you are not studying the gospel” (Thursday night College Bible study, potential difference in original wording because of the fallibility of my memory). A full understanding of what is meant by the doctrines of grace, or any true understanding, will lead to humility and praise to God, and an increased heart for the lost, something I took far too long to grasp.I think this book is also a great help to those struggling with these views, maybe an acceptance of the mind but not the heart, but I would probably point those who have strongly opposed this view for a while to a different work, as many of the arguments presented are likely heard before, but also I do not know what God may use to grant knowledge to someone, as Sproul especially penetrating in how the holder of any view must understand the full implications thereof, and be able to reconcile it with Scripture. Also a very comfortable read in density and style, with Sproul’s conversational tone, something he shares with C.S. Lewis, both id say are enjoyable authors and excellent thinkers. Overall, definitely worth the 180 pages, and will likely read again sometime.
January 21, 2021
It's something about the human mind that insists on understanding things in order to believe them. We look for answers, and sometimes retreat if we don't find a satisfying one. Somewhere between logic and our search for truth lies a lingering anxiety that our current worldview will be stirred if we confront ourselves with the really tough biblical questions. And we resist. We refuse to start controversies on the basis that it doesn't really matter anyways. This book shows many reasons why it matters. It matters to know where we're coming from and where we're heading to. It matters to understand the principles of biblical logic and inherent truths found on the pages of the Bible, and no matter how misinterpreted these concepts are, they still remain true. God can't be shaken or changed because we feel like he's unjust or unloving, instead He gently leads our steps towards discovering His genuine being with all the implications involved. In our journey of recognizing and acknowledging God for who He really is we must keep an open mind and resist the temptation of being misunderstood or even confronted of reading heresies. Relying on God's wisdom and asking God to reveal Himself through the pages of the Scripture will be the first step of leaving tradition, preconceptions and misinterpretations behind. Sproul's book is an excellent support for this exciting and crucial task.
May 26, 2021
A wonderfully written book on the doctrine of election. Sproul is helpful in providing arguments against opposing views by expositing scripture. I finished this book with a greater love and wonder of the God of grace!
“Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways!
For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be glory forever. Amen.” Romans 11:33,36
“Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways!
For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be glory forever. Amen.” Romans 11:33,36
April 19, 2023
Chosen by God was a great read. It is one of those books where I think I can read it several times and get more out of it each time. I hope to get a print or ebook copy so I can highlight/write down quotes.
I loved how this book didn't try to answer every question, because some things are mysteries we don't know the answer to yet. I also liked that it included a lot of Bible verses.
All in all, Chosen by God was a good read on a complex topic.
I loved how this book didn't try to answer every question, because some things are mysteries we don't know the answer to yet. I also liked that it included a lot of Bible verses.
All in all, Chosen by God was a good read on a complex topic.
May 12, 2020
An excellent thorough-but-succinct look at the Reformed view of the doctrine of predestination. Sproul does a great job balancing heavy theological phrases and concepts with practical truth and logic. One particular strength of this book is the focus also given to breaking down and rebutting alternative views/opposing arguments, all of which are commonly heard and used. I feel better equipped to discuss this topic because of this book. Highly recommend.
July 21, 2022
Unnecessarily confusing vocabulary at times mr rc but wonderful nonetheless
June 23, 2022
Great book on the doctrine of predestination. Definitely worth a read if you are interested in the topic.
June 18, 2022
This was an excellent book! The audio is actually Sproul giving lectures that I’m assuming was transcribed into a book. The chapter on hardness of hearts was very moving. Definitely recommend.
October 6, 2012
Dr. R.C. Sproul was my pastor for about ten years, and this is my favorite of the dozens of books he has published. My company (Greatsite.com - The Bible Museum) has displayed our rare Bibles at Dr. Sproul's Ligonier Ministries Conferences in Orlando and in Phoenix, and our facsimile reproductions of rare Bibles have been featured in Dr. Sproul's Ligonier Ministries Resource Catalogue as well.
In his book, Chosen By God, Dr. Sproul puts forth the best argument for a Calvinistic interpretation of scripture that I have ever read. So many Reformed theologians, when arguing for Calvinism, put up a "straw man" for the Armenian arguments against Calvinism, making it easy on them to "prove" their points. Dr. Sproul does not take this easy way out. Indeed, he is brave enough and confident enough to put up the very best and most convincing arguments against Calvinism (supporting the Armenian position)... and then he proceeds to systematically, with compassion but without compromise, destroy those arguments using not his opinion... but using scripture in its full context.
This argument of Calvinist theology versus Armenian theology has separated Protestant denominations for centuries. The argument is, at its core, "Did God choose you, or did you choose God?" Or, put another way, "Does faith precede regeneration, or does regeneration precede faith?"
People who dismiss this argument as "splitting hairs" or as being "six of one and half a dozen of the other" are people who simply do not understand the importance of the argument. A God that allows one's eternal destiny and salvation to be left up to a combination of sinful human "free will" of choice, and an apparent randomness or luck (when and where were you born? to Christian parents? in a Western nation? etc.) is a God that is not truly sovereign... not really in control, but merely "supervising" or "watching us from a distance" as the heretical songwriter Bette Midler sang in her infamous song.
Rather, as Ephesian One (and other scripture) clearly teaches... God has chosen you, from the foundation of the world... before human time began. Your feeling of "free will" in choosing God is merely an illusion... it is God who opens your eyes, and draws you unto Him. This idea is revolting to the typical American / Western mind... a mind steeped in independence and personal freedom of choice. But this is not a government of Man we are talking about... it is a sovereign Lord of all creation... the author and sustainer of space and time and reality and human souls. His ways are not our ways... His thoughts are not our thoughts.
If you do not grasp the idea behind what is popularly called "Calvinism" (the theology of a totally sovereign God), then you fall grievously short of understanding the nature of the God of the Bible.
Countless people over the past few decades have approached this book as skeptics, refusing to accept such a view of God... and after reading this book with an open mind, they have come away humbly realizing that scripture does plainly teach this, and that the "choice" to be made is: do I believe what I want to believe is true... or do I believe what the Bible teaches me is true? One choice leads to a life of shortsighted denial and pride... the other leads to the life that the Bible calls us unto... a life of truth-seeking.
In his book, Chosen By God, Dr. Sproul puts forth the best argument for a Calvinistic interpretation of scripture that I have ever read. So many Reformed theologians, when arguing for Calvinism, put up a "straw man" for the Armenian arguments against Calvinism, making it easy on them to "prove" their points. Dr. Sproul does not take this easy way out. Indeed, he is brave enough and confident enough to put up the very best and most convincing arguments against Calvinism (supporting the Armenian position)... and then he proceeds to systematically, with compassion but without compromise, destroy those arguments using not his opinion... but using scripture in its full context.
This argument of Calvinist theology versus Armenian theology has separated Protestant denominations for centuries. The argument is, at its core, "Did God choose you, or did you choose God?" Or, put another way, "Does faith precede regeneration, or does regeneration precede faith?"
People who dismiss this argument as "splitting hairs" or as being "six of one and half a dozen of the other" are people who simply do not understand the importance of the argument. A God that allows one's eternal destiny and salvation to be left up to a combination of sinful human "free will" of choice, and an apparent randomness or luck (when and where were you born? to Christian parents? in a Western nation? etc.) is a God that is not truly sovereign... not really in control, but merely "supervising" or "watching us from a distance" as the heretical songwriter Bette Midler sang in her infamous song.
Rather, as Ephesian One (and other scripture) clearly teaches... God has chosen you, from the foundation of the world... before human time began. Your feeling of "free will" in choosing God is merely an illusion... it is God who opens your eyes, and draws you unto Him. This idea is revolting to the typical American / Western mind... a mind steeped in independence and personal freedom of choice. But this is not a government of Man we are talking about... it is a sovereign Lord of all creation... the author and sustainer of space and time and reality and human souls. His ways are not our ways... His thoughts are not our thoughts.
If you do not grasp the idea behind what is popularly called "Calvinism" (the theology of a totally sovereign God), then you fall grievously short of understanding the nature of the God of the Bible.
Countless people over the past few decades have approached this book as skeptics, refusing to accept such a view of God... and after reading this book with an open mind, they have come away humbly realizing that scripture does plainly teach this, and that the "choice" to be made is: do I believe what I want to believe is true... or do I believe what the Bible teaches me is true? One choice leads to a life of shortsighted denial and pride... the other leads to the life that the Bible calls us unto... a life of truth-seeking.
March 29, 2012
This is a great resource along side the word of God. We are chosen by God (Predestination) which is such important doctrine of the Christian life. RC Sproul is a great teacher and writer. I always get a great meal of meat and potatoes with chocolate cake and ice cream. He is very thorough with his teaching. He himself had trouble with this doctrine and explains why. Myself I always had trouble understanding this truth. Does it mean that God is not a God of love?! It is because of his mercy and justice. He would not be sovereign if it was any other way. Man also has a free will with desires and with those desires, choices are made. However, with God, we cannot have Godly desires because of our sinful nature. There is so much to this, so in closing, I would like to add that this is important because it determines what "God" we embrace. God's word says that he will give Mercy to whom he will give mercy. It is because of his mercy, we can have salvation. Salvation is all from God thru Jesus Christ.
August 12, 2011
Dr. R.C. Sproul's Chosen By God is an incredible presentation of the Reformed view of sovereign predestination. Reformed theology is built on the biblical understanding of man's depravity; a depravity that extends to the totality of his being. Those skeptical of Calvinism's understanding of predestination; those who believe it presents God as unloving need to take the time to mull over Dr. Sproul's words. An understanding of God's utter holiness, man's total depravity, and God's grace, justice, and mercy are pivotal in apprehending what God has done through Christ for His beloved Church. Chosen By God is written in Sproul's easy-to-comprehend format; he deals with skeptics and defends the Reformed understanding with ease and clarity. The difficult questions are answered in a loving, pastoral care and fallible human honesty. There's no getting around Dr. Sproul's passion for Reformed theology and, particularly, the doctrine of predestination. God is holy, holy, holy. God is just. God is love. And in the famed words of Dr. R.C. Sproul: Soli Deo gloria.
May 14, 2019
R.C. Sproul was a voice of my childhood. I grew up listening to his lectures on old cassette tapes when my dad was getting ready in the morning. I feel a little ashamed that while I've listen to him so much I have only read a couple of his books. Chosen by God is a little book that clearly and succinctly explains the biblical doctrine of predestination and defends it against the Arminian view of human free will. To everyone who is curious of this doctrine, hasn't heard about it before, or hold strong views about it in either direction should read this book and either attempt to refute it or defend it for it is clearly one of the definitive titles on this subject in our modern times. I can't recommend it enough, it is a short read, providing a general introduction, but is still oh so rich in dept that it should be reread regularly.
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