Ramblin' man!

God's will has always been a rather perplexing things to me. I remember as a kid growing up that I would hear little phrases like "God has a plan for everyone and everything" or "everything happens for a reason". I never quite latched onto this vein of thinking but needless to say, despite the vast amount of people who adhere to this type of thinking (or lack thereof) have seemingly polluted my though process, and not just me but so many others as well, to the point that I have to fight that predisposed notion when facing life's twist and turns.

I have been doing quite a bit of studying of God's sovereignty lately, ultimately anytime I read scripture I feel like I am looking at His sovereignty but just because I am looking at it does not mean I understand it. For about a year now I have been pretty vocal about not aligning myself with the common Calvinistic view of God. In fact, I believe this view of God has tarnished the very attributes of God as so many view them. Indeed, it would be silly to assume that because I do not agree with the 5 points of Calvinism that I am, by default, an Arminian.  There are more sides to this whole debate than just the above listed. Two of the more prominent views are Molinism, and Open Theism (this would be my current take of things). I will not explain all of these points of view here but you are more than welcome to check them out online for a better understanding.

Open Theism states that the future is open, rather than predetermined. They use biblical models such as the conflict-creation warfare model that presupposes Genesis 1:2 due to the history of angelic and human free agents, and the "world in between", also known as spiritual warfare. Open Theist believe that the future, apart from the future establishment of the eschatological community of God, is rather open. Stated different, God will establish His kingdom but the means by which he does that are not definitive in light of human and angelic free will. This does not deny God's will or sovereignty like so many assume, rather (in my opinion) it enhances it.

Last night as I was attempting to fall asleep I was pondering on all of this and really asking myself "Can I really throw all of my chips into one stack?" I know how I feel about believing God to be the God that the Calvin's insist in the God of the Bible, thought I disagree on many accounts. Needless to say, I know how I feel about adhering to Open Theism in light of scripture AND personal experiences, yet I cannot help but think that I have much further to go with this whole thing because the open view of the future makes me feel far to dependent on myself. So, while I believe that Open Theism is a step in the right direction, and it gives the best exegesis of spiritual warfare (including angels, or gods, the Watcher legend, inter-testimental and apocalyptic writings, Mesopotamian & Babylonian mythology) I still need some time to fine tune everything. I know many of my fellow nerds have been eagerly awaiting for me to reveal my stance on this issue and so I seek to affirm where I am at in all of this, but I also want people to know that I am not settled quite yet. Stay tuned as I wrestle through all of this is an attempt to deny any pride and embrace whatever intellectualism I may possess in order know God more fully! Amen.

"Not everything happens for a divine purpose, rather everything happens with a divine purpose"