Here is a snippet of an email response I received from my pastor within the past two weeks - one that made me wrestle anew with whether God is the one who draws people to Himself. In my mind, the question boils down to, 'do we as individuals, play any role in coming to faith in the God of the Universe?' Anyway:
"Why is it that some do not believe today, even in the face of tremendous evidence that Christ has been raised? Jesus said that no one can come to him unless the Father draws them (John 6:44). You see while the door is narrow and thrown wide open to all who would believe, believing continues to be a matter of God's sovereign work in the world. [...] We must be drawn by the Father to the narrow door of Jesus. The children of God are not born of human decision, but born of God (John 1:13). This is truly good news, because it means that God is saving us, and we are in no way saving ourselves (John 5:21, NASB)."
I'm not quoting my pastor as a means of taking him down; by no means, I have the utmost respect and admiration for my pastor. I do disagree on some level, but I want to make sure I faithfully represent the opposing viewpoint and he articulates it well. Here are the verses he referenced:
John 6:44 reads, "No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him; and I will raise him up on the last day."
John 1:12-13 reads,
"But as many received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name, who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of a man, but of God."
John 5:21 reads, "For just as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, so the Son also gives life to whom He wishes."
I will make an argument that all three of these verses are saying the same thing in just a little, but first I want to suggest a couple more verses for consideration. My argument is that while God does indeed draw people to Himself and to faith in Jesus, that work is not specific...it is general revelation to all. The responsibility we bear, is our response to that revelation.
2 Peter 3:9 reads, "The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not willing for any to perish, but for all to come to repentance."
Titus 2:11-13 reads, "For the grace of God has appeared that offers salvation to all people. It teaches us to say no to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age, which we wait for the blessed hope..."
Romans 1:24 reads, "Therefore God have them over in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, so that their bodies would be dishonored among them."
By nature, God cannot contradict Himself. If there is seeming contradiction between two verses in the Bible, then we must wrestle and seek understanding. In particular, of the six verses referenced above, John 6:44, 2 Peter 3:9, and Titus 2:11 appear to be the ones that contradict each other. On the one hand, Jesus says that the Father must draw anyone that comes to Him. On the other hand, Peter is very clearly stating that the divine will of God is that no one perish. In order for the verse in 2 Peter to be true, it must also be true that God draws ALL mankind to faith. If that is true, then John 6:44 cannot mean that God only draws some and not others...but if it isn't saying that, what is it saying? To reiterate, my point here is that God does draw men, but that the drawing isn't exclusive - it's general/universal revelation, available to all. In this sense, human decision is involved in faith, and that decision is whether to stand in defiance or submit and 'bend the knee'. Faith, after all, is synonymous with allegiance.
In my view, all three verses above, from the Gospel of John, are saying the same thing - that is, that God has given all authority for judgement to the Son (Jesus). God draws all Men to faith, simply by who He is and what He has done. Anyone with eyes and a decent level of understanding can see how utterly complex the world around us is - my dad used to say to me, "look at the back of your hand and you will see all of the evidence you need that God exists." I'm reminded of an exchange in Luke 40:
"When he [Jesus] came near the place where the road goes down the Mount of Olives, the whole crowd of disciples began to joyfully praise God in loud voices for all the miracles they had seen: "Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord!" "Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!" Some of the Pharisees in the crowd said to Jesus, "Teacher, rebuke your disciples!" "I tell you," he replied, "if they keep quiet, the stones will cry out." (Luke 40:37-40)
Jesus is obviously employing a metaphor here, but the metaphor used reveals something true - that Creation itself speaks to the glory of God - that Creation is [among other things] God's general revelation to man. In this case, the Earth itself recognizes the significance of Jesus' triumphal entry into Jerusalem.
Anyway, back to these verses in question - they are all pointing to something future - "I will raise him up on the last day", the metaphor of being 'born' in John 1:12 (John 3 and Jesus' exchange with Nicodemus comes to mind), which I would argue is the second birth into Eternal Life with a new body , and then in the John 5:21 passage, an image of Jesus, as Judge, granting eternal life to those that God has created (brought to life). These are all eschatological in nature, pointing to the reality of Jesus' authority on the Day of the Lord.
I believe it is God's will that ALL would come to know Him and to put their faith in His son. This seems very much in keeping with the overall theme of Scripture and also seems in line with God's character. Are some created, as Judas was, for ignoble purposes? It would be difficult to say 'no'. Are people beyond the hardening of their hearts? Certainly not, and there are numerous instances in Scripture of God hardening people's hearts against Him and His ways. Does that, however, negate the possibility that God's will really is for the salvation of all souls? I don't think so. Even those in the Bible, who had their hearts hardened by God, saw everything around them, and in many cases recognized who God was. In particular, I think of Pharaoh, who saw miracle after miracle and who, on more than one occasion, relents in light of what he has seen and agrees to let the Israelites go. In that instance, we read that God hardened Pharaoh's heart, but there are plenty of other instances in the Bible where God simply hands people over to their own desires. That's why I included the verse from Romans 1.
If God is solely responsible for someone coming to Faith in him, then He is also solely responsible if someone rejects him, since the general revelation available to all mankind, is that He exists. In my mind, to believe that mankind bears no responsibility, no free will in the equation, is to reduce mankind to a binary robot, or puppet. Believing that we have an actual choice doesn't even necessarily mean that we have somehow contributed to our own salvation - Jesus is the judge, not us. He is the one who decides. It is through his Grace and Mercy towards us that we are saved. To have faith is a necessary prerequisite to salvation, but does not obligate God to anything. That seems to be Paul's point in Romans 9:
"What, then, shall we say? That God is unjust? Absolutely not! It is to Moses, after all, that he says, "I will show mercy to whom I choose to show mercy and compassion to whom I choose to show compassion." So then, it depends not on the person who resolves, not on the person who is running, but on God, who choose to show mercy. For the Scripture says to Pharaoh, "This is the reason I chose to appoint you king: To display my power through my dealings with you, and to make my name known throughout the earth." So then, to whomever he wishes God shows mercy, and whomever he wishes he makes dull and stubborn. "But if this is so," you will say to me, "why does God still charge people with fault? His will, after all, who can resist?"" (Romans 9:14-19, BHT)
On a surface reading, this passage seems to agree with the sentiment that God is responsible for drawing people to himself, but when you look closely, that is not what it is saying. Paul is saying that when it comes to mercy, God does what He wills. What God does is Holy - He always does what is right - His judgements are righteous. But that doesn't take us off the hook. I found someone who put this better than I can, a statement with which I whole-heartedly agree:
"When it comes to mercy, no one tell God what to do. God alone is the decision-maker. It is His desire that determines the result. What He decides about mercy is what will be done. Paul's point is not that we can't resist God. Anyone who sins resists God. Paul's point is that our resistance will not affect God's decision. God alone determines the purposes and plans of mercy, regardless of human efforts to subvert it. Don't think that this verse means you have no responsibility for your destiny. Jesus died for all. His sacrifice was sufficient to cover everyone. That does not mean that all will come to Him. In like manner, Paul argues that God's decision to show mercy is not affected by human resistance even through human resistance may result in some who do not appropriate God's mercy. It is not God's fault that we don't come to Him. This verse is not about "puppet" control. It is about God's determination. You and I don't have a single bit of influence on God's decisions about who receives mercy. But we are certainly held accountable for the application of that mercy to our own lives." (Skip Moen)
I'm trying to figure out how to land this plane. Basically, my conclusion is, yes, God does draw men to himself, but in most instances and with almost no exceptions, His magnetism is not exclusive, but rather through General Revelation available to all mankind; through creation itself, primarily, but also through human relationships. Having said that, we are by no means compelled to submission. We can actively resist God and we can choose to go our own way. Eventually, God will give us up to our own desires and allow us to do our own thing, in direct resistance to Him. Similarly, there will be those who appear to others as full of faith, but whose faith is really just a nice veneer covering over an otherwise wicked life (the recent painful example of Ravi Zacharias comes to mind). On that Day, when Jesus returns and judges each individual, He will be perfectly justified in pronouncing salvation or damnation. How we respond to this knowledge is what matters. Do we stand in defiance, thinking that God owes us something for our efforts? Or do we fall on our face before him, pleading for his mercy, knowing full well that we deserve death? I'll conclude with the story from Scripture that speaks directly to this:
"Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a despised tax collector. The Pharisee, after standing up, about himself prayed on and on like this: 'O God, I give thanks to you that I'm not like other people - swindlers, dishonest people, adulterers, and especially this tax collector. I do even more than the Torah requires, fasting two days a week and even tithing every little thing I buy.' The tax collector, however, standing at a distance, wouldn't even look up to heaven, but kept striking his chest in repentance and sorrow, saying, 'O God, please remove the guilt of my sins and turn your wrath away from me on account of this sacrifice! Be merciful to me, the worst of all sinners!' I tell you this: This man went home acquitted and pronounced true to the Torah, not that other fellow. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted." (Luke 18:9-14, BHT)
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