Free Will, Love, and Divine Providence

Opening QuestionIf you believe in a God who knows the future, is that comforting to you? Why or why not? IntroductionThe lesson this week introduces the idea of God’s foreknowledge as the basis for prophetic messages. Christian doctrine often includes as part of theology proper (the study of “God,”) a belief in God’s omniscience. If God knows everything, then He knows the future as well. God’s knowledge of the future is fairly standard orthodox belief in most Christian denominations. However, there are some scholars who believe the future is unknowable, and thus God cannot know it. Also, questions of free ...

Theme: “Love Is the Fulfillment of the Law” Leading Question: Is the word “law” friendly or frightful? Almost no one uses the word “law” in a friendly way. When someone says, “It’s the law!” It usually a hard-liner. Let’s look at examples of the different ways we use law: Mr. Thompson, you have broken the law. You have fulfilled the requirements for your BA degree. You broke your arm because you fell, breaking the law of gravity. Question: Assign a “friendliness” number to each of those uses. Use this scale: NegativeNeutralPositive-5-4-3-2-10+1+2+3+4+5 Briefly describe why you gave the number you did. Another way of looking at law is to reflect ...

Relevant Verses: atthew 7, 22, 23; 1 John 4; Micah 6; Psalm 82; Luke 10 Theme: “Love and Justice: The Two Greatest Commandments” Leading Question: Is it possible to identify the two greatest sins as well as the two greatest commandments? If we make the two greatest sins parallel with the two greatest commandments, then we can say that the greatest sins would be not loving God and not loving human beings. And Jesus seems to be suggesting a way of bringing the two together: the best way to love God is to love human beings. Two of his statements in the ...

Relevant Verses: Isaiah 5; John 3, 1 John 3; Matthew 21; 1 Corinthians 4 Theme: “What More Could I Have Done?” Leading Question: Does God always do everything he can to save his people? Our lesson for this week is entitled, “What more could I have done?” echoing the question Isaiah asks in the parable of the vineyard: Isaiah 5:3-4: “And now, inhabitants of Jerusalem and people of Judah, judge between me and my vineyard. 4 What more was there to do for my vineyard that I have not done in it? When I expected it to yield grapes, why did it yield ...

Relevant Verses: 1 Kings 18; Deut 32; 1 Cor 10; Isa 44; Rev 12; Job 1,2 Theme: “Rules of Engagement” Leading Question: Does the Bible make clear that in the cosmic conflict God sets limitations on himself and on humans? We will return to the question of “limits.” But let us begin where the official study guide begins, at the confrontation on Mt. Carmel. Here is the narrative as found in 1 Kings 18:19-40: 1 Kings 18:19-40: 20 So Ahab sent to all the Israelites and assembled the prophets at Mount Carmel. 21 Elijah then came near to all the people and said, ...

Relevant Verses: Gen 1-3; Isa 14; Ezek 28; Matt 4, 13; Eph 6; Rev 12 Theme: “The Cosmic Conflict” Leading Question: What passages in the Bible teach most clearly that there is a cosmic conflict? Genesis 1-3: Tree and the SerpentIsaiah 14: Fall of Lucifer (King of Babylon)Ezekiel 28: Covering Cherub (King of Tyre)Matthew 4:1-11: Wilderness TemptationMatthew 13:24-27: An Enemy at workEphesians 6:12: We Wrestle Not against Flesh and BloodRevelation 12:7-9: War in Heaven Question: If you were uninitiated, which of these passages would be most helpful? Here is each passage, noting the questions, strengths and weaknesses of each passage: Genesis 1-3: The tree ...

Relevant Verses: Genesis 50; 1 Corinthians 13; Psalm 81; Deuteronomy 6; John 16 Theme: “Free Will, Love, and Divine Providence” Leading Question: How does one tell if a particular event is “providential,” “natural,” or “demonic”? Exploring the providential: A biblical story that reeks of providence is the story of Joseph. At the conclusion of the story, after the death of Jacob, Joseph’s brothers feared that he would be seeking revenge on him. Joseph’s comment to his brothers is remarkable for its forgiving spirit: Genesis 50:15-21: 15 Realizing that their father was dead, Joseph’s brothers said, “What if Joseph still bears a grudge against ...

Relevant Verses: 2 Sam 6; 2 Kings 2; Exod 32; Gen 18; Ps 10, 22, 73; Matt 27; Mark 15; Hab 1, Mal 4, Job 30, 38; Jer 12, 13 Theme: “The Problem of Evil” Leading Question: Is there a happy solution to the problem of evil? One of the most enduring issues in our world is the problem of evil. If there is no over-all solution, there are at least four partial solutions, several of which are hinted at in the official study guide. 1. Partial Solution #1: Liberation from the stories of Uzzah and the two she-bears that mauled the 42 ...

Relevant Verses: Malachi 3, Exodus 23, Genesis 18, Numbers 35, Joshua 7 Theme: “God’s Love of Justice” Leading Question: Is the understanding of “justice” the same among all human beings? When it comes to matters of diversity, an Ellen White quotation is a good place to start: Every association of life calls for the exercise of self-control, forbearance, and sympathy. We differ so widely in disposition, habits, education, that our ways of looking at things vary. We judge differently. Our understanding of truth, our ideas in regard to the conduct of life, are not in all respects the same. There are no two ...

Relevant Verses: Psalm 78, Nehemiah 9, Amos 7, Jonah, Mark 3, 10 Theme: “The Wrath of Divine Love” Leading Question: “The Wrath of Divine Love” sounds so negative. Can’t we just skip it? We will return to address the “leading question” after an important detour, a brief discussion of Satan in the Old Testament and the inclusion of a chapter from Alden Thompson’s book, Who’s Afraid of the Old Testament God? The Brief Explanation A remarkable feature of the Old Testament is the almost total absence of any mention of Satan. In the entire Old Testament, Satan as a supernatural being opposed to God, ...