Also, refer the phrase, "working all things according to the counsel of His own immutable and most righteous will".I agree that there are places in Scripture where God does not "seem" to be immutable. This does not mean that the Bible contradicts itself. I believe the Scripture was written so that we who are finite, temporal, and growing in understanding, could relate to a God who is infinite, eternal, and unchangeable. Some scholars who speak of "anthropomorphism" (morphe = Greek for "shape," anthropos, man) here would use the word "anthropopathism," from Gk. pathos, feeling, emotion. The "relenting" Scriptures aren't contradicting or denying Ephesians 1:11, they're just communicating to us in ordinary human language.
Does "immutable will" mean that He never changes His mind? I can think of a few instances in Scriptures where His will doesn't seem to be immutable!
Here is an article that discusses God "relenting" or "repenting."
God created these creatures so that He could display His attributes. He created them to act in ways that show He always keeps His covenant promises. We see different attributes, different aspects of His character, over time. But God is eternal.
In each of the occasions when God is said to change His mind, God knew in advance that the character would or would not repent. After all God created the character. I find John M. Frame's The Doctrine of God
very helpful in this respect. See chapter 22 on God's Knowledge. Prof. Frame is not like older theology books. He's very personable and readable. Not dry and academic. Down to earth, not esoteric. The article linked above also has some recommended resources.I'm 100% convinced that by the time we go through the entire confession and both catechisms, that most of these questions will be answered. Even if not "comprehended" -- even if we can't get our arms completely around the answer. I say that so that some people won't give up, but for the rest of us, we can discuss this in the comments.
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment