GRACE & FREE WILL
“And I will harden Pharaoh’s heart, and he will pursue them.
But I will gain glory for myself through Pharaoh and all his army,
and the Egyptians will know that I am the Lord.”
Exodus 14, 4
.
Double predestination is a theological doctrine held by traditional “hyper” Calvinists, which basically means God has willed to create some people to be saved and others to be lost. In other words, human beings cannot freely choose whether they want to be reconciled to God and be saved or to reject God and risk losing their salvation. Their eternal destiny is a predetermined fate that is beyond their control: spiritual as opposed to biological determinism. This particular Protestant teaching rejects the idea that our salvation partly depends on human desire and effort. It’s grounded on the conviction that no one deserves God’s mercy because of their sins and cannot merit their salvation by any natural means. This part is true and acknowledged by Catholics, but Reformed Protestants of the classical tradition even deny the idea of supernatural merit through the efficacy of actual and cooperative grace.
These super-extreme Calvinists believe that, because of our common sinful nature and original fall from grace, God can act with partiality. God can choose the people He wills to be merciful to and those whose hearts He will deliberately harden so they cannot be saved. Hence, human free will and supernatural merit within the system of cooperative grace hold no place in this theological doctrine. Human beings are either formed of clay for either a special purpose (the glory of God) or common use (for the glory of God). Salvation is no longer a merited gift or reward but an undeserved favor (irresistible grace) only so that God can demonstrate His omnipotence and mercy and consequently flaunt His divine will on a whim. There is justice insofar as Christ’s alien righteousness is imputed to the believer only because of their faith in His redeeming merits.
To support their belief system, hyper-Calvinists usually cite Exodus 14 and Romans 9, which we will examine later since Paul uses Pharaoh as an example for all the wicked. For now, let’s look at Exodus and see whether it’s true that God has intentionally created some people for eternal destruction, who, because of their sinfulness, can’t justly blame God for His choice since God could have withheld His mercy from everyone if He so chose – all having fallen short of the glory of God (Rom 3:23). Is the clay in no position to argue with the potter? The answer is Yes but in a Catholic sense. Can God justly show or withhold His mercy from whoever He chooses in His sovereignty? Again, the answer is Yes, but in a Catholic sense.
.
But when Pharaoh saw that there was relief,
he hardened his heart and did not heed them,
as the Lord had said.
Exodus 8:15
But Pharaoh hardened his heart at this time also;
neither would he let the people go.
Exodus 8:32
And when Pharaoh saw that the rain, the hail, and the thunder had ceased,
he sinned yet more; and he hardened his heart, he and his servants.
Exodus 9:34
Our non-Catholic friends fail to see what is actually meant by the idea of God hardening one’s heart. They single out and isolate Exodus 14 to support their preconceived notions that have been formed from their interpretation of other Scriptural passages in the New Testament. Chapter 14, Verse 4 doesn’t mean that God somehow predetermined or molded Pharaoh from wanting to release the Israelites from slavery. Rather, it means God permitted Pharaoh to remain unyielding to His command freely. Pharaoh, unfortunately, was obstinate in heart. He refused to be persuaded even after Egypt had been hit by several devastating plagues. In fact, because of his pride, he grew even more intransigent after each plague was sent by God. Pharaoh defied God and became even more defiant. God had hardened his heart, but only because of the plagues, which resulted in its increased hardening.
Thus, Pharaoh grew even more defiant and unheeding with each plague because of his pride. They boosted his ego, which influenced his decision to remain intransigent. In this way, God hardened his heart by being physically responsible for sending the plagues. On the other hand, Pharaoh was morally responsible for them by his persistent disobedience to the divine command: “Let my people go!” God wouldn’t have commanded Pharaoh if he had no free will and choice in the matter. I’m afraid God doesn’t mold us so that we should act against His will for the sake of His pleasure of being merciful to a selected few other than ourselves and demonstrating how merciful He can be when He wants to be by acting arbitrarily apart from our desires rendering them moot.
On the contrary, God reveals His true intentions and what he truly desires for everyone who is made of the same original clay through the prophet: ‘Have I any pleasure at all that the wicked should die? says the Lord GOD: and not that he should turn from his ways, and live?’ (Ezek 18:23; cf. 1 Tim 2:3-4; 1 Jn 2:1-3; 2 Pet 3:9). The truth is God permitted Pharaoh to become more obstinate of his own accord and then purposefully used his pride and ego to free the Israelites from slavery in such an awesome way, as to display His glory and might to the Egyptians.
14 What shall we say then? Is there injustice on God’s part? By no means! 15 For he says
to Moses, “I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on
whom I have compassion.” 16 So it depends not upon man’s will or exertion, but upon
God’s mercy. 17 For the scripture says to Pharaoh, “I have raised you up for the very
purpose of showing my power in you, so that my name may be proclaimed in all the
earth.” 18 So then he has mercy upon whomever he wills, and he hardens the heart of
whomever he wills. 19 You will say to me then, “Why does he still find fault? For who can
resist his will?” 20 But who are you, a man, to answer back to God? Will what is molded
say to its molder, “Why have you made me thus?” 21 Has the potter no right over the
clay, to make out of the same lump one vessel for beauty and another for menial use? 22
What if God, desiring to show his wrath and to make known his power, has endured
with much patience the vessels of wrath made for destruction, 23 in order to make known
the riches of his glory for the vessels of mercy, which he has prepared beforehand for glory,
Romans 9
The main idea in Romans 9 is that those who refuse to see and hear will not receive understanding and mercy. Therefore, God shows mercy to whom he chooses and hardens whom he chooses (cf. John 9:41). In verses 14-16, Paul is simply stating that God is not unjust in not granting forgiveness to those who do not have a natural right to it, as all of us deserve punishment for our sins. God is not obligated to show mercy in His justice. If God does show mercy to some people, it is because of His goodness and generosity despite their sins. On the other hand, if God chooses not to show mercy by withholding His grace from certain people (like Pharaoh or the Pharisees) due to their hardened hearts, they are punished for their sins.
God’s mercy is extended to those who are open to His grace and willing to receive His word. However, divine justice is given to the wicked and those who reject His grace based on their moral choices and stubbornness. God is not obligated to show compassion to those who refuse it. We cannot expect God to be merciful to us while we continue in sin, nor can we blame Him for our sinful actions and the resulting consequences.
No command of God is impossible for us to obey because we have all received sufficient grace in our fallen condition. God’s efficacious grace assists us in being righteous once we have directed our will to His goodness. If we draw near to God, He will draw near to us and shower us with His grace, not by any natural merit of ours because of our sinful state, but through the sacrificial work of Jesus who has merited grace for us (Jas 4:8; Heb 10:2, etc.). There are at least thirty-five Bible verses about drawing near (not being drawn) by God, which presuppose we have free will and can either accept or reject God’s merciful gift of salvation.
In verse 19, Paul addresses the objection that God cannot accuse unbelievers of sin if God controls faith through divine election. However, Paul explains that God is not as arbitrary as it might seem initially. In verse 22, he suggests that God patiently endures people like Pharaoh, who stubbornly resist His will. Paul reiterates that without any injustice, God may show mercy to some and not others and give special graces and favors to His chosen ones who cooperate with the grace of humility. All humanity is susceptible to damnation due to the state of original sin, and no one can claim Divine Mercy based on natural merit outside of divine grace.
God removes certain individuals from sinful behavior to bestow His grace and favor. This is a display of His justice and his disapproval of sin. Verse 23 contains this underlying meaning. God is glorified by guiding us towards repentance through His kindness and mercy. We should not ignore this if we want to be saved according to the divine plan (Romans 2:4). The “vessels of mercy” refer to those who, by the grace of God, acknowledge their sins and repent with a strong desire for improvement with the help of divine grace.
By leaving others as “vessels of wrath” that are lost in their sins, Paul simply means that God has endured patiently as much as He could, thereby abandoning them in their obstinate sinfulness and withholding His grace and favor from them through their own intransigence and willfulness. God knows the hearts of everyone, and so He knows who to touch and how to touch their hearts so that they come to accept His will for them. Those who are fettered by pride and selfishness are less likely to be drawn by divine persuasion. God coerces no one, so He might decide to leave some people alone and in their sins while patiently waiting for them to change their hearts. He has already granted them the sufficient grace they need. Only those who are humbly willing to align their wills with God benefit from His mercy by answering the call and cooperating with his helping grace. These are the ones who make every feeble effort to draw near to God with the help of His grace that He will draw near to them. We can do nothing without God despite our desire to be reconciled to Him, so we must ask for the graces we need and will receive just by asking (Mt 7:7).
Hence, the allegory of the Potter and the Clay is by no means intended to show that human beings are destitute of free will and liberty, so they are completely passive in God’s plan of redemption, unable to decide whether they want to be saved. It is used only to stress that we are not to question God why He confers his graces and favors on some and not on others since we are no better than each other in our sinfulness. If there is any difference among us, some of us are humbler and less proud by the grace of God and thereby most likely to acknowledge our sins and be saved.
It is owing to the divine goodness and mercy that God wills to create vessels of honor by His grace and gifts of the Holy Spirit. And it is just that others, because they refused to repent and convert, should be given up as vessels of wrath undeserving of God’s mercy. Meanwhile, Paul’s point is that God sovereignly decides whatever purpose He has for His elect when bestowing His gifts of the Holy Spirit on them. God has a unique plan for each of those who choose to love Him and obey Him, just as He has a plan for those who choose to reject Him. It’s God and not any of us who takes the initiative. But our collaboration is called for if we truly want to be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth as God desires everyone to be (1 Tim 2:1-4).
.
Early Sacred Tradition
“And pray ye without ceasing in behalf of other men; for there is hope of
the repentance, that they may attain to God. For ‘cannot he that falls arise
again, and he may attain to God.’”
St. Ignatius of Antioch, To the Ephesians, 10
( A.D. 110)
“And this is your condition, because of the blindness of your soul, and the
hardness of your heart. But, if you will, you may be healed. Entrust yourself to
the Physician [God], and He will couch the eyes of your soul and of your heart.”
St. Theophilus, Bishop of Antioch, To Autolycus 7.
(inter A.D. 168-181)
“Now, in the beginning, the spirit was a constant companion of the soul, but the
spirit forsook it because it was unwilling to follow. Yet, retaining as it were a
spark of its power, though unable because of the separation to discern the
perfect while seeking God, it fashioned to itself in its wandering many gods,
following the sophistries of the demons. But the Spirit of God is not with all,
but, taking up its abode with those who live justly, and intimately combining
with the soul, by prophecies it announced hidden things to other souls.”
St. Tatian the Syrian, To the Greeks, 13
(A.D. 175)
“That eternal fire has been prepared for him as he apostatized from God of his
own free will, and likewise for all who unrepentant continue in the apostasy,
he now blasphemes, using such men, the Lord who brings judgment [upon
him] as being already condemned, and imputes the guilt of his apostasy to his
Maker, not to his own voluntary disposition.”
St. Justin Martyr, a fragment in Irenaeus’ Against Heresies, 5:26:1
(A.D. 189)
“All indeed depends on God, but not so that our free-will is hindered. ‘If then it
depend on God,’ (one says), ‘why does He blame us?’ On this account I said, ‘so
that our free-will is no hindered.’ It depends then on us, and on Him For we must
first choose the good; and then He leads us to His own. He does not anticipate our
choice, lest our free-will should be outraged. But when we have chosen, then
great is the assistance he brings to us…For it is ours to choose and to wish; but
God’s to complete and to bring to an end. Since therefore the greater part is of
Him, he says all is of Him, speaking according to the custom of men. For so we
ourselves also do. I mean for instance: we see a house well built, and we say the
whole is the Architect’s [doing], and yet certainly it is not all his, but the
workmen’s also, and the owner’s, who supplies the materials, and many others’,
but nevertheless since he contributed the greatest share, we call the whole his.
So then [it is] in this case also.”
St. John Chrysostom, Homily on Hebrews, 12:3
(A.D. 403)
“‘No man can come to me, except the Father who hath sent me draw him’! For He
does not say, ‘except He lead him,’ so that we can thus in any way understand
that his will precedes. For who is ‘drawn,’ if he was already willing? And yet no
man comes unless he is willing. Therefore he is drawn in wondrous ways to will,
by Him who knows how to work within the very hearts of men. Not that men who
are unwilling should believe, which cannot be, but that they should be made
willing from being unwilling.”
St. Augustine, Against Two Letters of the Pelagians, I:19
(A.D. 420)
Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find;
knock and the door will be opened to you.
Matthew 7, 7
.
Pax vobiscum
All About Catholicism 