Randy Alcorn's Blog, page 8

Knowing Our Ultimate Destination Is the New Earth Changes Everything

Two years ago, I did an interview with Davey Blackburn, who hosts the Nothing Is Wasted Podcast. Both of us have wives who died: Davey’s wife Kristi was murdered, and Nanci had passed away from cancer. (Read more about his story.) We talked about the sovereignty and love of God, as well as the New Earth, and the need to lose our faith if our faith is in the wrong God, a nonexistent God.

I think because the conversation was between two people who have experienced suffering and the death of a spouse, I felt like God's Spirit was present in an unusual way during the interview. I acknowledge that Davey’s circumstances were different than mine, and in ways, surely his suffering was greater; and of course, I am old and Davey is young. Still, we are two brothers seeking to trust Christ with our suffering and “looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, where righteousness dwells” (2 Peter 3:13).

You can watch the whole interview here.

And here is a 15-minute clip where we discuss what it will be like to live on the New Earth—and how looking forward to resurrected life shapes how we view this present life under the curse:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cZJPiRhL3WU?si=KudCyYFLbzPNIsl5

What Is the Balance between Financial Responsibility and the Scriptural Imperative to Give Sacrificially?

A reader wrote our ministry, “For several years my husband and I have enjoyed giving most of our discretionary income to our church and various missionaries. But lately we have been counseled that we need to be more ‘responsible’ about preparing for our future, especially since retirement is only a few years away. How do we deal with the guilt we would feel about decreasing our giving, since we still desire to meet the needs we see all around us?”

There are two sides to the issue of savings. Scripture tells us that the wise man anticipates future needs, while the foolish man spends and consumes all his resources with no thought for the future. “In the house of the wise are stores of choice food and oil, but a foolish man devours all he has” (Proverbs 21:20). Even ants store up provisions for the coming winter (Proverbs 6:6-8).

It’s a shortsighted person who fails to store up provisions (money, food, or materials) for upcoming times of predictable need. If you are planning to retire and have no other means of income, then it would be wise to make some plans for how and where you will live after retirement.

On the other hand, Jesus commended the poor widow of Mark 12:41-44 because she did something most of us would consider foolish. She gave her last two pennies to God, having no idea where tomorrow’s provision would come from, except that it would come from her Lord. In 2 Corinthians 8:3-15, the Macedonian Christians gave “beyond their means” to the point of leaving themselves impoverished. Paul commends them for it.

So when it comes to the “retirement dream,” we must ask ourselves, Whose dream is it? Is it God’s dream or the American dream? Consider one man’s plans for retirement: “I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. And I’ll say to myself, ‘You have plenty of good things laid up for many years. Take life easy, eat, drink and be merry’” (Luke 12:18-19).

We aren’t told that this man was dishonest or irreligious. His plans make sense by our standards. But in the verses that follow God calls this man a fool. He tells him his life is over and asks, “Who will get what you have prepared for yourself?” Jesus promises, “This is how it will be with anyone who stores up things for himself but is not rich toward God” (Luke 12:21).

The distinction between financial responsibility and financial foolishness is this: saving becomes hoarding when it is exercising our own sovereignty and financial independence so that God doesn’t have to come through for us.

James condemned the spirit of selfish stockpiling and indifference to a suffering world that had spread into the early church (James 5:1-5). And in Exodus 16 there is a graphic lesson against hoarding. We must beware of any savings or retirement or insurance plan that becomes a God-substitute.

This reader mentioned they have “enjoyed giving” to the Lord. The joy of giving is at the heart of a walk with God, so we shouldn’t stop giving sacrificially. Saving can be wise, but it is never a substitute for giving. If ever we don’t feel we can save and give, by all means we should give. Some people in Scripture are rebuked for saving too much, but no one is ever rebuked for giving too much.

The person who wrote us was also counseled to be more responsible. In the truest sense, generous giving is not just compassionate, it is also responsible. By giving we prepare for our eternal future, because we lay up for ourselves treasures in Heaven (Matthew 6:19-24). Laying up treasures on earth is ultimately irresponsible. Why? Because it’s investing in something worthless, that will be annihilated in the coming holocaust of things (2 Peter 3:10-11).

Now, if they were counseled to be more thrifty, to reduce their lifestyle expenses in order to provide savings for retirement, this is probably wise. I believe that having less because we give is different than having less because we spend.

I know a missionary family who took their retirement savings and poured everything back into the mission. I suggest that God looks very differently at these people than at the Christian who spends his money on short-term indulgences with no thought of saving for upcoming needs or providing for his family’s future. To those who seek first His kingdom, and to those who sacrificially give of their assets to His kingdom, His promise is one of material provision (Matthew 6:32-33; Philippians 4:19).

I suggest looking for ways to save without reducing your giving. To that end, there are some practical questions to ask ourselves: Can we presently reduce some expenses that would allow us to continue to give generously and save money? Are there other means to supplement our income during retirement? Can we liquidate certain assets? Can we sell our home and buy or rent a smaller one? Or buy a comparable home in another area where it is cheaper to live? Is it necessary for us to maintain our present standard of living, or can we cut costs in our retirement?

The old saying goes, “You can’t take it with you.” But when Jesus spoke of laying up treasures in Heaven, He added a corollary: “You can’t take it with you, but you can send it on ahead.”

Instead of spending our lives backing into eternity and clinging to our earthly treasures, we can turn around, walk forward and lay up our treasures in our eternal home. Then, instead of moving away from our treasures, we’ll spend our lives moving toward them.

God Makes Much of Little Things

God isn’t just in life’s monumental things. He’s present in the little things: rain drops, the artistry of spider webs, and the sound of an acoustic guitar. A child’s laugh, surfing songs, a swing set, sprinklers, and the smell of split cedar. Maple syrup, fresh green beans, buttermilk biscuits, and homemade strawberry jam. Ripe oranges straight off the tree. Pecan pie a la mode, chocolate chip cookies hot out of the oven and a tall glass of cold milk (in my case, this would require a lot more insulin). A good recliner, the smell of leather upholstery, and a dog’s wagging tail.

If we disregard these and thousands of other gifts, we don’t just fail to notice them, we fail to notice God. God’s goodness is always evident if we look in the right place. “[H]e is actually not far from each one of us, for in him we live and move and have our being” (Acts 17:27-28).

Alexander Maclaren advised, “Seek to cultivate a buoyant, joyous sense of the crowded kindnesses of God in your daily life.”

May we remember that the ordinary, daily, and mundane acts of faithfulness and kindness that no one else knows are well-known by God. He is watching. He is keeping track. In Heaven, He’ll reward us for our acts of faithfulness to Him, right down to every cup of cold water we’ve given to the needy in His name (Mark 9:41). The ordinary, small things matter in light of eternity.  

There is comfort in 1 Corinthians 4:5, God “will bring to light the things now hidden in darkness and will disclose the purposes of the heart. Then each one will receive his commendation from God.” God will apparently find something, no matter how small, to reward “each one” for.

In the following episode from her daily radio program, Joni Eareckson Tada (who Nanci and I shared some unforgettable times with) says, “God makes much of little things.... He probably wants more encouraging notes sent than books written, more sandwiches shared than sermons preached, more Band-Aids applied than buildings built.”

Joni reminds us it’s the little things that mean a lot when God is in them:

https://player.simplecast.com/3d3d7c7b-1eeb-4142-906d-8e6cf2daf275?dark=false

Please Pray for the People and Country of Syria

A trusted friend of our ministry (who asked to remain anonymous) shared this important update about Syria with us. I felt that it would be good to share it so that it could inspire us to pray for the dear believers in that broken country. “Continue to remember those in prison as if you were together with them in prison, and those who are mistreated as if you yourselves were suffering” (Hebrews 13:3, NIV).

In the last few days untold numbers of Christians and minority groups have been massacred by Syrian security forces. The violence is reported to have begun as retaliation against Alawites loyal to the former president of Syria, Bashar al-Assad. 

In an effort to shed some light on the current situation, it is necessary to understand who the current president of Syria is. He goes by the name Ahmed Hussein al-Sharaa, and he is the leader of an extremist group of insurgents who call themselves Hay'at Tahrir Al-Sham (HTS). 

Prior to his self-proclaimed presidency, his name was Abu Mohammad Al-Julani. He is a former al-Qaeda fighter who fought for three years in the Iraqi insurgency. He was later taken captive by American forces where he was detained for five years. Al-Julani has a rich history of extremist connections. After breaking with al-Qaeda he formed the al-Nursra Front, where he led fighters who sought to overthrow the president of Syria and establish an Islamic State ruled by Sharia Law. Much like the Islamic State, (ISIS). Al-Julani successfully overthrew the former president of Syria in December of 2024. 

The people of Syria have suffered under 14 years of war and unspeakable trauma. A partner who serves in Syria says, "The reality in Syria today is very dark." 

In times of uncertainty and unspeakable sorrow many are turning to the church for help. Alawites are a minority Shia Muslim sect who are being killed alongside Christians. Allawites are turning to churches for help. Pray they find safety and security in the arms of Christ. 

Pray for Syrian Christian leaders who are ready to serve those flocking to the church for help. May they be strengthened, resourced, and protected. Pray for food and basic necessities to be made available to those in need.  Pray for their families who serve alongside them. 

Another partner of a ministry in this area shares how in the face of threats they are "giving the word of God to everyone." He shared how he encountered a security force member who saw the cross and bible in his vehicle. This man hit his fist on the car and said, "Days are coming. We are going to get you one by one. We are going to step on your neck." 

This same pastor asks that we pray for "God to be glorified even in these dark times." Pray for church leadership. They can be a target. May God protect them and equip them to be sources of life and light in dark times. 

The people of Syria need our prayer, our voices, and our support. 

Overcoming Pornography Use and Restoring Sexual Wholeness in the Church

I had the opportunity to be on a panel hosted by the Barna Group and Pure Desire Ministries, talking about how we can help our brothers and sisters in Christ find healing from unwanted sexual behavior and trauma. Barna also shared new research about Christians and pornography use.

Christianity Report says:

Majority of Christians Struggle with Pornography, Study Reveals

A new study reveals a troubling trend among practicing Christians, with a majority admitting to viewing pornography. The Barna report, Beyond the Porn Phenomenon, conducted with Pure Desire Ministries, shows that 54% of Christians consume pornography, compared to 68% of non-Christians. Alarmingly, 75% of Christian men and 40% of Christian women engage with porn at some level.

Despite the clear biblical teachings against lust, many Christians have grown comfortable with their habit, raising concerns about the effectiveness of current church approaches. Pure Desire's Nick Stumbo expressed concern over the growing cultural shift, which has only worsened the church's battle against pornography.

What's more disconcerting is the sense of isolation among believers; 82% of Christians struggling with porn reported that no one is helping them. Churches are urged to address this issue head-on by partnering with experts, prioritizing education, and creating safe spaces for openness and healing. By doing so, they can provide hope and support to those facing this pervasive issue. 

Countless believers are in bondage to pornography, and many feel hopeless about being able to overcome it. We’re in a battle—big time—and we need a strategy to have victory in this area of sexual temptation. This is a spiritual battle (Ephesians 6:12), but as children of God, we are equipped to win it (1 Corinthians 10:13).

Here are the questions I answered at the panel:

Why Are Christians Susceptible to Struggling with Sexual Purity?
What Are Some Pit Falls That Accountability Groups for Sexual Purity Should Watch out for? 
How Does the Gospel Give Us Hope for Change in the Area of Sexual Purity?
How Can Transparency from Church Leadership Encourage Others Who Need Help?

You can click each question to watch just that video clip, or watch the answers to all four questions in this one video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y9advGD6H4I?si=txwSFcOzCVmuZ2OO

Here are some further resources:

Chapters 5 and 6 from my book  The Purity Principle are available on our site.
Years ago I wrote about carefully counting the cost of sexual immorality as a motivation to avoid it.
This is the first of three short articles focused on overcoming addition to pornography, and here’s one about Overcoming Temptation by Looking Past It—and Looking Up.
Here’s an article from Jon Bloom on How to Resist Temptation’s Mirage Moment.
Finally, my booklet  Sexual Temptation: Establishing Guardrails and Winning the Battle  contains clear, preventive guidelines we can follow to avoid immorality. It’s available from our ministry as a free download, and includes two appendices: "A Message to and about Pastors and Christian Leaders" and "The Perils of Internet Pornography."

The Glad Heart of Jesus

In the first-ever gospel message of the newborn church, the apostle Peter preached that Psalm 16 is about Christ: “David says concerning him, ‘I saw the Lord always before me, for he is at my right hand that I may not be shaken; therefore my heart was glad, and my tongue rejoiced. . . . For you will not abandon my soul to Hades, or let your Holy One see corruption. . . . You will make me full of gladness with your presence’” (Acts 2:25-28, emphasis added). This effusive statement, attributed to the Messiah, is a triple affirmation of His happiness!

The passage Peter ascribed to Jesus includes Psalm 16:11: “In your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.” The New Life Version says, “Being with You is to be full of joy. In Your right hand there is happiness forever.”

I’m convinced we should view this first apostolic sermon as a model for sharing the gospel today. Peter, full of the Holy Spirit, preached a prototype gospel message, asserting three times the happiness of the one who is at the center of the gospel—Jesus. Yet how many people, unbelievers and believers alike, have ever heard a modern gospel message that makes this point? Peter preached that Jesus was “full of gladness”; why shouldn’t we?

What if we regularly declared the happiness of our Savior? Imagine the response if we emphasized that what Jesus did on that terrible cross was for the sake of never-ending happiness—ours and His (see Hebrews 12:2). We would be proclaiming a part of the gospel that’s not only exceedingly attractive but also entirely true.

I share more about the happiness of the triune God in this video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zvVviJpk230?si=Vu36QvtxKBwluOKY

How Should We Evaluate Claims That Someone Had a Vision or Dream from God?

It’s true that far too many Bible believers are in effect anti-supernatural. Some Christians argue against the miraculous with the same scorn of atheists and agnostics. The irony is stunning, since the Christian faith is rooted in the miraculous and dependent upon it. I believe absolutely that God does miracles today. I am completely convinced, for instance, that for decades the Lord Jesus has been appearing to Muslims in dreams and visions, bringing many people to faith. The evidence is clear, repeated, and consistent.

So the reason I believe that the teachings of certain dreams, visions, and personal experiences with God are not true is not that they are miraculous. It is that they contradict the inspired Word of God. “All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness” (2 Timothy 3:16). Some claims fail the test of Acts 17:11, which says the Bereans examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true.

Now suppose I heard that a Muslim had a dream in which Jesus Christ said that Mohammed was a true prophet of God, and that Islam is the true faith. Here are my belief options:

1) The dream is true, and Jesus really said that. But this conflicts with Scripture—not because it is miraculous, but because Jesus and Mohammed made contradictory claims.

2) The dream really happened, but it was not Jesus speaking. Maybe it was just a dream influenced by someone’s pre-existing belief system, power of suggestion and/or by medications or even indigestion.

3) The dream really happened, and it was indeed supernatural, but it wasn’t Jesus speaking. “Even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light” (2 Corinthians 11:14).  

When there is demonic deception, the human being—sincere or not—can become a false prophet: “But false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will also be false teachers among you, who will secretly introduce destructive heresies…” (2 Peter 2:1).

As Christians we should affirm God’s miracles. This does not mean 1) we should believe that everything claimed to be a miracle really is one, or 2) even when we do believe it was a miracle, we should assume everything remembered and said by the person is entirely accurate.

I think it’s also fair to ask whether we believe that the supernatural God has supernaturally revealed Himself and important truths to us in the Bible. And whether, when there is a conflict, that supernatural revelation trumps supernatural experiences. We do not require further revelation (as if God’s Word were not enough), but when someone claims to be bringing it, we evaluate it by Scripture, which remains our authority.

Here are some further resources:

How Can We Discern between Hearing God and Hearing What We Want to Hear?

How Can I Hear God’s Voice and Know That He Is Clearly Speaking to Me?

Where's the Line Between Discernment and Lack of Faith in Miracles?

What About Those Who’ve Never Heard the Good News of Jesus?

Do the Will of God You Know; Discern the Will You Don’t

Always Walk into, Not Away from, People’s Grief

I experienced profound grief when my mother died when I was in my twenties. She wasn’t only my mom; she was one of my very closest friends. I had the joy of leading her to Jesus a year after I became a Christian in high school at age fifteen.

I’ll never forget the Sunday morning when I arrived at our church, which my mom had also attended. Though she had died that week, I decided to preach anyway. A very strange thing happened. Usually when I walked in the door, old friends and new friends—fellow church members still excited about the freshness of our young church fellowship—would immediately greet me.

But this Sunday was entirely different. People I knew and loved walked in the other direction. A friend finally dared to approach me with a hug and talk with me. Once the ice was broken, a few others joined. But until that moment, it was like the parting of the Red Sea. They just didn’t know what to say.

It taught me a great lesson: always walk into, not away from, people’s grief. Talk about their loved one. Don’t pretend that nothing is wrong. Grief is the normal reaction to a horrible loss. Grief is nothing to ignore or fear. When we don’t talk to people about their loved one who died, we make them feel lonely and out in the cold.

In her book What Grieving People Wish You Knew about What Really Helps (and What Really Hurts), Nancy Guthrie writes, “Grief is like a lens or veil through which those going through it see and experience everything. It’s like a computer program running in the background at all times. When we speak to a grieving person about the one who died, and they begin to weep, it’s not that we ‘made them cry.’ Rather, we’ve acknowledged what was beneath the surface and given them an opportunity to release some of that sadness that was already there.”

In this audio clip, I share how those grieving need the church community:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SKk8r--51Rk?si=naD3PVfnrwc1lBbr

Will the New Earth Have Distinct Cultures?

There is no need to worry about culture shock in Heaven! The cultures and nations of the Old Earth will all have their place within God’s eternal Kingdom on the New Earth. This understanding fits perfectly with Daniel’s vision of the Messiah’s return to Earth: “He was given authority, honor, and royal power over all the nations of the world, so that people of every race and nation and language would obey him” (Daniel 7:14).

I interpret “every race and nation and language” literally. God has chosen people in even predominantly pagan nations and reached them by sending men and women or angels, dreams, and visions. What people groups will be worshiping Christ on the New Earth? Aztecs, Mayans, Incas, Celts, Goths, Huns, Lombards, Saxons, Serbs, Croats, Slovenes, Canaanites, Hittites, Phoenicians, Sumerians, Assyrians, Persians, Mongols, and countless other civilizations, both ancient and modern. Indeed, most of the nations Daniel prophesied about—including Babylon, Medo-Persia, and Rome—faded away long ago. Nations and cultures that no longer exist today will be raised, to God’s glory, in a purified form that includes whatever pleased God and excludes whatever didn’t.

Do you have a special interest in Europe of the Middle Ages? Then perhaps you’ll enjoy developing relationships with those who lived in that era. Perhaps on the New Earth you’ll live in a beautified version of their culture. (We shouldn’t assume that all ancient people would embrace every modern convenience, even when given the choice.)

It’s likely, too, that the New Earth’s people groups will remain politically as well as culturally distinct, with their own governments and leaders. People of every nation and ethnic group will reign on the earth (Revelation 5:9-10). Some of their saints will rule over cities; others will rule over nations. Many people assume that if God rules the universe, there’s no room for other rulers. But this can’t be true, because “all rulers will worship and obey him” (Daniel 9:27). But in contrast to the Old Earth’s corrupt leaders, they will be righteous rulers, subordinate to Christ.

Does this sound speculative? We find it in Scripture’s own words. So close your eyes and imagine Earth’s civilizations, both ancient and modern. Not just what they were and are, but what they yet will be.

Our Freedom to Choose

Seventy-six-year-old Liviu Librescu taught aerospace engineering at Virginia Tech. On April 16, 2007, when a homicidal gunman tried to enter his classroom, Librescu barricaded the door, giving all but one of his twenty students time to escape out the window. The killer shot Librescu five times. The final shot to his head killed him.

A Holocaust survivor, Librescu chose to stand between his students and a mass murderer, giving his life for them on, of all days, Holocaust Remembrance Day.

Librescu made a free and meaningful choice that saved his students’ lives.

God gave humanity a choice even though He knew what their choice would be.

Choice is a function of someone’s will. God has a will, and so do we. Satan also has a will, one opposed to God’s (see 2 Timothy 2:26). A will is the property of any intelligent being, and the ability to choose is a central aspect of personhood.

From the beginning, God knew what choices both angels and humans would make under what circumstances, and while He could have intervened to stop them from sinning, He wanted them to choose freely.

In Mere Christianity, C. S. Lewis wrote,

Some people think they can imagine a creature which was free but had no possibility of going wrong; I cannot. If a thing is free to be good it is also free to be bad. …Why, then, did God give them free will? Because free will, though it makes evil possible, is also the only thing that makes possible any love or goodness or joy worth having.

Lewis added this important point:

Of course God knew what would happen… apparently, He thought it worth the risk.… If God thinks this state of war in the universe a price worth paying for free will…making a live world in which creatures can do real good or harm and something of real importance can happen, instead of a toy world which only moves when He pulls the strings—then we may take it [that] it is worth paying.

Adam and Eve freely chose to sin.

Genesis 2:16–17 tells us, “And the Lord God commanded the man, ‘You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die.’”

We should take God’s words at face value. Perhaps hundreds of trees filled Eden, but God forbade eating from only one. The biblical narrative would be nonsensical if God required Adam and Eve to make a sinful choice. God, in His sovereignty, could have chosen to forbid nothing. He could have made the fruit unattractive, kept the snake out of the garden, kept temptation away and kept them from falling. But He didn’t.

God said to Eve, “What is this you have done?” (Genesis 3:13), not, “What did Satan make you do?” or “What did I cause you to do?” Adam, Eve, and Satan all made real choices—and God judged them accordingly. His creatures chose freely to sin, yet God didn’t surrender His sovereignty for a moment.

The term free will is potentially misleading.

I don’t like the term free will because it can convey an inaccurate impression. Our free will is limited because we’re finite. Even when morally perfect, Adam and Eve had no freedom to choose to fly or to make themselves taller or shorter. God alone is infinite and has completely free will that permits Him to do whatever He wants (always in keeping with His flawless character).

In a world of cause and effect, even our small choices are influenced by people, circumstances, and events. Your “free will” concerning what shirt you buy could be affected by the weather, inventory, what’s on sale, your style preference (influenced by your older brother), and the fact that you grew up where people loved the Seahawks and hated the Patriots.

Regardless, I believe we do have the ability to consider the options in front of us and make voluntary choices that have real effects. This is what I call “meaningful choice.”

Who can choose meaningfully?

A remarkable number of Bible verses speak of God’s choices. His free will dominates Scripture. God’s Word also regularly speaks of humans making meaningful choices: what to believe and whether to love God and love people, and countless others.

After God set forth His laws to Israel, Moses assured his fellow Israelites, “Now what I am commanding you today is not too difficult for you or beyond your reach” (Deuteronomy 30:11). They had a choice. Therefore, Moses said, “Choose life…love the Lord your God, listen to his voice, and hold fast to him” (verses 19–20).

Centuries later, God told His people, “I take no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but rather that they turn from their ways and live. Turn! Turn from your evil ways! Why will you die, O house of Israel?” (Ezekiel 33:11). Would God make such an impassioned plea to those who had no choice except to refuse Him?

“Restricted choice” is not the same as “no choice.”

Our addictions, desires, need for approval, and vulnerability to peer pressure may turn what appears to be a free choice into a “forced choice.” We may make free choices uncoerced by any external force, but powerful internal urges may compel certain choices. In the absence of an external constraint, sinners will normally choose to sin. They don’t have to do so; under threat of instant death they will often refrain.

While we may—with effort and assistance—modify certain behaviors, and even some attitudes, Scripture reminds us we cannot, on our own, alter our fundamental nature.

So how free are we, really? Free enough to be morally accountable, free enough to make consequential choices—yet not free enough to make ourselves righteous before God.

If loving God really means something, then the choice to follow Him must be both real and meaningful.

God is certainly capable of overruling me, and He’s entitled to do so whenever He wishes. But if God predetermines every choice I make, then when I sin, He’s causing me to do evil. Surely what prompts me to do evil are the forces at work within me, through my sin nature that dishonors God. If it were God who prompted me to sin, and sin is an act against God, then God would be acting against Himself (see James 1:13–14).

“No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it” (1 Corinthians 10:13, ESV). Doesn’t this verse mean that God allows us to face only the temptations we’re capable of choosing to resist? This affirms both God’s sovereignty and our freedom to make the right choice. However, the provision of a “way of escape” doesn’t seem to guarantee the end results—even God’s children sometimes surrender to temptation. And when we do, we’re held accountable. The fact that some believers do not live in this victory provided in Christ suggests a real ability to choose to accept or reject the Holy Spirit’s empowerment.

Even limited choices can be meaningful and consequential.

A prisoner may choose to read, watch television, lift weights, write letters, pray, think about his family, or plot an escape. But he cannot catch a plane to London. The man in bondage makes meaningful choices—free, yet within very real confines.

Does God grant real, even if limited, freedom to us? Yes, we use it when we cook and paint and sing and laugh and play. He gives us the power to tell the truth or to lie.

Call it free will, meaningful choice, or anything else; it is God-given and real. If it isn’t, then our decisions are merely illusions.

We should be grateful for the freedom of choice granted us.

The heroic choice Professor Librescu made to save the lives of his students was brave, meaningful, and consequential. What made his choice both powerful and significant is that he could have chosen differently. But he made the right choice, and his students and their families remain deeply grateful.

Adapted from Randy’s book hand in Hand: The Beauty of God's Sovereignty and Meaningful Human Choice.