“How Great I Art”, “To Me Be the Glory”, “Great Is My Faithfulness”, and “I Need Me Every Hour” could be the hymns of choice based on a free will theology. If you are not sure what free will theology is please follow the link provided above.
I held this very view for more years than I haven’t. And even though I would not admit these hymns even remotely described my theology, I still affirmed man’s free will in salvation. So if you hold the view that man is ultimately responsible for his salvation because He chooses God then you should indeed pat yourself on the back and sing a praise in your behalf.
Now some might think this a bit too far fetched. But if you honestly look at the rational conclusion from the theology that says salvation has been provided by God and it was up to you to choose God, then you should rejoice in your salvation. And not only praise God for your salvation you should also rejoice and praise yourself as well. This is much like what a pastor friend of mine once envisioned getting to heaven and high-fiving Christ and proclaiming “We did it!”
But if you are from the “God does it all” camp then the stuff above would seem pretty silly. This is the camp I now sing around campfires in. And sing I do. If it wasn’t for the grace of God who gave me the faith to believe I would still be in opposition to a holy God. I would still be destined to be condemned to God’s just wrath for my sin. For it is God and God alone, which is known in theological circles as monergism, that provides the way and the means for salvation. He does it all. This my friends causes me to greatly praise my God.
Check out the lyrics for the following song.
Praise on!
often struggled with understanding the command for believers to lift up intercessory prayers for all the saints. Since God is sovereign, in control of all things, why would we need to pray on behalf of others? This has especially been at the forefront of my mind because my mother and Robin’s mother are both undergoing cancer treatments. We have been praying quite a bit for each of them lately. So why pray if God is sovereign?
we think about are resolutions for the new year. Some of the more popular resolutions are exercising and eating right, followed by a plethora of others. I think the common theme for most of them is starting a habit or a consistent activity that is better for us. I believe God not only has given us the knowledge that He exists and the knowledge to know right from wrong. But along this same line of thinking he has given us the knowledge to understand what is good for us and what is harmful. He has definitely given us this knowledge through His commands in His perfect scripture.
Upon This Rawk 