Shabbat shalom chaverim and may the grace of our Master, Yah'shua the Messiah (Jesus Christ), be with us all.

Today I want to share a very short message, in place of a Sabbath sermon, as over the last five weeks, as I try to tie up some loose doctrinal ends that need fleshing out and integrating.

As of late, as you all know, we have come into confrontation with Calvinism and its TULIP doctrines which we, as Messianic Evangelicals, resolutely oppose as heretical. Calvinists call Calvinism 'the gospel'. Messianic Evangelicals call it one of many 'anti-gospels' that sounds on the surface (because of the commonly shared biblical vocabulary) like the genuite article but which, when closely examined, reveals an entirely different being to the Father of our Master Yah'shua the Messiah (Jesus Christ). Personally I think most Calvinists would flee the doctrines if they took them to their logical conclusion. Many have, and many are continuing to come out of that cult today.

Today I want to talk to you a bit about Molinism but before I do, may I distill the Besorah (Gospel) of Yah'shua the Messiah (Jesus the Messiah) down to its most basic elements much as Calvinists do with their five-points? For Messianic Evangelicals, the 'Good News' consists of five points also, which we call DIDIT, namely the reality and truth of the

• 1. DEITY,
• 2. INCARNARION,
• 3. DEATH & RESURRECTION

• 4. INDEPENDENT, FREE-WILL SAVING FAITH RESPONSE from men and women, leading to a
• 5. TORAH-OBEDIENT LIFESTYLE.

That is one way of putting it. Another, consisting of only four points but going into a little more theological detail, is called by many PROVISIONISM:

• 1. PEOPLE SIN which separates us from fellowship with Yahweh (Rom.3:3:23; 6:23);
• 2. RESPONSIBLE (able to respond) to Yahweh's appeals for reconciliation (2 Cor.5:19-20; Jn.5:40: 12:48; Mt.23:37);
• 3. OPEN DOOR for anyone to enter by emunah (faith, trusting). Whosoever will may come to His open arms (Eph.1:1:13; Rom.10:21; 1 Pet.3:9; 1 Tim.2:4; Jn.3:16; Mt.11:28); and
• 4. VICARIOUS ATONEMENT provides a way for anyone and everyone to be saved by Messiah's blood (Rom.4:5; 2 Cor.5:21; 1 Pet.3:18).

If you want to know more about Calvinism's TULIP system, please see Why I am Not a Calvinist, as I don't want to rehash all of that today.

Ralph Arnold once asked a Calvinist an unanswerable question that Calvinists are forced to answer (but can't) based on their belief about free will and predestination:

"Can a man be forced by Elohim (God) to accept Messiah (Christ) against his will and call that grace (undeserved loving-kindness)?"

If the question sounds strange, it is because when you posit questions based on Calvinist use of key theological words it is strange. So what Calvinists and non-Calvinists call 'grace' are two entirely different things. The same is true of other theological terms like 'sovereignty' - so please insist that Calvinists define their terms before you get into discussions with them because when they are citing Scripture about their pet themes they usually mean something entriely different to the rest of us.

Calvinists believe in a certain kind of (what we regard as unbiblical) 'sovereignty' that predetermines who will be saved and who will be damned without either category of mankind having any free-will in the matter whatsoever. The pre-ordained are attracted - actually, 'compelled' in their system - to be saved by what they call 'irresistable grace', something you can't say 'no' to because you have no free will. As should be obvious, that is a contradiction in terms, a bit like a 'loving gunshot marriage' or 'consentual rape'. And in their system, it is Yahweh doing the forcing though it is dressed up to look like it is something like 'consent', without actually being it.

Molinism reconciles the apparent conflict between Yahweh's Divine Sovereignty and a combination of Man's Free Agency or Freedom (caused by man's finite inability to always clearly see the bigger picture which is birthed out of a fleshy, fallen, carnal, satanic and depraved nature which tends to preference a speedier and tidier 'totalitarian way') over a slower and apparently more chaotic libertarian one based on genuine freedom. If you pause to think about it, fascism and communism are much the same as Calvinism. Communism, at least, is made to look 'democratic' (even though the ballot box is a sham) in the same way that Calvinism is made to look like 'love'. That's why in Soviet elections there was only one candidate to vote for. So how does Molinism straighten out this twisted view of Scripture and reality? I'll explain.

First the historical origin of the word 'Molinism'. It is named after Luis de Molina (1535-1600), a Spanish Jesuit priest, theologian and scholar. By the time he was born, the Reformation, which began in 1517, was nearly 20 years old, to give you a time-frame. What Molina said was this:

Logically prior to Elohim (God) creating the world, Yahweh (by virtue of His omniscience or 'all-knowingness') knew what any free creature that He created would feeely do in any set of circumstances that He might place that person in. And so, by creating those circumstances, and placing the people in them, Yahweh is able to providentially order the world so that His purposes are ultimately achieved through the free decisions of His creatures. This doctrine gives Elohim (God) tremendous sovereignty over human history but without destroying human freedom. And the fact that He is the one who set up this system in the first place - that is to say, He was not compelled to - demonstrates that He had full and absolute sovereignty. Nothing happens overall without His blessing.

This doctrine asserts that Yahweh has a specific kind of knowledge and then explains how He puts that knowledge to use. This is sometimes known in theological circles as 'middle knowledge' - the knowledge on the part of Elohim (God) of how persons would choose in any situation He might put them in.

Philosophcially and theologically it is very difficult to deny that Elohim (God) could use such knowledge in ordering the planet. Those who oppose Molinism typically deny that Yahweh has this kind of knowledge, but in order to do that, whilst at the same time preserving divine omniscience (Yahweh's all-knowingness), they are forced to maintain that these kinds of 'subjunctive conditionals', as they're called, have no truth value.

Thus, to illustrate using this logic, there would be no 'truth value' to, 'if I were rich, I would buy this expensive car', for example. I see this as a very problematic view indeed because we sometimes base our very lives on this kind of 'subjective conditional'; and, moreover, these kinds of 'subjective conditionals' are to be found in Scripture:

"We do, however, speak a message of wisdom among the mature, but not the wisdom of this age or of the rulers of this age, who are coming to nothing. No, we speak of Elohim's (God's) secret wisdom, a wisdom that has been hidden and that Elohim (God) destined for our glory before time began. None of the rulers of this age understood it, for if they had [known the secret wisdom, which spiritually regenerated people have], they would not have crucified the Master of glory" (1 Cor.2:6-8, NIV).

That is undeniably a 'subjective conditional'. If they had understood who Messiah was, they would not have crucified Yah'shua (Jesus). So unless you are willing to say that that this is a truth value gap in Scripture, here is a verse that is not true according to the rules of Calvinistic predeterminism. Therefore any biblically faithful believer is committed to the fact that these kinds of 'subjunctive conditionals' have truth value and are often true. Therefore, Messianic Evangelicals insist, this is clear evidence of human free will. What happened was not inevitable - there was an alternative scenario: under different circumstances they would have chosen differently. But Elohim (God) required, for mankind's sake, that Yah'shua (Jesus) be crucified and die for the sins of the world, therefore He exercised His sovereign will in creating the circumstances whereby the people, whom He knew were not disposed to be saved, would choose to remain blind and so ensure His Son's arrest and murder so that an atonement could be made for all mankind.

This is undoubtedly a way of reconciling the twin streams of biblical tradition of affirming, on the one hand, Divine Sovereignty, and, on the other hand, significant Human Freedom. Notice we aren't saying that we have total freedom - to do whatever we want, when we want - any more than we are saying Yahweh exercises absolute sovereignty in the Calvinistic sense. Both do not represent reality. Just as believers are commanded to live and operate within the restricted boundaries of Torah for their own good, for everyone else's good (like not robbing each other), and for Yahweh's glory, so individuals are commanded by Yahweh to exercise sufficient freedom to make those choices in the realm of salvation and living generally while ensuring the maximum amount of freedom be accorded to others so that they can do the same. Why not absolute freedom? Because one man's freedom can lead to another man's deprivation of freedom. Yet we are always crossing these boundaries and sinning, whether, for example, in stealing as individuals or stealing as social collectives (like the socialist state).

Molinism therefore allows us to put both Divine Sovereignty and limited Human Freedom together and by recognising and affirming the former without annihilating the latter. There is a creative, working tension between them which alone allows for the possibility of authentic, freedom-based ahavah (love). This means that every human being has the genuine freedom to surrender totally to Yahweh of his own free will. It is not forced out of him as he looks down the barrel of a loaded cosmic gun with the Gunman insisting that he has no choice but to love him and be saved because he has already decided it will be so...as if that actually makes any sense. But for those who might not know what authentic ahavah (love) is like, because they have never been shown much or any in their life, it is not too hard to see how they might have a distorted, damaged view of Elohim (God) for which Calvinism would be attractive because it makes a kind of 'perverse sense' to them. Such can also give a perveted sense of secutity, as we know from the Stockholm Syndrome, a reason I believe that extremist forms of Calvinism are actually dangerously cultic in spirit and therefore harmful spiritually and psychologically. Calvinism thereby ceases to be a 'valid interpretation' that will not, if you embrace it seriously, have a bearing on a man's salvation. How could it when the 'god' it represents as loving has more in common with the compulsive satanic mode of being that mislabels itself as 'love'.

Molinism is, then, in my view, a very helpful model for scriptural interpetation and gives structure to the Christian philosopher Ravi Zachraias' insistence that both Divine Sovereignty and Human Freedom are true [1] in much the same way I recently argued that we are both Justified by Grace (per pro Paul) and Justified by Works (per pro James) in spite of the apparent contradiction [2]. I believe this is the only righteous, honest and mature way to approach and juxtapose such difficult Scriptural concepts, something we must do if we are not to disrespect the character of our Elohim (God), or confuse and mislead people about the emet (truth). Perhaps someone will come up with a better model than Molinism but for now this is, in my view, the best one we have, coupled with our own insights.

A word, if I may, to those who accuse Molinism of being Roman Catholic doctrine and therefore having no part of Protestantism. My only response to such is that, first, the truth is owned by no tradition or denomination, and second, our allegiance is not to Protestantism or Catholicism or any other '-ism' (including Calvinism or even Arminianism). Frankly I couldn't care less who speaks the emet (truth) so long it is the emet (truth).

Another illustration: some Christian flat-earthers get upset with me for supporting arguments used by atheists against flat-earthism. This does not mean I am an atheist or that I support atheism - it simply means that in the matter of the global earth and heliocentric model of the solar system the atheists are right and flat-earth Christians are dead wrong. I am not going to support a lie spouted by a Christian simply because he is a Christian. The label you wear doesn't make you right or wrong in everything you believe. On the other hand, the moment the atheist starts attacking creationism and starts spouting Darwinism, I will oppose the atheist for the same reasons I oppose the flat-earther.

The same is true of Molinism, pre-exisetence, etc.. Both support and a lack of support for certain doctrines goes across the entire denominational spectrum like the proper mode of baptism, for example. Catholics and many traditional Protestants (like Lutherans, Anglicans and Methodists) 'baptise' by sprinkling while many Evangelicals baptise by the full imersion. I broadly agree with Methodists in their Arminianism but reject the mode of baptism they employ but that doesn't make them 'Catholic' because of a shared doctrine.

Similarly, I support Calvin, Spurgeon and other Calvinists in many of their teachings but vigrously oppose them in others. So regardless of who proposes a theological model (in the case of Molinism, a Jesuit priest), there is nothing about the model that is 'catholic' - it is, rather, a brilliant way of affirming and reconciling these seemingly incompatible twin traditions of Divine Sovereignty and Human Freedom with Scripture. Yahweh uses whom He will to reveal emet (truth) so 'let credit go where credit is due'. And the fact of the matter is that Molinism has been widely accepted by many Protestants. Should we be surprised? By no means, because Arminius was the conduit through which Molinism entered into Protestant theology and became widespread. I believe this model has inter-denominational value and so not unsprisingly has proponents and opponents across denominational lines.

The beauty of this picture (what we call 'Molinism' merely for convenience, because Molina is the one who, as far as we know, first articulated the teaching - I prefer to include it within 'Yahwehism') is that it makes scriptural, logical and philosophical sense. It answers far more questions than other views do. Calvinism just makes everything a lot more incomprehensible, unbelievable and (in my view) morally repulsive.

One of the questions that has been bothering me for years is the apparent chaos in life. You can answer that with all sorts of analogies (assuming you don't succumb to the atheist view that life actually is meaningless, a random array of circumstances all the result of chance chemistry and physics). You can answer this question in very simplistic (and for most, wholly adequate) terms such as the back and front tapestry analogy or you can answer it on a larger philosophic scale as Molina did. Either way, you are going to have to exercise emunah (faith) which will become progressively more factual as your life becomes peppered with the overwhelming evidence that Elohim (God) actually is in control guiding the whole seeming mess whilst granting us free will. There is order amidst the apparent chaos and Molinism gives a really good scriptural answer which makes doctrines like Calvinism seem not only crude and over-simplistic but in the end utterly primitive and barbaric having more in common with Islamic fatalism than biblical Christianity.

We may not, on an individual basis, see where we are headed in life because the circumstances all around us may appear utterly unrelated and even antagontisic to the direction Yahweh has given us. People don't cooperate with us, they may oppose us and they may overwhelm and destroy us sometimes. Paul tells us how he was opposed and hindered - even malakim (angels) are opposed and hindered. Certainly that is how the talmidim (disciples) first viewed the Cross. All their hopes and dreams appeared to have been extinguished by a demonised crowd, four savage nails and finally a spear.

We do not have the ability to see through this maze of choices being made by those around us, including ourselves, which on their own, apart from Elohim (God), would be a recipe for chaos. Indeed we do see that terrible world of absolute human freedom on one level. We see where the world is going and if we have political savvy we can perceive how dark forces, in the form of deep state élitists, are manipulating the world in a single direction. The fact that nearly all governments implement almost identical globalist policies, for example, is proof of this silent behind-the-scenes control.

Now if we believe that human beings can do, and are doing, this then why is it so hard to believe that Yahweh is manipulating the globalists and other dark powers to accomplish His ends? Communism did not turn out the way they planned in Moscow. Yahweh eventually stopped it in 1991 just as he stopped the élites in 2016/17 by preventing Hillary Clinton from becoming President of the United States. Nor did any other wicked system go the way it expected. The Enemy might repackage his diabolical system and try to force it on the world, but Yahweh has the ultimate control. Like it or not, and contrary to the pundits, Yahweh intervened and put Trump in the White House.

In spite of man's free agency to allow the devil into his life and create chaos, Yahweh does not permit man to destroy either himself as a whole or His ultimate purposes. He won't, for example, allow the moving demonic powers behind CERN to destabilise the planet by manipulating time. If Yahweh had granted Himself the kind of total sovereignty that the Calvinists speak of, and the kind of authority that human despots continually dream of having, all of this would have been over long ago (though personally I don't believe it could ever have even got started). Or if you don't believe in a Personal Sovereign, but simply an impersonal force (as many religions do) then this system will just go on and one, one reincarnation after another, repeated billions of times over, until there is nothing left and our star eventually burns out.

The incredible thing that is observable - and you only have to open your eyes and look to see it - is that in the midst of the quite obvious and overwhelming evidence of human freedom in action (unless you are still clinging onto the Calvinist notion that Yahweh has Himself created this evil Himself and will one day explain not only the apparent chaos but the actual chaos too) - the incredible thing is that each and every one of us can know He is real, that He is there, and that He is good, holding our hand as we trust Him, and breathing life into every aspect of our present and future, as He did in our past.

Wherever there is darkness in this world - and there is, it's real, it's awful, and it's growing clearly in consequence of authentic human choice - Yahweh is shining His light into even the darkest corners of our own mind. So hold tight to Him, hold on to His ahavah (love), knowing that so long as we choose to remain with Him, no matter how much we mess up and repent, He will remain with us, He will never leave or forsake us, and because of Yah'shua (Jesus) we shall remain in that grip from one aeon to the next, from the aeon of the aeons, le-olam-va-ed, for ever and ever.

In that kind of relationship, which is His world distinct from the mess made by Satan and his dupes all around us, no uncertainty, no broken dreams or crushed hopes, and no fear of the future can separate us from Him. His world is totally secure. He is with us in all that we are going through. So trust Him. Believe and let Him gracefully lead you to where you need to be next, even if it is out of this life because your time is done, and in such a way that gives Him the greatest glory [3].

It is written that "the tongue has the power of life and death, and those who love it will eat its fruit" (Prov.18:21, NIV). If this is true - and of course it is - then we need to learn how to use this gift of the tongue (not the 'gift of tongues'). There is life and death, blessing and cursing, cleared obstacles and created ones caused by the action of the tongue. These all begin in the mind, they are planted in the heart, and then they manifest above the ground of our lives into actions that include words and other deeds.

In these difficult times of illness and hospitalisation I have been taking a close look at the ground of my being and at all the living weeds inside that are choking out the good thoughts and feelings. So much junk has been planted there by TV and internet, passively absorbed, but all of which produce various crops at different levels. We have to vigorously rip out those weeds. We have to exercise the very real power of choice that we have. Once you have rooted out some junk, plant the vaccant space with His Davar (Word). Let the Ruach (Spirit) minister simcha (joy) to you!

Those weeds multiply fast and can soon take over your mind and your internal seeing and hearing. The internet, I have discovered, is one of the devil's most effective sowing mechanisms because it's so available. A few years ago it was only available on your desk or lap. Now you can carry it around everywhere in your pocket. Must people are glued to those now in their wakeful hours. But in addition to all the bad that's there, so, also, there are good things, the things of Yahweh, if you will be selective using this technology. This requires much self-control because you are being formed by what you do and absorb, and in my experience most people do not have that self-discipline to cut the junk out. You are shaped by what you see and listen to, whether you know it or not. You are what you eat, and drink, and breathe, on every level, wheather it be heavenly or earthly.

The tongue is powerful and what we decree for ourself has a huge impact. So measure carefully your use of words. When I was lying in my hospital bed yesterday all sorts of junk was popping up in my mind. We all too easily blame the devil for whispering in our ears, and indeed he does a lot, but we will also find that what we hear is actually our fleshy self.

A couple of nights ago I made a vow to Yahweh and then, immediately, I heard, "Famous last words!" It was my own voice, sceptical but also realistic, coming from somewhere else inside me. And indeed, 24 hours later, I was already stumbling over my vow, and that voice was there - not nasty or sarcastic, but just matter-of-fact: "Famous last words!"

I realised, then, I had a lot more persistent and consistent mental gardening to do. It wasn't just a question of silencing the Enemy. Throwing out demons is the easy stuff, but self-discipline means a whole lot of extra work. And don't we prefer the easier route? It's no different from gardening outside in the summer. We are responsible for what we sow, or allow others to sow, and responsible for our own weeding.

One of the great signs of genuine agency is the fact that we mess up again and again. Yahweh does not reject us when that happens. He knows that at times our resolve is weak and that it may take time to become stronger and more confident. Like I said, the day before going into the hospital ward, I tried to strike up a bargain with Yahweh, a bit like Jacob on his way for Harran (that was my scriptural precident, incidentally). To cut a long story short, I tried to impose, by bargaining, how Yahweh needed to deal with me. And, of course, I chose the most lenient way out...for me. His idea of correction is almost never the method we would choose for ourselves.

There are those in the charismatic movement who believe you can 'decree' things in your life and 'speaking' them gives you authority and power - 'name it and claim it'. That is actually occultism. No man has such power over Elohim (God). No man has any power over Him! We do not have 'irresistable (for Him) power!' 'What about Moses getting Yahweh to change His mind,' you might ask? Are you Moses?! Do you have such a great sacrificial love?! Think again!

We can demand nothing of Yahweh but we can certainly ask and we know that the windows of heaven open for those who trust and obey. The only things we can legitimately decree are those things that Yahweh has Himself already decreed (His promises) or supernatural events such as the efficacy of the Cross. We can indeed - and must - declare that Yah'shua (Jesus) has already conquered Satan and his demonic forces.

We can and should live victoriously in Messiah because of the Cross but we must also be cogniscent of the reality around us and not pretend that the dangers aren't real because of some misguided belief that Yahweh has authored them, as Calvinists would teach. Yes, He permits them, in order to shape events, but if we step out of His protection - if we stop believing and stop obeying - then we potentially open ourselves up to unnecessary harm. The demons know they're finished but they can still gain access if we give them unconscious (and unwilling) permission through our disobedience. They have proven their ability to do that by all the evil we see in the world today, and it's growing. Believers do stupid things sometimes, thinking they are almost immortal because they are believers. These are 'heaven's brats' and some point down the road someone is going to slap their face with a wet fish.

So we have to have the two realities properly juxtaposed in our lives - the reality of the Sovereignty of Elohim (God), and the Freedom of Human Will, with all the attendant risks. How these two work together in every situation is too big for us to understand. If we knew, there would be no need for emunah (faith) anymore.

This is the message I feel strongly I need to share with you today. Forgive me if I have rambled somewhat but I am still very much 'under the weather'. Yah willing, we will assemble for Rosh Chodesh tomorrow and I will then address whatever our Father shares with me. The world may not at all be the way you would like it but our Elohim (God) is real, present and in control. Nevetheless, you must make your own choices. Have a blessed Sabbath!

Endnotes

[1] Ravi Zacharias, Elohim's Sovereignty and Man's Free Will
[2] See The Kingdom Road III: More on the Old Romans Road with insights from the Olive Branch
[3] Adapted and expanded from a quotation by Morgan Harper Nichols

Acknowledgements