(from Holiness in Fresh Perspective: Covenant, Cross, and Kingdom; Wipf & Stock, expected 2014)
Another intriguing dynamic we find in the meta-narrative of Scripture is that it becomes apparent that God, as a part of his design, has created things in such a way so as to allowed human decisions to play a role in determining the shape of history. It certainly was not God’s desire for sin and death reign over the creation. He allowed this cosmos-changing consequence to come about by means of human choice. After all, what good is a command not to eat of the forbidden fruit if there’s no choice in the matter? The command itself presupposes that God has designed things so that human decision can change the course of events. This is key for the efficacy of the work of Christ. This means that God forfeits dimensions of his sovereignty for the sake of human wellbeing.
This is very different from fatalistic thinking that characterizes the thought of the western world more and more. This dynamic of human free will is crucial in understanding the salvation narrative and God’s World Renewal Plan. The very humanness of Jesus himself as well as his faithfulness as the effective culmination of God’s World Renewal Plan hinges on this. We will see that if Jesus was forced to the cross and did not go willingly, everything falls a part. Not only is this the case with Jesus, but with believers and holiness, as we will see. It is important that this stays in front of us as we observe the outworking of God’s World Renewal Plan.
