One of the doctrines taught within Calvinism (I am not a calvinist), is that man does not have a free will. Calvinists conclude that free will somehow invalidates God’s sovereignty. Recently I watched a Calvinist minister refer to non Calvinist thinking Christians as practical atheists for evidently, not aligning with the Calvinists interpretation of God’s sovereignty.

Does believing that God has given man a free will make me a practical atheist? What if I get my view from the Bible? What if I actually see free will all over God’s covenant with the nation of Israel? What if the Covenant God made with Israel was established on the premise that they were to submit their will to the will of God if they wanted to be blessed by him, and be cursed if they did not.

And it shall come to pass, if thou shalt hearken diligently unto the voice of the Lord thy God, to observe and to do all his commandments which I command thee this day, that the Lord thy God will set thee on high above all nations of the earth: And all these blessings shall come on thee, and overtake thee, if thou shalt hearken unto the voice of the Lord thy God.~ Deuteronomy 28:1-2

But it shall come to pass, if thou wilt not hearken unto the voice of the Lord thy God, to observe to do all his commandments and his statutes which I command thee this day; that all these curses shall come upon thee, and overtake thee… ~ Deuteronomy 28: 15

In John 5 Jesus says, I seek not mine own will, but the will of the Father which hath sent me (v. 30). And in John 6 Jesus says,  I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me (v. 38).

In the garden of gethsemane Jesus prayed, Father, if thou be willing, remove this cup from me: nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done. ~ Luke 22:42

The apostle Paul, speaking about his calling to preach the gospel says, For if I do this thing willingly, I have a reward: but if against my will, a dispensation of the gospel is committed unto me. ~ 1 Corinthians 9:17

Man’s free will is no threat to God’s sovereignty, and I would contend that if God can’t grant such freedom and remain sovereign, we have a much bigger problem. If man doesn’t have the freedom to choose, he cannot rebel against God or disobey his commands, which makes God the orchestrater of our rebellion against him. Yet God says the following to Israel through the prophet Isaiah:

Learn to do well; seek judgment, relieve the oppressed, judge the fatherless, plead for the widow. Come now, and let us reason together, saith the Lord: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool. If ye be willing and obedient, ye shall eat the good of the land: But if ye refuse and rebel, ye shall be devoured with the sword: for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it. ~ Isaiah 1:17-20

Now consider the following texts from Leviticus 26 to which Isaiah is echoing. Each of these texts speak of man’s freedom to choose.

If ye walk in my statutes, and keep my commandments, and do them; Then I will give you rain in due season, and the land shall yield her increase, and the trees of the field shall yield their fruit. And your threshing shall reach unto the vintage, and the vintage shall reach unto the sowing time: and ye shall eat your bread to the full, and dwell in your land safely. And I will give peace in the land, and ye shall lie down, and none shall make you afraid: and I will rid evil beasts out of the land, neither shall the sword go through your land. ~ Leviticus 26:3-6

But if ye will not hearken unto me, and will not do all these commandments; And if ye shall despise my statutes, or if your soul abhor my judgments, so that ye will not do all my commandments, but that ye break my covenant: I also will do this unto you; I will even appoint over you terror, consumption, and the burning ague, that shall consume the eyes, and cause sorrow of heart: and ye shall sow your seed in vain, for your enemies shall eat it. And I will set my face against you, and ye shall be slain before your enemies: they that hate you shall reign over you; and ye shall flee when none pursueth you. And if ye will not yet for all this hearken unto me, then I will punish you seven times more for your sins. ~ Leviticus 26:14-18 

And if ye walk contrary unto me, and will not hearken unto me; I will bring seven times more plagues upon you according to your sins. ~ Leviticus 26:21 

And if ye will not be reformed by me by these things, but will walk contrary unto me; Then will I also walk contrary unto you, and will punish you yet seven times for your sins. ~ Leviticus 26:23-24 

And if ye will not for all this hearken unto me, but walk contrary unto me; Then I will walk contrary unto you also in fury; and I, even I, will chastise you seven times for your sins. ~ Leviticus 26:27-28 

Every text in the Bible which speaks of obeying God, submitting to God, rebelling against God, and being tempted by sin, is a text that supports man’s free will. God created mankind after his image and likeness, placed him in the garden of Eden, and gave Adam both a free will and a command to obey.

And the Lord God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it. And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die. ~ Genesis 2:15-17

If Adam was created with a free will, then all humanity has a free will. If Adam did not have a free will, then God would be the author of all the chaos, sin, and darkness in the world. If God created man to be a rebel against him, without the freedom to obey and love him, then we have  a much bigger problem than free will, because such a belief about God is contrary to everything the scriptures teach of God’s character and nature.

When God brought the Children of Israel out of Egypt, he gave them a sacrificial system which included offerings from their free will.

Speak unto the children of Israel, that they bring me an offering: of every man that giveth it willingly with his heart ye shall take my offering. ~ Exodus 25:2

Take ye from among you an offering unto the Lord: whosoever is of a willing heart, let him bring it, an offering of the Lord; gold, and silver, and brass… ~  Exodus 35:5

The children of Israel brought a willing offering unto the Lord, every man and woman, whose heart made them willing to bring for all manner of work, which the Lord had commanded to be made by the hand of Moses. ~ Exodus 35:29 
If his offering be a burnt sacrifice of the herd, let him offer a male without blemish: he shall offer it of his own voluntary will at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation before the Lord. ~ Leviticus 1:3

And if ye offer a sacrifice of peace offerings unto the Lord, ye shall offer it at your own will. ~  Leviticus 19:5

Speak unto Aaron, and to his sons, and unto all the children of Israel, and say unto them, Whatsoever he be of the house of Israel, or of the strangers in Israel, that will offer his oblation for all his vows, and for all his freewill offerings, which they will offer unto the Lord for a burnt offering; Ye shall offer at your own will a male without blemish, of the beeves, of the sheep, or of the goats. ~ Leviticus 22:18 – 19

And when ye will offer a sacrifice of thanksgiving unto the Lord, offer it at your own will. ~ Leviticus 22:29

And will make an offering by fire unto the Lord, a burnt offering, or a sacrifice in performing a vow, or in a freewill offering, or in your solemn feasts, to make a sweet savour unto the Lord, of the herd or of the flock… ~ Numbers 15:3

If man does not have a free will, he could not offer himself to God as God’s people in Israel did.

Praise ye the Lord for the avenging of Israel, when the people willingly offered themselves. ~ Judges 5:2

My heart is toward the governors of Israel, that offered themselves willingly among the people. Bless ye the Lord. ~ Judges 5:9

And thou, Solomon my son, know thou the God of thy father, and serve him with a perfect heart and with a willing mind: for the Lord searcheth all hearts, and understandeth all the imaginations of the thoughts: if thou seek him, he will be found of thee; but if thou forsake him, he will cast thee off for ever. ~ 1 Chronicles 8:29

Furthermore David the king said unto all the congregation, Solomon my son, whom alone God hath chosen, is yet young and tender, and the work is great: for the palace is not for man, but for the Lord God. Now I have prepared with all my might for the house of my God the gold for things to be made of gold, and the silver for things of silver, and the brass for things of brass, the iron for things of iron, and wood for things of wood; onyx stones, and stones to be set, glistering stones, and of divers colours, and all manner of precious stones, and marble stones in abundance. Moreover, because I have set my affection to the house of my God, I have of mine own proper good, of gold and silver, which I have given to the house of my God, over and above all that I have prepared for the holy house. Even three thousand talents of gold, of the gold of Ophir, and seven thousand talents of refined silver, to overlay the walls of the houses withal: The gold for things of gold, and the silver for things of silver, and for all manner of work to be made by the hands of artificers. And who then is willing to consecrate his service this day unto the Lord? Then the chief of the fathers and princes of the tribes of Israel and the captains of thousands and of hundreds, with the rulers of the king’s work, offered willingly… ~ 1 Chronicles 29:1-6

Then the people rejoiced, for that they offered willingly, because with perfect heart they offered willingly to the Lord: and David the king also rejoiced with great joy. ~ 1 Chronicles 29:9

But who am I, and what is my people, that we should be able to offer so willingly after this sort? for all things come of thee, and of thine own have we given thee. ~ 1 Chronicles 29:14

I know also, my God, that thou triest the heart, and hast pleasure in uprightness. As for me, in the uprightness of mine heart I have willingly offered all these things: and now have I seen with joy thy people, which are present here, to offer willingly unto thee. ~ 1 Chronicles 29:17

And next him was Amasiah the son of Zichri, who willingly offered himself unto the Lord; and with him two hundred thousand mighty men of valour. ~ 2 Chronicles 17:16

And all they that were about them strengthened their hands with vessels of silver, with gold, with goods, and with beasts, and with precious things, beside all that was willingly offered. ~ Ezra 1:6

And afterward offered the continual burnt offering, both of the new moons, and of all the set feasts of the Lord that were consecrated, and of every one that willingly offered a freewill offering unto the Lord. ~ Ezra 3:5

And all the silver and gold that thou canst find in all the province of Babylon, with the freewill offering of the people, and of the priests, offering willingly for the house of their God which is in Jerusalem… ~ Ezra 7:16

And the people blessed all the men, that willingly offered themselves to dwell at Jerusalem. ~ Nehemiah 11:12

I will freely sacrifice unto thee: I will praise thy name, O Lord; for it is good. ~ Psalm 54:6

Thy people shall be willing in the day of thy power, in the beauties of holiness from the womb of the morning: thou hast the dew of thy youth. ~ Psalm 110:3

And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely. ~ Revelation 22:17

The princes of Judah were like them that remove the bound: therefore I will pour out my wrath upon them like water. Ephraim is oppressed and broken in judgment, because he willingly walked after the commandment. Therefore will I be unto Ephraim as a moth, and to the house of Judah as rottenness. ~ Hosea 5:10-12

There is so much more I could say on this topic, but if these texts aren’t sufficient to convince you, you are unwilling to hear, and we can be willingly ignorant as the scripture says (2 Peter 3:5)..

In closing, Calvinist men who teach we do not have a free will could learn something from the virtuous woman of Proverbs 31, because she seeketh wool, and flax, and worketh willingly with her hands. ~ Proverbs 31:10