Predestination and Human Responsibility

We’ve discussed free will and determinism from a secular perspective. Now let’s look at it from a religious perspective. Attendees should note that this debate has an extremely narrow focus. It assumes God exists, assumes biblical inspiration, and focuses specifically on a debate within the Protestant Evangelical Church. Calvinists and Arminians have long debated free will and predestination. Arminians argue that if God holds man responsible for his actions, he must have free will. Calvinists counter that for God to be completely sovereign, he must have authority over man’s will. Where you fall in the debate depends largely on how you interpret specific biblical verses. Let's look at those verses and consider both sides.