God’s Sovereignty, Our Choice (D)
GOD’S SOVEREIGNTY, OUR CHOICE
There are those who do not want to receive Christ. Those who do however, are given not an “instant kingdom” but the “right to become children of God.” Here is the truth of divine sovereignty and human responsibility wrapped up in a single verse. To those who will He gives. There are many levels of meaning here that we cannot explore. It does not say God makes them instant children of God. It says He gives them the right to become. To those who receive Him, to those who have yielded to Him their allegiance, He gives the right to become children of God.
If we hold back our obedience until we have plumbed the theological depths of this mystery, we shall be disobedient. There are truths that cannot be known except by doing them. The Gospels show many cases of those who wished to understand rather than to obey. Jesus had scathing words for them. On one occasion He turned from them to those who had already believed in Him and said, “If you dwell within the revelation I have brought, you are indeed my disciples; you shall know the truth, and the truth will set you free” (John 8:31-32).
The Bible does not explain everything necessary for our intellectual satisfaction, but it explains everything necessary for our obedience and hence for God’s satisfaction.