Predestination of man

Chapter Predestination

Section III

Predestination of man

Adam and Eve could have become good human ancestors if they had accomplished their own portion of responsibility by obeying God's injunction not to eat the fruit of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, but they failed to do so. Therefore, God could not predestine them, absolutely, to be good human ancestors. In the case of fallen men, a chosen man could become a person of God's predestination only by accomplishing his own portion of responsibility. Therefore, God cannot predestine a certain person with absolute certainty that he will become what he is predestined to be.

Then, to what degree does God predestine man? In God's accomplishment of His will, centering on a certain person, He establishes it as an indispensable condition that the man must fulfill his own portion of responsibility. Therefore, God, in predestining a person for a certain mission, determines that the person will be what he is predestined to be only by the 100 percent accomplishment of the will centering on the person, with God's portion of 95 percent responsibility and man's portion of 5 percent responsibility accomplished together. Therefore, if the person fails to accomplish his own portion of responsibility, he cannot become the person God predestined.

For example, when God chose Moses, He predestined him to be the great leader capable of bringing the elected people to the blessed land of Canaan, but only by accomplishing his own portion of responsibility (Ex. 3:10). When in Kadesh-barnea Moses went against God's will by striking the rock twice, he failed to carry out his responsibility, thus nullifying God's predestination; he died on the way to the appointed place (Num. 20:7-12, 20:24, 27:14). Likewise, when God chose Judas Iscariot, He predestined him to be Jesus' apostle if he accomplished his own portion of responsibility with loyalty. However, since Judas failed to carry out his responsibility, God's predestination was not fulfilled and Judas turned out to be a betrayer.

When God called the Jewish people, He predestined them to be the chosen nation of glory, but only by fulfilling their portion of responsibility through their faith and service. Nevertheless, the predestination was not realized because they delivered Jesus to be crucified; and therefore, the chosen nation was scattered.

Next, let us examine the conditions and qualifications for becoming the central figure of the providence of restoration in God's predestination. The purpose of God's providence of salvation is to restore the fallen world to the original world of creation. Though the times of their salvation may differ, all fallen men are predestined to be saved (II Peter 3:9). Just as with the process of His creation, God's providence of salvation, which is the providence of re-creation, cannot be accomplished in a moment. Therefore, this providence is gradually broadening its scope to cover the whole, starting from "one". Thus, in the predestination of the providence of salvation, God first predestines the central figure and calls him to the mission.

What conditions and qualifications must this central figure have? First, he must be born out of the chosen nation, in charge of the providence of restoration. Next, even within the chosen nation, he must be the descendant of ancestors with many accomplishments of goodness. Then, even though he may be the descendant of ancestors with many good deeds, he must be endowed with the natural disposition suitable for the accomplishment of the will. Even if a man has these endowments, he must subsequently have good conditions in which to grow and work in his lifetime. Still, even among these persons, God would select first the individual most fully prepared at the appropriate time and place of God's need.