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<\/a><\/p>\nOne chapter of my book explores the powerful proposals on providence from John Sanders, The God Who Risks<\/em>. Although I find much in Sanders\u2019s proposal that I appreciate, I also offer some criticisms and counterproposals.<\/p>\n Three Ways<\/strong><\/p>\n When offering his open and relational model of providence, Sanders seems to think Christians choose among three options when thinking about how God creates and acts providentially.<\/p>\n The first option is a form of process theology. Sanders is wary of process theologies that say, as he puts it, God is \u201cpervasively conditioned by creatures.\u201d He wants to avoid saying God, by necessity or by nature, depends on the world. Sanders believes God can unilaterally act on the world, and he doubts process theologians can affirm this (p. 162).<\/p>\n Let\u2019s call the first option, \u201cThe world conditions God.\u201d<\/p>\n The second option Sanders wants to avoid is a form of Calvinism. He is wary of Calvinist theologies that say, as he puts it, \u201cthe divine nature necessarily must create a world in which God is omnidetermining.\u201d This view says God\u2019s ongoing providential control is \u201ca manifestation of the divine nature\u201d (p. 231). Creatures are not really free, and randomness and chance are illusions.<\/p>\n Let\u2019s call this second option, \u201cGod constantly controls the world.\u201d<\/p>\n The option Sanders prefers says God sovereignly gives freedom but allows evil. Sovereign activity lays the framework of the creation project. \u201cThe divine nature is free to create a project that involves loving relations with creatures,\u201d says Sanders (p. 231). But God could have created a world without free creatures. And God could (and perhaps occasionally does) control creatures or situations to bring about some outcome.<\/p>\n Let\u2019s call Sanders\u2019s third option, \u201cGod sovereignly, not of necessity, decided to create a world with free creatures.\u201d<\/p>\n Questioning God\u2019s Love and Power<\/strong><\/p>\n In general, open and relational theology says a relational God of love collaborates with creatures. God\u2019s love takes risks in relationship, as Sanders puts it. Because love does not control others, the risk model of providence does not offer the guarantees divine determinism does.<\/p>\n God\u2019s relationship with creatures, says Sanders, \u201cis not one of control and domination but rather one of love and vulnerability\u201d (p. 71). God \u201cdoes not force [creatures] to comply\u201d (p. 174). In sum, Sanders believes \u201clove does not force its own way on the beloved\u201d (193).<\/p>\n I agree with the statements in the above paragraph. Most open and relational theologians would also agree.<\/p>\n But these statements invite important questions. After all, if God\u2019s preeminent attribute is love and love invites cooperation without forcing its own way, it makes little sense to say sovereign freedom allows God to create in an unloving way.<\/p>\n It makes little sense, for instance, to say God voluntarily decided against exercising meticulous providence. If love comes first and love does not force others to comply, it makes little sense to say, as Sanders does, that \u201cGod is free to sovereignly decide not to determine everything.\u201d If love comes first, God cannot<\/em> exercise meticulous providence or determine everything.<\/p>\n Why should we think a loving God who \u201cdoes not force the beloved\u201d is truly free \u201cto tightly control every event that happens?\u201d<\/p>\n Why should we think a loving God is free to control others entirely, even if God never exercised that freedom?<\/p>\n If love doesn\u2019t force the beloved and God is love, God can\u2019t<\/em> force the beloved.<\/p>\nIf love doesn\u2019t force the beloved and God is love, God can\u2019t force the beloved. <\/a><\/span>Share on X<\/a><\/span>\n A Fourth Way<\/strong><\/p>\n I prefer a fourth option. We might call my view, \u201cGod\u2019s loving nature requires God to create a world with creatures God cannot control.\u201d<\/p>\n My option is part of the essential kenosis model I describe in my forthcoming book. At the heart is the idea that love logically precedes power in God\u2019s nature. To put it differently, God\u2019s love always preconditions God\u2019s creating and providential activity.<\/p>\n In my view, it was out of love that God decided to create a world. And because love is God\u2019s primary attribute, it is necessary that God creates.<\/p>\n Because God\u2019s essential nature is self-giving, others-empowering love, I argue, God cannot control creatures. God cannot, to use Sanders\u2019s language, \u201csovereignly decide not to determine everything.\u201d \u00a0God cannot \u201cforce the beloved.\u201d God cannot \u201ctightly control every event that happens.\u201d<\/p>\n This limitation on God\u2019s part does not come from something imposed upon God from the outside. Like Arminius and Wesley, I say God\u2019s limitations come from God\u2019s love. And in God, love comes first.<\/p>\nGod\u2019s limitations come from God\u2019s love. And in God, love comes first. <\/a><\/span>Share on X<\/a><\/span>\n Conclusion<\/strong><\/p>\n There is obviously more that must be said. And I offer further explanation in The Uncontrolling Love of God<\/em>. I hope you look for it this fall.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Christians have many ways to think about how God acts in creation (providence). Each way has implications for making sense of life in light of God\u2019s love, power, and other attributes. But some ways are better than others. In my forthcoming book, The Uncontrolling Love of God, I identify seven models of providence. Among them […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[142,143,144,145,141,32,15,17,18,21,22,23,24,25,26,28,31,34,36,39,40,45,57,136,137,138,139,140],"yst_prominent_words":[4168,1080,1224,2811,4143,4164,4165,4166,4167,4169,4170,4171,4172,4173,4174,4175,4176,4177,4178,4179],"class_list":["post-2947","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-open_and_relational_theology","tag-wesley","tag-john-wesley","tag-risk","tag-sovereign","tag-arminius","tag-essential-kenosis","tag-thomasjayoord","tag-god","tag-theology","tag-evil","tag-theodicy","tag-oord","tag-providence","tag-love","tag-uncontrolling-love-of-god","tag-open-theology","tag-kenosis","tag-thomas-oord","tag-omnipotence","tag-arminian","tag-open-and-relational","tag-deism","tag-creation","tag-john-sanders","tag-calvinism","tag-process-theology","tag-gods-nature","tag-divine-nature"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/thomasjayoord.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2947","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/thomasjayoord.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/thomasjayoord.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thomasjayoord.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thomasjayoord.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2947"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/thomasjayoord.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2947\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/thomasjayoord.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2947"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thomasjayoord.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2947"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thomasjayoord.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2947"},{"taxonomy":"yst_prominent_words","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thomasjayoord.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/yst_prominent_words?post=2947"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}