Creation to Restoration 2.1
(Excursus: Was sin a required, and therefor good, aspect of God’s plan?)
Many versions of the “sin is actually good” argument exist. Ultimately they are the worst sort of exercises in speculation. (How can anyone intelligently talk about alternative versions of reality in a way that have any real impact on our circumstances?)
At their core, they claim that sin is necessary, because for free will to truly exist—for people to have a choice to make—they need two alternatives. The idea is that we had to have this whole mess—humanity choosing rebellion against God, God setting the plan of salvation in motion, people accepting and trusting in Jesus Christ, etc—in order for there to be a people who have chosen to follow God’s plan for creation. Therefore, sin is good.
Nonsense.
A choice was offered, and humanity failed. The fact that God was willing to exercise grace and mercy is something for which we can be thankful, but it might have gone differently. As speculative as it may be, I think the choice could have gone differently. To say how that would have looked is a thought exercise that makes my head hurt, so I won’t. However, C. S. Lewis had an interesting take on it in “Perelandra.”
Ultimately failure, i.e. making the wrong decision regarding a choice, is not a prerequisite for a choice being made.
Many versions of the “sin is actually good” argument exist. Ultimately they are the worst sort of exercises in speculation. (How can anyone intelligently talk about alternative versions of reality in a way that have any real impact on our circumstances?)
At their core, they claim that sin is necessary, because for free will to truly exist—for people to have a choice to make—they need two alternatives. The idea is that we had to have this whole mess—humanity choosing rebellion against God, God setting the plan of salvation in motion, people accepting and trusting in Jesus Christ, etc—in order for there to be a people who have chosen to follow God’s plan for creation. Therefore, sin is good.
Nonsense.
A choice was offered, and humanity failed. The fact that God was willing to exercise grace and mercy is something for which we can be thankful, but it might have gone differently. As speculative as it may be, I think the choice could have gone differently. To say how that would have looked is a thought exercise that makes my head hurt, so I won’t. However, C. S. Lewis had an interesting take on it in “Perelandra.”
Ultimately failure, i.e. making the wrong decision regarding a choice, is not a prerequisite for a choice being made.
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