Does Man Have Free Will? The Great Debate-Marriage Restoration

There have been many discussions around the “Does my spouse have free will.” and “My spouse doesn’t have to come home because they have free will to choose.” Many of those discussions have led to discord and disunity. I am really hoping this is not going to be one of those here.

This is a bible study. You consider the scriptures I have put out and you come to your own determination, as I have.

Does Man Have ‘Free Will?”

I’m going to start with my conclusion. I believe man has free will until he doesn’t!

If we say a man has no free will, that God is sovereign and changes man according to His purpose, then we are saying God is choosing who gets salvation and who doesn’t, or God is changing who He wills to change.

This does align with His Word that no one comes unless the Father draws him first. 

“No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws them, John 6:44

So God does pick and choose, but how? Is it will or is it heart that determines if a man will surrender to the Lord? We don’t see many scriptures talking about will unless it pertains to God’s will, or Jesus doing the will of the Father. But we do see many about the heart of man. About how God looks at the heart to determine the kind of person they are.

 Is the will and the heart one and the same? Or closely related and connected? 

We look to the Word to clarify what is heart, and what is will. 

  This scripture is clearly talking about will as it pertains to the questions. Jesus is saying that He is not doing MY will, but the will of the Father. 

WILL 2307. theléma-wishes, desires, pleasure-what one wishes or has determined shall be done

John 1:13 who were born not of blood, nor of will of flesh, nor of will of man, but of God.

Will/desire of the flesh? Does that mean the heart can have a  will/desire too? So let’s look at the heart.

2588. kardia: mind, character, inner self, will, intention, center, desire, choice;.

According to scripture, a will is connected to desire, pleasure, wishing. And this can be connected to the flesh and heart of man. 

So back to free will.
Is a man free to desire? Free to wish? Free in what he finds pleasure with? And can God change that? Yes God changes hearts and there is a lot of scripture that talks about God hardening hearts, replacing a heart of stone with a heart of flesh. The Word also talks about man hardening his own heart because they desire evil.

John 8:44 You are of your father the devil, and your will is to do your father’s desires. 

Here is where God steps in and changes a heart for His own sake.

  So it’s clear to me through scripture that if will is desire, wishing and what we feel as pleasure, because our hearts are naturally wicked and tend to want those things, that we can freely make the choice to turn to them. But because God is Who He is, He is also free to follow HIS desires and turn hearts away from what is leading them astray as He wants when He wants.  He doesn’t seem too happy about it though. He would rather a heart turn from evil desires on its own without His intervention.  

So next time you think of the term free will, then understand that we all have desires, wishes, and find pleasure, and we are free to do so, but that freedom comes at a cost that is great if you can’t defeat the desires of your flesh and heart. 

It’s yet to be determined what makes God choose who He will help and why.  But that is part of His mystery. 

The king’s heart is in the hand of the LORD, Like the rivers of water; He turns it wherever He wishes. Proverbs 21:1

Many are the plans in a man’s heart, but it is the LORD’s purpose that prevails. Proverbs 19:21

 Standing with you,
Sheila Hollinger