The concept of free agency as explained by the doctrine of
my church is frequently misunderstood and misapplied. Perhaps I can shed some
light on the topic:
Free agency means we all have a God-given right to make our
own choices. God will not force righteousness on anyone. We are here in this
life to choose for ourselves as a test—will we choose good or choose evil? Agency
does not negate the existence of right and wrong; some choices are right, some
are wrong.
There’s the sticking point. What’s the difference between
good and evil? Where is the line? How fuzzy is the line? You may, without interference
from God, draw this line wherever you wish. God drew His line millennia ago,
and it hasn’t moved. We are all free to show the world where we drew the line,
by actions or by words. Agency means the freedom to say, “I disagree with you.
I think the line is over here, and the behavior you engage in is on the side of
evil.” That statement is not a violation of anyone’s agency.
Sometimes one person’s agency is used to negate another
person’s. John Wilkes Booth used his agency to permanently take away Abraham
Lincoln’s agency. James Earl Ray did the same to Martin Luther King’s agency. These
atrocities happened without interference from God (this is not an indication of
an indifferent or powerless God, but that is another essay). That is agency. We
choose, while we are here, how we will behave. Everyone can agree that murder
is different from a statement of belief. Murder takes away agency. Statements
do not.
You are, of course, free to define agency any way you choose, without interference from God. But this is, in a simplified version, how my church chooses to define the word. Questions about this or other doctrine? Feel free to ask. If I don't know, I'll try to find out for you.
"Free will, though it makes evil possible, is also the only thing that makes possible any love or goodness or joy worth having."
ReplyDelete~A Year with C. S. Lewis
I think free will is synonymous with free agency or agency, and is a term more commonly used in other churches. I agree with C.S. Lewis. Thank you Lord for giving me free will. Another subject that comes up when addressing agency is predestination. Then there is the necessity of defining predestination.... And does God know what we will choose before we make our choice? And God is part of eternity while we are limited by time... There is a lot to think about.