Confessions of a Dead Robot

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

I used to take two little brothers on outings each Saturday. This time it was to a conservatory. Traffic was slow so we played a little game. We made up words from the letters on license plates. I saw "DR" on a plate and asked what it could stand for. The littlest boy said "dead robot" and we all laughed.

Now I am going to confess. I used to be one--a dead robot. I once was dead in sins and trespasses, unable to do anything that pleased God. I could walk, talk, and think. But in the eyes of God I had no more free will than an unborn baby.

Now this viewpoint can get you into trouble, especially in Free Will territory. You will meet people who say that they believe in the sovereignty of God, then say that you have the final say so and can negate God's desire of God to save everyone. Imagine a sovereign God overruled by a human. Kind of like a baby who doesn't want to be born, or even conceived.

I have found that man's free will to decide or not to decide in favor of God is very important to a great many people. It turns out that, to these people, God's free will must bow to that of man's.

Here is the confession part. I once believed this idea. I read and was preached out of it though. I discovered a wonderful truth. God planned my birth. I had nothing to do with my birth.

John Calvin did not make this up. The Gospel of John was not named after Calvin. But this writer explained it so well that people think he did. They call this doctrine Calvinism, and most often in a very hateful way. I saw an article on the internet entitled "Is Calvin in Hell?" See what I mean?

For me to give up my former belief and give God all the credit for my birth made me a new man, not a dead robot.