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DID GOD ORDAIN SIN AND UNBELIEF By Edwin Jardinel When I received some write-ups from the Calvinists camp with the title, “God Ordained sin and Unbelief”, I immediately searched the Scriptures just as the Bereans did (Acts 17:11). With the help of the concordance, I checked the words, “Decree, Ordain, Order, Appoint, Counsel,” etc. but there is not a single passage in the Scripture that teaches that God ordain sin and unbelief. I believe God did not decree all events (including sin and unbelief), rather, God decreed some events. According to Isaiah 10:1, “woe unto them that decree unrighteous decrees”. If god hates and condemns those who make unrighteous decrees, then why would He decree unrighteousness? Isaiah 45:19 says, “I the Lord speak righteousness, I declare things that are right”. God decreed things that are righteous. In Jeremiah 7: 31, God expressed His anger against the evil deeds of Judah such as burning their sons and daughters in the fire as part of their sacrifice to idols. In that passage, God said that He decreed them not, neither came it into His heart. God is holy and His decrees are righteous. The following passage speak of God’s righteous ways: Psalms 119:137; 145:17; 11:7; 45:7; 103:6; 119:172; 60:6; Proverbs 16:12; Isaiah 45:19.

You can praise God for His righteous decrees and praise Him for people who follow his commands and ordinations. (Ps.148). If God ordained sin and unbelief, do you praise God for people who blaspheme Him, worship Satan, commit rape, and other abominations. Do you praise God for ordaining idol worship, lies, incest, etc.? I believe that God did not decree all things that happened, but I believe that he decreed many things. Many of them are not revealed and I do not know, but to mention some of the things I know:

God appointed man to die (Heb.9:27; Ps.79:11; Job 7:1)
God ordained His servants to preach (Luke 10:1; Jer.1:5)
God decreed that those who believe in Christ obtain eternal life (Jn.3:16, 36, 18; 5:24; Lk.22:29).
God decreed that those who believe in Christ will not go to hell (Rom.8:1; Jn.3:18; I Thes.5:9).

God appointed those who do not believe in Him to destruction (I Kings 20:42; Matt.24:51; Lk.12;46)

God ordained light and peace for those who trust Him (Ps.132:17; Isa.26:12).
God appointed the Righteous Judge, the subjects, and a time for His judgments (Hab.1;12; Acts 10:42; 17:31).
God ordained governments for an orderly nation (Rom.13).
God ordained the believers to do good works, not bad works (Eph.2;10; John 15:16).
God ordained that pastors will be supported by the churches they pastor (I Cor.9:14). God did not ordain “women pastors.”

There are many things that God ordained and they include the death of Jesus Christ, the laws of nature, the planets, etc. They are too numerous to be listed here. The word “ordain” means “order”. God ordained things to put them in their proper order and avoid confusion. God must be praised for his work of ordination because all his works are holy and just.