Divine Sovereignty, Human Responsibility and God’s Salvific Plan: An African Perspective
ISSUE: Vol.5 No.3 September 2019 Article 9 pp.84-93
AUTHOR: Isaac Boaheng
DOI : 10.32051/09301909
ABSTRACT
Many scholars have contested the compatibility of divine sovereignty and human responsibility since the birth of the Christian Church. The obvious question in the debate is how we can be fully accountable for our decisions (as fallen creatures) while God remains fully sovereign over our lives. Current theological interest in the divine sovereignty-human responsibility tension among African scholars justifies this attempt to explore this controversy by assessing the views of some African scholars on the topic in the light of biblical teachings. The limited scope of this study will not allow a thorough analysis of issues related to the subjects of divine sovereignty, human responsibility and God’s salvific plan. However, the study covers major issues that need to be understood for a proper appreciation of how God’s sovereignty and human free will collaborate in the salvation of humanity. The study begins by outlining the biblical foundations for the debate and then it continues with views expressed by some African scholars (from oral interviews and written sources) on divine sovereignty-human responsibility tension as to how we can make meaning out of this issue within the African context. The main thesis of the study is that soteriological discourses should start with God and not humankind because salvation is God’s gift and not from human works.
© 2020 The Author(s). Published and Maintained by Noyam Publishers. This is an open access article under the CCBY license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).