Jim Carmichael's Reviews> Decision Making and the Will of God: A Biblical Alternative to the Traditional View

Early in my life as a dispensationalist, I marveled at the info Friesen gave. I wanted to know about God and His relationship to me and others. I'm also a fmr Marine & Vietnam veteran. My concern grew over this teaching as I wanted to know, is God sovereign over the battlefield? Is He in control of every piece of shrapnel & rifle round? Is He in control of how deeply or little hot, jagged pieces tear flesh? Who gets hit & where? Who steps on a mine & who doesn't? How affected combatants are by PTSD? Who is diagnosed with traumatic stress & who isn't? Why did I get hurt so my buddy took my place on the truck that rolled over a 500 lb bomb & he got killed & I'm still here? Why? Is God sovereign or not? In dispensationalism, He isn't, not over salvation & not over combat. Is God sovereign over every molecule & sub atomic particle or not? Not in dispensationalism. The sacred cow of that system of theology is free-will (pg. 33). God can't violate it. Well, if He's not sovereign there, then He's not sovereign anywhere. Besides, who determines He's sovereign? How do you know?
It's one thing to address what college to attend or what person to marry. Nobody's life is on the line. Friesen has completely missed the character of God. He's Lord. The deceived & the deceiver are his. He lifts up one and lowers another as it pleases Him (see Job 12; Prov. 16; Gen. 20:6 vs pg. 204).
"In fact, the Bible reveals nothing of an 'individual will' governing each decision" (pg. 151). That's nonsense! Acts 2:23; 4:27-28. Each Jewish & Gentile leader/soldier had individual responsibility for their individual actions. "If there is no individual will,..." (pg. 213), then no one is in charge. It's one thing to sit in your study & pontificate about God's will. It's another to put your life on the line & how somebody up there is in charge of every minute detail. This book is a bogus attempt to remove from God or man any responsibility for for the evil we see around us. I wouldn't recommend it. This book, like all the other dispensationalist books of like manner are about defending man's free-will, which the Bible is careful & detailed in saying isn't free, but bound by sin. I keep the book around for things like this review.