Book Description

This book is taken from McMahon's larger work: The Two Wills of God: Does God Really Have Two Wills, which was a Ph.D. dissertation of over 800 pages. In this newly revised concise form, McMahon has updated and rewritten key parts to this vital work, and removed extraneous portions in order to explain how the student of the bible should understand and hermeneutically study the will of God. What biblical doctrine is more important than knowing what God’s will is for our lives? “The secret things belong unto the LORD our God: but those things which are revealed belong unto us and to our children forever, that we may do all the words of this law,” (Deut. 29:29). The theological subject of God's will reaches deeply into every theological concept Scripture teaches. If the Christian’s doctrine of God is wrong, how can he be sure to have anything else right? This study takes the most relevant and practical view of God's will according to Scripture and deals with questions like: What is God's will in relation to His church? Does God desire the salvation of all men, or some men? If the wicked perish, and God desires their salvation, is God’s will frustrated when the sinner goes his own way? Why is God seen as sovereign in one part of Scripture, but seen as “repenting,” “sad,” and even “changing His mind” in another? Does God change? Does the Bible teach that there is such a thing as “common grace?” Is God really good to all, even the wicked? Does God desire things He does not decree, and decree things He does not desire? As much as these questions are a matter of great theological importance, they are also a matter of responsible hermeneutics. This abridged version gives the Christian the proper hermeneutical tools to define “God’s will” and how His will functions in and through redemptive history. It solves critical questions surrounding God's nature, demonstrating that proper biblical interpretation is the key to understanding the will of God. Yet, as difficult as this topic may initially seem, this new version sets out to make studying the will of God easier.