The Baptist Catechism Question No. 10

Q: What are the decrees of God?

A: The decrees of God are his eternal purpose according to the council of his will, whereby, for his own glory, he hath foreordained whatsoever comes to pass.

      At times, our world seems to have the appearance of moving along by random chance. We live through countless events in our lives perceiving no obvious meaning in the mundane. Other times, we are completely rocked by grand events which shape our outlook on life and our future. Due to our finite natures and proclivity for self-centeredness, we fail to recognize that every single event in our lives has meaning and purpose. From the minuscule to the mighty, God has ordained whatsoever comes to pass for his own glory. 

This “foreordaining” is known as God’s decree. Before God spoke the words “Let there be light”, He orchestrated the events of history in order to produce a symphony to His glory. His eternal purpose of bringing Himself glory through the redemption of man was planned according to His own will. The council of the Triune God was the sole determining factor in the declaration of the eternal decree. The God who created the universe created it with intention, purpose, and a direction. 

Scriptural Basis:

“for I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like me, declaring the end from the beginning and from ancient times things not yet done, saying, 'My counsel shall stand, and I will accomplish all my purpose,'” - Isaiah 46:9b-10 (ESV)

While contrasting Himself against the false idols of Israel, God declared that there is none like Him. Specifically, no other false god can declare the end from the beginning. This isn’t a mere knowing of the future; this is God’s active declaration of what shall come to pass and His control over creation to accomplish that declaration. 

     God says that His “counsel shall stand”. Nothing in time will ever affect or cause His counsel to fall. It is firm and resolute because God is faithful, true, and unchanging. This means that His counsel is determined from the beginning. However, this isn’t the impersonal Fate of Greek mythology. God says that He will accomplish all His purpose. The counsel of God is intensely personal because He is active in His creation to accomplish what He has ordained to pass.

This is a reason to worship God because no other false idol made by the hands of men can accomplish what God does in his decree. False gods are impotent because men are lords over them. The God of creation is omnipotent and LORD over men and all their affairs. He will accomplish all His purposes for His glory and the good of His people.

“Who has spoken and it came to pass, unless the Lord has commanded it? Is it not from the mouth of the Most High that good and bad come?” - Lamentations 3:37-38 (ESV)

When great kings speak and pass their own decrees, they are subordinate to the decree of the LORD. None can speak and produce anything apart from the command of the Lord preceding it. As Jeremiah sat in the desolation of Jerusalem following the Babylonian attack, he wrote these words. He knew that both the good and the bad are all from the mouth of the Lord, the Most High. The destruction of Jerusalem, while a desire of Babylon, could not happen apart from the decree of God. All things which come to pass may only come to pass if the Lord has commanded it.

“even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. … In him we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to the purpose of him who works all things according to the counsel of his will,” - Ephesians 1:4, 11 (ESV)

     God not only ordains events, but He also ordains those whom He will call, justify, and glorify. Before the foundation of the world, God chose the elect in Christ so that we would be holy and blameless before Him. Believers receive this inheritance only because of God’s predestination of their salvation. This idea of election will be discussed later in the catechism in greater detail. 

While speaking of the predestination of the elect to eternal life, Paul says that it is “according to the purpose of him who works all things according to the counsel of his will”. God is not merely interested in working out large events in history. He works “all things” according to His will. This encompasses everything from the smallest atom to the largest star in the universe. God’s counsel stands and He will accomplish all His purposes.

 Worldview Challenge:

     The biblical teaching of God’s decree wrecks havoc on the common assumptions of modern evolutionary science. Students are taught that history is just the result of time and chance acting on matter. Starting with the Big Bang everything is just probabilities over the right amount of time producing change. Those which are most fit to survive can weather the probabilities and evolve to weather those of the future. This view of history decimates man’s purpose since everything is just random chance. However, scripture teaches that God made creation with an eternal purpose in mind. This gives history an end goal, making every step of the way meaningful and important. 

God’s decree also repudiates the impersonal determinism of Fate and the impersonal retribution of Karma. Although the events of history are determined by God, it is by no means impersonal or unaffected by our decisions. God is personal and ordains ends as well as the means to those ends. We are not robots who fall victim to Fate. We are personal beings who make real decisions based on our desires which all follow the course which God has set from the beginning. Our finite minds cannot comprehend the majesty and beauty of God’s control and our responsibility, yet scripture holds them together and says it is good. 

Many people in the West have become influenced by Eastern thinking such as Karma. They flippantly refer to “good” and “bad” Karma as if there is some impersonal force dealing justice and retribution upon all individuals. There is justice to be dealt, but it is by the personal God who declares the end from the beginning. When bad things happen, it isn’t always because of a specific wrong done by someone. On the contrary, many people live evil lives and never see equal retribution until they stand before God’s judgment seat. Karma is an unbiblical and humanistic way of seeking to please our own desires of revenge against another person at the expense of not recognizing God’s sovereign decree. 

Remember: Catechisms should be used as a helpful tool alongside a healthy intake of Holy Scripture. They should never replace God’s Word because their usefulness depends upon their accurate representation of God’s Word. When using these tools, always ground the answers in the scripture references provided.