Pinnock's Interpretation Of God

Clark Pinnock states open theism is more viable than classical theism because his personal experience has shown him God is present and interactive with the world. He explains, “Pentecostals know God as a loving person who acts and interacts, initiates and responds”; which is saying God works toward His plan for us, despite anything that happens in the world (Pinnock 5). While Pinnock gives an affirmation that people’s lives matter and God is within our best interest, his interpretation of God wanting people to be active in the process challenges some of God’s decisions; whether or not to put certain things in people’s hands or make the decision on His own. Pinnock explains God is active in the world and people’s decisions affect Him as well …show more content…
Sometimes God alone may decide what to do, while on other occasions God may work with human decisions, adapting His plans to the changing situations. God invites us to participate with Him in bringing the future of the world into being” (Pinnock 4). This statement makes it difficult to challenge Pinnock because he says only in some situations does God look to people on deciding what to do, while other times He will choose to do so Himself. Pinnock does not specify in which situations God would decide between the two and it would be impossible for a person to know if it was in their hands or God’s. A problem could arise from this and people might make decisions relying on the belief that God would create the best possible outcome for them no matter how bad their decision was because they would not know exactly what decisions God would make on his own. This would allow people to not be held responsible for their actions, which contradicts the idea that people’s decisions do affect God’s plan for …show more content…
“This is a precious vision and it is so important not to let philosophical categories get in the way. It is so easy to create conceptual idols. And it has happened all too often. Pentecostal practice can act as a corrective by revealing the heart of God through their 5 experience-oriented framework” (4). Pinnock is explaining that any person can experience God’s goodness by praying and making an attempt to interact with Him without confusion or complication.
Pinnock’s essay defends open theism over classical theism because he states being active with God should not be complicated and his personal experience has shown him God is active and invested in the world. Pinnock says God is loving and uses people to help Him make decisions which allows people to reassure themselves that their life matters, but God’s omniscience is challenged through contradicting statements made by