1. What Open Theism Teaches
Open theism is the doctrine that God does not exhaustively know the future, particularly the free choices of human beings. Proponents argue that if God knew the future in detail, human freedom would be an illusion. They claim that God knows all that is knowable, but the future free decisions of creatures are not yet real and therefore cannot be known. God, in this view, takes risks, learns from events, and changes His mind in response to human actions. Open theists deny God's exhaustive foreknowledge, His immutability in certain respects, and the classical doctrine of divine providence.
2. Why Open Theism Is False: Scripture Teaches That God Knows All Things
John declares, "For God is greater than our heart, and knows all things." The apostle writes to believers whose hearts may condemn them, but God's knowledge is greater than their self-knowledge. He knows all things—past, present, and future. There is no limitation on His knowledge. Job confessed, "He knows the way that I take; when He has tested me, I shall come forth as gold." David declared, "His understanding is infinite." The Hebrew word for "infinite" means without number or measure. God's knowledge cannot be quantified or limited. Open theism contradicts these clear statements.
3. Scripture Teaches That God Knows the Future Before It Happens
Isaiah records God's challenge to the idols: "Declare the end from the beginning, and from ancient times things that are not yet done." This is what distinguishes the true God from false gods. He alone declares the end from the beginning because He alone knows the end from the beginning. God declares, "Remember the former things of old, 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 that are not yet done." If open theism were true, this boast would be empty. God could not declare the end from the beginning if He did not know it.
4. Scripture Teaches That God Predestines According to His Foreknowledge
Paul writes, "For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son." Peter writes that believers are "elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father." Foreknowledge is not mere awareness of possibilities; it is knowledge that precedes and grounds predestination. God's foreknowledge is the basis of His election. If God did not know who would believe, He could not predestine them. Open theism cannot account for the biblical teaching of election based on foreknowledge. God's knowledge is not reactive; it is the knowledge of one who sees all things from eternity.
5. Scripture Teaches That God Declares Specific Future Events in Detail
God told Abraham that his descendants would be strangers in a land for four hundred years. He named Cyrus by name nearly two hundred years before he was born. He prophesied that a virgin would conceive and bear a son named Immanuel. He declared that the Messiah would be born in Bethlehem, that He would be pierced, that lots would be cast for His garments, that He would die with the wicked but be buried with the rich. These prophecies are specific, detailed, and fulfilled centuries later. Open theism cannot explain how God could know these specific details unless He exhaustively knows the future.
6. Scripture Teaches That God Does Not Learn or Change His Mind
Balaam declared, "God is not a man, that He should lie, nor a son of man, that He should repent." Samuel told Saul, "The Strength of Israel will not lie nor relent. For He is not a man, that He should relent." James writes, "With whom there is no variation or shadow of turning." Open theists claim that God changes His mind in response to human actions. But while Scripture speaks of God relenting in a human sense (as with Nineveh), this is anthropomorphic language. God's decrees do not change. What appears as relenting is the outworking of His unchanging will. God does not learn or discover what He did not previously know.
7. How to Correct One Who Believes in Open Theism
First, take the person to Isaiah 46:9-10. Ask: Does God declare the end from the beginning? If He does, does He know the end from the beginning? Second, read 1 John 3:20: "God knows all things." Ask: Does "all things" include future free decisions? Third, read Psalm 139:1-4. David says God knows his words before he speaks them. Does that violate David's freedom? No, it demonstrates God's omniscience. Fourth, read Acts 2:23. Peter says Jesus was delivered by "the determined purpose and foreknowledge of God." If God did not foreknow the crucifixion, how could it be determined? Fifth, ask about specific prophecies: How could God name Cyrus (Isaiah 45) unless He knew the future? Finally, pray that they would submit to the biblical witness of God's infinite knowledge rather than human philosophical limitations.
8. The Danger of Open Theism for the Believer's Heart
Open theism undermines the believer's confidence in God's sovereignty and the certainty of prophecy. If God does not know the future, how can believers trust His promises? If God can be surprised, how can He guarantee salvation? Open theism makes God like a great chess player who responds to moves but does not know the outcome. This is not the God of Scripture. It also undermines prayer. If God does not know what will happen, why pray? The biblical God knows all things, and prayer is not to inform Him but to submit to His will. Open theism robs believers of the comfort that comes from knowing that God is in complete control of all things.
9. The Distinction Between God's Foreknowledge and Human Freedom
Open theists argue that exhaustive foreknowledge eliminates human freedom. But Scripture does not teach that human freedom requires an unknown future. God's foreknowledge does not cause events; it simply knows them. The fact that God knows what I will choose does not mean He forces me to choose it. His knowledge is passive, not causative. The open theist confuses knowledge with causation. God knows freely what I will choose freely. There is no contradiction. The Bible presents both divine foreknowledge and human responsibility without apology. Open theism solves a philosophical problem by denying biblical revelation.
10. The Biblical Teaching: God Is Omniscient and Sovereign
The Bible teaches that God's knowledge is infinite, perfect, and exhaustive. He knows all things, past, present, and future. He declares the end from the beginning. He knows the words on our lips before we speak them. He knows who will believe and predestines them accordingly. He prophesies specific events centuries in advance. This omniscience does not violate human freedom but establishes it, for God knows what we will freely do. Open theism is a false teaching that limits God and exalts human philosophy above Scripture. The true God is the one who knows all things and works all things according to the counsel of His will. Let every believer trust in the God who knows the end from the beginning.
Conclusion
Open theism is a false teaching that denies the biblical doctrine of God's exhaustive foreknowledge. It claims that God does not know future free decisions, that He learns and changes, and that He takes risks. Scripture contradicts this at every point. God declares the end from the beginning. He knows all things. He does not learn or repent as a man does. Correct this error with the Word of God. Trust in the God whose understanding is infinite, whose prophecies are certain, and whose purposes stand forever.