"As the very first commencement of every good thing, so likewise the progress, continuance and confirmation, nay, even the perseverance in good, are not from ourselves, but from God through the Holy Spirit" — James Arminius
Even omnipotence cannot do the logically impossible. God could produce certain chemical reactions in our brains that would issue in what we’d normally describe as loving behavior toward Him, but it would be a sham, a puppet-like response. To have a genuine love relationship with us, God must put up with the possibility of rebellion.
3 thoughts on “William L. Craig on Free Will and Love”
By that logic, God cannot even command (obligate) men to love him. Also, by the same logic, God cannot get all the credit for our loving him.
Blessings,
Stephen
Stephen,
If you are going to make claims like that it would be helpful for you to carefully explain how you came to those conclusions. Of course, you are not obligated to do so 😉
God Bless,
Ben
Stephen,
“By that logic, God cannot even command (obligate) men to love him.”
Not necessarily, Craig’s logic was that a love relationship demanded a possibility of rebellion, a command to love doesn’t preclude any such possibility, since commands can be violated.
“…by the same logic, God cannot get all the credit for our loving him.”
In the grain of the sanctification by works question that Ben posed, God works to sanctify us, yet we often resist His work. If ability to resist loving God means that God doesn’t get all glory, would ability to resist God’s working in our hearts imply that He doesn’t deserve all glory for the degree to which we’re sanctified?
Arminian Perspectives 
By that logic, God cannot even command (obligate) men to love him. Also, by the same logic, God cannot get all the credit for our loving him.
Blessings,
Stephen
Stephen,
If you are going to make claims like that it would be helpful for you to carefully explain how you came to those conclusions. Of course, you are not obligated to do so 😉
God Bless,
Ben
Stephen,
“By that logic, God cannot even command (obligate) men to love him.”
Not necessarily, Craig’s logic was that a love relationship demanded a possibility of rebellion, a command to love doesn’t preclude any such possibility, since commands can be violated.
“…by the same logic, God cannot get all the credit for our loving him.”
In the grain of the sanctification by works question that Ben posed, God works to sanctify us, yet we often resist His work. If ability to resist loving God means that God doesn’t get all glory, would ability to resist God’s working in our hearts imply that He doesn’t deserve all glory for the degree to which we’re sanctified?