What is foreordination?
Foreordination is the doctrine that men and women were chosen in pre-mortal existence to fulfill specific missions or roles on Earth. This concept emphasizes God's divine plan for His children. Most importantly, foreordination does not negate personal agency; rather, it provides opportunities for individuals to serve in particular ways or to use it wisely.
Foreordination is not the same as Predestination; we do believe in divine destiny, but not predestination. I will explain that later on.
Jeremiah 1:5 talks about the divine call of Jeremiah before the world was formed; it says:
Jeremiah 1:5 talks about the divine call of Jeremiah before the world was formed; it says:
"Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations." - Jeremiah 1:5
This scripture tells us that prophets and even leaders who have been called in their times were foreordained in the calling where they're called to minister to the people in their days. But this foreordination doesn't mean their agency was taken out from them for the purpose of that calling.
We do have the ability to choose for ourselves what to follow or what to do, and this agency is also essential or part of the salvation of man. Without agency, there will be no need for us to grow and understand the opposition of things that may happen in our lives. We couldn't determine Good from Bad or glory from suffering.
"Wherefore, men are free according to the flesh; and all things are given them which are expedient unto man. And they are free to choose liberty and eternal life, through the great Mediator of all men, or to choose captivity and death, according to the captivity and power of the devil. - 2 Nephi 2:27 "
This verse emphasizes the freedom to choose or the importance of agency in our mortal journey.
Moral Agency is the ability to choose and act between good and evil. It is a fundamental principle of the gospel and is essential for personal growth and progression. Agency allows us to make choices and learn from their consequences, both positive and negative.
Now the question is, how can we balance foreordination and agency?
The balance between foreordination and agency is evidence of God's respect of our Individual worth. He may have a plan and purpose for each of us, and yet He allows us to make our own choices and learn from them. This is essential for our growth and development in this life and the life to come.
The balance between foreordination and agency is evidence of God's respect of our Individual worth. He may have a plan and purpose for each of us, and yet He allows us to make our own choices and learn from them. This is essential for our growth and development in this life and the life to come.
The doctrine of foreordination applies to all members of the Church.” Foreordination does not guarantee that you will receive certain callings or responsibilities. These blessings and opportunities come in this life as a result of your righteous exercise of agency, just as your foreordination in your premortal life came as a result of righteousness. As you prove yourself worthy and progress along the covenant path, you will receive opportunities to serve in your Young Women class or priesthood quorum. You will be blessed to serve in the temple, to become a ministering brother or sister, and to serve a mission as a disciple of Jesus Christ.
Foreordained to Serve By Elder Steven R. Bangerter Of the Seventy
As I have said earlier, as Latter-day Saints, we don't believe in predestination, but we do have a divine destiny, and that is to become like God. We are destined to become kings and queens, priests and priestesses, and gods and goddesses. Everything that God has was destined to be ours if we are doing our part we have here.
Predestination means that what you become is a final destination; either you're doing wrong or right, the final result is fixed. Predestination will void the agency of man; there's no point in doing the right thing while the results make no sense. This is what Satan wants: he wants to get rid of the agency of man and just do whatever he wants. We will never learn to know what is right, goodness, and the principles that might help us grow.
I remember one time while attending one of the classes somewhere outside of my home branch, where they were talking about the life and calling of the Prophet Joseph Smith Jr. I once raised the subject that if Joseph Smith didn't understand the call or would take it too lightly, Joseph might not be able to get the plates, and the church might not be restored in his days. I added that Joseph Smith is gifted and mature spiritually based on his reasoning during his time; that's why God trusted him and his work, and that he could build up his kingdom once again. But they reason out that no, it isn't all about it, but rather it is because he was foreordained. That made me wonder if you're foreordained, so you don't need to use your agency at all? Was it the reason? Joseph Smith, as I could see from the history of the church, was just careful and used his agency wisely. As I have pointed out, foreordination could not guarantee that we or even Joseph Smith would fulfill his role perfectly. It will only help us understand that we have a certain role or call, but the choices were ours.
When you're foreordained to a certain task or role, what's your best response?
"What I the Lord have spoken, I have spoken, and I excuse not myself; and though the heavens and the earth pass away, my word shall not pass away, but shall all be fulfilled, whether by mine own voice or by the voice of my servants, it is the same." - Doctrine and Covenants 1:38
So, what are we gonna to do? We should remember that we have moral agency, or the ability to choose between good and evil. Then choose wisely. It might be so hard to take some responsibilities we think we couldn't do, or it's a sacrifice and burdensome. We all have in common, and we all have busy days and priorities. It may be hard for us to find ways or control some amount of time for a calling, but there's one thing for sure: the Lord knows our desires. Just don't be afraid. Everyone is striving to be perfect, and yes, perfection is nothing if we are not aiming for it. There's no use in Christ's words if they are meant not to be fulfilled, if we don't choose to be perfect. There are stories in the scriptures that have the same situations in our days. Moses is not a good speaker; Job feels like everyone forgets about him. Paul experiences a lot of tragic incidents and persecutions. God entrusted us to do his work in our days, and it is our responsibility to prove to him that we choose to follow him. We are foreordained to serve him, and we should be proud of that.
Here are some biblical references that you might want to check out -
- Romans 8:29-30
- Ephesians 1:4-5, 11
- 1 Peter 1:20
- Acts 4:28
- 1 Corinthians 2:7
