Can we reject God's plan for us?

[tonychanyt]

The word "plan" is ambiguous. A plan could have different levels of detail.

NLT, Lk 7:

30 But the Pharisees and experts in religious law rejected God’s plan for them, for they had refused John’s baptism.

Strong's Greek: 1012. βουλή (boulé) — 12 Occurrences

BDAG:
① that which one thinks about as possibility for action, plan, purpose, intention

ESV:

But the Pharisees and the lawyers rejected the purpose of God for themselves, not having been baptized by [John].

On Biblehub, 6 versions used 'plan'; 14 used 'purpose'.

It was God's intention or plan for the Pharisees to be baptized by John, but they rejected that purpose.

Can we reject God's plan for us?

Yes, in the sense of God's intention and purpose, but no, in the sense of God's detailed sovereign plan.

 

[Mark Quayle]

The word "plan" is ambiguous. A plan could have different levels of detail.

NLT, Lk 7:


Strong's Greek: 1012. βουλή (boulé) — 12 Occurrences

BDAG:
① that which one thinks about as possibility for action, plan, purpose, intention

ESV:


On Biblehub, 6 versions used 'plan'; 14 used 'purpose'.

It was God's intention or plan for the Pharisees to be baptized by John, but they rejected that purpose.

Can we reject God's plan for us?

Yes, in the sense of God's intention and purpose, but no, in the sense of God's detailed sovereign plan.

For some situations, a finer resolution is found in the notion of "design". For example, God's design for each human includes the fact that the species is incomplete apart from Christ. This does not imply that any of the species is able to be "in Christ", apart from the work of Christ in them to be that. Nor does it imply that God intends to save every one of the species.

But, like with "plan", so with "intend", "want" and several others, things are different when the term is used to describe something about God. Our use of such words is too easily anthropomorphic.