Does God Respect Libertarian Free Will or Salvation More?

I've come across this argument more times than I can count, so it's time I address it, because chances are, it'll pop up again.

Which argument am I referring to?

This one.

"God desires everyone to be saved, but He respects your free will much more, even more than salvation itself, because He loves you so much."

It sounds nice on the surface, like it's emphasizing God's respect for us and our choices. But when you hold it up against what the Bible actually reveals about God's character, His power, and His plan, it starts to fall apart and paints a picture of a God quite different from the One in scripture. 

Imagine God's love like an infinitely powerful, life-saving river flowing towards every single person.

Now, imagine "free will," as this argument presents it, like a tiny, flimsy gate that each person can choose to keep shut, blocking that river of salvation forever.

The argument suggests God, out of "love" and "respect" for the gate (our choice), stands back and watches billions of people remain cut off from His life-giving river, ultimately perishing downstream, even though He has the infinite power to gently dissolve that dam without violating the person behind it. Does that truly sound like the action of overwhelming, all-powerful love? Or does it sound more like a love constrained, limited, and ultimately defeated by the very thing it supposedly respects?

Scripture paints God's love very differently. It's not a passive respect for our potentially self-destructive choices; it's an active, pursuing, powerful force. "God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us" (Romans 5:8). He didn't wait for us to choose Him; He acted first, decisively, sacrificially, because He loved us even in our rebellion. His love isn't content to stand back; it takes the initiative.

And what about His desire for salvation? "This is good, and it is pleasing in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth" (1 Timothy 2:3-4). This isn't just a mild preference; it's the stated will of God our Savior. Now, compare that to the idea that He values our ability to say "no" more than He values fulfilling His own desire for our salvation. Does that make sense?

Think about God's sovereignty. The Bible says He "works all things according to the counsel of his will" (Ephesians 1:11). It says He has mercy on whomever He wills, and He hardens whomever He wills (Romans 9:18). It says salvation doesn't depend on human will or exertion, but on God who has mercy (Romans 9:16). If salvation ultimately hinges entirely on our "free will" choice, independent of God's effective intervention, then these verses about God's sovereign will in salvation become almost meaningless. It would mean salvation depends primarily on us, not on God.

Does God override our will like we're puppets? No, that's not how His sovereignty works in salvation. Instead, He works internally to change our will. He gives a new heart (Ezekiel 36:26). He grants repentance (Acts 11:18; 2 Timothy 2:25). He draws people to Christ (John 6:44). He gives the gift of faith (Ephesians 2:8-9; Philippians 1:29). He works in us "both to will and to work for his good pleasure" (Philippians 2:13). He doesn't violate our will by external force; He transforms our will by His internal grace so that we willingly choose Him. Imagine someone lost in the dark; true love doesn't just respect their "choice" to stay lost, it shines a light so compellingly that they want to come towards it. God's grace is that compelling light.

So, the idea that God respects our "free will" more than He desires our salvation actually presents a limited, almost weak God, whose love is ultimately thwarted by human stubbornness. It elevates human autonomy above God's saving purpose and power. The biblical picture, however, is of a God whose love is so powerful and whose purpose is so sovereign that He will ultimately succeed in saving all He desires to save (which is everyone), not by violating our will, but by graciously and powerfully transforming it, ensuring His love wins in the end. His love is expressed not by letting us perish based on a flawed choice, but by ensuring, through Christ, that everyone ultimately receives life.

If salvation requires specific actions performed by other people, like a priest or pastor performing a water baptism, administering sacraments, or even just effectively preaching the "right" message that enables belief, then those other people logically become necessary components in the salvation process, essentially acting as co-saviors alongside Christ (and the individual's supposed "free will" choice).

You know what's similar to libertarian free will? Water baptism, why? Think about it, if water baptism is absolutely essential for salvation (as some denominations teach, often citing verses like Mark 16:16 or Acts 2:38 out of their specific dispensational context), then the person performing the baptism becomes indispensable. Without their action, salvation cannot occur according to that view. They aren't just helping; they are a necessary link in the chain, a co-savior facilitating the grace.

We could push it further. If salvation requires hearing and understanding the gospel preached in a specific way, does the preacher become a co-savior? If it requires confessing sins to a priest for absolution, is the priest a co-savior? If it requires partaking in the Eucharist administered by ordained clergy, are they co-saviors? If it requires being part of the "one true church" institution with its specific hierarchy and traditions, does the institution itself, and those who maintain it, become a collective co-savior? Following this logic, any system that adds human actions, rituals, or institutional requirements as necessary conditions for salvation inevitably elevates those human elements to a status of co-saviorship, detracting from the sufficiency of Christ's work alone.

This highlights the beauty and simplicity of the gospel of grace revealed through Paul. For the body of Christ today, salvation is entirely based on Christ's finished work (His death for our sins, burial, and resurrection) received through faith, which itself is a gift from God (Ephesians 2:8-9). There are no required human intermediaries, no necessary rituals performed by others, no institutional hoops to jump through. God saves directly through Christ by His Spirit the moment someone believes Paul's gospel (Ephesians 1:13).

What you (hopefully) just read above is an edited excerpt from a much longer article about the gospel. I bring up libertarian free will because it’s crucial to understand what it actually is, why it’s false, and the absurd conclusions it leads to. This understanding is essential for anyone who seeks to be a faithful member of the Body of Christ, and even necessary for salvation, since one cannot truly believe that Christ died for our sins if they think we contribute any works to earn it.

Galatians 2:21 - "I do not set aside the grace of God, for if righteousness could be gained through the law, Christ died for nothing!"

Psalm 115:3 - "But our God is in the heavens; He does whatever He pleases."