Scott Warren, ETS National Conference, November 17, 2005
Page 9
If we were to respond to the statement "God cannot lie." by asking "Really?
Not even if he wanted to?" we would quickly uncover the real proposition of the
text. The point is clearly that God would not want to. In some sense, he could not
want to. It is unthinkable. His character is pure. But this is plainly a different
sense of "could" than the normal usage. "Would" has been made into "could" for
effect. The point here is that there is no possibility that God will, for instance, act
wickedly even though he is absolutely free.
21
The reason is plain with the model
presented here. God does not have both of the prerequisites to do so freely ability
and inclination. While he surely has the ability, he certainly lacks the inclination.
That being so, God's acting wickedly is an impossible outcome.
We find the same thing in our ordinary language as well. Consider the folk
tale we have heard about George Washington's truthfulness in admitting his guilt
by saying "Father, I cannot tell a lie, I chopped down your cherry tree." The truth
of the tale is irrelevant here. We know the point the story is intended to make. It is
not meant to suggest in any sense that Washington was weak, or lacked some
functional capability that other children have. He was not saying, "I would like to
lie, but I lack the ability to do so." It is a story about the founder's strength of
character, not his weakness of ability. Though he could lie, he would not. It is a
statement positive in nature, not negative, though it employs negative language to
make the point more dramatically.
We frequently employ the same convention of language in ordinary
discourse. Consider the common statement "I just couldn't do _______" where the
action in question might mean speaking to a certain person, standing up in front of a
crowd, deceiving a friend, or any number of things. The statement may indicate
either a weakness
22
or a strength
23
of character. Either way it is a statement about
character and inclination, not ability in the strict sense. It is merely a convention of
language.
21
By absolute freedom, I meant that there are no limits on his freedom, or ability. God can do
anything he wants, though there are many things that he clearly does not, and never will, want to do.
22
E.g., "I lack the courage to do the thing in question."
23
E.g., "I will not violate my conscience or my love a friend."