Can We Really Exercise Free Will?

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Yes, I realize. By your super-human interpretive abilities, you were able to find the one quirk in the Greek that no expert has yet ever been able to find even after hundreds of years of search and examination. I stand in awe of your greatness.
Henry Alford written 1849-1861 – bold mine

1 Cor 2:6
ἐν τ. τελείοις] among the perfect,—when discoursing to those who are not babes in Christ, but of sufficient maturity to have their senses exercised (Hebrews 4:14) so as to discern good and evil. That this is the right interpretation the whole following context shews, and especially ch. 3:1, 2, where a difference is laid down between the milk administered to babes, and the strong meat to men. The difference is in the matter of the teaching itself: there is a lower, and there is a higher teaching.
‘we speak God’s wisdom in a mystery,’ i.e. as handling a mystery, dealing with a mystery. So τὴν σύνεσίν μου ἐν τῷ μυστ. τ. χριστοῦ, Ephesians 3:4.
... which has been (hitherto) hidden (see Romans 16:25; ref. Col.):—which God foreordained (nothing need be supplied, as ἀποκαλύπτειν, or the like, after προώρισεν) before the ages (of time) to (in order to, the purpose of this preordination) our glory (our participation in the things which He has prepared for them that love Him


Joseph Benson written 1811-1818 – bold mine:
1 Cor 2:6
Such are here meant by them that are perfect — That is, perfectly enlightened by the Word and Spirit of God, and renewed by his grace, so as to have attained to a maturity of Christian knowledge and experience: being no longer children, but men in understanding, (1 Corinthians 14:20,) having arrived at spiritual manhood, called, Ephesians 4:13, the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ. See also Hebrews 5:14; Hebrews 6:1, where τελειοι, perfect, is taken in the same sense, and is rendered, of full age, and signifies those who no longer need to be fed with milk, being able to digest strong meat, having, by reason of use, or habit, their senses exercised to discern both good and evil.
Expositor's Greek New Testament published in 1897 – bold mine:
... he tells us that in these circumstances, speaking "among the perfect," or in presence of fairly mature Christians, he made no scruple of unfolding the "wisdom" or philosophy of Christ’s truth. To expound the deeper truths revealed by Christ was useless or even hurtful to mere "babes" in Christ or to those who as yet were not even born again; but to the adolescent and to those who might lay claim to have attained some firm manhood of Christian character, he was forward to teach all he himself knew.
Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible written between 1746 and 1748 – bold mine
Though it was not esteemed so by all men, yet among, or with them that are perfect; adult, at age, opposed to babes and children; such who have their understandings enlightened by the spirit of wisdom and revelation; who have their senses exercised to discern between divine and human wisdom; and who are perfect in a comparative sense, having more spiritual knowledge and understanding than others ...


"experts" have been able to find what has been stated over and over in the pages of this thread about this section in 1 Cor 2:6-16 ... and it has been taught for hundreds of years.

When Paul taught the general congregation ... which consisted of unregenerate, and newborn babes in Christ, as well as those who were mature ... he taught the milk of the word ... the gospel of Christ (1 Cor 2:2).

When Paul got together with more mature believers, he taught the meat of the Word ... spiritual truths which go beyond the scope of the gospel of Christ.
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AI Gifts of the Holy Spirit The gifts of the Holy Spirit are supernatural abilities, talents, or spiritual powers given by God to believers to empower them to serve Him and the church.
That kind of gift does not require you to hold your hand out to receive it!
Those Gifts only come [(AFTER)] a person is saved.
 
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The fact that mankind knows there is a God attests to the fact that God reaches out to mankind to reveal Himself.

And the fact that folks who are not born again know there is a God Who created the heavens and the earth as well as believe other truths written in Scripture attests to the fact that natural man can know and believe God and Scripture even though they are not born again.

And you "elect" folks were in the same boat as all descendants of Adam prior to being born again. There was/is) no subset of humanity ... you were dead in trespasses and sins; you walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience; you fulfilled the desires of the flesh; you were children of wrath ... just as all descendants of Adam.





According to Scripture it is the gospel of Christ which saves people. Until a person believes the gospel of Christ and is saved, he or she can only know about God.

To know God, one must be born again. It is only then that the Lord Jesus Christ can begin revealing the Father.
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Agree. Gnosis vs epignosis .
 
God gives life. People act as if they had to do something to receive it.

Look at Adam. A lump of clay, basically, and God breathed the breath of life into him.

What did Adam do to receive it? Did he have to do anything?

To hear people here talk, he did. But they are wrong, of course.

He did not have to will himself to breathe or do anything to receive it. He lived, because God willed it, and made it happen.
Nope. Eternal life is a UNIQUE gift made available ONLY by the sacrifice of the Son. This is a work of REDEMPTION.

THIS gift is OFFERED and must be RECEIVED to complete the SPIRITUAL TRANSACTION.

You do grievously err.
 
You need some back ground.....


Do you know the setting of what was going on when Jeremiah gave his warning to the rebellious Jews who were about to be judged by God?

They had been holding pagan rituals out in fields, with sex orgies, and throwing their children into fire alive.

what's the world doing today, and what's going to happen to it?
 
Well, maybe "my guy" was wrong. I can accept that simply to avoid arguing with you and not change a thing. No man was to be found.

Now...

In Genesis 1:27? God created the man "out from nothing." = the soul.
In Genesi 2, God was not creating man out from nothing, but molded and formed (jatsar) from the earth a body for that soul.

So, you got something wrong about that racism problem. Genesis 1:27 and the body in Genesis 2 are both the same man. Not two different men as the racists like to push on us.

"My guy" was not differentiating between Genesis 1:27 (creation of only the soul), and Genesis 2 where the body was provided for that soul. For it was all one and the same man that God created, which took place in two stages to manifest him.


So? Either way you want to see it? No man was existing in the time Jeremiah spoke of in Jeremiah 4. But, we can know animals did.
And, Jeremiah stated that all was utterly destroyed! Nothing left!
That is why Jeremiah needed to back track after telling the Jews about what took place in Genesis 1:2.
For if Jeremiah had not? They would think the Jewish people would be wiped out and been no more.

Jeremiah 4:27, had to tell they Jews that they will not be utterly destroyed, like what Jeremiah spoke of to give the Jews an idea how severe his judgment was to upon them.

This is what the Lord says:
“The whole land will be ruined,
though I will not destroy it completely."

The Jews knew Hebrew. They knew that Genesis 1:2 spoke of the earth having been utterly destroyed.
That is why Jeremiah had to make it clear that their destruction was not to be as severe!

Genesis 1 and Genesis 2 are not two different creations any more than Matthew Mark, Luke and John are 4 different Messiahs.
 
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God gives life. People act as if they had to do something to receive it.

Look at Adam. A lump of clay, basically, and God breathed the breath of life into him.

What did Adam do to receive it? Did he have to do anything?

To hear people here talk, he did. But they are wrong, of course.

He did not have to will himself to breathe or do anything to receive it. He lived, because God willed it, and made it happen.
Adam sinned of his own FREE WILL.
The Savior (and forgiveness of sin that He offers) must likewise be appropriated by an act of your own FREE WILL.

THEN you will EXEMPLIFY the fact that you have RECEIVED the OFFER of forgiveness of sins (being fully informed and having given CONSENT) by the public ritual of BAPTISM.

Rom 6:3 - Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death?
Rom 6:4 - Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.

Tell me @Magenta @Cameron143 @rogerg @Rufus is the sober solemn ritual of BAPTISM always and only done as a public act under the premise that it is being done of one's own FREE WILL with FULL KNOWLEDGE and CONSENT?

Yes or no?

No free will volitional baptism, no resurrection. That's how it works.
 
God gives life. People act as if they had to do something to receive it.

Rather... They must be something to receive it.

They must be positive to the drawing of God.


But as many as received Him, to them, He gave the right to become children of God,
to those who believe in His name."


John 1:12
 
Genesis 1 and Genesis 2 are not two different creations any more than Matthew Mark, Luke and John are 4 different Messiahs.


I did not say Genesis 1 and 2 were two different creations.
You are consistently reading me wrong...
 
God gives life. People act as if they had to do something to receive it.

Look at Adam. A lump of clay, basically, and God breathed the breath of life into him.

What did Adam do to receive it? Did he have to do anything?

To hear people here talk, he did. But they are wrong, of course.

He did not have to will himself to breathe or do anything to receive it. He lived, because God willed it, and made it happen.
lol easy thinking lol I like it 🤣, but I was thinking the same thing, God also created mankind with ears to listen, and a nostril to smell, and taste buds, I mean wow, I realised I could receive a gift after not receiving it, when it comes to God.
 
Have to be spiritually alive to comprehend things spiritual. Did you understand the verse? It is explained very clearly in it - that spiritual discernment cannot come by man it must be given by the Holy Spirit. By that, should someone believe that they can, or have, given themselves spiritual life and understanding, by that, they demonstrate they haven't. Read it again.

Do you not understand right and wrong is a moral issue as well as a spiritual issue?
 
Rather... They must be something to receive it.

They must be positive to the drawing of God.


But as many as received Him, to them, He gave the right to become children of God,
to those who believe in His name."


John 1:12
Yes it's the process in recieving him,

Like some people would realise a pricked conscience is a gift from God, filled with strength and his will and his help and they will receive it.

Part of the process in recieving is the the prick disciplines the nature into making a right choice, it's like when you go to say something but you stop, or when you go to move and you you get caught in two minds as to which direction to go, and a left turn can be made rightly.

At this moment you can ignore the prick, but the prick is speaking directly to your emotions, your pride. So sometimes the pride takes over and kicks back.

But the prick is more powerful as it's God's Gift to the unsaved, all unsaved people in fact.

It's quite funny when you think about it, the world is full of ox people.

The prick pricks some more and the ox people shout and they yell.
And one day they give up and the surrender. 🤩
 
Do you not understand right and wrong is a moral issue as well as a spiritual issue?

For those who are given Him (His elect), there is no sin greater than the power of the forgiveness in Christ Jesus by God's mercy and grace
 
For those who are given Him (His elect), there is no sin greater than the power of the forgiveness in Christ Jesus by God's mercy and grace
The solemn act of Baptism destroys all things Calvinism.
 
lol easy thinking lol I like it 🤣, but I was thinking the same thing, God also created mankind with ears to listen, and a nostril to smell, and taste buds, I mean wow, I realised I could receive a gift after not receiving it, when it comes to God.
So what?

How does knowing that (if it were true) get you to being mature and knowing the other 99.999999% of the Bible?

You guys are stuck in one tiny little spot.
You never grow beyond it.

Come back in ten years? You'll still be harping on the same banner of your self-glorying in what you think you know.

It's stupid!
For... No one can win such an argument.
It's a vicious cycle in reasoning.
And, that’s all they argue about.

I think Satan has a bunch of believers trapped in a no-growth state.
And, he likes it that way.

Keep in mind.
God has provided a few good teachers who are always growing.
They will be leading others as they themselves mature to join them in maturing in Christ.

This is dumb.
No spiritual growth.
Only an introspective, subjective, delusion of getting stronger and stronger in their one doctrine mentality.

And, ironically. They do it all by their free will to do so.

:coffee::coffee::coffee:
 
I would expect that kind of comment from someone who, contrary to scripture, doesn't believe that Jesus Christ alone is Savior,
Dodging tough issues with senseless and false accusations?
You have hit rock bottom....:rolleyes:
 
Yes it's the process in recieving him,

Doing so was an act of free will.

A will that has been made free by God's grace, controlling the flesh as to not interfere and prohibit the desires of the Spirit for advancing the believer's spiritual life into gaining phenomenal amounts of knowledge from God's Word.
Knowledge from understanding many passages, not just the few pet doctrines, that some raise their banners of delusional victory about to rally together around.

We are not to remain spiritual babies as many do today.

There is much more to learn than many can imagine.

Therefore, let us move beyond the elementary teachings about Christ and be taken forward to maturity,
not laying again the foundation of repentance from acts that lead to death, and of faith in God."

Hebrews 6:1