Can We Really Exercise Free Will?
- Thread starter LifelongLearner
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Luke 4:18-19 The Spirit of the Lord is on Me, because He has anointed Me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent Me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to release the oppressed, 19to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.
Romans 3 v 21-25a ~ Apart from the law, righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no distinction, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus. God presented Him as the atoning sacrifice through faith in His blood.
I think there’s also a simple point in that God always expresses his Will to man through his word. He reveals his plan To us beforehand and tells us the outcomes of we choose good or evil.
what I mean is someone might view “ gods Will “ as fixed and as of it doesn’t involve man’s Will and deeds . As of he just i poses his Will n e eryone and they have no agency or choice everyones just a pawn to him working a fixed plan
but what if this is his Will?
“And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.”
Genesis 1:26 KJV
“And the LORD God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it.
And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat:
but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.”
Genesis 2:15-17 KJV
and what if this happened after that ? Which wasn’t Gods Will but was Satan exploiting man’s freedom and dominion on earth ?
“And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die: for God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil. And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat. And they heard the voice of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day: and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God amongst the trees of the garden. And the LORD God called unto Adam, and said unto him, Where art thou? And he said, I heard thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself. And the LORD God said, Behold, the man is become as one of us, to know good and evil: and now, lest he put forth his hand, and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live for ever: therefore the LORD God sent him forth from the garden of Eden, to till the ground from whence he was taken. So he drove out the man; and he placed at the east of the garden of Eden Cherubims, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to keep the way of the tree of life.”
Genesis 3:4-6, 8-10, 22-24 KJV
See my point is what if God made us to be a very important part of his plan ? And if we don’t do our part his plan gets derailed for a time like this what if this isn’t actually Gods plan but was a result of mans sin and then knowing good and evil ?
What if this isn’t actually what God Willed but it’s his response to all the evil they caused in his creation like he says ?
“And GOD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. And it repented the LORD that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart. And the LORD said, I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth; both man, and beast, and the creeping thing, and the fowls of the air; for it repenteth me that I have made them.”
Genesis 6:5-7 KJV
maybe They caused tbat by rejecting his word and following the serpents word in Eden ? Maybe his plan is good for us but we caused something and then he’s responding to man’s dominion ??
Maybe God wasn’t” willing “ this until they derailed creation and filled ot with tbier wickedness ?
“The earth also was corrupt before God, and the earth was filled with violence. And God looked upon the earth, and, behold, it was corrupt; for all flesh had corrupted his way upon the earth. And God said unto Noah, The end of all flesh is come before me; for the earth is filled with violence through them; and, behold, I will destroy them with the earth.”
Genesis 6:11-13
It seems like man is an integral part of his plans and always have been possibly that’s why he’s trying to redeem us from all iniquity and wickedness for the new earth where righteousness will reign ….possibly just by reading the Bible we can see man’s important role in his plans for earth and so this dynamic is apparent the bifurcation of his plan regarding man’s choices between good and evil while on earth having dominion ……
“I call heaven and earth to record this day against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing: therefore choose life, that both thou and thy seed may live:”
Deuteronomy 30:19 KJV
could be blessing , could be a curse hes foretold both and said “the group who does this will reap this thing and the group that does this other thing will reap the other thing . “
“But after thy hardness and impenitent heart treasurest up unto thyself wrath against the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God; Who will render to every man according to his deeds: to them who by patient continuance in well doing seek for glory and honour and immortality, eternal life:
but unto them that are contentious, and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, indignation and wrath, tribulation and anguish, upon every soul of man that doeth evil, of the Jew first, and also of the Gentile; but glory, honour, and peace, to every man that worketh good, to the Jew first, and also to the Gentile: for there is no respect of persons with God.”
Romans 2:5-11 KJV
What if that’s his last plan that he’s told us the outcome of and said believe and be saved ? But if you don’t believe you’ll be damned ….
there seems to be two outcomes based on what man chooses gods foretold about the wicked and thier fate and the righteous and thoer fate also and told anyone who will listen to choose the good and live .
i think that’s his plan to offer man a choice between the good and evil in them telling us the end of both paths and it involves mans decision to submit thier Will back to his for thier own individual fate
