Can We Really Exercise Free Will?

  • Christian Chat is a moderated online Christian community allowing Christians around the world to fellowship with each other in real time chat via webcam, voice, and text, with the Christian Chat app. You can also start or participate in a Bible-based discussion here in the Christian Chat Forums, where members can also share with each other their own videos, pictures, or favorite Christian music.

    If you are a Christian and need encouragement and fellowship, we're here for you! If you are not a Christian but interested in knowing more about Jesus our Lord, you're also welcome! Want to know what the Bible says, and how you can apply it to your life? Join us!

    To make new Christian friends now around the world, click here to join Christian Chat.
Jesus said: “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You shut the door of the kingdom of
heaven in people’s faces. You yourselves do not enter, nor will you let those enter who are trying to.” (Matthew 23:13).

Revelation3-8-Luke13-24.png

Revelation 3 verse 8; Luke 13 verse 24 ~ Behold, I have placed before you an open door, which no one can shut. Make every effort to enter through the narrow door. For many, I tell you, will try to enter and will not be able.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Cameron143
Really? You asked me before how I shared the gospel and it was nothing like what you shared in your earlier post.
The re-birth lottery is not the gospel message. It is however a permutation of an old heresy warmed over. One that Jesus Himself corrected and dealt with many times.
 
  • Like
Reactions: HeIsHere
Balthasar Hubmaier (1845 - 1528) was burned at the stake, and his wife thrown into a river with a rock tied to her neck, for teaching that God designed people with the ability to choose.

Hubmaier wrote that God “wills and draws all men unto salvation. Yet choice is still left to man, since God wants him without pressure, unconstrained, under no compulsion.”

“It is a false God who would say the words, “Come here,” and yet in secret in his heart thinks, “Sit yonder.”

Spiritual and Anabaptist Writers, p. 135. Second Hubmaier quote: Vedder, 'Balthasar Hubmaier', p. 197.
 
Revelation3-8-Luke13-24.png

Revelation 3 verse 8; Luke 13 verse 24 ~ Behold, I have placed before you an open door, which no one can shut. Make every effort to enter through the narrow door. For many, I tell you, will try to enter and will not be able.
Salvation is "believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and you shall be saved..."

Not many MAKE THE EFFORT to enter through the narrow door..........MATURITY.
 
  • Like
Reactions: HeIsHere
I also notice a lot of smoldering dislike/distain for our elder brothers the nation Israel. Whom God loves with an eternal perfect love.

I have no animosity at all for the nation of Israel and in fact admire them greatly as an earthly nation, nevertheless, their special relationship with God ended due to their spiritual fortification. As a result of that, God divorced them. Spiritual Israel, which is comprised of all of the elect/saved (Jew and Gentile alike), is now the nation of God.
 
So fix it.

Obviously everyone on the freewill side can't make hide nor hair of what you actually believe.

1. Belief is a work. So we can't believe to be saved.

2 . None can believe to be saved. We are saved to believe.

Help us out? If you don't believe these 2 points........I have lied and apologize.
Faith is the product of the work of the Spirit employing the word of God. One is saved through faith. We believe as a result of the work of God in us.

For the record, this isn't new. I've consistently espoused this. You don't understand what I believe because you don't care to. And your lie has nothing to do with any of this but in your false characterization of how others share the gospel. Since I personally gave an account to you, I know you are lying. But you aren't alone. There are a host of posters who do the same thing.
 
It is total; however, as a part of becoming saved/born again, God discards the old natural man within us in its entirety and replaces with the new man. God does it all, man does nothing.

You are still not thinking clearly, and do not understand what the verses you quote are saying.

OK...

Here!

If God, as you say, discards the 'old man?'

What is God left to work with?
If man is TOTALLY depraved?
TOTALLY...

To discard the old man?
Would mean a man would vaporize and no longer exist.

You keep forgetting that our depravity came from Adam's procreation.
It's the body that is the culprit.
The soul is enslaved to the body.

Eliminate the body and have the soul be alone?
That soul would have the ability to make a choice for God if the Holy Spirit was enabling that soul to see what is required to make a choice.

Grace isolates the depravity of the flesh over the soul, so that soul would be as good as outside the body in the effect.

Grace found a way!
The only thing God forces to happen while a person is being witnessed to by the Spirit, is to have the flesh shut up,
and leave the soul be, to make up its own mind.

That is why God saves the soul, not the body.

I have been crucified with Christ! Galatians 2:20a.​

grace and peace .........

........
 
Many have probably realised i don't think we can exercise free will, even think it's impossible for us to. Won't explain why i think it's an impossiblility for us yet, think it's useful for some to express why they think it exists first.

I have no doubt we have and can make choices throughout life, however, think our options are far more restricted than most realise. What do you think?

Free will is having the power to choose between two things. Loving God or not, going to church or not, being Christian or Muslim, Marrying a fat man or a thin man. going to Heaven, or to Hell, doing good or bad. All through life we are going to be making choices as you have said but weigh the choice you are going to make on the scripture. Deuteronomy 30:19, states: "I call heaven and earth to witness against you today, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and curse. Therefore choose life, that you and your offspring may live."
God has given us the freedom to choose but He has warned us that one way leads to life and the other to death.
 
The re-birth lottery is not the gospel message. It is however a permutation of an old heresy warmed over. One that Jesus Himself corrected and dealt with many times.
You would have to show a post wherein I shared the "rebirth lottery " as the gospel to be correct. If you have one please share it. Otherwise, you are just another in a long line of liars.
 
Free will is having the power to choose between two things. Loving God or not, going to church or not, being Christian or Muslim, Marrying a fat man or a thin man. going to Heaven, or to Hell, doing good or bad. All through life we are going to be making choices as you have said but weigh the choice you are going to make on the scripture. Deuteronomy 30:19, states: "I call heaven and earth to witness against you today, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and curse. Therefore choose life, that you and your offspring may live."
God has given us the freedom to choose but He has warned us that one way leads to life and the other to death.
Objective free will is baked in the creation cake. God made it because God wants it.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Kroogz
Why is it "shall be saved" and not "are saved"?
The Greek and tenses.

Believe(aorist tense) on the Lord Jesus and you shall be saved(future tense)......

This is a mess to copy and paste, so here is the link:

https://www.scripture4all.org/OnlineInterlinear/NTpdf/act16.pdf


16:31 oi hoi G3588 t_ Nom Pl m THE de de G1161 Conj YET eipon eipon G2036 vi 2Aor Act 3 Pl THEY-said pisteuson pisteuson G4100 vm Aor Act 2 Sg BELIEVE believe-you ! epi epi G1909 Prep ON ton ton G3588 t_ Acc Sg m THE kurion kurion G2962 n_ Acc Sg m Master Lord ihsoun iEsoun G2424 n_ Acc Sg m JESUS criston christon G5547 n_ Acc Sg m ANOINTED Christ And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house. 31 Acts 16 ScrTR : ScrTR_t 1.0 / Strong 1.0 / Parsing 1.1 / CGTS 1.5 / CGES_id 2.3 Translation : AV © 2010 Scripture4all Foundation - www.scripture4all.org kai kai G2532 Conj AND swqhsh sOthEsE G4982 vi Fut Pas 2 Sg YOU-SHALL-BE-BEING-SAVED su su G4771 pp 2 Nom Sg YOU kai kai G2532 Conj AND o ho G3588 t_ Nom Sg m THE oikos oikos G3624 n_ Nom Sg m HOME household sou sou G4675 pp 2 Gen Sg OF-YOU
 
You would have to show a post wherein I shared the "rebirth lottery " as the gospel to be correct. If you have one please share it. Otherwise, you are just another in a long line of liars.

That was a typo, it was meant to be pre-birth, obviously!!
Now apologize, lol
 
  • Like
Reactions: cv5
You are still not thinking clearly, and do not understand what the verses you quote are saying.

OK...

Here!

If God, as you say, discards the 'old man?'

What is God left to work with?
If man is TOTALLY depraved?
TOTALLY...

And I guess you didn't understand the verses I posted. So, ok, let's try this: He replaces the old with the new. The condition of the old, in its totality become irrelevant because they become replaced by God with the new. It is the new that matters, not the old, unless, of course, we happen to be of those who are not given the new.
 
Objective free will is baked in the creation cake. God made it because God wants it.

If man has no free will?
Then, God failed to make man in His image.

Having a free will means one can mess up his life.
Omnipotence and omnipresence... and omniscience on the other hand, does not need to concern oneself with one's choices.
We do.