Can We Really Exercise Free Will?

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Ok since you asked so there you are walking along and all of a sudden a queen cockroach walks in from of you,

Do you stand on its head

Or do you stand there and admire it nice colours on its wings, and then stand on its head

Or do you admire it nice colours on it's wings and stand there and look over it, and then watch it for a while before walking away.

i take a picture

if it's in my house i get a cup, catch it and let it go in the woods
 
i take a picture

if it's in my house i get a cup, catch it and let it go in the woods
I was talking about an emerald cockroach lol.

Ok try this


I would imagine God has a lot of pricking to do this morning.

But he may have made it easy for himself as he's known to be layed back character, there could be a prick (a needle) that bursts out of of every heart of stone every time there is wrong choice 🤩

God does talk about needles, it could be where like camels at first
 
He has been forking over a lot of straw lately.
So, I'll suppose that I'm left with having to sharpen my skills against you and @sawdust in this case, as straw merely blows away whenever one attempts to fence with it. So then, en garde! :LOL:

When Zach and Elizabeth's son, John, said, "I must decrease...," he was illustrating the freewill equation of the true representation of the free will position, minus man plus God. However, in John's recognition of the 'must' rather than the 'will,' he acknowledges his personal awareness that he is lesser than God. That is, as opposed to 'will be made lesser' by God, he recognizes the significance in humbling himself, to save the Lord's further aggravation especially in his full appreciation that He is, indeed, 'the Lamb Who takes away the sins of the world."

What do you think that I should practice on? Should I work on my Lunge, Quarte, Sixte, or Septime?
 
So, I'll suppose that I'm left with having to sharpen my skills against you and @sawdust in this case, as straw merely blows away whenever one attempts to fence with it. So then, en garde! :LOL:

When Zach and Elizabeth's son, John, said, "I must decrease...," he was illustrating the freewill equation of the true representation of the free will position, minus man plus God. However, in John's recognition of the 'must' rather than the 'will,' he acknowledges his personal awareness that he is lesser than God. That is, as opposed to 'will be made lesser' by God, he recognizes the significance in humbling himself, to save the Lord's further aggravation especially in his full appreciation that He is, indeed, 'the Lamb Who takes away the sins of the world."

What do you think that I should practice on? Should I work on my Lunge, Quarte, Sixte, or Septime?

to parry is foremost; we do not win any exchange that we do not survive :)
 
Is this a true representation of the free will debate? Human Vs. Divine Nature? Or is it just a straw man?

it's probably not, no. but what is?

((straps on gauntlets))

i think the juxtaposition of wills is a better representation than several typical nomenclatures, like..

free-will vs predestination ((as tho they can't mutually exist)) or calvinism vs pelagianism ((why drag human names into this)) or sovereignty vs synergism ((any time i see the word sovereign it seems to me the question is moot)) or election vs choice

it may not be the crux, but i do think that central to the topic is what part the will of God and the will of man play relative to each other in our common salvation

((adopts iron-gate stance))
 
What a load of rubbish! According to your philosophy it is impossible for me not to believe or it's impossible for me to hear the truth and believe so your own words are your undoing.

It is not impossible that you to hear the truth and believe but to hear it is from God and not man - you attribute hearing to the
wrong source. Man is saved not because of his belief but by (God's) grace through Jesus Christ - belief comes from that grace.
 
It is not impossible that you to hear the truth and believe but to hear it is from God and not man - you attribute hearing to the
wrong source. Man is saved not because of his belief but by (God's) grace through Jesus Christ - belief comes from that grace.

Is man saved by grace through faith?
 
Grace through Christ's faith, not man's faith. Christ was faithful to the Father which faith brought forth grace and salvation

What does that even mean? How can a person have another person's faith? Faith is being persuaded by and putting confidence in something someone says, in this particular case, the gospel.
 
What does that even mean? How can a person have another person's faith? Faith is being persuaded by and putting confidence in something someone says, in this particular case, the gospel.

What does your question even mean? Who said that a person has another person's faith? Everything pertaining to salvation, including the satisfying of the Father's requirements, were satisfied by Christ as Savior. Therefore, everyone who is given salvation, is given it as a gift from God. Is it that difficult to understand?
 
What does your question even mean? Who said that a person has another person's faith? Everything pertaining to salvation, including the satisfying of the Father's requirements, were satisfied by Christ as Savior. Therefore, everyone who is given salvation, is given it as a gift from God. Is it that difficult to understand?

Yes, God's requirements were fulfilled by Christ, or his faith as you say it, but you're not Christ. You have to receive his righteousness, and that is imputed to you through faith, ie believing the gospel
 
Yes, God's requirements were fulfilled by Christ, or his faith as you say it, but you're not Christ. You have to receive his righteousness, and that is imputed to you through faith, ie believing the gospel

That is so wrong it's difficult for me to even reply to it. If the requirements were fulfilled by Christ as you said and with which I agree, then there is nothing remaining for those who are to be saved to do to complete it, even to include receiving it, nor therefore is there a requirement for them to believe to receive it - that belief comes from salvation it doesn't bring salvation. As you said, Christ did it all, remember?
 
Exodus 16:4​
Then said the LORD unto Moses, Behold, I will rain bread from heaven for you; and the people shall go out and gather a certain rate every day, that I may prove them, whether they will walk in my law, or no.
does omniscient God, Who created each soul, already know the answer?

Knowing is different than selecting, yes?
 
I will speak of Your testimonies before kings, and I will not be ashamed.
You should be ashamed. Ashamed of your false doctrine regarding Mary and the Holy Spirit.
The incident of 2 Samuel 11-12 (rape of Bathsheba) proves conclusively the contrary.

In this situation, Uriah is a type of Adam, Bathsheba a type of Eve, David a type of Satan.
Uriah had to make a fateful CHOICE to "save" his FORMERLY "clean" and innocent wife Bathsheba.....by sacrificing himself.

All of this utterly destroys @Rufus' aberrant views of Adam as well.

Neither of you understand any of this of course. And I doubt that you ever will. Too bad so sad.

2Sa 11:27
And when the mourning was past, David sent and fetched her to his house, and she became his wife, and bare him a son. But the thing that David had done displeased the LORD.

2Sa 12:9
Wherefore hast thou despised the commandment of the LORD, to do evil in his sight? thou hast killed Uriah the Hittite with the sword, and hast taken his wife to be thy wife, and hast slain him with the sword of the children of Ammon.
 
That is so wrong it's difficult for me to even reply to it. If the requirements were fulfilled by Christ as you said and with which I agree, then there is nothing remaining for those who are to be saved to do to complete it, even to include receiving it, nor therefore is there a requirement for them to believe to receive it - that belief comes from salvation it doesn't bring salvation. As you said, Christ did it all, remember?

It's difficult for you to explain how what I said is wrong because there is no scriptural basis for what you think is right. I have basically said verbatim what scripture says.

Are you saying that people merely have to realize that they have already been saved? That they are already perfected spiritual beings who have no need for faith?
 
So what you are really saying that you had this "feeling" that you "pre-knew" the gospel if and when you supposedly heard it, and therefore concluded that you must have won the "pre-birth sovereign lottery"?

And your views on soteriology are a result of the foregoing?

I am quite sure that this is precisely @Magenta 's testimony as well. Correct?

What do you think @studier @HeIsHere ? Make any sense?

Makes no sense.
Individual salvation occurs in real time.
 
That is so wrong it's difficult for me to even reply to it. If the requirements were fulfilled by Christ as you said and with which I agree, then there is nothing remaining for those who are to be saved to do to complete it, even to include receiving it, nor therefore is there a requirement for them to believe to receive it - that belief comes from salvation it doesn't bring salvation. As you said, Christ did it all, remember?
False.
The expression made by each person at Baptism destroys your aberrant views on the matter.
As does the entire Bible for all intents and purposes.