Can We Really Exercise Free Will?

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I would love to hear some of your experiences.

My friend, that has to be for another time. In Norway, it's 06:19 at the time writing, I have to sleep despite my sleeping disorder.

I have so much to say to you, but this is it for now. I wish you a pleasant night and a beautiful day tomorrow Magenta.
We talk again, another time.
God bless.

Je vous en pries.
 
My friend, that has to be for another time. In Norway, it's 06:19 at the time writing, I have to sleep despite my sleeping disorder.

I have so much to say to you, but this is it for now. I wish you a pleasant night and a beautiful day tomorrow Magenta.
We talk again, another time.
God bless.

Je vous en pries.
Très bien, merci, dormez bien, à bientôt !
 
John17-9Jeremiah24-7.png

I am not praying for the world, but for those You have given me, for they are Yours. John 17 v 9 I will give them a heart to know Me, that I am the LORD. They will be My people, and I will be their God, for they will return to Me with all their heart. Jeremiah 24 v 7
 
ok well that is good at least because that would be an issue if it was the case, the mystery of God being distinct from the gospel... well that I am so sure about because the gospel was a mystery that is why Jesus spoke to them in parables and rvealed the meaning to the apostles
Jesus spoke in parables concerning the mystery of the kingdom of heaven ... Jesus spoke in parables concerning the mystery of the kingdom of God ... Jesus directly preached the gospel ... He told His disciples that He would be crucified and He would be raised from the dead (the gospel). He told the Jews "destroy this temple and in three days I will raise it up" (the gospel).

If the gospel of Christ is the same as the wisdom of God in a mystery, the hidden wisdom ... then Paul lied when he claimed that this mystery was kept secret since the world began, but now is made manifest (Romans 16:25-26) ... which in other ages was not made known unto the sons of men, as it is now revealed (Ephesians 3:2-5) ... which hath been hid from ages and from generations, but now is made manifest (Colossians 1:25-26) ... when it was revealed to Paul

This wisdom of God in a mystery, the hidden wisdom is separate and distinct from the gospel of Christ.

According to Romans 16:25-26, this mystery of God was kept secret since the world began until God revealed to Paul what He had hidden:

Romans 16:25-26 Now to him that is of power to stablish you according to my gospel, and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery, which was kept secret since the world began, But now is made manifest, and by the scriptures of the prophets, according to the commandment of the everlasting God, made known to all nations for the obedience of faith


According to Ephesians 3:2-5, this mystery of God was not made known unto the sons of men until God revealed it to Paul:

Ephesians 3:2-5 If ye have heard of the dispensation of the grace of God which is given me to you-ward: How that by revelation he made known unto me the mystery; (as I wrote afore in few words, Whereby, when ye read, ye may understand my knowledge in the mystery of Christ) Which in other ages was not made known unto the sons of men, as it is now revealed unto his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit


According to Colossians 1:25-26, this mystery of God was hid from ages and from generations until God revealed it to Paul:

Colossians 1:25-26 Whereof I am made a minister, according to the dispensation of God which is given to me for you, to fulfil the word of God; Even the mystery which hath been hid from ages and from generations, but now is made manifest to his saints


Paul did not lie ... God's Word is true ...

if God's Word says something was kept secret since the world began until it was revealed to Paul, it was kept secret until God revealed it to Paul ...

if God's Word says something was not made known unto man until God revealed it to Paul, it was not made known until God revealed it to Paul ...

if God's Word says something has been hid from ages and from generations until God revealed it to Paul, it was hid from ages and generations until God revealed it to Paul.

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you never listened to my claim
not true, Jordon ... you said "the sarcastic free willer said when an unbeliver does good there doing evil" and I asked you to provide the post number.

don't know why you and @Magenta refuse to provide the post number ... other than "the sarcastic free willer" really did not say what you and @Magenta claim.

simple enough to clear up ...




Jordon said:
So now I'm claiming you don't listen
and that claim would be a lie.

.
 
I am of the opinion that regeneration must come first. In fact, I believe that it could take place years before actual trust and belief in the work of Christ. But, it certainly must come first.
Regeneration is simply God giving you a new heart in order to believe. This must be done because we are unable to even so much as desire the things of God.
In my case, I am convinced that the Spirit was working in me several years before actually placing my trust in Christ.
You're claiming the new heart was given prior to you "placing [your] trust in Christ".

The new heart is given by God at the time a person is born again ... not before.

And according to Ephesians 1:13 ...

Ephesians 1:13 And you also were included in Christ when you heard the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation. When you believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit

you trusted when you heard the word of truth ... you believed when you heard the gospel of your salvation ... you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise when you believed the gospel of salvation.

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Natural man follows the rules set by society. Sometimes those are good, sometimes not. Some societies think cannibalism is morally good. Some societies think human sacrifice is morally right.
Do you believe all the folks sitting in church pews are born again? ... there are no natural men in the congregation?

Not all natural men reject Scripture out of hand ... faith by hearing and hearing by the Word of God ... God's Word is living ... it is the Word of God that imparts life to those who do not suppress the truth in unrighteousness. Any time a person believes Scripture ... any Scripture ... God brings increase ... even if the Scripture believed is not the gospel of Christ which is the power of God unto salvation.

A person can believe the truth of Scripture and not be born again ... and that little kernel of truth which is believed is living and settles in the heart where God can work to bring increase.

that's just the way I understand it ... Scripture is so powerful ... Scripture is life and light and powerful.

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This is because men are moral beings by nature, as the Creator is. As such, we, through Conscience and Intuitive Revelation, know right from wrong. But this knowledge doesn't mean that the sons of men have any heart for God and want to know Him.
I do not believe natural man will seek after God unless and until God first reaches out to him or her. God always makes the first move.

I also believe that when God reaches out, not all continuously reject out of hand ... notwithstanding your insistence to the contrary.

There are a lot of natural men and women who believe God created the heavens and the earth. The fact that they believe in the Creator is indicative that God reached out to them.

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Sorry my friends.... but...
It's always interesting how you christians quarrel and disagree of this and that, even the most central theological issues. Why is that so? Shouldn't the holy spirit tell you all about these things? Why so much disagreement?
there are many verses wherein we are told to love one another ... example ...

1 Peter 3:8-11 Finally, be ye all of one mind, having compassion one of another, love as brethren, be pitiful, be courteous: Not rendering evil for evil, or railing for railing: but contrariwise blessing; knowing that ye are thereunto called, that ye should inherit a blessing. For he that will love life, and see good days, let him refrain his tongue from evil, and his lips that they speak no guile: Let him eschew evil, and do good; let him seek peace, and ensue it.

... we'll get there eventually ... might not be on this earth ... but there's another one coming ...

Revelation 22:1-5 And he shewed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb. In the midst of the street of it, and on either side of the river, was there the tree of life, which bare twelve manner of fruits, and yielded her fruit every month: and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. And there shall be no more curse: but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it; and his servants shall serve him: And they shall see his face; and his name shall be in their foreheads. And there shall be no night there; and they need no candle, neither light of the sun; for the Lord God giveth them light: and they shall reign for ever and ever.

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not true, Jordon ... you said "the sarcastic free willer said when an unbeliver does good there doing evil" and I asked you to provide the post number.

don't know why you and @Magenta refuse to provide the post number ... other than "the sarcastic free willer" really did not say what you and @Magenta claim.

simple enough to clear up ...





and that claim would be a lie.

.
well i wonder do you want to listen ? And I wonder could God go against your will to make you listen

I wonder in terms of percentage what percentage would you consider something you could find agreement on with me, would it be 99.9 percent true you could find agreement , or would it have to be 100 percent.

Fixed it for you 🙂😂🤩😍
 
Well, they completely miss the point or lie deliberately. I think it is six of one and half a dozen of
the other served up with a rotten attitude from both of them. Those learning from the Father are
not in a natural state. You would think they may have picked up on this by now, but no. It is asking
too much, apparently. Their complete lack of understanding what Scripture plainly says? Yikes.


1Corinthians2-14.png

The natural man does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God. For they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned. 1 Corinthians ch 2 v 14
Completely my point also, it's like they use one whole verse against you, when we say the natural doesn't hear, but to be honest I think some people are condemned by the scripture and not convicted, the evidence is plain to see in the way they react and blame, and hurl knee jerk reactions 😋 along with abusive comments, which in my book is the actions of those condemned by scripture
 
So in your book the Son doesn't set you free, He just turns you into a different type of slave? :confused:
He sets us free from sin yes and to be a slave of Christ is to be aumbissive to him as king so in a sense yes we become a different type of slave.
 
Jesus spoke in parables concerning the mystery of the kingdom of heaven ... Jesus spoke in parables concerning the mystery of the kingdom of God ... Jesus directly preached the gospel ... He told His disciples that He would be crucified and He would be raised from the dead (the gospel). He told the Jews "destroy this temple and in three days I will raise it up" (the gospel).

If the gospel of Christ is the same as the wisdom of God in a mystery, the hidden wisdom ... then Paul lied when he claimed that this mystery was kept secret since the world began, but now is made manifest (Romans 16:25-26) ... which in other ages was not made known unto the sons of men, as it is now revealed (Ephesians 3:2-5) ... which hath been hid from ages and from generations, but now is made manifest (Colossians 1:25-26) ... when it was revealed to Paul

This wisdom of God in a mystery, the hidden wisdom is separate and distinct from the gospel of Christ.

According to Romans 16:25-26, this mystery of God was kept secret since the world began until God revealed to Paul what He had hidden:

Romans 16:25-26 Now to him that is of power to stablish you according to my gospel, and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery, which was kept secret since the world began, But now is made manifest, and by the scriptures of the prophets, according to the commandment of the everlasting God, made known to all nations for the obedience of faith


According to Ephesians 3:2-5, this mystery of God was not made known unto the sons of men until God revealed it to Paul:

Ephesians 3:2-5 If ye have heard of the dispensation of the grace of God which is given me to you-ward: How that by revelation he made known unto me the mystery; (as I wrote afore in few words, Whereby, when ye read, ye may understand my knowledge in the mystery of Christ) Which in other ages was not made known unto the sons of men, as it is now revealed unto his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit


According to Colossians 1:25-26, this mystery of God was hid from ages and from generations until God revealed it to Paul:

Colossians 1:25-26 Whereof I am made a minister, according to the dispensation of God which is given to me for you, to fulfil the word of God; Even the mystery which hath been hid from ages and from generations, but now is made manifest to his saints


Paul did not lie ... God's Word is true ...

if God's Word says something was kept secret since the world began until it was revealed to Paul, it was kept secret until God revealed it to Paul ...

if God's Word says something was not made known unto man until God revealed it to Paul, it was not made known until God revealed it to Paul ...

if God's Word says something has been hid from ages and from generations until God revealed it to Paul, it was hid from ages and generations until God revealed it to Paul.

.
ok fair points
 
I have been set free from sin and death to righteousness. Are you a slave of sin or a slave of righteousness?
They don't like the word slave so they won't say either way but the scriptures even won't convince them either
 
You are assuming the grace God given in that moment is for the sole purpose of saving in that moment. There is a whole process of people receiving God's grace that leads to salvation before salvation is effected. There are those who reject that grace along the way and therefore are never given the grace of the Gospel which is the power of God unto salvation. The Romans 1 type springs to mind.

You keep making assumptions based on your own understanding. Stop putting my words in your world paradigm. One of the beautiful things about being created in God's image is our ability to be semi-transcendent. We can step out of our own shoes to some degree and put ourselves in the shoes of another. If we want to truly understand others, we have to do that sometimes. :)

I'm assuming nothing. I'm well aware that salvation is a process -- sometimes a very long process! But you are assuming that God gives saving grace in the first place to everyone in the world, which is not true. He limits his gift of grace to the humble per numerous scriptures. For God detests the PROUD! But He eternally loves the HUMBLE in Christ, for they have also been given the gift of the Fear of the Lord which existentially humbles their soul. (Study the Cornelius account in

Suppose I said to you: God bestows saving grace (not to be confused/conflated with common grace) to all Eskimos. Would you then continue to postulate that God gives that grace to everyone else in the world, as well?

And BTW, that "whole process" of receiving God's grace that leads to salvation is called Regeneration, which inevitably will morph into the new birth at which time the sinner is made fully aware/conscious of his new saving relationship with his Creator-Redeemer once he emerges from the darkness of the womb wherein he received life initially. (I'm a shameless stickler to remaining true to metaphors in scripture, since God speaks in such a manner for good reason!)

And just how many graces are there? First you talk of the grace that is a process then you speak of gospel grace. How many different kinds of saving grace are there?
 
TULIP/"doctrines of not grace" summarized:

God created a world where you can only want Him if He wants you.

and there’s literally nothing you can do about it

... but it is still your fault.


Let all non-scriptural Total Inability adherents proclaim this to all friends and family during this Christmas Season.
Tidings of great comfort and joy abound for them!! :rolleyes:
 
Huh? No idea what you are on about. We have established men, apart from grace, are bound to sin so why should it be surprising they commit evil?

And He doesn't set the will free permanently until one is in Christ (saved) so your whole argument falls on it's face.

Let's face it. You really have no real idea of what I believe and why. You keep accusing me of stuff that has no place in my world view.

sigh

have a nice day Rufus. :)

Classical Doublespeak! God permanently sets the hearts of men free from bondage after they repent and believe and He doesn't really set men totally free in the beginning of the process. God plays games in other words. He's an Indian Giver. He gives temporary grace that is useless and then gives permanent grace that is useful and utilitarian in nature. :rolleyes: This is like saying that a fireman extends his hook and ladder a few feet short of a window in a building that is billowing smoke out of it to see if anyone inside building will stick their heads outside the window in faith to look for the fireman and his ladder. If someone does, he extends the ladder further to reach the window. If no one does, they die. The first shot with the ladder represents temporary/probationary grace, while the second shot represents permanent/pardoning grace. :rolleyes: