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FREE
WILL
There
is a question in the minds and hearts of many Christians ...
Do we, as Christians have Free Will
OR
Are
all of our Choices pre-determined?
In
other words ... Do we have the freedom to choose or are our
choices made for us by cause, circumstance and external
factors leading to a destiny already planned out for us?
This
ideology that there is a pre-determined plan for our lives and
we are just sojourning down this pre-determined path is what is
titled by many as Determinism.
You
see ... We Christians believe that God is omniscience or all
knowing and therefore knows what is going to happen before
it does. So He has determined what is to be.
We believe this because He has prophesied future events
throughout the Bible.
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Isaiah 46:9-10
Remember the former things of old: for
I am God,
and there is none else; I am God, and there is none
like me,
declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient
times the things that are not yet done,
saying, My counsel shall stand, and I will do all my
pleasure: |
It is obvious
that God DOES know what will be in the END.
Sooooooo, the
question becomes ...
Can
Free Will exist on a predetermined path?
Many Religious researchers, like to ask ...
IF God has already determined what is to be, how is it that
humans have Free Will ... Which is the ability to FREELY
CHOOSE to do our own will.
WELL I
HAVE A QUESTION FOR YOU ...
WHY MUST IT BE ONE OR THE OTHER?
Is it because
mankind's limited carnal mind has such limited Spiritual
insight? Why do some tend to put God in a lil box and limit
Him to their understanding?
WHAT IF ...
FATE is the
result of
our
day to day choices that
we make by applying our free will, which our Lord allows us
to use ...
BUT
DESTINY is
where we will be in the END and God knows that outcome.
Let's be
honest ...
God DID give
man Free Will to make their own Choices from the start ...
Adam
and Eve were given Free Will.
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Genesis 2:16-17
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. |
This
reveals that God commanded that they NOT do something and
yet said IF they CHOSE to do so, they would suffer
consequences of said CHOICE.
Well
... We ALL know that they DID exercise their FREE WILL and
CHOSE to eat from the TREE.
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Genesis 3:6
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. |
Their
CHOICE ... Has affected every human born from that day on.
Due to this Choice made by the first man and woman
... The Sin is now in the flesh of all mankind and when we are born,
we are
destined
to death ...
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Romans
5:12
Wherefore, as by one man sin
entered into the world, and death by sin; and
so death passed
upon all men,
for that all have sinned. |
UNLESS we make the CHOICE to believe in Jesus. When we become
Christians, we are REBORN and receive
Salvation and Eternal
Life. This New Covenant
of Grace ... Has the
destiny of death
made void by the
Blood of Jesus.
So
Adam and Eve DID have FREE WILL and their CHOICE did have
consequences that changed the DESTINY of all humans ...
BUT ... GOD has given us another way to return to the
original
predestined path before Adam and Eve's CHOICE altered the
destiny ...
BUT ... We must use our Free Will yet again
and CHOOSE to believe in Jesus.
Another Example ... God promised Abraham a son would be
conceived by Sarah.
BUT
... Sarah and Abraham utilized their Free Will and CHOSE to
take matters in their own hands.
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Genesis 16:2
And Sarai said unto Abram, Behold now, the LORD hath
restrained me from bearing: I pray thee,
go in unto my maid; it may be that I may obtain
children by her.
And Abram hearkened to the voice of Sarai. |
The
chain of events resulting from their exercising Free Will
and their CHOICE had another bloodline created through that
child (Ishmael) which are still warring with the Jewish
people to this day.
Of Course God
DID keep His promise to Abraham and Sarah bore a child named
Isaac.
Even
Angels have Free Will ...
|
Genesis 6:2
That the sons of God saw the daughters of men that
they were fair; and they took them wives of all which
they chose. |
There
were also Freewill offerings
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Leviticus 22:18-23
Speak unto Aaron, and to his sons, and unto all the
children of Israel, and say unto them, Whatsoever he
be of the house of Israel, or of the strangers in
Israel, that will offer his oblation for all his vows,
and for all his
freewill
offerings, which they will offer unto the LORD for a
burnt offering; Ye shall offer
at your own will
a male without blemish, of the beeves, of the sheep,
or of the goats. But whatsoever hath a blemish, that
shall ye not offer: for it shall not be acceptable for
you. And whosoever offereth a sacrifice of peace
offerings unto the LORD to accomplish his vow, or a
freewill
offering in beeves or sheep, it shall be perfect to be
accepted; there shall be no blemish therein. Blind, or
broken, or maimed, or having a wen, or scurvy, or
scabbed, ye shall not offer these unto the LORD, nor
make an offering by fire of them upon the altar unto
the LORD. Either a bullock or a lamb that hath any
thing superfluous or lacking in his parts, that mayest
thou offer for a
freewill
offering; but for a vow it shall not be accepted. |
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Deuteronomy 23:23
That which is gone out of thy lips thou shalt keep and
perform; even a
freewill
offering, according as thou hast vowed unto the LORD
thy God, which thou hast promised with thy mouth. |
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Ezra 3:4-5
They kept also the feast of tabernacles, as it is
written, and offered the daily burnt offerings by
number, according to the custom, as the duty of every
day required; And afterward offered the continual
burnt offering, both of the new moons, and of all the
set feasts of the LORD that were consecrated, and of
every one that
willingly
offered a
freewill
offering unto the LORD. |
And
what of the Free Will offerings "of the mouth" ...
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Psalms 119:108
Accept, I beseech thee, the
freewill
offerings of my mouth, O LORD, and teach me thy
judgments. |
Free
Will to CHOOSE righteousness or wickedness
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Ezekiel 33:18-19
When the righteous turneth from his righteousness, and
committeth iniquity, he shall even die thereby. But if
the wicked turn from his wickedness, and do that which
is lawful and right, he shall live thereby. |
The
New Testament is also filled with parables of Jesus which
reveal this Free Will where man is given the ability to
CHOOSE.
Here
is but one example ...
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Matthew 22:2-14
The Kingdom of Heaven
is like
unto a certain king, which made a marriage for his
son, And sent forth his servants to call them that
were bidden to the wedding: and they would not come.
Again, he sent forth other servants, saying, Tell them
which are bidden, Behold, I have prepared my dinner:
my oxen and my fatlings are killed, and all things are
ready: come unto the marriage. But they made light of
it, and went their ways, one to his farm, another to
his merchandise: And the remnant took his servants,
and entreated them spitefully, and slew them. But when
the king heard thereof, he was wroth: and he sent
forth his armies, and destroyed those murderers, and
burned up their city. Then saith he to his servants,
The wedding is ready, but they which were bidden were
not worthy. Go ye therefore into the highways, and as
many as ye shall find, bid to the marriage. So those
servants went out into the highways, and gathered
together all as many as they found, both bad and good:
and the wedding was furnished with guests. And when
the king came in to see the guests, he saw there a man
which had not on a wedding garment: And he saith unto
him, Friend, how camest thou in hither not having a
wedding garment? And he was speechless. Then said the
king to the servants, Bind him hand and foot, and take
him away, and cast him into outer darkness, there
shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
For many are called,
but few are chosen. |
Many
are called but few are chosen ...
Because few will CHOOSE.
Man
must be able to CHOOSE and to do so WILLINGLY.
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Philemon 1:14
But
without thy mind
would I do nothing; that thy benefit should not be as
it were of necessity, but
willingly. |
Every
aspect of Christianity, we are asked to WILLINGLY CHOOSE to
act.
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2 Corinthians 9:7
Every man according
as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give;
not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a
cheerful giver. |
People
will have Free Will to CHOOSE ... Right up to the End of
Times.
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Revelation 9:20-21
And the rest of the men which were not killed by these
plagues
yet repented not of the works
of their hands, that they should not worship devils,
and idols of gold, and silver, and brass, and stone,
and of wood: which neither can see, nor hear, nor
walk:
Neither repented they
of their murders, nor of their sorceries, nor of their
fornication, nor of their thefts. |
Then
there are those who exercise their Free Will to serve the
Lord and even CHOOSE to die for Him.
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Revelation 20:4
And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and
judgment was given unto them: and I saw the souls of
them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and
for the Word of God, and which had not worshipped the
beast, neither his image, neither had received his
mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they
lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years. |
Still
believe we do not have Free Will to choose?
Then
why does the Lord say that those who overcome will not have
their names BLOTTED OUT of the book of life?
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Revelation 3:5
He that overcometh, the same shall be clothed in white
raiment; and
I will not blot out his name out of the book of life,
but I will confess his name before my Father, and
before His Angels. |
Think about it ... If we did not have Free Will, there would
be no reason for judgment because if our path was
predestined AND we did not have Free Will ...
Why
would we be punished?
Unless
the CHOICE was ours?
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Revelation 20:12
And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God;
and the books were opened: and another book was
opened, which is the book of life: and the dead
were judged out of those things which were written in
the books, according to their works. |
So the
judgment is based on CHOICES made.
We DO
have Free Will ... And we are to CHOOSE the right path.
And
whosoever
WILL
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Revelation 22:17
And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him
that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst
come. And
whosoever will,
let him take the water of life freely. |
Take
care and have a SON-derful day
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