The Ability To Choose - Free Will

[Eternally-Grateful]

The reason God sees Christ's Righteousness in Us, is because it's a Legal Righteousness he keeps on File in his Office...

Amen!

I like the sign of the day of atonement, The Cherub could not see what God had against the children of israel (the law they did not keep. The rebellion or the manna they did not trust) He say the blood of the lamb

When God sees us, he sees his son, His blood washed us and made us whiter than snow. And nothing can change that .

 

[Eternally-Grateful]

I will go out on a Limb and say God Elects out of Pity...

In your blood, Live! ~ by ReverendRV * May 28

Ezekiel 16:4-5 NLT; On the day you were born, no one cared about you. Your umbilical cord was not cut, and you were never washed, rubbed with salt, and wrapped in cloth. No one had the slightest interest in you; no one pitied you or cared for you. On the day you were born, you were unwanted, dumped in a field and left to die.

What a terrible fate! In ancient days it was common place for children to be abandoned straight from birth. Women and children were second class citizens until the emergence of Christianity. Christians had so many opportunities to raise orphans because of this; after all, we want to be like our great God and Father. ~ These Verses describe a time in which God modeled this for us by choosing a people for himself; the Jews. Ezekiel says; “'This is what the Sovereign LORD says to Jerusalem: Your ancestry and birth were in the land of the Canaanites, your father was an Amorite and your mother a Hittite. On the day you were born your cord was not cut, nor were you washed with water to make you clean, nor were you rubbed with salt or wrapped in cloths. No one pitied you or had compassion enough to do any of these things for you. Rather, you were thrown out into the open field, for on the day you were born you were despised. And when I passed by you and saw you wallowing in your blood, I said to you in your blood, 'Live!' I said to you in your blood, 'Live!'” ~ One day, if God were to pass by you, might he despise you?

Ezekiel calls the parents of the abandoned child an Amorite and a Hittite, even though the Jews come from Abraham and his wife Sarah; who were Chaldeans. But since people are Sinners, God calls them by the name of Sinful nations. Since children want to be like their parents, the world has followed their parents in Sin. Adam and Eve Sinned by eating the fruit from a banned tree, and their first son killed their second son; Sin has abounded in the world since. But you say, “I can see that murder is a Sin but why is something as small as eating fruit a Sin?” Have you ever told a Lie? Have you ever Lusted for another person? They may seem like nothing; like a piece of fruit, but both break the Ten Commandments of God. God himself is standard of Righteousness; and he is Infinite. Even Murder would be small when compared to infinite good. Would you be innocent or guilty? Sinners are judged guilty and sentenced to an eternal Hell as punishment…

What we need is for someone to pass near us and have pity on us. But you ask, “Doesn’t this say that God had pity on the Jews? What about us?” The Bible says everything that was written in the past was written for us too! For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in him shall not perish but have everlasting life! Jesus Christ was Sinless and Holy; he died on the Cross by bleeding to death; but arose from the grave on the third day! We’re Saved by Grace through Faith but not by any Works we do. Our Works are like polluted blood we’re born from. Jesus is the Son of God sent into the world as a Sinless sacrifice for all who will believe. Without the shedding of blood there is no Remission of Sin, but the blood of the risen Christ cleanses us from all Sin; trust in him as your Savior and you will be forgiven!

Romans 10:9 NIV; If you declare with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.

Who did he have pity on?

What did God foresee that caused his to predetermine anyone would be conformed to the image of God

 

[Eternally-Grateful]

Of course they can, but is motivated by sinful pride and not out of reverence and glory to God.

Maybe, Maybe not.

Maybe they just really love their wife or their parents and do nto want to sin against them.

All good deeds done by the unregenerate are motivated by pride, pride is at the base of all sin I believe.

May be true. But the fact that they can do them, shows we can do good.

But how good is good enough?

 

[ReverendRV]

Of course they can, but is motivated by sinful pride and not out of reverence and glory to God.

All good deeds done by the unregenerate are motivated by pride, pride is at the base of all sin I believe.

This is what I have to say about our good before we're Saved; it's a filthy rag. A Fallen faith is a Filthy Rag Faith...

Re-Olding your Mind ~ by ReverendRV * September 1

Romans 12:2 KJV; And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.

Have you ever wondered what is Good? ~ That’s not so easy to answer, because the Bible says there is no one who does Good; not even one! We support our families, but even the plowing of the Wicked is Sin; it makes it more difficult to know what is Good. But you ask, “Why is working hard, so that there will be food on the table and that my children wont have tears in their jeans, not a good thing??” The reason is because the ‘Chief end of Man’ is to Glorify God and enjoy him always; something that we all fall short of. Because we have Sinned by not Loving the Lord God with all our Heart, Mind, Body and Soul; this means that we’ve had another God before the LORD; and broken his First Commandments. ~ Have you Worshipped God with all of your Heart?

Have you ever wondered what is Acceptable? ~ It can be hard to answer since our righteousness is as a filthy rag. When the Wicked do good it’s like a child dusting his mothers dining room table with his fathers grease rag; this is not Acceptable. Christ’s Disciples asked him what they have to do in order to do the Work of God? Jesus responded by saying, the Work of God is to believe on him; Faith is Acceptable. You ask “Since the plowing of the Wicked is Sin, it must be true that the Faith of the Wicked is Sin.” The Bible says that Faith is the gift of God; all good gifts come from above. By God’s Grace, our Faith is now pure. ~ Have you Worshipped God with all of your Soul?

Have you ever wondered what is Perfect? ~ Jesus Christ is Perfect! He was born of a Virgin; the Bible says it like this, ‘he is the Seed of a Woman’. The Holy Spirit came upon Mary the mother of Jesus, and in this way Sin was not passed down to him by a human father; it is the Doctrine of Paternal Traducianism. Because of this, Jesus never inherited the Condemnation of our first father Adam. Jesus lived a Sinless life and accrued a human Righteousness which he shares with all who will have Faith in him as their risen Lord and Savior! It is the Will of God that you will come to know that, Sins like ‘Lying, Stealing, Adultery, etc’ will cause you to spend Eternity in the Lake of Fire. But it is also the Will of God that all who come to God through Faith in the risen Savior Jesus Christ, without any Meritorious Works shall be Saved. Repent of your Sins, Confess Jesus Christ as your Lord God, and read the Bible. You’re born again; now Renew your Mind…

Have you Worshipped God with all of your Mind? ~ It is not easy to be a Christian, we won’t be Perfected until we are in Heaven. The Apostle Paul describes the life of a Christian as if we are now both a ‘New’ man; and the ‘Old’ man we were before we were Saved. Our Salvation is like a new garment which covers our remaining Sin in a cloak of Righteousness. This is why he tells us to ‘Renew’ our Minds, because we are being Sanctified. But Christians have a way of ‘Re-Olding’ their Minds instead of Renewing them. It’s like taking a razor to a new pair of jeans, to make them conform to the image of an old pair; they are no longer perfect. You don’t want your child to have to wear tattered jeans, so you understand God doesn’t want you in rags either. Renew your Mind with prayer to God, daily Bible study and regular worship with your local Church…

John 6:40 KJV; And this is the Will of him that sent me, that every one which seeth the Son, and believeth on him, may have everlasting life: and I will raise him up at the last day.

 

[ReverendRV]

Who did he have pity on?

What did God foresee that caused his to predetermine anyone would be conformed to the image of God

God took Pity on Israel; the Bible says this...

I'll be more than glad to talk to you if you really listen...

 

[Arial]

Yes, But based on what did God chose us?

Only God knows that. The only thing we know about it is that it was not based on anything good or bad in us, or anything good or bad we would do. If I were to go out on a limb to borrow @ReverendRV words, would say that he created the elect to belong to Christ. He isn't pointing at those already created and saying, "You, you, not you, you."

 

[ElectedbyHim]

Maybe, Maybe not.

Maybe they just really love their wife or their parents and do nto want to sin against them.

May be true. But the fact that they can do them, shows we can do good.

But how good is good enough?

I believe it comes down to ones motivation for doing good.

The Bible says that no on is good, no, not one.

The unregenerate is his own god, this is not so for the regenerate.

Sin is very self-deceptive, we cannot really know how deep in runs inside us, we are born into it.

Jeremiah 17:9 “The heart is more deceitful than all else And is desperately sick; Who can know it?

 

[ReverendRV]

Only God knows that. The only thing we know about it is that it was not based on anything good or bad in us, or anything good or bad we would do. If I were to go out on a limb to borrow @ReverendRV words, would say that he created the elect to belong to Christ. He isn't pointing at those already created and saying, "You, you, not you, you."

Choose or Refuse ~ by ReverendRV * February 16

Isaiah 62:5; For as a young man marries a virgin, so shall your sons marry you; and as the bridegroom rejoices over the brides virginity, so shall God rejoice over you.

In debates with Atheists, I come across some who genuinely want to know a Christian’s answer to their objections. Questions range from the simple to the complex; and sometimes the simple questions are those that need the complex answer. Bill the Atheist asked, “What is God’s real goal in creating Mankind?” Bill didn’t want answers like ‘The chief end of Man is to Glorify God and enjoy him always’. Bill objects that if this is the reason, then God could have made us in such a way that he would not eternally destroy us in Hell for our Sin. The ‘Shorter’ Catechism answer is correct, but Bill wanted a ‘lowest common denominator’ type of answer that will satisfy his objection. I responded by saying there can be more than one satisfactory answer, but I will give him my answer; “God’s real goal in creating Mankind was to give his Son a Bride”…

There are a few Theological Doctrines that come into play in answering the question; a complex answer to a ‘one liner’ question. One Doctrine is the Immutability of God; he doesn’t change. In eternity, God is a Trinity; the Son proceeds from the Father, and the Holy Ghost proceeds from the Father and the Son. Since this is described as happening in eternity, it tests the Mind to think of a time when the three are not one. Because God doesn’t change, he cannot produce a Bride from his Essence like God produced a Son from his Essence; IE the Doctrine of Consubstantiality. A Bride must then be Created; thus she is the weaker vessel. This is where the Doctrine of God’s Incommunicable and Communicable Attributes come into play. A Creature cannot have all of God’s Attributes, or the Creature would be God. For instance, God is said to be ‘from Everlasting to Everlasting’; a Creature can only be from Creation to Everlasting. But a Creature can possess Gods Communicable Attributes, IE ‘Cogito ergo sum’; which means ‘I think, therefore I am’. ~ Man was Created a little lower than the Angels but through a relationship with God, our station is made higher than the Angels; making us closer to God. We will always be less than Divine, but through a Marriage with God’s Son; ‘the two become one’. This is how God’s Son gets a Bride…

Now as to why this couldn’t be achieved apart from the Fall of Adam, a Bride must be able to choose or Refuse her Groom, or the Marriage is not a true relationship. Mankind was Created Good; with freedom of Will. God gave Man dominion in the world, and this makes it necessary that we are free to exercise our dominion. The downfall is; Man can choose to Sin. ~ Because of Pride, Lucifer fell into Sin even in the pure environment of Heaven; and remember that Man was made weaker than the Angels. There comes a time we need to ask, ‘Can God have a relationship with a Mankind who can’t choose him without an option to resist?’ Would it be worth it for God to force himself on Humanity? ~ Are you Proud? Have you forced yourself on anther person? Go to God’s Risen Son Jesus Christ through Faith, for forgiveness of your Sins and you will become a pure Virgin by being Born Again; fit for marriage. When it comes to your Righteousness, God will rejoice over you! Repent of your Sins and join a Bible believing Church. ~ You have to admit, you’ve previously resisted his advances and he hasn’t forced himself on you yet; perhaps your Will is bound, just the other way around? Exercise your dominion; Choose him or Refuse him…

Matthew 22:1; Jesus spoke to them, saying: The Kingdom of Heaven is like a King who prepared a wedding banquet for his Son.

 

[Arial]

I think we need to remember

A natural man can do a morally good deed.

That isn't the issue. No one denies that. What tree was it that they ate of that was forbidden? The tree of the knowledge of GOOD and evil. But God tells us in his own words, in his sight even our good deeds are as filthy rags. Why? Because they were not done for his glory and they were done by an unwashed sinner.

 

[Eternally-Grateful]

God took Pity on Israel; the Bible says this...

I'll be more than glad to talk to you if you really listen...

Yes amen,

Israel who continued to rebel.. Yet God still loved them, and continued to offer them hope.. even when he came..

I am willing to listen and discuss.. thats how we learn

 

[Eternally-Grateful]

I believe it comes down to ones motivation for doing good.

The Bible says that no on is good, no, not one.

I agree, No one has kept the law. In that aspect.no one is good.

The unregenerate is his own god, this is not so for the regenerate.

Agree up to the point when God brings us to the point we are forced to make a decision

Sin is very self-deceptive, we cannot really know how deep in runs inside us, we are born into it.

I still a learning

Jeremiah 17:9 “The heart is more deceitful than all else And is desperately sick; Who can know it?

Amen

 

[ReverendRV]

Yes amen,

Israel who continued to rebel.. Yet God still loved them, and continued to offer them hope.. even when he came..

I am willing to listen and discuss.. thats how we learn

How is our Will Free, when there is a Wretched Old Man within Us who Sins in our place? You said you don't see yourself as Righteous; you still Sin, right?

 

[Eternally-Grateful]

How is our Will Free, when there is a Wretched Old Man within Us who Sins in our place? You said you don't see yourself as Righteous; you still Sin, right?

Yes.

From birth I have chosen to go my own way. And reject Gods way. (Not all the time) I just do it less and less and less the more mature in christ I become.

If we say we have no sin we decieve ourselves and there is no truth in us.

 

[ElectedbyHim]

I agree, No one has kept the law. In that aspect.no one is good.

Agree up to the point when God brings us to the point we are forced to make a decision

I still a learning

Amen

Agree up to the point when God brings us to the point we are forced to make a decision

I was not forced to make a decision.

The Lord showed me what an ugly wretched sinner I was and on my way to hell.

He put His love in me, so that I could love Him and be obedient.

One minute I was a slave to sin, the next minute a slave to righteousness.

The fact remains, that if God did not choose me for salvation I would have never on my own come to Him, I was unable to and wanted nothing to do with Him.

 

[ReverendRV]

Yes.

From birth I have chosen to go my own way. And reject Gods way. (Not all the time) I just do it less and less and less the more mature in christ I become.

If we say we have no sin we decieve ourselves and there is no truth in us.

We're All like that...

I get it, the question I asked is hard for you to give a straight answer to; but that's fine. It's been Sown, and one day you will wrestle with trying to understand how your Will is Free when a Hater resides inside you...

 

[ReverendRV]

That's two Threads I've been on about Free Will; I reckon I'll go check out the third one...

Why so many? My theory is that a house divided cannot stand. Perhaps there should only be one active Thread on a topic at a time...

 

[Eternally-Grateful]

I was not forced to make a decision.

If you think this, this is fine. But if you did not make the decision. You would have remained dead in sin

The Lord showed me what an ugly wretched sinner I was and on my way to hell.

He shoed me this too

He put His love in me, so that I could love Him and be obedient.

He did this to me too. But after he gave me his spirit

One minute I was a slave to sin, the next minute a slave to righteousness.

Same here. That minutes was the minute I called out to him and received his grace gift.

The fact remains, that if God did not choose me for salvation I would have never on my own come to Him, I was unable to and wanted nothing to do with Him.

So God chose you. But not your neighbor.. why?

 

[Eternally-Grateful]

We're All like that...

I get it, the question I asked is hard for you to give a straight answer to; but that's fine. It's been Sown, and one day you will wrestle with trying to understand how your Will is Free when a Hater resides inside you...

I never said it was not limited,

Again, I am free to chose between two or more decision.

But it is also limited

Freedom. Is how I see it,

While I am more free now. As all things are lawful after I am saved.

I was still free before. When God called me.

 

[Eternally-Grateful]

That's two Threads I've been on about Free Will; I reckon I'll go check out the third one...

Why so many? My theory is that a house divided cannot stand. Perhaps there should only be one active Thread on a topic at a time...

I only made one and was asked to..lol

I agree though.

 

[ElectedbyHim]

If you think this, this is fine. But if you did not make the decision. You would have remained dead in sin

He whoed me this too

He did this to me too. But after he gave me his spirit

Same here. That minutes was the minute I called out to him and recieved his grace gift.

So God chose you. But not your neighbor.. why?

That's His business.

Paul has a great answer in Romans 9