Featured Is Everything Predestined?

Please remember thatGod created this world , created with the potential to have rebellion, sin, evil etc "free will", as that was the best way for Him to go based upon him knowing ALL other possible ways to have the creation done!

God knowing that all things would come to pass. had built in already befor even happened his master plan to have the Lord jesus die rise be glorified, and for sinners chosen by him to become his children and vessals to shop of His glories for all eternity!

 

Oh Johnny Boy, You hurt my feelings :laugh:

Here is something you may want to read.

http://www.dailywritingtips.com/could-care-less-versus-couldnt-care-less/

 

You're missing a period at the end of the sentence.

Fragment...

Well, aren't you just a ray of sunshine.

 

It can rightly be said that God "repented of the evil which He thought to do unto His people." (Ex. 32:14). The question remains, why did He repent? I believe Moses' intercession on the behalf of God's people played a big part. It seems that God encourages His people to seek His face, to reason with Him (as Abraham did in Gen.18:25 when he said, "That be far from thee to do after this manner, to slay the righteous with the wicked: and that the righteous should be as the wicked, that be far from thee: Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?")

God is not as impersonal and unyielding as some may think.

Yes, I agree that God was also testing Moses.

I'm not convinced that when the Bible says God repented of the evil that He thought to do that it can be truthfully said that God didn't actually repent of what He actually thought to do.

There are no imperfections in God. But God's hand can be moved by man, as seen in Ex. 17 when Israel fought Amalek. As long as Moses kept his hands lifted up to heaven, Israel prevailed, but if his hands dropped Amalek prevailed. One spiritual application of this passage is that when we keep our eyes and heart on the Lord, he will give us the victory over the flesh, but when we take our eyes off of Him, our flesh takes control.

So we see God's hand is moved by our prayers. God is not changing, but we are changing and God is responding with a certain unchanging predictability in accordance to our specific needs at those various times. He may not always answer before we call, but He can be depended on to answer when we call, if we know Him.

"Call unto me, and I will answer thee, and shew thee great and mighty things, which thou knowest not." (Jer. 33:3)

 

God certainly did not predestine that children would be sacrificed to idols.

Jer 19:5 They have built also the high places of Baal, to burn their sons with fire for burnt offerings unto Baal, which I commanded not, nor spake it, neither came it into my mind:

God never commanded these sacrifices, so how could they be ordained? He said these actions never came into his mind. So obviously man has a mind of his own and can perform actions which God did not command or ordain. Ordain means to command or decree.

God said this three times in Jeremiah.

Jer 7:31 And they have built the high places of Tophet, which is in the valley of the son of Hinnom, to burn their sons and their daughters in the fire; which I commanded them not, neither came it into my heart.

Jer 32:35 And they built the high places of Baal, which are in the valley of the son of Hinnom, to cause their sons and their daughters to pass through the fire unto Molech; which I commanded them not, neither came it into my mind, that they should do this abomination, to cause Judah to sin.

 

He created the world knowing this would take place.

 

Yes.

God bless!

 

What does it mean when we say the biblical term 'predestine'?

Doesn't that mean 'to predetermine'? This means to settle or decide in advance.

That's what the definition προορίζω is.

Seems to me in that light, when God knew all things beforehand, having known all things prerfectly at all times, He decided in advance, prior to creation, knowing all that would take place, to go ahead with His plan.

 

The problem, brother Van, is that though on one hand we confirm that everything is going according to plan and that God predestined all that is, ever has been or ever will be- we ALSO confirm that men are responsible for the evil they commit and God does not compel them to commit evil and God hates evil. Men are making real choices which bear real consequences.

God has planned it all, yet he is not responsible for evil.

Now, you may ask me to justify these two apparent contradictions which I cannot do.

It is truly a mystery.

But what most of us on BB, both Cal and non-cal, are totally UNWILLING to do is redefine God to justify those items that stand in tension in our own mind.

We just accept that God is truly omniscient, eternally knowing perfectly all things- past present and future including what will ACTUALLY come to pass not just all things that MIGHT come to pass.

We accept that and accept that God is perfectly holy and loving and just and not responsible, somehow, for evil.

I think the problem with openness is that it redefines God to solve a mystery that we cannot solve.

 

I do agree and rejoice in the truth of it.

Absolutely.

Affirmative.

I concur.

The Gospel, as far as it is knowable is perfectly knowable. But that does not mean that everything about the Gospel is knowable to finite minds.

I think we ALL know that there is much wonder in the Gospel which we have not even BEGUN to uncover.

 

I have to say amen to this. He knows all things, even the very second in time, when I take my last breath, and am called home.

 

Indeed. It is appointed, isn't it? You and have an appointment that God already knows about.

Since that day is the result of a series of decisions made by ourselves, our parents and those around us, as per God's foreknown plan- then God must, of a certainty, know beforehand all the ACTUAL decisions that will lead to that day on his calendar when he takes us out of here.

 

To Brother Van:

Brother Van,

I am not a Calvinist, nor am I an open theist, so let me explain the way I see things in regards to this matter.

Say two weeks from now, I am offered either an apple or banana to eat. Whichever one I choose, God knows my decision now, eventhough this is to take two weeks from now. Now, if I choose the banana, by me choosing the banana, and God knowing that I was going to choose the banana, in no way, shows that He predestined me to chooose that banana. It's that He knew the choice I was going to make, and did not influence my decision. He knew/knows it, but doesn't influence it.

 

Well Brother, I do not think there is one thing that He doesn't all about it. He knows it all. As someone stated before, God doesn't have "aha" moments.

 

Exactly Willis...you may now enjoy the words of psalm 139 with all your calvinist brethren....the open theist cannot repeat these words with certainty, or even pray correctly....
Psalm 139

1O lord, thou hast searched me, and known me.

2Thou knowest my downsitting and mine uprising, thou understandest my thought afar off.

3Thou compassest my path and my lying down, and art acquainted with all my ways.

4For there is not a word in my tongue, but, lo, O LORD, thou knowest it altogether.

5Thou hast beset me behind and before, and laid thine hand upon me.
6Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is high, I cannot attain unto it. 7Whither shall I go from thy spirit? or whither shall I flee from thy presence?

8If I ascend up into heaven, thou art there: if I make my bed in hell, behold, thou art there.

9If I take the wings of the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea;

10Even there shall thy hand lead me, and thy right hand shall hold me.

11If I say, Surely the darkness shall cover me; even the night shall be light about me.

12Yea, the darkness hideth not from thee; but the night shineth as the day: the darkness and the light are both alike to thee.

13For thou hast possessed my reins: thou hast covered me in my mother's womb.

14I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvellous are thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well.

15My substance was not hid from thee, when I was made in secret, and curiously wrought in the lowest parts of the earth.

16Thine eyes did see my substance, yet being unperfect; and in thy book all my members were written, which in continuance were fashioned, when as yet there was none of them. 17How precious also are thy thoughts unto me, O God! how great is the sum of them!

18If I should count them, they are more in number than the sand: when I awake, I am still with thee.

19Surely thou wilt slay the wicked, O God: depart from me therefore, ye bloody men.

20For they speak against thee wickedly, and thine enemies take thy name in vain.

21Do not I hate them, O LORD, that hate thee? and am not I grieved with those that rise up against thee?

22I hate them with perfect hatred: I count them mine enemies.

23Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts:

24And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.


keep coming to the light ...my brother:wavey::wavey:

 

I say amen to this wonderful chapter.


I do not need to keep coming to the Light, the Light is in me, and shines out from me!

 

:thumbs::applause: