A Difference Without Distinction

[humblethinker]

This morning FB Dallas pastor, Robert Jeffres, said that, "cause and allow are differences without distinction". What do you think? I can see how that statement could be true but I don't see how it could be true necessarily at all times. If so, then is the difference that between the two words the use of different letters but that their meanings are completely identical?

 

[Skandelon]

Well, in my experience the phrase "difference without distinction" doesn't necessarily mean there is NO difference between the two words, but that people often treat each word without a distinction. For example, Job treated God as the "cause" the evil but we know from the first chapter that He "allowed" Satan to do the evil. Thus, you would say that Job didn't make the distinction, even though the difference is evident.

 

[humblethinker]

Well, in my experience the phrase "difference without distinction" doesn't necessarily mean there is NO difference between the two words, but that people often treat each word without a distinction. For example, Job treated God as the "cause" the evil but we know from the first chapter that He "allowed" Satan to do the evil. Thus, you would say that Job didn't make the distinction, even though the difference is evident.

I agree.

What do you think about this:
Whether an event is attributed to God either allowing it or causing it, it seems that what can be known is that God determined/caused the actualization of the current reality. So, having all knowledge of what would happpen in this reality, He chose to actualize this reality, for whatever reason(s). From this perspective, in a sense it seems that the ideas of God being soverign at all times, in all ways, for all of time is not incompatible for someone who believes that at least some humans have some Libertarian free will at some times. In this case, what we can be sure of, at the very least, is that God determined that He would allow this event to occur in the manner in which it came about. So, a proper question would be, 'Inasmuch as this event is attributable to God, is it due to only His determining act of actualizing our current reality or did He also directly cause the event?'