Is God "free"?

[Yeshua1]

Hi BobRyan, keep searching.

God is never "subservient" to anything, including His creation, but He can choose to limit Himself, otherwise He would not be all powerful, i.e. unable to limit Himself. As I said before, God can overcome whatever barrier the mind of man can put in His way.

So God is free to limit Himself, or not, free to do as He pleases whether that constitutes limiting Himself or not.

By being God, by his divine nature and self existent attributes, he already was/is 'limited" as there are literally some decision and choices he cannot cause himself to make!

 

[Yeshua1]

Van, you are confusing "choice" with Holiness.

God cannot lie, not because he chooses not to lie, but His Holiness demands Him to be without even the "shadow of turning."

God cannot disown or deny Himself, not because of "choice" but because He is the Holy, "I Am" and He cannot deny who He is.

God cannot even have the option/choice made available to him to do any of that, as his light cannot co exist with darkness, so he never ever has to debate whether to commit sin or not!

 

[agedman]

God is free to do ANYTHING that is consistent to abiding with his nature and divine attriubutes, so just as man is bound by our fallen natures, he is 'bound" by his nature to being able only to do what is always best, the good, right etc, NEVER able to choose and do evil acts, sins, as not even an option to him, as totally inconsist with His nature!

Isn't that what I stated in a shorter form?

 

[agedman]

God cannot even have the option/choice made available to him to do any of that, as his light cannot co exist with darkness, so he never ever has to debate whether to commit sin or not!

I agree, which is what I was attempting to communicate to Van.

God is light.

There is absolutely complete light, no shadow can be found in Him.

 

[Van]

Typical of those that misrepresent others, did anyone say God is not light with no shadow in Him? Nope.

Note that no quote will be forthcoming. None, zip nada.

They just make up strawmen arguments, like cookies on a cookie sheet, and post them non-stop.

God does as He pleases.

God is all powerful.

God can overcome whatever barrier the mind of man can put in His way.

God is mercy, but does God have mercy on everyone, or does God provide justice to unbelievers?

Lots of folks with a low view of God say God cannot do this or that because of this or that attribute. They never think about God's right as the potter to do whatever He wants with the clay - His creation.

 

[franklinmonroe]

Question to Anyone: Please show me a passage in to Bible that clear demonstrates where God limits Himself.

(Note: Limits of His character are not being considered as 'self-limiting' as discussed above; also, Jesus as human did not limit the Godhead in any way as discussed previously.)

 

[Van]

Question to Anyone: Please show me a passage in the Bible that clearly demonstrates where God does not limit Himself, except in accordance with His character and purpose.

Jesus was God and limited Himself, therefore since all Persons of the Godhead are equal, any and all Persons of the Godhead can limit themselves according to their purpose.

God limits His salvation by grace through faith. He could have chosen to save everyone or no one, unlimited choices, but instead saves through faith.

God could have made the whole world a garden, but limited His garden to Eden.

God could have have unleashed dozens of plagues upon Egypt, but limited Himself to ten.

God could unleash His wrath upon all of us, but instead is withholding His wrath.

The premise God does not pick and choose is absurd and irrational.

 

[franklinmonroe]

... God limits His salvation by grace through faith. He could have chosen to save everyone or no one, unlimited choices, but instead saves through faith.

God could have made the whole world a garden, but limited His garden to Eden.

God could have have unleashed dozens of plagues upon Egypt, but limited Himself to ten.

God could unleash His wrath upon all of us, but instead is withholding His wrath. ...

Theses are not exactly what I was hoping for, but I think you knew that. But I am not saying that God does not pick and choose. Certainly, He does. Nonetheless, in a sense I disagree with your above comments.

In reverse order: God's "withholding" is merely a delay of His wrath and not a self-limiting action; God has unleashed many plagues upon Egypt before and since Moses and has not been self-limited to only ten; God did make the entire world a garden originally (what else would you call a perfect world?); and finally, I think God would desire that every person be saved but something (like His holy justice) in His character (which is a not self-limiting action on His part) supercedes that kind of desire.