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Results from: Notes Author: bstudent Ordered by Verse |
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Results | Verse | Author | ID# | |||
1 | Purpose of Prayer? | Bible general Archive 2 | bstudent | 121560 | ||
"Consequently we must not ask God to do what He has created us to do." This is the tricky part. We may be tempted to rationalize actions that may violate God's will if we are not truly in tune with it. "Vengeance is mine, I will repay," for example. Unfortunately, many have found ways around simple truths such as: "Those who live by the sword will perish by it"; "The weapons of our warfare are not fleshly"; "You must love your enemy." Faith follows the things heard, thus true faith will wait upon God's Kingdom to ultimately make hallow the Father's name and cause his will to be done on earth as it is in heaven. It will cause us to honor his sovereignty by honoring the governmental authorities through obedience as long as they do not ask us to violate what is holy. As we communicate with God through prayer and he communicates with us through his word and congregation, we make sure that our requests will be granted as they are according to his will. He will help us endure the injustices and atrocities of this world until the Kingdom brings to nothing all enemies of God. (1 Cor 15:24-28) That's worth praying, working and waiting for! Sincerely. |
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2 | Is your God superior to you? | Gen 1:1 | bstudent | 114995 | ||
The Creator is always superior to his creation. Thus, if man "creates" a god, that god will be his inferior. One can ascertain whether a particular interpretation of Scripture is true by asking oneself: Does that interpretation show God to be more or less righteous, just, loving, etc. than me? For example, 1 Samuel 28, the account of Saul going to a practicer of spiritism to inquire of the dead prophet Samuel. Did God actually direct the "spirit" of Samuel to make divine pronouncements to Saul, from whom God had removed his holy spirit (see v.16)? This would be overstepping his own law, violators of which he annihilated from the promised land. (Deut 18:10-12) Who was Saul talking with? A demon! Read the whole account again keeping in mind how Satan misleads people (how about Eve and the serpent) and God's clear view of spiritism. Now you will be able to restore God to his lofty position. There are unfortunately numerous other cases of such misinterpretation resulting in the same tragic reproach on the loving Creator. All can be easily corrected. |
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3 | Were humans a mistake? | Gen 6:6 | bstudent | 115901 | ||
For all who agree that believing in a God that knows everything that will happen before it happens precludes the notion of freewill and makes God accountable for the atrocities of his creation, I will be happy to describe other fundamentally false doctrines. To write more to those that disagree would be to "run like a man running aimlessly . . .fighting like a man beating the air." (1 Cor 9:26) Please let me know. |
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4 | How does foreknowledge preclude free? | Gen 6:6 | bstudent | 115924 | ||
Rather than me explaining, perhaps you can explain how God could know that Adam would sin, then create him, then watch it happen, then punish him for what he already knew he would do, and not have foreordained the events in the Garden of Eden? | ||||||
5 | How does foreknowledge preclude free? | Gen 6:6 | bstudent | 115986 | ||
"Classic concepts on God's nature" abound, but you and I are concerned with the truth of God's word. I have cited a few verses that indicate God can and does choose when to exercise his ability to look into the future. Surely he can tell the "finale from the beginning," but it is not necessary for him to know every detail in order to ensure the outcome. He had confidence that perfect humans could do his required will, and thankfully, with the help he has provided even we as imperfect offspring of Adam can live up to his requirements. (Matt 22:37-39) We were created in His image, so what we conceive as loving, just and wise should conform, though pale in comparison, to the Creator. Timeless, spaceless, omnipresent, multi-dimensional are impressive qualities, but without his matchless love, justice, power and wisdom, no one would be truely motivated to serve him. I've illustrated in human terms and explained by Scriptural references that contradict an "all-knowing" God why I don't by into this concept. Using encyclopias, I was surprised to learn how many concepts of Christendom have their roots in pagan philosophies rather than the Bible. Paul cautioned: "See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the basic principles of this world rather than on Christ." (Col 2:8) More important, Jesus told the Samaritan she worship what she didn't know, or "grasp," but said the Father is looking for those that will worship with "spirit and truth." He further promised 'we will know the truth and it will set us free.' Please cite the three most convincing Scriptures that, if not for the problems created by the verses I've cited, would lead one to believe that God knows (not, can choose to know,) everything that will ever happen in the future before it does. I will explain how we can grasp the harmonious understanding of these in light of apparent conflicting text. This subject is important to me because of the negative impact I have seen it have on people who might otherwise be interested in spiritual things. |
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6 | How does foreknowledge preclude free? | Gen 6:6 | bstudent | 115988 | ||
"You will know the truth, and the truth will set you free." "God is looking for such ones to worship him with spirit and truth." "Sanctify them by means of the truth; your word is truth." "Draw close to God, and he will draw close to you." Without the truth, it is impossible to draw close to God. John said: "This is love for God: to obey his commands. And his commands are not burdensome, for everyone born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith." (1 John 5:3,4) The reason professed Christians will not follow such commands as "to be no part of the world" is because they do not know God and his purposes, thus they lack the necessary faith. Consequently, He will not give them his spirit vital to being able to conquer this world under Satan's rulership. (Hebrews 11:6; James 1:7,8) People that claim to have total faith in God pick up arms when prophesied wars and lawlessness occur, killing their brother for whom Christ died. (Compare Matt 24:6;1 John 3:9-12;4:20) Let's agree to put this on the "back burner." How about discussing something less "heady." I'll post a question at Rev 12:7. Hope to hear from you there! |
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7 | How does foreknowledge preclude free? | Gen 6:6 | bstudent | 116045 | ||
The verses certainly imply that he must not choose to know. This is consistent with our God-given sense of reason, otherwise Adam may have "thought" he had freewill but the outcome was predetermined. We may not "want" to hold God accountable for Adam's sin but the facts would provide no alternative, except to say "its a mystery." (That is, a mystery how God can do something that we find repugnant in each other.) Daily the courts determine if actions were premeditated in order to determine level of accountability. No one can purpose an action, carry it out, and then reject responsibility. I requested 3 Scriptures to prove God always chooses to know or that he has no ability to control what he will allow himself to consider when carrying out his will. I believe he will not consider steps that would hinder my genuine freewill. He may however, squash me like a grape if my inclinations indicate my future course would conflict with his will. |
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8 | How does foreknowledge preclude free? | Gen 6:6 | bstudent | 118484 | ||
I like how the ESV translation highlights what a purposeful God he is. All God has ever promised either has been or will be accomplished! My only concern is that people will logically conclude (if we cannot demonstrate Scripturally that God does not always choose to know the future, nor does he need to know every detail about it to accomplish his will) that God is the cause of everything that happens. On the other hand, we need to prove that no human or spirit creature could possibly prevent God from fulfilling his word. Humans can predict the future with very limited success and virtually no ability to control it. God on the other hand can accurately foretell the future, and in addition, see the heart. He knew that "stiff-necked" Israel would, as a whole, reject his son. After all he witnessed as they persecuted and killed the prophets he sent previously to bring about a change of heart. He pleaded not for the many that he knew would not listen, but for the relative few he knew that would. How did he know? He made us. He knows our capabilities. The many prophecies about specific details carefully recorded for the honest-hearted to identify the Messiah were facts he foresaw from his look at the future. 2 Peter 3:9 states: "The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance." The concepts of patience and wishing can not coexist with foreknowledge of the kind that many imagine. Many of God's other awesome qualities, such as love, justice, wisdom, depend on his limiting his ability to foresee the future. Just as his love does not restrain his power, but works perfectly together, so it is with his foreknowledge. |
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9 | How does foreknowledge preclude free? | Gen 6:6 | bstudent | 118581 | ||
Steve, I would interpret Jesus statement at Luke 10:13 as hyperbole, in the sense of Luke 18:25. My reason for saying this relates to God's ability to read hearts and his justice. If God used his foreknowledge to determine that these people would have responded positively to the works Jesus did, he would not have grounds for executing them. Likewise, when armageddon comes, God will have to determine whether each of the relatively few that have not had the opportunity to respond to the good news, repenting and dedicating their life to God on the basis of the ransom, will be destroyed or not. The following supports God's selective use of his ability to foresee the future: The Scriptures say that “God put Abraham to the test” by commanding him to sacrifice his son Isaac as a burnt offering. When Abraham was about to sacrifice Isaac, God stopped him and said: “Now I do know that you are God-fearing in that you have not withheld your son, your only one, from me.” (Genesis 22:1-12) Would God have made that statement if he knew in advance that Abraham would obey this command? Would it have been an honest test? Genesis 18:20,21 states: "Then the LORD said, "The outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah is so great and their sin so grievous that I will go down and see if what they have done is as bad as the outcry that has reached me. If not, I will know." Furthermore, the ancient prophets report that God repeatedly spoke of himself as ‘feeling regret’ over something he had done or was thinking of doing. For example, God said that he “regretted [from the Hebrew na·cham'] that he had made Saul king over Israel.” (1 Samuel 15:11, 35; compare Jeremiah 18:7-10; Jonah 3:10.) Because God is perfect, these verses cannot mean that God made a mistake in selecting Saul to be Israel’s first king. Rather, they must indicate that God felt sorry that Saul turned out to be faithless and disobedient. God’s using such an expression in referring to himself would be nonsensical if he had foreknown Saul’s actions. The same term appears in the most ancient of the Scriptures where, in referring to the days of Noah, it says: “The LORD felt regrets that he had made men in the earth, and he felt hurt at his heart. So Jehovah said: ‘I am going to wipe men whom I have created off the surface of the ground . . . because I do regret that I have made them.’” (Genesis 6:6, 7) Here again, this indicates that man’s actions are not predestined by God. God felt regret, grief, and even hurt, not because his own actions were mistaken, but because man’s wickedness became rife. The Creator regretted that it had become necessary to destroy all mankind except Noah and his family. God assures us: ‘I take no delight in the death of the wicked.’—Ezekiel 33:11; compare Deuteronomy 32:4, 5. Hope this proves helpful. Dan |
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10 | How does foreknowledge preclude free? | Gen 6:6 | bstudent | 118586 | ||
Your comments make the ridicule worth enduring. I had been contemplating whether or not to continue using the Forum as an additional way to reach persons such as yourself with the good news. I will definitely contact you by email. Thanks again for your kind words. Bstudent |
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11 | How does foreknowledge preclude free? | Gen 6:6 | bstudent | 118589 | ||
I certainly agree with "free will to the limits of God's will." And that means I can even murder someone, as long as that murder does not impact upon God's will. But you can't be saying that such a dispicable act would be God's will or destiny. It is not destiny when bad things happen - its reaping what we and others sow or unforeseen occurrences (chance). (Eccl 9:11; 8:9; Gal 6:7) God's original purpose for the earth was "very good" - perfect. After Adam exercised his freewill to sin, God uttered the prophecy of his intentions to crush Satan and his seed by means of the "woman's" seed. His will toward man and the earth had not changed, but now he foretold a glimse of how he would rectify the situation and vindicate his name and sovereignty. The term "founding" has to do literally with the throwing down of seed, thus Jesus clarified this founding at Luke 11:50,51: "Therefore this generation will be held responsible for the blood of all the prophets that has been shed since the beginning of the world, from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah, who was killed between the altar and the sanctuary. Yes, I tell you, this generation will be held responsible for it all." To these same ones referred to at Rom. 8:28, 29 and Eph. 1:5, 11 , 2 Peter 1:10 says: “Do your utmost to make the calling and choosing of you sure for yourselves; for if you keep on doing these things you will by no means ever fail.” If the individuals were predestinated to salvation, they could not possibly fail, regardless of what they did. Since effort is required on the part of the individuals, it must be the class that is foreordained. God purposed that the entire class would conform to the pattern set by Jesus Christ. Those selected by God to be part of that class, however, must prove faithful if they are actually to attain the reward set before them. Isn't that more reasonable and most importantly, Scriptural? |
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12 | How does foreknowledge preclude free? | Gen 6:6 | bstudent | 118593 | ||
Have you ever read about the contributions that belief in evolution has made to the inhumane treatment man has heaped upon his neighbors? I feel belief in predestination has yielded similar fruitage. Might makes right - the U.S. is the greatest, so it is his instrument. I'll continue worshiping my God and I'm sure you'll continue worshiping your's. Let's leave it at that. |
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13 | How does foreknowledge preclude free? | Gen 6:6 | bstudent | 118837 | ||
The gift is free, thus it cannot be earned. However, it can be rejected. I would rather be good than righteous (Rom 5:7), but faith is essential. Doing the things God requires is not earning your salvation, but is intrinsic to faith. You know the verses: "And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him. (Heb 11:6) "For just as the body without the spirit is dead, so also faith without works is dead." (James 2:26) True faith as James described requires that we accept God's training and do what the "great crowd of witnesses" did - faithful works of obedience. Notice what their actions led and our's can lead to: "All discipline for the moment seems not to be joyful, but sorrowful; yet to those who have been trained by it, afterwards it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness." (Heb 12:11) As regards Provervs 16:33, in ancient times, in a number of nations, doubtful questions were determined by lot. Stones or inscribed tablets were put into a vessel, shaken and then drawn out or cast forth. God was pleased to use the lot as a means of making known his will in the early history of his chosen people. It seems that the lots were thrown into the gathered folds of a robe and then drawn out. But first an appeal was made to God to decide the matter. The outcome was accepted as his will. Even Jesus’ apostles utilized the lot to choose a successor to Judas Iscariot, but their selection was set aside by Jesus’ choice of Saul. Since Pentecost, holy spirit directs Christians, but in pre-Christian times God did approve use of the lot. |
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14 | Who is this "slave"? | Matt 24:45 | bstudent | 118148 | ||
This slave is given the responsibility to dispense food (no doubt spiritual food) at the proper time. It sounds like those given a position of leadership in the Christian congregation. This position apparently would continue until Christ returns, so it must refer to a class of individuals, not any one person. Some would prove faithful and be given more authority and others unfaithful and lose out completely. I think the following 2 parables about the virgins and talents (Matt 25:1-28)relate to this slave as well. Noteably, at Rev 14:1-5, the 144,000 are referred to as virgins and no falsehood was found in their mouths. This verse deserves our utmost attention because Jesus knows who it is and who it isn't. He appoints the slave so it's likely that the sheep hear his voice through this "spokesman." Thus, finding the truth that sets us free hinges on identifying this slave correctly. That's important! Jesus said "a little flock" would receive positions in the kingdom. (Luke 12:32) He also said that there were "other sheep not of this fold" that he would bring in. This little flock may be the same slave. Perhaps they help the "great crowd" exercise faith in the Lamb and thus survive the tribulation. (Rev 7:14) If we could just identify the group that truly shows brotherly unifying love among its members, remains "no part of the world" because they been sanctified (set apart for sacred purpose) by the truth of God's word, and that is preaching the good news of God's kingdom, they will lead us to the "slave." (John 13:34,35; 17:14-17; Matt 24:14) Hope we find it and have the courage to stick with it because as Jesus said: "On this account the world hates you." (John 15:19) |
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15 | Who is this "slave"? | Matt 24:45 | bstudent | 118191 | ||
You mention Jesus coming(presence) which others overlook. Do you agree that the Gospel chapters dealing with the sign of his coming(coming) show what will be happening so as to identify when he begins his reign in the kingdom power? The following verses also clearly indicate he will begin ruling while the majority reject his position but put their trust in governments he promises to destroy.(Psalm 110:1,2; Luke 19:27; Rev 11:18; 1 Cor 15:25; Daniel 2:44) I still believe this slave has a special role as 'dispenser of spiritual food' that will help sheeplike ones stay awake. These are Christ's brothers that if we help them, it is just as if we helped Jesus himself. (Matt 25:21-46) | ||||||
16 | Who is this "slave"? | Matt 24:45 | bstudent | 118238 | ||
If you had lived in Germany in 1939, would you have been a Nazi? | ||||||
17 | Who is this "slave"? | Matt 24:45 | bstudent | 118239 | ||
If you had lived in Germany in 1939, would you have been a Nazi? | ||||||
18 | Who is this "slave"? | Matt 24:45 | bstudent | 118242 | ||
What "code of conduct" does the "faithful slave" have that differ him from the world? It appears obvious that even the evil slave was entrusted by Jesus with responsibility, thus even he must have began as a Christian. What conduct do you feel clearly differentiates Christians from the world? | ||||||
19 | Who is this "slave"? | Matt 24:45 | bstudent | 118243 | ||
The apostle Paul claimed to be a communicator of God's will and gained many enemies within the congregation as a result. Do you suppose Billy Graham or the pope believe they are communicating God's will? Such a claim would need to be backed up by works. Do you know how Jesus said to identify those that would be communicating God's will? Good fruits - Jesus is the prince of peace and his kingdom is no part of this world. Thus his disciples should be known as peacemakers that don't put their trust in corrupt manmade governments their leader has promised to destroy. | ||||||
20 | who can explain to me? | John 1:1 | bstudent | 120339 | ||
You quote Psalm 89:27, but omit verse 26: "He will cry to Me, 'You are my Father,My God, and the rock of my salvation.'" It is certainly correct to see the clarity of the Bible's teaching that Jesus' position is above all creation. However, to deny his subjection and thus inferior position to 'his God' is hard to fathom. |
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