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Results from: Answered Bible Questions, Answers, Unanswered Bible Questions, Notes Ordered by Verse | ||||||
Results | Verse | Author | ID# | |||
1 | The Plan of God in an Arminian Nutshell | Bible general Archive 1 | Dan K. | 20417 | ||
My Dear Sir Pent, Thank you for your sincere and thoughtful response to the basic question of whether or not a human being can thwart the will of God. There are instances in Scripture where the will of God is fulfilled perfectly. As I recall, such cases are considered to be examples of the Sovereign will of God. No deviation. Over against God's Sovereign will, we have, as you so clearly pointed out, examples of God's permissive will. Instances where God allows people to deviate from His perfect will, and thereby pay a price. Deviating from God's will is always costly. Now, keeping in mind my basic premise that God is a mighty God, a God who is in control, I emphasize the fact that it is God who ALLOWS the deviation, and not man who forces the issue. I must share with you my belief that everything that ever happens in time, or eternity, will glorify God. "All things are working together for good, to those who love God, . . . " Rom. 8:28 God allowed the jealous brothers of Joseph to sell him into slavery, but God meant it for good. Gen. 45:5 God allowed satan to tempt Job, but which one of us has not been blessed by learning of his life experiences? God allowed Jesus to die on a cross, . . . but it made it possible for God to be just, and the justifier of the ungodly. Rom. 3:26 Clearly, the murder of Jesus was the most wicked thing that evil men have ever done, . . . but, it was all part of God's plan, and I again emphasize, GOD'S PLAN. As I see it, God's permissive will is only a part of God's Sovereign will because it is still God who is determining the outcome of His decrees. Since God has all knowledge, it is not possible to catch Him unawares. See Ps. 139 We are infinitely beneath His awesome Majesty and Power. When we think that our free-will is greater than God's will, I think that our conception of God is in error. God is All Powerful. All things are possible to Him. God is All Knowing, He has all knowledge, and all Wisdom. He is Wise and knows what to do about all the things He knows. And, He is everywhere present. He knows the words that you and I are sharing, before we write them down. God Bless you Sir Pent. Yours in the Lord, Dan K. |
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2 | The Plan of God in an Arminian Nutshell | Bible general Archive 1 | Sir Pent | 20678 | ||
Clarification .................................. Dear Dan K, I also appreciate your last posting regarding the two types of God's "will". If I understand you correctly, you are saying that God has a "sovereign will" which is unstopable and perfect, and a "permissive will" which is allowed by Him to be disrupted. I think that I agree with you completely. God does have a general will for all of the universe, to glorify Him. I believe that this is inevitable. No matter what choices anyone makes, in the end all glory will go to God. I also agree with you that there are times when something that appears to be against God's will ends up working for the best (ie. Joeseph's entire life). Romans 8:28 also gives me confidence that as a Christian, God always has my best interest at heart, and that in the end things will work out well for me (eternity in heaven with Him). However, I believe that within this framework of the eternal plan we live almost completely in the "permissive" system that God has set up. In one sense, God chose to set it up that way, so it is indirectly in His control. But in the lives of individuals, the choices that they make are completely their own. God's overall plan will be accomplished in the long term, but in the short term, earthly life of an individual that may not be the case. |
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