Results 41 - 60 of 1459
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Results from: Notes Author: John Reformed Ordered by Verse |
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Results | Verse | Author | ID# | |||
41 | Please I'm looking for your opinion! | Bible general Archive 2 | John Reformed | 102254 | ||
Hi Ho Radio, Degrees of sovereignty...? 1. The person, body, or state in which independent and supreme authority is vested; especially, in a monarchy, a king, queen, or emperor. WEBSTER'S Ps 103:19 The LORD has established His throne in the heavens, And His sovereignty rules over all. "Rule: mashal (605c); a prim. root; to rule, have dominion, reign:-- 1 Tim 6:15 which He will bring about at the proper time--He who is the blessed and only Sovereign, the King of kings and Lord of lords, Great question Radio! I've heard Hannegraff say words to the effect that if even a single atom were to escape God's control, that God would not be God. I don'nt know if you have read A.W. Pink's treatment of The Sovereignty of God. It is the best piece I have read on the subject to date. He begins his book by stating "The Sovereignty of God is an expression that once was generally understood. It was a phrase commonly used in religious literature. It was a theme frequently expounded in the pulpit. It was a truth which brought comfort to many hearts, and gave virility and stability to Christian character. But, today, to make mention of God's Sovereignty is, in many quarters, to speak in an unknown tongue. Were we to announce from the average pulpit that the subject of our discourse would be the Sovereignty of God, it would sound very much as though we had borrowed a phrase from one of the dead languages. Alas! that it should be so. Alas! that the doctrine which is the key to history, the interpreter of Providence, the warp and woof of Scripture, and the foundation of Christian theology should be so sadly neglected and so little understood." You may find this book printed in it's entirety at http://www.reformed.org/calvinism/ But to answer your question...No, I believe that God is always ruling over all things and at all times. How we square this fact with man's responsibility is the question of the ages. But, if the Bible teaches us that that is the case, we are to humbly accept it. John |
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42 | Is God subject to change? | Bible general Archive 2 | John Reformed | 102267 | ||
It never entered God's mind that they should have "filled this place with the blood of the innocent and have built the high places of Baal to burn their sons in the fire as burnt offerings to Baal, a thing which I never commanded or spoke of," Are you prepared to say that God was unaware that they would do these abominations? If so, you strip Him of His omniscience. Do you really desire a less glorious god? I'm confident that you do not. John |
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43 | Is God subject to change? | Bible general Archive 2 | John Reformed | 102270 | ||
I agree Ed, John |
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44 | Is God subject to change? | Bible general Archive 2 | John Reformed | 102272 | ||
Hi Tim, I think you may be missing the "big picture" here, which is God's eternal purpose. Yes, God did have Jonah prophecey to the ninivites that it was His intention to overthrow them in 40 days, and Yes, when they repented, He spared them from being overthown. However, all that occured in Nineveh was consistant with God's plan. He knew they would repent before they did. He knew it before they were born. He knew it before He said "Let there be light". He has always known everything that there is to be known! Does He know these things because He sees into the future? No. He holds the future in His hands and He knows what will happen in it because He created it Himself! Any view other than this has God gazing into the future and learning what will happen. God Bless, John |
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45 | Is God subject to change? | Bible general Archive 2 | John Reformed | 102273 | ||
Amen! John |
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46 | Is God subject to change? | Bible general Archive 2 | John Reformed | 102274 | ||
No. God is ignorant of nothing. He is "All Knowing". Ignorance is a human condition. John |
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47 | Is God subject to change? | Bible general Archive 2 | John Reformed | 102278 | ||
"Nevertheless, the outcome of whether God would resort to plan A or plan B was up to the response of the people." Dear NC, Before we go jumping to conclusions, perhaps it would be wise to consider that God has no need to resort to anything at any time and that a perfect Planner has no need for alternative plans. If plan A is less than perfect and must be scrapped in favor of plan B, we might as well abandon our bibles and turn on the ballgame! How would we know that further changes may not be required? I know you believe that new creatures may chuck away their faith; What if they all did and Christ died in vain? Whose in control? man. God forbid it! John |
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48 | Please I'm looking for your opinion! | Bible general Archive 2 | John Reformed | 102286 | ||
Yeah Radio, Now that you mention it, I have noticed that. Odd is'nt it? Seems I had the same take myself once. It seemed to make sense at the time. But I remember that skipping over the passages that spoke to God's rule over all things kept me from getting to confused. Of course when He decided the time was right to open the eyes of this old squid...well that was that for human autonomy. And I chucked it over the fantail! Oh happy day! Your surprisingly bright for a marine! Did you hang out a lot down by the ships? John |
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49 | Is God subject to change? | Bible general Archive 2 | John Reformed | 102369 | ||
Dear Tim, I wish you would drop the arguement that you are correct, and to take a different position one must accept that God is a liar. There are other alternatives! We cannot focus on a single passage to the exclusion of other related passages. You said that God intended to something (overthrow the ninivites), but changed what He had intended to do on the basis ot the ninivites repentance. What does this conclusion imply about His attributes? Surely, you do not mean to imply that God did not know that the ninivites would repent. For that would impugn His omniscience and call into question verses such as ACT 15:18 "Known unto God are all his works from the beginning of the world". The only way to harmonize these passages is by recognizing that God's plan from the beginning was to grant repentance to this nation, and, that by telling them that they would be overthrown in 40 days was the means by which they were brought to seek repentance. Did God lie to the ninivites in telling them that they would be overthrown in 40 days, when He knew that they would repent as a result of His proclamation? A thousand times NO! "God is not a man that He should lie". Therefore, we must take His proclamation, not as a prophecy, but, a warning! This is consistant the truth of God's immutability, omniscience, omnipotence, justice and mercy. John |
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50 | Is God subject to change? | Bible general Archive 2 | John Reformed | 102371 | ||
Matt 1:21 "She will bear a Son; and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins." Dear AO, If, indeed, it had been God's plan to save all men, then, God's plan was worse than imperfect, it has been a catastrophe! Out of the millions that existed prior to the flood, all perished in their sins, with only Noah and His little family being saved. Then instead of choosing all the peoples of the earth to be His chosen nation, He called a tiny band of people to be His, and (except for a few converts) the rest of the world died in their sins. Even among the nation of Israel, all perished in their sins except those who He called a "remnant". He even became a man, Jesus Christ, died on a cross and rose again from the dead. Surely that should have worked! But no! The vast majority of pagans and jews died in their sins. Well...2000 plus years later the community of the saints is still a small proportion of mankind and the rest are dieing in their sins. No my friend, Jesus Christ never fails to accomplish the will of His Father. He came to save His people from their sins and that is exactly what He did. John |
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51 | Is God subject to change? | Bible general Archive 2 | John Reformed | 102373 | ||
Dear New Creature, "As I read Scripture I notice that God is able to predict future events accurately and with certaintity. God alone is able to speak from an eternal perspective." Does God's ability to " predict future events accurately and with certaintity" come from His foreseeing of what will occur, or, because He fore-ordained the events themselves? In other words, does anything occur that is not part of His plan? Before answering, I would appreciate your reading of Acts 4: 24-28. Thanks, John |
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52 | Is God subject to change? | Bible general Archive 2 | John Reformed | 102405 | ||
Dear Tim, Jon 3:4 Then Jonah began to go through the city one day's walk; and he cried out and said, "Yet forty days and Nineveh will be overthrown." I am well aware that God's proclamation was unconditional, that it did not include any conditions by which Niniveh might escape being overthrown. At the same time, we both believe that God knew they would repent and that He would grant them mercy. So, what was God's ultimate intention regading this people? Keep in mind the fact that an omniscient being never learns new information, as your interpretaion implies. God wrote the Bible for our edification. Therefore, He wrote it in such a way that we could comprehend it. Take for instance Jon 3:10 "When God saw their deeds," does that mean that the omniscient One looked down and discovered that they had changed their ways? Of couse not. If that was the case then He is not All-Knowing and "Open Theism" is correct in saying that God does not really know the future! "You made the statement that God never changes His mind, and I posted about a dozen verses where Scripture says that God did change His mind, not just one!" Orthodoxy depends on the harmonizing of ALL passages of Scripture. It' not an election or a ball game. :-) John |
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53 | Is God subject to change? | Bible general Archive 2 | John Reformed | 102408 | ||
Dear NC, God is not the author of sin, but, He has ordained that the sinful acts of man (which He fore-ordained) work together for ultimate good. We see one example in the story of Joseph and his brothers: Gen 50:20 "As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good in order to bring about this present result, to preserve many people alive. Another in Is 10:5-7 "Woe to Assyria, the rod of My anger And the staff in whose hands is My indignation, I send it against a godless nation And commission it against the people of My fury To capture booty and to seize plunder, And to trample them down like mud in the streets.Yet it does not so intend, Nor does it plan so in its heart, But rather it is its purpose to destroy And to cut off many nations. From these verses we learn that God uses the wicked intentions of man for His own purpose. Acts 4:27,28 "For truly in this city there were gathered together against Your holy servant Jesus, whom You anointed, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, along with the Gentiles and the peoples of Israel, to do whatever Your hand and Your purpose predestined to occur. Those listed; Herod, Pontius Pilate, the Gentiles and the peoples of Israel, sought the death of Christ out of pure hatred, yet God was working underneath for the greatest good that the world will ever know. God Bless, John |
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54 | Is God subject to change? | Bible general Archive 2 | John Reformed | 102423 | ||
Dear NC, "How can God who according to this statement of yours fore-ordain the sinful acts of people, and yet somehow not be the author of sin?" God did not create sin, it is not a created "thing". Sin is a rebellious act commited by a creature against the stated will of His creator. The following is from Easton's Bible Dictionary "The origin of sin is a mystery, and must for ever remain such to us. It is plain that for some reason God has permitted sin to enter this world, and that is all we know. His permitting it, however, in no way makes God the author of sin.". Neither do I know the answer to your question. To the best of knowledge (and Easton, who knew more than I'll ever know) the Bible has not provided us with the answer. Anyone who pretends to know must be relying on another source. What is certain, for the Bible says so, is that God fore-ordained every act of those who killed Jesus. They did it for their own wicked motives (as did David's brothers and the Assyrians) but God had a motive of His own. John |
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55 | Is God subject to change? | Bible general Archive 2 | John Reformed | 102495 | ||
NC, We know that Adam and Eve were created with absolutely free wills, but because of their mis-use of this freedom, their desendents were born in bondage to sin and Satan. That is why no person born of Adam has the ability to live a sinless life. You said "Since God created his beings and gave them the freedom to obey or disobey or rebell, then the origin of sin is no longer a mystery." That explains how it is possible that Adam and Eve sinned, but not why the possibility of sinning exists. Returning to our subject...we were talkiig about the question of God has foreordaing the wicked deeds of men. Does He or does'nt He? John |
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56 | Is God subject to change? | Bible general Archive 2 | John Reformed | 102497 | ||
Dear Tim, I can't except the arguement (God repents in the same way we repent) because it is not consistant with the nature of God and is contradicted elsewhere in Scripture; "God is not a man that He should repent". How do you reconcile the passage from Jonah with Num 23:19? "God is not a man, that He should lie, Nor a son of man, that He should repent; Has He said, and will He not do it? Or has He spoken, and will He not make it good? I am interested in hearing your answer. Bro. John |
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57 | Is God subject to change? | Bible general Archive 2 | John Reformed | 102502 | ||
Dear NC, I have copied a previous post and reposted below. The reason I have done this is because you did not address the passages,but, asked a question ans made a conclusion but did not tell me what the passages lead us to conclude. -------------------------------------------------- God is not the author of sin, but, He has ordained that the sinful acts of man (which He fore-ordained) work together for ultimate good. We see one example in the story of Joseph and his brothers: Gen 50:20 "As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good in order to bring about this present result, to preserve many people alive. Another in Is 10:5-7 "Woe to Assyria, the rod of My anger And the staff in whose hands is My indignation, I send it against a godless nation And commission it against the people of My fury To capture booty and to seize plunder, And to trample them down like mud in the streets.Yet it does not so intend, Nor does it plan so in its heart, But rather it is its purpose to destroy And to cut off many nations. From these verses we learn that God uses the wicked intentions of man for His own purpose. Acts 4:27,28 "For truly in this city there were gathered together against Your holy servant Jesus, whom You anointed, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, along with the Gentiles and the peoples of Israel, to do whatever Your hand and Your purpose predestined to occur. Those listed; Herod, Pontius Pilate, the Gentiles and the peoples of Israel, sought the death of Christ out of pure hatred, yet God was working underneath for the greatest good that the world will ever know. God Bless, John |
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58 | Is God subject to change? | Bible general Archive 2 | John Reformed | 102509 | ||
Dear New Creature, You asked "It seems to me that you believe that God fore-ordained the sinful acts of men. Is that so?" It matters little what I believe, if what I believe is based on anything but God's Holy Writ. Acts 4:27,28 "For truly in this city there were gathered together against Your holy servant Jesus, whom You anointed, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, along with the Gentiles and the peoples of Israel, TO DO WHATEVER YOUR HAND AND YOUR PURPOSE PRE-DESTINED TO OCCUR. Forgive me for resorting to caps, but, you seem to be ignoring or missing this crucial part of the passage. What are your thoughts on Acts 27,28 ? May God Bless You, John |
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59 | Is God subject to change? | Bible general Archive 2 | John Reformed | 102517 | ||
Dear Tim, You have made a good point. Nevertheless, the fact of the immutability is inextricably bound with His omniscience and His omnipotence. He never recieves new information nor does He ever face a difficulty. His planned pupose is eternal and it never changes. It merely appears to us as if God is re-acting to change. In reality everything that occurs does so because it was so ordained by the Creator to occur. Is 46:10 Declaring the end from the beginning, And from ancient times things which have not been done, Saying, 'My purpose will be established, And I will accomplish all My good pleasure'; But thats a new topic. I still maintain that the verses that speak of God' apparent change of mind, are God's way of helping us to understand. I confess that His ways are Higher than mine, and, I am at a loss as how to understand how an omniscient Being can change His mind about anything. But am content knowing that His will, will be done. John |
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60 | Is God subject to change? | Bible general Archive 2 | John Reformed | 102549 | ||
Dear NC, You wrote " I do however believe that God in His omniscience fore-knew everything that would happen before it came to pass. I also stated that I also believe that the actions or inactions of God's creatures can never in any way alter God's purpose or divine plan." The problem is that that is not what the text says. Please found what you believe on the Bible and then we will have something solid to work from. What do you believe that Acts 4 28,29 teaches us? John |
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