Subject: Didn't God give man freedom of choice? |
Bible Note: Dear JustMe, Wow, what timing! I was actually just updating my profile, apparently while you were asking me to. Must've been the Holy Ghost. I took the time to look at your profile too before responding. Sorry, I can't give you Biblical reference for my view off the top of my head, but I think others have had this debate too -- even in this thread. I will say this. For my view, one has to recognize that we benefit from the Holy Spirit only if we pursue God. That's our part of the deal in the New Covenant. Even if there's no specific Biblical support for my view, which there indeed may not be, I also am not aware of any specific Biblical support for your view. As with some other issues of debate, the Bible may be silent on this specific point. However, I have seen people that were definitely saved, who have been turned away from God by severe temptations or circumstances manifested by Satan. I'm talking about some heavy stuff here, not just getting a little lazy in prayer or lax in church attendance. Fortunately, many of them eventually come back to the Body of Christ, but sadly others do not before they pass on. Does that mean that they weren't "really" saved before? I don't think so, having known a couple them so well before their fall. How does this happen? Because even after we're saved, God still honors our ability to make poor decisions. He can't do anything us because he gave us our free will. The most common way that this occurs is when a son or daughter of God suffers a grievious loss and then gets angry with God for "letting it happen". I understand that this won't happen to a saved individual who has asked Jesus to guide them through their will, but that same individual can take the exercise of their will back. I believe that I've seen this happen. With regard to your view, if a "really" saved individual is saved forever, then why does Satan waste his time with us once we've been saved? Henri |