"Free will" and Romans chapter 9 (Epistles, Revelation, beliefs)
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God did not prevent him. God says you have a choice of good or evil. You choose one or the other. It is up to god to decide your fate if you do evil. So god has a choice if he will accept your repentence or not.
Hi, according to what one of the people stated in the article (the quote which has since been removed), God makes an exception in the case of someone who seems to be too corrupted and prevents the person from repentance. I will try to find where it was indicated in the source. Thanks and God bless.
"Moses tells the people that they may choose between good and evil. This is the area where man is always in control. But in the area of repenting, if man already selected evil, and corrupts himself so grievously, God will prevent his free will from selecting repentance, “so he may die and expire in the sin that he did.”
There is no contradiction in Maimonides’ words. God gives man free will to do good and evil, and never removes this freedom. In one area however, God does compromise man’s free will: the area of repentance"
But the passage appears to imply the status of "mercy" and "hardened" are determined before the world began.
U have identified yourself as a "heathen" and it seems like your op is intentionally condescending toward Believers/Christians. If this is the case, u obviously do not have any reverence for GOD or HIS WORD; nor, r u interested in TRUTH. It appears u r simply looking to covertly challenge the merits of Christianity? However, GOD is up to the challenge...although u seem to have predetermined the anwers to your own questions, u should know GOD loves u and u don't have to be a heathen any more.
U have identified yourself as a "heathen" and it seems like your op is intentionally condescending toward Believers/Christians. If this is the case, u obviously do not have any reverence for GOD or HIS WORD; nor, r u interested in TRUTH. It appears u r simply looking to covertly challenge the merits of Christianity? However, GOD is up to the challenge...although u seem to have predetermined the anwers to your own questions, u should know GOD loves u and u don't have to be a heathen any more.
What shall we say then? Is there unrighteousness with God? Certainly not! For he says to Moses, “I will have mercy on whomever I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whomever I will have compassion.” So then it is not of him who wills, nor of him who runs, but of God who shows mercy. For the Scripture says to the Pharaoh, “For this very purpose I have raised you up, that I may show My power in you, and that My name may be declared in all the earth.”Therefore He has mercy on whom He wills, and whom He wills He hardens. You will say to me then, “Why does He still find fault? For who has resisted His will?” But indeed, O man, who are you to reply against God? Will the thing formed say to him who formed it, “Why have you made me like this?” Does not the potter have power over the clay, from the same lump to make one vessel for honor and another for dishonor? What if God, wanting to show His wrath and to make His power known, endured with much longsuffering the vessels of wrath prepared for destruction, and that He might make known the riches of His glory on the vessels of mercy, which He had prepared beforehand for glory, even us whom He called, not of the Jews only, but also of the Gentiles?
- Romans 9:14-24
I know I'm a non-spirit filled heathen who does not have the spirit of god to teach e all this good stuff, but call me an idiot, but I could swear that what I posted up top sounds like we don't have a say in the matter. 'Vessels of wrath prepared...???" He 'hardens' who he desires to harden and shows mercy to those he wants to show mercy to?
Oh well, I don't qualify to understand the things of God they tell me so what do I know. Black is purple and green in pink in the magical world of faith.
Please, can someone with the insight come make sense of this for me? Thanks.
Well, our will is limited to this. It will be used to God for whatever purpose he has. So one could call it free will I guess in a sense, just not free to the point where it's going to effect God's ultimate plan. This is the case with all of those who willingly oppose God, guess what willingly oppossing God's going to do? Nothing...you'll still be used for his will. Same goes for those who willingly support God. Guess what affect there works have on God? Nothing. You're still going to be used for his will. I think that's the implication given from the above verse. God works and is in control of all things, whether they be deemed "good" or "evil."
Well, our will is limited to this. It will be used to God for whatever purpose he has. So one could call it free will I guess in a sense, just not free to the point where it's going to effect God's ultimate plan. This is the case with all of those who willingly oppose God, guess what willingly oppossing God's going to do? Nothing...you'll still be used for his will. Same goes for those who willingly support God. Guess what affect there works have on God? Nothing. You're still going to be used for his will. I think that's the implication given from the above verse. God works and is in control of all things, whether they be deemed "good" or "evil."
And lets also not confuse Predestination (The will of belief) with Providence (God's involvement in day to day things).
God works and is in control of all things, whether they be deemed "good" or "evil."
I agree. If our will is limited, I don't see that we have free will because ultimately God works all for His purpose. Also didn't God predestinate the twins, Jacob and Esau for the role that each one was to have? Could they have changed their situation? God bless.
U have identified yourself as a "heathen" and it seems like your op is intentionally condescending toward Believers/Christians. If this is the case, u obviously do not have any reverence for GOD or HIS WORD; nor, r u interested in TRUTH. It appears u r simply looking to covertly challenge the merits of Christianity? However, GOD is up to the challenge...although u seem to have predetermined the anwers to your own questions, u should know GOD loves u and u don't have to be a heathen any more.
Wow! Guess you told him, huh? Wonder if he knows you know the 'TRUTH' and could get it from you?
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