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I am a born-again Christian, who is Reformed, but also charismatic, spiritually speaking. (I do not speak in tongues, but I believe glossalalia is a bona fide gift not given to all, and not as great as prophecy, for example.) I have several years of college education but only completed a two-year degree. I was raised Lutheran and confirmed, but I didn't "find Christ" until I was in the Army and responded to a Billy Graham crusade in 1973. I was mentored or discipled by the Navigators in the army and upon discharge joined several evangelical, Bible-teaching churches. I was baptized as an infant, but believe in believer baptism, of which I was a partaker after my conversion experience. I believe in the "5 Onlys" of the reformation: sola fide (faith alone); sola Scriptura (Scripture alone); soli Christo (Christ alone), sola gratia (grace alone), and soli Deo gloria (to God alone be the glory). I affirm TULIP as defended in the Reformation.. I affirm most of The Westminster Confession of Faith, especially pertaining to Providence.

Saturday, November 14, 2020

Does God Have Free Will Since He Can Do No Evil?

 We have the ability to make choices, just not spiritual ones. Our free will is a curse because we don’t choose God. Free will is not defined as being free to sin. In heaven, saints will not want to sin anymore and free from its power, unable to sin just like Christ on earth. There will be no temptation to sin and we won’t want to.

God’s free will consists in His ability to do whatsoever He desires: “My counsel shall stand, I will do all my pleasure.” (Cf. Isaiah 46:10); “Whatsoever the LORD pleased, that he did…” (cf. Psalm 135:6). God simply wills no evil. “But he stands alone, and who can oppose him? He does whatever he pleases,” (cf. Job 23:13). “Our God is in heaven; he does whatever pleases him,” (cf. Psalm 115:6). Nothing nor no one can thwart His will or plans (cf. Job 42:2).

God alone can exercise whatsoever He wills but restricts it to His nature which cannot be contradicted due to His holiness, the attribute that regulates the others, the attribute of attribute. In other words, God always acts in character and there are no arbitrary, capricious, or whimsical actions possible.

“For the good that I would that I do not; but the evil which I would not, that I do. Now if I do that I would not, it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me.” (cf. Romans 7:19–20). God doesn’t coerce us to do anything we don’t want to do. We cannot do whatever we want because we are enslaved to sin. Even if we were without sin, we could not do anything. So free will is not absolute in any sense. But in heaven, we will be free to do what we want to and we won’t want to sin but to glorify God.  Soli Deo Gloria!

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