bible-truths.com/forums

Please login or register.

Login with username, password and session length
Advanced search  

News:

Forum related how to's?  Post your questions to the membership.


.

Pages: [1]   Go Down

Author Topic: Free Will  (Read 5162 times)

0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic.

Craig

  • Bible-Truths Forum Member
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 4282
  • There are two kinds of cops.The quick and the dead
Free Will
« on: April 10, 2008, 08:18:01 AM »

Dear Michael:  Your English is fine. I will make a few COMMENTS...in your email:

    Hi Ray,

    I also do not believe in an eternal hell and in free will. But there are a lot of things that I don’t understand yet.
    I want to ask you (first of all) two questions.

    1.)  Luke 13:34 says: “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, which killest the prophets, and stonest them that are sent unto thee; how often would [gr. thelo <2309>] I have gathered thy children  together, as a hen doth gather her brood under her wings, and ye would [gr. thelo <2309>] not.”

    In Timothy 2:4 we have again the same Greek word “thelo”.
    Jesus often “theleo” Jerusalem to gather together but they would not, and so Jesus didn’t gather them together.

    It looks like Jerusalem had a “free will”.

    COMMENT:  No, not at all. What it "looks like" and what it really IS, is that the people of Jerusalem had a "will." It was anything but "free." That is, their will was CAUSED to be what it was.  When anything is "caused" to happen, it is not "free" to not happen.

    2.)  What happens with those who believe that Jesus Christ died for their sins, and that Christ is their Lord, but believe that there is an eternal hell? (Most people have only a translation of the word of god and their translation tells them that there is an eternal hell).

    COMMENT:  There are two classes of believers mentioned over and over and over again in the New Testament:  [1] the many called, and [2] the few chosen.  I do not know for sure which category any particular believer is a part. Jesus and Jesus only "knows those who are His" (II Tim. 2:19) and whether they will have to go through Judgment in the resurrection to Judgment, or not.

    John 5:24 says:  “Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting <166> life, and shall not come into condemnation [gr. krisis]; but is passed from death unto life.”

    Will they be judged in the Gehenna fire? John tells us that those who believe in him won’t be condemned (judged), doesn’t it?

    COMMENT:  Your question is a little to big for an email comment. I have written a lengthy Installment on "Gehenna Judgment" in my series on "HELL."  There are two judgments by fire (I have also written a lengthy Installment entitled: "Two Judgments by Fire" in my "Lake of Fire" series. You really need to read these papers.  Look at I Cor. 11:31-32--

    1Co 11:31 For1063 if1487 we would judge1252 ourselves,1438 we should not3756 be judged.2919

    1Co 11:32 But1161 when we are judged,2919 we are chastened3811 of5259 the Lord,2962 that2443 we should not3361 be condemned2632 with4862 the3588 world.2889

    Notice that if we would judge #1252, we should not be judged (a different word) #2919, which judgment is a chastisement #3811, but it is NOT a judgment of condemnation #2632.

    I simply cannot take the time to show you all the differences in these words. I have fully explained it in the above referenced Installments on my site.


    I think that several Christians don’t really believe that it is just to punish people for all eternity in hell. They simply think that this is one of those things that they can’t understand (like the trinity). And they don’t think a lot about this issue. They simply trust God, that his judgment will be just.

    COMMENT: You certainly are correct on all of those points. Christians do not understand, and for the most part can only take the lying word of their pastors for these things, but in the end God's judgments of all these matters will be "just" as you suggest.  God is not going to "trick" people into loss of salvation, as many of the doctrines of Christendom suggest.

    God be with you,

    Ray


    I hope you can understand everything I’ve written. I’m a German student and my English is not the best.

    God be with you,
    Michael
« Last Edit: April 10, 2008, 09:10:37 AM by hillsbororiver »
Logged
Pages: [1]   Go Up
 

Page created in 0.047 seconds with 22 queries.