The Narrow Path Ministries

This should be a stimulating topic? On you mark... get set...OPEN YOUR BIBLES.

Did God know man would sin before it happened? In other words does He know all things? Is he really omniscient???????...Steve

"Known unto God are all His works from the beginning of the world." -Acts 15:18

-sd

Not only did God know but he put good and evil in the same tree. That's part of his plan "knowing good and evil they have become like us."

God is omniscient. That is, He knows everything that is logically possible to know.

It is not logically possible to know what a free-will agent will choose. Assuming that it is, leads to a contradiction.

For example, suppose someone now KNOWS that I will raise my hand at
9 P.M. tomorrow evening. Then I cannot refrain from raising my hand at 9 P.M. tomorrow evening. I do not possess the free will to keep my hand down!

There is scripture that indicates that God did not know in advance what man would choose. For example:

Genesis 6:7 So the LORD said, "I will blot out from the earth the human beings I have created—people together with animals and creeping things and birds of the air, for I am sorry that I have made them."

If He had known beforehand that mankind was going to become this wicked, why would He be sorry? Rather He would have said, "Ahh.... man is becoming very wicked. Fitting right into my plan!"

God also prophesied through Jonah, "Forty days and Ninevah will be destroyed.". When God looked at their hearts it appeared that they would never repent ---- thus the prophecy. But they had free will. They did repent! So God didn't destroy the city.

If God can't see into the future than why does Revelation say "the slaying of the lamb WAS DETERMINED before the foundation of the world." Why are there so many prophecies about the future in scripture despite man's free will. It may be free but may be predictable to God because he knows what directs us.

If God can't see into the future than why does Revelation say "the slaying of the lamb WAS DETERMINED before the foundation of the world."

I have been unable to find that statement in Revelation. What I DID find was the following:

Revelation 13:8 And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.

What is the meaning of the reference to "the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world"?

God is omniscient. He knows all that is possible to know. He knew in advance every possible choice that man could make. Adam and Eve could have chosen to obey God concerning eating the fruit of the tree of knowledge, but they chose to disobey. Whatever they would choose, God had a plan for the greatest benefit for mankind. One of His plans was that if they chose to disobey, he would send His Son to earth to die for man's benefit. So the sense of "the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world" is that God had this plan in mind. Obviously, the Lamb was not literally slain all that time; He was slain on that one occasion on the cross. But that event was a plan in God's mind right at the foundation of the world, if man should choose to sin.

The prophecies that God gives through His prophets are based on the knowledge God has of mankind, and their every thought. But the events prophesied do not have to come to pass, just as the prophecy that Ninevah would be destroyed in 40 days did not come to pass, when God saw that the Ninevites repented.

Crusader wrote:"This should be a stimulating topic? On you mark... get set...OPEN YOUR BIBLES."

If everyone did that it would be no fun, we'd all be Calvinists, hehehehe....

Hugh McBryde

Prakk wrote:

Crusader wrote:"This should be a stimulating topic? On you mark... get set...OPEN YOUR BIBLES."

If everyone did that it would be no fun, we'd all be Calvinists, hehehehe....

Hugh McBryde

I've got a fun question for you.

Why did God say this to Cain:

Genesis 4:4 Abel also brought of the firstborn of his flock and of their fat. And the LORD respected Abel and his offering, 5 but He did not respect Cain and his offering. And Cain was very angry, and his countenance fell.
6 So the LORD said to Cain, “Why are you angry? And why has your countenance fallen? 7 If you do well, will you not be accepted? And if you do not do well, sin lies at the door. And its desire is for you, but you should rule over it.”

Why does God tell Cain: “Why are you angry?" and "If you do well, will you not be accepted? And if you do not do well, sin lies at the door. And its desire is for you, but you should rule over it.”

If God's system is double predestination, God alreadly knew Cain wouldn't be accepted, but He tells Cain he will be accepted if he does well. Yet if double predestination is true, this would be impossible and God would be telling a fib, knowing only the elect are accepted.

So how could God tell someone who is non-elect that they can be accepted if they do well, if the truth is nothing they do, not even accepting Christ can save the non-elect?

IMHO, the difference between the elect and the non-elect is their own free choice. So even though God knew in advance what Cain would do, what God said was still a witness to Cain prior to him making his choice so that Cain couldn't later say that no one told him what he should do.

Right?

Damon

That was a good example of choices and a good message of allowing anger to rule over us. Choices are given to us all through scripture like "this day choose life" and if we did'nt have the capacity to choose life or to choose Christ or to choose righteousness why is God offering these choices to us?