2006-07-14 03:23:09 · 22 answers · asked by avik_d2000 4 in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
We weren't granted free will - we've always had free will. We're all parts of God, as is everything and everyone in the cosmos. God doesn't have to be judgmental and is not judgmental - we judge ourselves, we determine our own karma, we learn at our own pace through innumerable lifetimes.
The creation stories are fairy tales to explain why there is no divine intervention; divine intervention cancels out free will. We're responsible for not only ourselves but for each other - and also for the world we live in.
The biblical 'God' represents primitive man's limited comprehension of a deity who would love him better than anybody else and make him the victor over his enemies. That 'God' is an echo of man's ignorance. The real God is in truth, science, in every person, every creature, in all things.
2006-07-14 03:27:07 · answer #1 · answered by Sweetchild Danielle 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
God wants us to think in a 'certain way' of our own free will! (By choice) When Eve took a bite from the 'apple' of the 'tree of knowledge' we received the 'gift' of 'free will'. We abused this 'gift' so many times that God decided to destroy the world, hence the flood. When, after the flood, we continued with this abuse, God decided to send his Son to try to teach us to use this 'gift' wisely. And what did we do then? We crucified Him! But, we have the 'right' to choose evil above good, and if we repent and ask God for forgiveness, through Jesus Christ, we will be forgiven.
God wants us to be able to choose between right and wrong, but if we err, we can still earn forgiveness. Nice idea, isn't it?
'To err is human, to forgive divine'
2006-07-14 10:42:35 · answer #2 · answered by Tokoloshimani 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
What gives you the idea he wants you to think in a certain way? He gave us free will and he gave us suggestions on a way to live life that worked that we could take or leave. After all freedom is a great concept but complete freedom is hell, you need some guidelines.
2006-07-14 10:33:26 · answer #3 · answered by sereneicequeen 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It depends on your point of view.
Free will is something that God has given us, but you need to realize that it has its limitations.
Christianity teaches that our free will is so powerful that it can supersede the will of God. This is simple nonsense. God loves us too much to ever allow this to happen.
Our free will is constrained by the choices God makes available to us. That is all of the possible choices that are available to us, lead eventually to the exact same outcome. Some take us in more circuitous pathways but all of the possible choices eventually lead us back home to God.
So the answer is actually yes and no. We do have free will but it is constrained by the choices God allows for us to pick from. God simply loves us too much to allow us any choices that would allow us to become permanently lost to Him.
Many religions teach that this is not the case, that we can become forever lost due to our choices. This is a simple lack of faith in Gods love for us. A simple misunderstanding No more no less.
2006-07-14 10:27:01 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
The blessing of free will is just that- we are free to do what we please. God wants us to make our own choices to follow Him, in whatever ways we can.
"It doesn't matter how you get to God, as long as you get there in the end."
Following a different religion doesn't mean you're cut off from God. Atheists are not hated in His eyes. Basically, we're allowed free will so we may, hopefully, choose a path based on love, and so whether we're Christian or not, find God.
2006-07-14 10:30:21 · answer #5 · answered by Link 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
God didn't want us to think a certain way. All he wanted was for us to love Him. You can't force someone to love. God obviously knew that.
2006-07-14 10:27:32 · answer #6 · answered by phil 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I don't want to be the Devil's advocate, but it is the church or the religious organization that wanted us to think in a certain way, not God.
2006-07-14 10:30:51 · answer #7 · answered by ? 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Don't need God to recognise right from wrong.
Some of what God said in the Bible actually offends my sense of right and wrong.
Free will to either obey or burn in eternity is not free will. It's coercion.
Period.
2006-07-14 10:28:37 · answer #8 · answered by mikayla_starstuff 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
That's easy -- because He loves us and He understands love better than any human being. Think about it: If you say you love someone, but you force them to do your bidding, do you really love them? Heck no. God very much wants us to believe in Him and His Son Jesus Christ, and He wants us to accept the gift of grace that He offers through the blood of Jesus; BUT HE WANTS US TO CHOOSE HIM. He wants each one of us who would be called a Christian to choose to obey God because we love Him and we are thankful for the gifts He has given us, NOT out of fear or a sense of duty. The gift of salvation through the blood of Jesus is a free gift that is available to EVERYONE -- all we have to do is accept it and live our lives on God's terms in order to spend eternity in Heaven with Him when our lives on Earth are over. But God doesn't force us to do it His way. That is true unconditional love.
2006-07-14 10:32:38 · answer #9 · answered by sarge927 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
God wants us to think a certain way, but He does not want robots.Take parents, for example. they want their children to do what they taught them, but they cannot force it. God is the same way, He has hopes for us, but He is not going to force us to do what He wants us to do.
2006-07-14 10:29:50 · answer #10 · answered by brownie 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋