If God is all knowing...then He already knew what would happen...?

Question

He created the world. He created us. He created the ability for us to reason, think and choose. He knows everything. Every hair on our head in numbered. He is who allowed the ability of humans to write the Bible. He gave us brains to decipher and eat the forbiddon apple. He gave us the reasoning skills to reason and weakness to not resist temptation.

Here's the question....WHY did he create the world? And please don't answer...for us to praise him. God is too all-knowing for that. He already knew!

Answer 1

Vedic sastra states that the Supreme Absolute or God is all knowing, omniscient and unlimited, not only in quantity but also qualities, that Supreme personality is aware of exactly where you will be at any time unlimitedly in the future, who you will be married to, how many children you will have, how many sub-atomic particles will exist in the form that you possess at any given time.

So it is already known by the Supreme person, what decisions you will make before you make them, eternally, this is applicable unlimitedly to every living entity.What is considered impossible for the individual soul, is possible in unlimited ways for the Supreme.

To draw a conclusion that negates the process of freewill, is rejected, because the individual soul or self, within the human form of life does have the freedom to make a choice between living a spiritual or worldly life, without choice there can be no free will.

The material world is similar to being "quarantined" due to misuse of free will, whilst in this "quarantined" position, many great spiritual teachers are sent and sometimes the Supreme comes also, to attract us back to the Spiritual world, this choice we have to make and it is this choice that is available to us whilst within the human form.

So do you want to remain in this material world of continual birth and death or return back home, back to Godhead? the fact that the Supreme person, knows what you will do before you do it, does not negate the fact that you will make the choice.

There are many living entities who continually make the choice to forget God and remain in illusion in the material world, under the influence of many bodily designations that are awarded to the individual entity, based on activities and desires, the Supreme knows and understands all these choices, but if you couldn't choose to perform those activities that separate us from the spiritual world, then you also could not choose to love the Supreme and love without choice has no meaning.

Therefore you can remain in the cycle of the repetition of birth and death eternally and forget God entirely or revive your original spiritual body, that is now temporarily covered by a gross material form and a false temporary subtle identity, the Supreme knows when you will make that choice and will send one of his bonafide representative to help you when that positive choice is made.

To discuss further:-Sriman Sankarshan Das Adhikari ([e-mail])

Answer 2

If God is omniscient, he already knows what is going to happen. But the big problem with this is - If he knows what will happen, how can we do otherwise? In a world where God's knowledge of the future enforces predestination, we have no true free will because anything we do isn't a "choice", it is only following the path that God knew we were going to take. Fate has planned our every motion, and we have no power to do otherwise.

Yet, despite this, he has decreed that humans are to be punished for their actions. Their actions, which he foresaw when he created the universe. As one thing leads to another, when he made everything he knew exactly what would happen as a result - and if he had changed one little thing, the world could be an entirely different place.

Because he knew what would happen when he started it all and he had total control over it, he is effectively responsible for everything - and as I've demonstrated, humans cannot decide either way - so he is unjustly punishing humans for the actions he already knew and chose for us to take. He cannot be disappointed in our actions because he caused them.

As for why he made the earth. There's another paradox in there, and it has to do with infinity. I am working with the assumption that God was never 'made', he always 'just was'. No point of initiation.

If a god is 'eternal', that is to say, with no limit on the duration of his existence, then what did he do during the infinite span of time before he went and supposedly created earth?

You cannot say that 'In the beginning' was literally the beginning of God as well, because that would say that he doesn't have an infinite timespan - there is clearly a lower limit on his existence. Or even if you don't subscribe to that philosophy, then he would have had to be 'created', which is theologically out of the question here. Infinity by our definition does not have a 'starting' or 'ending' point.

So, he's just chilling around for an eternal length of time, when suddenly he gets the idea to go and make the universe, which is clearly finite in duration under this belief because it had to be created. When you live to be infinity, everything is as one. Any length of time is effectively the same as any other length - the timeline of the earth cannot even appear as a dot on the timeline of his existence, because the timeline of his existence cannot be drawn or imagined as it has no start and no ending.

Today's question: If God is of infinite age (no beginning, no end), then there was effectively an infinite time before he made the earth. If an infinity never ends, and there has to be an INFINITE time BEFORE he made the earth.. how can we possibly be here?

A structure of finite lifespan cannot exist in a universe of infinite duration.

Answer 3

Knowing what we will decide to do when we have free will, does not change a thing. God knows that, given all the facts, whether we will accept Jesus as our Savior or not. I have worked EMS, ER's and the streets for 30 years and I know for a fact, God does exist. I have done my job, on automatic pilot, started IV's, gave patient care, and all I can say is a higher power was directing my hands and mind. Take the time to sit and talk with a Preacher or religious leader and get some clear answers. You have to understand only one thing, all protestant religions are basically the same, they have a slightly different church doctrine. (ie some Baptize via sprinkle, some immerse) When you look at the grandeur of the Universe, only a Loving God could put such a thing together. It was no accident, no big bang.

Answer 4

This is the age-old question of why create a world that causes so much pain and suffering? According to C.S. Lewis, man's free will is what gives rise to pain and suffering. Without free will, the universe would be a clockwork and hardly worth going to the trouble of creating, wouldn't it? So, is it a contradiction to assert that the omniscient being who creates us does not know what will happen? If He has given us free will, then He has allowed, to an extent, creation outside of Himself, related just as parents and children.

Why do parents have children? And what is their hope for them? I don't believe that God created the world just for His own glory. If that was the only reason, then a clockwork would have done just as well as one that seems, like Deep Thought, to be looking for a greater answer. It is not necessary to know what happens in the end, if there is one. That is like skipping over the meat of a novel to find out the ending. The joy in the reading experience is lost. So to ask, "why the journey?" is to believe that the universe is or should be a clockwork and without variation or free will. You might as well ask if one believes in free will or predestination.

Answer 5

Colossians 1:16
For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him.


--This is your answer- FOR HIM. For HIS glory. And yes he knew, he ordained it. God is all knowing and God is soverign.

Job 37:15
Do you know how God controls the clouds and makes his lightning flash?

Romans 8:8
Those controlled by the sinful nature cannot please God.


--But to Christians~
Romans 8:9
You, however, are controlled not by the sinful nature but by the Spirit, if the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Christ.

God has given the world over to Satan, FOR A TIME- but in the end Satan will have his place in the Lake of Fire- God does have a plan for Satan and his demons- see Revelation 20.

For now Satan is the prince of this world- BUT God is still in control, and even though God allows Satan to rule this world right now- GOD is still working in many lives and drawing many to Him for HIS glory!

But one day, this world will perish along with everything in it- and there will be a new heaven and new earth!

John 12:31
Now is the time for judgment on this world; now the prince of this world will be driven out.


Isaiah 65:17
[ New Heavens and a New Earth ] "Behold, I will create new heavens and a new earth. The former things will not be remembered, nor will they come to mind.

And to those who are saved:
2 Peter 3:13
But in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, the home of righteousness.

But the answer to your question is the first verse I wrote~

Answer 6

It's impossible to understand the mind of God but I think it's kind of a thing like with parents, when they decide to have kids. They know that they're going to turn into teenagers and backtalk and all that stuff but they also know that they'll smile at them and hug them and all those other amazing moments that a parent holds near and dear to their heart! So they weigh the good and bad and see that the good outweighs the bad. I know it's probably not the answer you're looking for but it's what I think!

Answer 7

Don't think that you can know God's mind. Such arrogance is a sin. Being able to understand God's motives would be like an amoeba teaching Einstein, only the gap is much larger. Give up your fruitless reasoning and abandon yourself to faith. Or go to Hell. Your choice.

Answer 8

For his glory. He knew we would disobey him. He knew he would have to send a Savior. He sacrificed himself for us so that he would get all the glory so that no one could say "I got to heaven MY way". He wanted us to choose him which is why he gave us free will.

Those of us who have children knew that when we were to bring them into the world that they would get sick, hurt and eventually die. Some of what happens to them is by their own choices or consequences thereof. But we had them anyway. Just because God forknew what would play out doesn't mean we don't have a hand in it. God wanted us to choose him and grieves when we don't. However God's nature demands justice and he must punish those who disobey him. The beauty of it is that those who choose Him will spend eternity with him if they humble themselves repent of sin and put their trust in Jesus to save them. God will not force those who choose to live apart from here in this life to live with him in the next.

Answer 9

Do you really think that we have the answer to why God does anything that He does? I can ASSUME why He does anything, but I will not speak for Him. I don't know, I just trust Him.

Answer 10

Colossians 1:16 - "...all things were created by him and for him."