say joe is about to stab gary, can gary pray to god to prevent joe from stabbing him without taking away joe's free-will.
keep in mind that the existance of evil is attributed/blamed to/on the fact that we have free-will, so dont say that god can take away joe's free-will because he is evil.
2007-03-05 07:03:54 · 15 answers · asked by Anonymous in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
Free will is an illusion.
2007-03-05 07:06:42 · answer #1 · answered by bigbuttkoolaid 1 · 1⤊ 1⤋
No . Never. God can and will stop things and do things. But, He will not make anyone do anything. we either do it in obedience, or we dont. But, often prayer can change it. If we pray, there is a chance that the person could have a change of heart and choose NOT to do it. so yes, prayer changes things and its powerful. But, to answer ones prayer, God will never go against someone elses right to choose for themselves. If so, we would never hear of any brutality, or child torture, etc.
By the way, evil is not caused because we have free will. We have free will to obey God or ignore Him. Evil is from the devil, and ppl sin and do awful things when they hear the lies of the devil and not Gods truths. All evil comes from the devil.
God doesnt even take away the devils free will. But, one day we will all be held in judgement. and held accountable for the choices we each make. Obedience leads to peace joy and love, and life forever in Heaven with Jesus. Disobedience leads to a life of misery and loss, destruction and a forever hell seperated from God. Nothing on this earth is worse that. nothing. but, the devil wants you to think you can keep sinning, and do as you please, cuz he wants you as lost as he is.
Use your free will to follow God and tell the world about God.
we cant say THE DEVIL MADE ME DO IT. cuz, God nor the devil forces us . We have free choice to who and what we do. and who we follow and obey. devil cant make you do anything, and God wont make you do anything either. Choose wisely which you follow, the consequences are eternal.
2007-03-05 15:12:00 · answer #2 · answered by full gospel shirley 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Praying, "God, please save me", takes away no free will. God can arrange to save you without removing Joe's will to kill you. For instance, at the very moment Joe raises the blade, someone knocks on the door, or a policeman just happens to be strolling by. Joe may still want to kill Gary, but he has been interrupted. Perhaps Joe stabs you, and leaves, thinking he has killed you, but you are only wounded.
On the other hand, our will is subjugated by God's will. We think we have free will, but how often is our will frustrated? God is the only one with free will, and our will must agree with His. God can do anything He likes, and is not restrained by material considerations, moral precepts, or the will of the puny individual. If God wants to kill you, nothing can save you, and if God wants you to live, then nothing can kill you. Joe may have the will to kill Gary, but if God wants Gary to live, then Joe's will can be frustrated. If God wants to kill you, then Joe is simply a tool to be used for that purpose.
In that sense, we have no free will. It is God's will. If you have the will to steal, then God allows you to steal, but it is by His arrangement that you steal from someone who has stolen from another, or who must learn forgiveness, or is too materialistic, etc. It is also by His will that you also will reap the consequences. You, in turn, will be stolen from, or you will go to jail, or you will lose your respected status. These arrangements will be made according to God's will, not our own.
2007-03-05 15:24:10 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
If it isn't in God's will for that person to die, then he won't. If it's not in God's will for Joe to stab the guy then he won't. Something will happen to prevent it.
Now, say that did happen, then there was a purpose for this event to play out. It's all in God's will. You'll have to take a leap of faith and trust that things will work out and, if you are a part of this, there is something that will be learned or motivated from this.
People prayed for the safety or MLK, but a racist killed him. That event sparked a strengthened unity against hatred of evil. Good things can happen from bad events. It all falls in God's will.
2007-03-05 15:11:32 · answer #4 · answered by se-ke 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
in your example situation: joe has the free will to strike with the knife, leave, come to his senses and recognize what he's doing is wrong and harmful to others, or turn the knife on himself.
and likewise.. there is nothing to prevent gary from protecting himself, grabbing something to throw at joe, hollering for help, or running away.
these options happen, and can happen with, or without anyone praying.
i heard of one christian who was threatened by a man with a knife and he started to talk to him telling him that Jesus loved him.
the guy got more angry and stepped in to take swipes with his knife. the guy had his back to the wall so he couldnt run away. and he just decided that if he was going to die then he'd use every last breath to witness to him.
and the man with the knife came to his senses, realized he was doing wrong and stopped.
he also got saved.
they made a movie about it. called, "the cross and the switchblade".
in many cases, prayer can, if he listens to God's directions, prevent gary from getting into that situation.
or if he doesnt listen, God can still protect him by the guardian angel assigned to him.
that's happened with me.
.
2007-03-05 15:26:48 · answer #5 · answered by opalist 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
God can change a heart, yes. But does that person accept or reject the change?
Take Exodus. God hardened Pharaoh's heart. Then God softened Pharaoh's heart. Then Pharaoh changed his mind and went after the people.
How about my own "for instance." I'd left the church for many years. A friend of mine prayed for me. God sent a saint to call me home. So here I am, back in church. Was my free will taken away? Nope. I could have rejected the call.
Many people do.
2007-03-05 15:10:36 · answer #6 · answered by Max Marie, OFS 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
all prayer goes to God, and He allows us to make our own choices. So no, i don't think God would interfere directly
2007-03-05 15:07:51 · answer #7 · answered by aa.gabriel 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Free will and a divine plan seem to conflict with one another.
2007-03-05 15:13:37 · answer #8 · answered by MishMash [I am not one of your fans] 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Satan has come to rob kill and destroy not GOD.
Prayer interferes with the plaans of satan not the person. for if the person weree mentally stable they would not try to kill another person . So we interfere with satans plans not freewilll. /the will is gone when satan has control.
2007-03-05 15:07:40 · answer #9 · answered by Tribble Macher 6 · 1⤊ 1⤋
Have you seen the study that shows that pray has no effect on medical conditions? Prayer has no effect on anything.
2007-03-05 15:08:19 · answer #10 · answered by Your Best Fiend 6 · 2⤊ 2⤋
No, prayer can't interfere with anything.
2007-03-05 15:08:16 · answer #11 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋