Predestination?

Question

In the Christian perspective (more heavy in the Presbyterian denomination), this has been a huge discussion and debate for a very long period of time. If God selects who He wants to select, then those who selected (saved) recieve eternal life. Christian's are "bought" with the blood of Christ. So his blood is to precious to die for everybody (since those who recieved everlasting life are the ones that have recieved Jesus' blood). So, what is this exactly implying? That predestination is only for the "chosen" or is it just merely describing one of his attributes (omnipotence, all knowing) ? Any response would greatly be interesting!

Answer 1

God exists outside the notion of time and the universe is contingent on God's expression for its existence. God is timeless, in that he sees the passage of temporal time as you or I see a range of mountains far in the distance. At this distance the range of mountains seems to be one continuous line, yet as we get closer we see then mountains separated by miles and miles. God sees everything in the "eternal now". Hence, time does not "pass" for God.

So God knows all that you will do. But that does not mean you don't have Free Will. If I stand atop a building and watch two cars coming around opposite corners and know that they will hit one another, just because they do indeed crash, does not mean that I caused the accident or that the drivers did not act on their own.

Like the observer of the auto crash above, God knows what choices you will ultimately make in a given circumstance. Moreover, God may have acted to bring about these choices just a parent may do by providing a loving environment, shelter, education, counsel, and other of life's opportunities. Just because our parents laid out the tools for us, we are free to choose the paths we will take using these tools. God's behavior here is a form of determinism but not predestination since the predestination term implies that God has actually determined (rather than seen) in advance the destiny of creatures.

If God were to 'get involved' and start influencing human actions for the better, then human actions wouldn't be free any longer. Human freedom means that God cannot guarantee human perfection.

This requires that free will be a good in itself, greater than the evil it costs to allow such freedom. Why should it be better for God to respect human freedom? What's so great about free will? The response is that free will is what makes us valuable moral agents, and that, if God were to deny us our freedom, human society would be in a deep sense, like an assemblage of robots: not only incapable of evil, but incapable of moral choice in general. Though value would exist in such a world, the free moral agency possessed by God and actual humans is argued to be far greater. All the cruelty that we humans freely perform is indeed regrettable, but it is the price of freedom.

As relates to salvation, there are a couple of theological concepts worth mentioning. Arminianism sees the choice of Christ as impossible, apart from God's grace; and the freedom to choose is given to all, because God's prevenient grace is universal (given to everyone). Therefore, God predestines on the basis of foreknowledge of how some will respond to his universal love ("conditional"). Think of Arminianism as John 3:16 for anyone who so believes.

In contrast, Calvinism views "universal" grace as resistible and not sufficient for leading to salvation--or denies "universal" grace altogether--and instead supposes grace that leads to salvation to be particular and irresistible, given to some (the elect) but not to others on the basis of God's predestinating choice ("unconditional"). Think of Calvinism as John 3:16 for only the elect God has chosen before time began.

Answer 2

God is definitly omnipotent.
Predestination is a man-made category. There has much debate and discussion over it. The problm is that is is a man-made category. Sure, it can be backed up by scripture... but you can probably take just about any view-point there is and "back it up by Scripture" if you take it out of context. You have to take all of the scriptures in context. And we don't always know how God works. We can't put God's actions in a man-made box.
Predestination, Calvinism, Arminianism - satan has really used these things to bring disunity in the church and disharmony among believers. Many denominations came into being because of the conflict over this. I personally have decided that there are way more important things in life to discuss and share, so I don't focus on that. The important thing to remember is:
"That if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved." Romans 10:9
Jesus does not want anyone to die without knowing him. There are billions of people in the World that don't know about Jesus and what he has done... that it just seems silly to focus on predestination and putting God in a box.

Answer 3

Predestination is a Greek mythological concept that crept into the Catholic Church and was carried on to the others during the Reformation. All scriptures that are used to support this notion suggest that God is all-knowing and state that he can see into the future. However, the ABILITY to predict and manipulate the future does not automatically necessitate that one does so during every waking moment. Do you not have two eyes? Can you not choose to close your eyes so that you are unable to see for a period of time. What about speaking. Just because you know how to talk doesn't mean that you have to always talk 24/7, right? Same thing with God; He isn't ALWAYS looking into the future, and He didn't set all of our paths in stone. Look at the case of Jonah. God would not have sent Jonah to preach a message of possible destruction to the Ninevites if they were never in any danger of actually being destroyed.

Answer 4

That is exactly what predestination implies -- it is only for those who have been foreknown and predestined before the foundations of the world. Christ did not die for all of humanity, although he did have the power to do so. In fact, when he prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane, he specifically excluded the unregenerate. This comes as a surprise to the "God loves everyone" crowd, but if you think about it, why would God choose those that are left in their sins? We all stand completely guilty before the Lord, therefore he would be totally righteous in condemning us all to hell anyway. But out of his mercy and grace, he chose to save some, not all. And we don't have anything to say about it, especially if we have long since lost (through the fall of Adam) the ability to look to God for salvation.

This theology is not a double predestination of God making people sin, since it would make God the author of evil. And, we can have all the free will we want, but if we cannot of our own ability seek out God, then it's not a matter if trying to figure out God's "knowing ahead of time what we will do" or knowing who will choose him. We can't, it's as simple as that, and our natural, total depravity results in one destination anyway.

Answer 5

God in the Bible tells us he has a chosen people a chosen generation a Royal Priesthood also talks about a remnant of people which means small few.( predestination )Romans 8:28 And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are called (according to his purpose.) 29:For whom he did foreknow he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son,that he might be the firstborn among many brether. 30:Moreover whom he did predestinate, them he also called: and whom he called he also justified:and whom he justified, them he also glorified.31: What shall we say then if God before us, who can be against us?

Answer 6

Romans 8 It actually
describes five separate steps or stages as God works with
a Christian from the very beginning all the way to the
completion of his salvation. To “foreknow” just means
to know before. There is nothing mysterious in the word
and, of course, God did know us before we knew Him.
At some point in God’s examination and foreknowing
of any single person, He predestines, or determines, that
person to be “called.” When God’s predetermined time
arrives, He calls the person. The person now comes to
know who God is (remember, God “foreknew” him,
knew him before the one called was aware) because He
is revealing Himself during the calling process. If a
person responds to the call, and is converted, then that
one becomes “justified”—forgiven of his sin and made
just before God. Likewise, if the person continues to yield
to God throughout his or her life, it will lead to
“glorification”—salvation. These are the five steps
describing how God works with each person
—foreknow, predestine, call, justify and glorify.

Answer 7

The Bible teaches that God predestines in accordance to his foreknowledge. inspite of the undeniable fact that, this does not propose that he knew what judgements have been have been going to make, so he predestined it. that would render the predestination meaningless. Do a word study on the word "understand" with the aid of the Bible. pay interest the the item of the word understand. What does understand propose whilst strikes are the item? It ability "to comprehend" or "be familiar with." What does understand propose whilst persons are the item? It ability a "particular courting" or "intimate love." So now verify out foreknowledge (to nicely known until now) interior the Bible. what's the item of this foreknowledge whilst speaking of predestination and election? human beings. So the word understand might have the connotation of love. So his predestination is in line together with his Foreloving us. no longer in line with seeing what we would do, yet he chosen us because of the fact he enjoyed us until now the guidelines of the international.

Answer 8

There is sort of a double-headedness (if you'll excuse my making up the word) to your answer. God knows, even before the foundation of the earth, who will be saved. Why? Because the bible says He does.

We do not know who is saved and who is not. For instance. My 91 year old father confessed Christ as savior four days before he died. I was afraid that he was going to die unsaved but God, not being constrained by time, and being all knowing, knew even before my Dad was born he was going to be saved.

We are constrained within time and cannot see the future; God knows all things.

Answer 9

Predestination is taught in the scriptures and yes the blood of Christ is only for those whom God has chosen.
Please read Ephesians 1, Romans 9:10-13.

To understand why this is so you must first understand what happened at the cross. When Jesus died for our sins not only did he suffer physical death but eternal death for all the sins of all the people he came to save. If Jesus died for me it means that he was punished under God's wrath for all the sins I would ever commit in my life from birth to death. God is absolutely just and in order for God to forgive justice must be paid in full. Jesus was my perfect substite and I no longer will be punished since the wrath of God for my sins have been appeased.

If Jesus paid for every single sin in human history, no one can go to hell. Why? Because if that were so Christ already passed through judgment for them. But the scriptures clearly teach that hell and damnation are real and a lot of people will go there and be judged for the sins they commit in their life. So then it must stand then that there are some people whom Christ had not died for and there are some sins that still are awaiting judgment.

One may ask what if God paid for their sin and they only have to accept it? That is not so and cannot be. God will not judge sin twice since for God to do so would be unjust.
If Christ paid the penalty for your sins, it's paid... period.

This also means that if Christ paid for someone's sins it absolutely means they *will* come to faith in Jesus at some point in their life.

Answer 10

I do not believe in predestination. I believe that God does call certain people at certain times in their life because he has a purpose for them to fulfill. However, I think he calls all people. Some simply do not respond to his call. Personally, I do not think God knows everything ahead of time simply because it does not make sense that he would do what he did if he knew how it would turn out.