Christians, how does free will and the unforgivable sin not contradict each other?

Question

You say god gave us free will. I assume that would include choosing wether or not to believe in god. So why is it that god would punish someone for using the free will he gave them by damning them to hell?

If god is all knowing wouldn't he know there would be atheists, and if he's all loving why the unforgivable sin? How can this possibly make sense?

I knew someone would assume I'm still looking for god and questioning myself. Sorry to dissapoint but I'm not. I'm merely trying to understand how you reconcile the two.

Answer 1

Part of Hell is separation from God - eternally. Free will gives you the right to choose whether you will accept the love of God and salvation for eternal life, or choose eternal separation from God. God is Holy, and therefore set apart from sin. To come close to Him, our sins must be absolved so that we too are Holy. This is done through the perfect sacrifice in Christ. Those who do not choose this cleansing, make their own choice to be eternally separate from God and thus damned. Remember, I answered this from a Christian view point because you asked for a Christian view point.

Answer 2

You say god gave us free will. ( No, the Bible says God gave us free will.)I assume( You know what they say about "assume") that would include choosing wether or not to believe in god. So why is it that god would punish someone for using the free will he gave them by damning them to hell?

(In the U.S., you have the choice to obey the law or not. If you chose to violate the law, you suffer the consequences. It works the same way with God.)



If god is all knowing wouldn't he know there would be atheists, and if he's all loving why the unforgivable sin? How can this possibly make sense?

(He knew there would be atheists, so He became a man, was crucified and rose from the dead in front of witnesses, then saw to it that it was recorded for all generations, that's how much he loves those atheists. You can chose to believe or not; the ball is in your court. But don't blame God for your choice.)

Answer 3

So you would rather not believe in God, and then when you die, God still forgive you for your denying Him while on earth. Re-read your statement- If God does not exist you would not be asking this question- because someone cannot do something if that person does not exist, so it be a moot point wouldn't it? So I am considering something else here, you are really not sure if he exists, and you want to know why God would punish someone for using the free will He gave them. I can answer that by saying- would you rather be a puppet on a string and have no choices? God wants us to use our mind and heart to come to Him, not because He forces us too. However it is not His choice that we go to hell, Jesus paid the price that we could never pay, to forgive us- it cost His life- it is a free gift for us, why don't you reach out and take it- you will not regret it- God is all loving or we would all be thrown into the lake of fire, and deserve it too.

Answer 4

Their decison to not to chose to follow God is the damnable part. Think of it like this. There is God and there is sin. Sin is anything not of God. So if you choose not to be with God, you therefore have no other recourse than to be of sin. So when judgement comes, since you chose to be not of God, you will not be with God in eternity. The only alternative is to be outside of God, which is hell. So God technically didn't damn you, the means by which you chose to exercise your free-will damned you. As God is all-knowing, the point isn't to create someone and say, you will be an atheist and I will never know you. The point is to create them and know the decision they will make, but to have multiple instances where He attempted to intervene on their behalf. At then end, no one will say: "Lord, you have abandoned me. You never saught me out!" Cause He will be able to clearly illustrate to them the truth. Much like we are talking right now, His truth is being passed through to others. Whether they choose to listen or not is nothing on me or on God, as we are all accountable for only ourselves. That being said, can you see how there is really no such thing as unforgiveable sin? This is actually an old scare tactic employed by fire and brimstone sermons many ages ago.

Answer 5

First of all, since our intellect is nowhere near the level of God, it will be almost impossible to completely understand God. We can only hope to get it right by what the bible teaches us.

As the story goes adam, eve, and lucifer messed us, bringing us to where we are today. My best guess on why everything occured is because God created humans with free will he knew that the devil would do what he can to ruin it. So, I think that all of humanities existence is the time it takes for all humans to pick a side. either side with God, or be against him. That is the meaning of life: with or (may God help you) without God.

God told abraham once that he would not destroy a city if there were at least one child of God in the city. I believe God is waiting. And sooner or later, Everyone will pick their place.

Whom do you side with?

Answer 6

God does what He does for the sake of those who will listen to Him and obey Him; not for the sake of those who wickedly rebel against Him. The latter are a bane to themselves and to all of God's peace-loving creatures. As for free-will, this is a gift from God, but if not used aright it can lead to slavery - just like the crackhead who one day decided he was going to exercise his free-will and do what what he wanted - try a little crack. By choosing to do what he knew to be wrong he bartered away his ability to make free choices, becoming a slave to that which he thought would serve him. So is everyone who chooses sin rather than obedience to God - they become the slave of sin, and eventually pay the piper.
"The wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord'
Romans 6:23

Answer 7

You have free will to do exactly what God tells you, apparently. I think the whole idea is that you have to come to Christ in order to be saved, but you have to do it on your own free will. Sorta like if your mom leaves the cookie jar in plain sight and says you CAN take a cookie, but she'll beat the tar out of you if you do. Not exactly what I would call "free will".

Answer 8

First of all when Satan rebelled in heaven one third of the angels followed him,Our loving God did not want to kill one third of his children and all were given free will to decide whom they would follow,secondly no one can commit the unpardonable sin until the anti christ comes,the unpardonable is to not let the holy spirt talk through you when you are called up before him.Many pepole will be decieved and believe the anti christ which comes first is he real Christ.

Answer 9

Yes we have free will but its the choice we make that determines If we will have everlasting life the reason is so clear to see If we love our Abba

Answer 10

This is a free country. You can say what you like without fear of jail. But, if you say something innapropriate you may lode friends, cause fights, ect... Free will does not imply that there are no consequences for decisions made with your will.