Freewill vs. Predestination

[LilyJ]

Since everyone here likes to debate so much. What do you believe... are our lives, choices, etc. predestined, or do we have freewill and choose our own destiny?

[Geberia]

Do you mean in the salvation sense, or in just overall life?

[gynovia]

Falklands did this kind of a thing under "Do you believe in Predestination?" in the Debate Corner.

[gynovia]

lilyj said:

Since everyone here likes to debate so much. What do you believe...

us??? debate! never! ;D

[heartofgold]

God loves us, so he gave us a free will so we would be made in his image instead of just being mindless drones. We obviously have a free will, since God wouldn't have predestined sin. Predestination would also mean we can't even try to live like Christ, as all our sins are predestined.

So to sum up, we can choose whatever we want, but God knows what we're going to choose.

[Geberia]

Agreed HoG. God knows what decisions we'll make, but he lets us make them. He dosn't guide us into making the right/wrong one, unless we ask him to help us of course. And even when we make a wrong decision, he can turn it around for good

[LilyJ]

So if, say, you could go back in time and change a choice you made, would that work? Could you change the outcome, and change your current life, or was what happened MEANT to happen and you only brought it about by trying to change it?

[Geberia]

*confused* I'm.....not exactly sure what you're trying to say here! I guess I would just say that yes, if I had made different decisions in my life, I would definatly be a different person today! Ummm I think that, especially with the bad decisions, those decisions weren't meant to be made, but God took them and turned them around for good later on in life. Kind of like Joseph - his brothers meant it for evil, and God meant it for good.
Hope that answered your question - I'm probably nowhere near what you had in mind lol

[LilyJ]

What I mean is, say you made a certain choice that led your life, and other people's lives in a certain way. If you could go back and change that somehow, would that make everything that happened subsequently diferent, too? Or was it *meant* to happen that way, just like your going back to change it was meant to happen, and all you did my going back was cause what happened to happen?

[Geberia]

Uh, sorry, I still non comprehendo. :\

[heartofgold]

lilyj said:

What I mean is, say you made a certain choice that led your life, and other people's lives in a certain way. If you could go back and change that somehow, would that make everything that happened subsequently diferent, too? Or was it *meant* to happen that way, just like your going back to change it was meant to happen, and all you did my going back was cause what happened to happen?

Well, it wouldn't make any difference, what you did before still happened, you still sinned. The only thing going back would accomplish is trying to change the consequences of what you did, but you still did it.

[LilyJ]

I'm not saying it's necessarily a sin! Just a certian choice. Like, say you decided to buy a red car instead of a blue car, and because she doesn't want the same car as you, your friend then goes and buys a blue car. If you could go back and try to convice yourself to buy a blue car, would you actually be able to change that - and would that make your friend buy the red car instead - or would your going back in time just cause you to decide to buy the red car in the first place?

[gynovia]

lilyj said:

I'm not saying it's necessarily a sin! Just a certian choice. Like, say you decided to buy a red car instead of a blue car, and because she doesn't want the same car as you, your friend then goes and buys a blue car. If you could go back and try to convice yourself to buy a blue car, would you actually be able to change that - and would that make your friend buy the red car instead - or would your going back in time just cause you to decide to buy the red car in the first place?

hmmmm. maybe she should just buy a bicycle. this is too complicated ;D

[heartofgold]

lilyj said:

I'm not saying it's necessarily a sin! Just a certian choice. Like, say you decided to buy a red car instead of a blue car, and because she doesn't want the same car as you, your friend then goes and buys a blue car. If you could go back and try to convice yourself to buy a blue car, would you actually be able to change that - and would that make your friend buy the red car instead - or would your going back in time just cause you to decide to buy the red car in the first place?

I suppose you could. Whoop-de-doo. No idea what the friend would do, I guess you'd find out.