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To: RnMomof7
There is no question that God's Grace will precede the choice to follow Him. As a creature (and that's all we are apart from Him) man does not have the ability to say "yes" to God. That doesn't force the situation though. Your usage of "will" is "unusual". Those who are not regenerated will not chose Him, those who are will.

That's not free will.

2,911 posted on 04/09/2004 1:17:11 PM PDT by IMRight
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To: IMRight
There is no question that God's Grace will precede the choice to follow Him. As a creature (and that's all we are apart from Him) man does not have the ability to say "yes" to God. That doesn't force the situation though. Your usage of "will" is "unusual". Those who are not regenerated will not chose Him, those who are will.

Those that are unregenerate can not choose Him. All men do as they will to do (that is free will) .

Let me ask you a question, can you honestly say that having God give you a will that can and will choose Him is an evil thing? An undesirable thing?

When I hear people say things like " God does not FORCE you" I wonder if we live in the same reality . Is it an undesirable fate to be in the presence of the Eternal God? Is it a fate worse than death to run to Him ? Why would He have to FORCE us to come?

Did Lazarus yell out from the tomb, "I do not choose to live thank you anyway" .

We read in Romans that every man will stand before God without an excuse .That is a very important principle . God reveals himself to all men , He takes nothing away from from men,He refuses no one that comes to Him. All men are held responsible to respond to the call , and will be judged so. Paul tells us that no man seeks God or even understands God. When God regenerates (quickens) us , our ears and eyes are opened and we can for the first time see God without the barrier of Adams sin separating us from Him. We then will seek and understand.

As Calvinists , we do not see God as taking anything away from the reprobates, but as adding to the elect the grace to see and hear without the static of sin. He does not remove from us our free will, He makes it more free in Him.

2,933 posted on 04/09/2004 2:00:32 PM PDT by RnMomof7 (Broomstick Jockey)
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To: IMRight; RnMomof7
As a creature (and that's all we are apart from Him) man does not have the ability to say "yes" to God.

I find this sentence interesting on a number of levels.

Apart from Him, we do not even have existence, let alone free will. Our very being is contingent upon Him sustaining us.

Now, being created in His image and likeness, we have the ability to make choices, including moral choices. That sinners are incapable of choosing good would seem to be empirically disprovable.

2,955 posted on 04/09/2004 3:39:51 PM PDT by malakhi (L'shana haba'ah b'Yerushalayim!)
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