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To: Forest Keeper; Cronos; Dr. Eckleburg; caww; Mr Rogers; MarkBsnr

Do you believe we love God of our own free will?


6,934 posted on 01/28/2010 9:46:35 PM PST by boatbums (Pro-woman, pro-child, pro-life!)
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To: boatbums

Yes


6,936 posted on 01/28/2010 10:21:05 PM PST by caww
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To: boatbums

Yes. Creation is called to creator.


6,966 posted on 01/29/2010 1:35:47 AM PST by Cronos (Philipp2:12, 2Cor5:10, Rom2:6, Matt7:21, Matt22:14, Lu12:42-46,John15:1-10,Rev2:4-5,Rev22:19)
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To: boatbums; Cronos; Dr. Eckleburg; caww; Mr Rogers; MarkBsnr
Do you believe we love God of our own free will?

LOL! How much time do you have? :) The problem with the easy answer is that in discussions like this "free will" can mean ten different things to ten different people. But I can still try. :)

My belief is that when we are born we are born with "A" will, and that will is free to sin. In fact, that's all it knows how to do. At some point the elect (those already chosen by God) will receive grace. That grace will change (or change out) our old wills and something new will take its place. This new will differs from the old in that it has eyes that can see and ears that can hear. This new will is able to perceive the truth, something the old will could not.

So this new will is free to see God and when the new will sees the Truth it is inexorably drawn to it (to Him). These are the sheep who follow Christ's voice. I am perfectly comfortable in calling this freely choosing God, especially since that was my experience. My experience in choosing God was no different than anyone else's "yes" to Christ and I certainly felt free to decide.

But I understand that many will disagree, and consider this "fake" freedom because it was all orchestrated by God, infallibly for His elect. So if I, as a Reformer, accept for purposes of discussion the free will advocate's view of free will, then I would say that we do not love God of our own free will, since all was ordained by God long before I had a will of any kind. It all depends on how we look at it.

Go back to what Christ says about the sheep. He says that when sheep hear their own shepherd's voice they will follow, (but they will not follow a stranger's voice) because that's what sheep do (John 10:4-5). In the same way when the regenerated elect hear Christ's voice they will likewise follow because that is what the elect do (v. 14-16, 27). Is that free will? I suppose we can take any side we wish, but of course it will not change whatever the truth is according to Christ.

8,062 posted on 02/02/2010 1:20:42 PM PST by Forest Keeper ((It is a joy to me to know that God had my number, before He created numbers.))
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