Hi Lauri,
Open Theism (a.k.a. Neotheism or Open view of God): A belief that God is not omniscient. In particular, God does not know what will happen in the future with precision.
That is simply the belief in man's free will, people just can not let go of this idea and is at the very heart of the beast within, that is that God does not know what man may do, that we choose things for ourself. But what about these Scripture.
Pro 20:24
A man's steps are ordered by the LORD; how then can man understand his way?
Pro 16:33 The lot is cast into the lap,
But its every decision is from the LORD.
this goes directly against Scripture.
Isa 46:10
Declaring the end from the beginning,
And from ancient times things that are not yet done,
Saying, "My counsel shall stand,
And I will do all My pleasure,'
It says God is "declaring the end from the beginning," that absolutely states that He already knows the end and so then it is just common sense that He must know all things in between too, for the end to be as He knows it will be. That is a totally solid Scripture, but here are a few more that state that ALL things are of God.
2Co 5:18 Now all things are of God...
Eph 1:11 In Him also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestined according to the purpose of Him who works all things according to the counsel of His will,
Rom 11:36 For of Him and through Him and to Him are all things, to whom be glory forever. Amen.
Php 2:13 for it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure.
Heb 2:10 For it became Him, for whom are all things, and by whom are all things...
All these Scriptures plus many more state God's total sovereignty, I just don't see how anybody can deny that in the face of all these Scriptures.
Now the idea that some Scripture indicate that God does changes His mind, it only appears that way from our perspective, but actually that's the way He always intended these situations to work out. Here are couple of places Ray speaks on this.
http://forums.bible-truths.com/index.php?topic=3720.0 -------
Now one of the attributes of God is that He never changes, which may sound like somewhat of a contradiction, because there wasn’t a universe and now there is. What made Him change His mind from not having a universe, to wanting a universe? Well you can not really say He changed His mind. Now when the scripture says He changed His mind, like in Numbers 23:19, where it says, God doesn’t repent (be sorry, repent, change mind, avenge). He does not change His mind, it doesn’t mean He doesn’t do anything. It means that He Himself does not change His mind or what He is, that never changes.
1 Samuel 15:19 “God does not change His mind.”
Malachi 3:16, “I am the LORD, I change NOT.”
James 1:6, “…the Father of lights, with Whom is no variableness.”
Romans 11: 29, “For the gift and calling of God are without repentance [Gk. irrevocable].”
Heb. 13:08, “Jesus Christ the same [Gk. ‘same One; same Self’] yesterday, today, and forever.”
It is paramount that God never change, therein lies the ultimate stability of eternity - GOD WILL NEVER EVER CHANGE. One doesn’t change total perfection. Creation will change, albeit God will never change.
Phil. 2:5, “Let this mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus.” Why? 1 Cor. 1:10; Phil. 2:2; Phil. 3:6; 1 Peter 4:1; Eph. 4:1-6 --- UNITY; no divisions.
We read these things, God doesn’t change, but nobody thinks about it. It’s very important that God does never change and will never change. Why do you think that’s important? Would it be better if He was flexible and changed a little bit? You don’t improve perfection.
v
So God knows there can never be any thing more perfect than He is. And that’s where He introduces Himself to us. We are introduced to a being who is perfect.
There’s nothing that says He can’t build a kingdom and make it bigger and bigger. But it does say that He is perfect, and He doesn’t change. And that is the most solid and stable thing we could hang our hopes and dreams on. Our God will never change and that He is already perfect, wow.
Now the Bible does use physical analogies, like a rock. He is like a rock, solid, immovable and unchangeable.
1 Cor. 10:4, “…and that Rock was Christ.” It says that all drank of that spiritual drink and they all followed that Rock and that Rock was Christ. So God in the physical analogy of things is a Rock, He is unchangeable because He reached perfection and you don’t change perfection.
http://forums.bible-truths.com/index.php?topic=2595.0 --------
You are ASSUMING that when God says He will do one thing because of something, that if He later does not do that one thing because something HAS CHANGED, that this is proof that GOD CHANGED HIS MIND. That is nonsense. It only appears to you that God has changed His mind because you have not yet learned, neither do you believe that "God Who...calls those things which be NOT as who they WERE" (Rom. 4:17), and "[God] declaring the END from the BEGINNING...." (Isa. 46:10).
If when God told Moses that He would destroy Israel, He really thought THAT HE WOULD destroy Israel, then He would have PROVED HIS OWN SELF TO BE WRONG, in that He did NOT know the beginning [I WILL destroy Israel] from the end [I will NOT destroy Israel]. Now can you see the truth that God has never CHANGED HIS MIND, because, "I [God] change NOT" (Malichi 3:6), and because God never sins, God never lies, God never makes a mistake, and God's purpose is always perfect and never can be improved upon.
God be with you,
Ray