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An interesting insight

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repottinger:
Hello all,
I thought that I might share an interesting insight about universal reconciliation that I had found a little while back while searching web. (I’m quite sure that Ray once mentioned that the person who wrote this was a friend of his, and that Ray had reviewed the manuscript of a book he had written before it was published.) The writer states the following (with my comments in parentheses):
“The doctrine of Free Will (or Arminianism) destroys the truth that Christ died FOR OUR SINS, because Free Will claims we deliver ourselves from our sins by believing in Jesus (while Calvinism, on the other hand, allows for unconditional salvation for a chosen few, but relegates the vast majority to eternal punishment). Subsequent to the cross, our default setting is still eternal torment, and it's UP TO US to believe. This is NOT saving faith.”
Thus, the doctrine of free will, if followed to its logical conclusion, would seem, at least in some ways, to make the cross of Christ “of none effect,” which I had never really considered before. I know that Ray discussed Calvinism and Arminianism in Part 15-D of the “Lake of Fire” series, but I would appreciate it if anyone could tell me if if he ever addressed this specific point; I would also welcome any comments or thoughts that anyone might have.
Your brother in Christ,
Randy

indianabob:
Hi Randy,
Great question.
I like to begin with the proposition that if I have free will does that mean that I can say NO to God?
No, God, I will not allow you to change me. Yes you created me and all my parts, but now that I am alive I will not allow anyone to change me or adjust my human programming without my agreement. Oh really!
A person who holds that opinion of themselves does not Know God. Not only are they rebelling against God, they actually do not have a sound mind. They cannot reason. They  are lacking basic logic and of course they are blind to reality.

Of course the deceived do not know that they are deceived and are satisfied in their own ignorance. And such were some of us... 1Cor 6:11

repottinger:
Thank you for the great response, Bob; I can’t remember the exact moment when I first began reading about the doctrine of universal reconciliation, but, as I  sometimes tell people, I pretty much knew from the start that, if God exists and the Bible is true, then it had to be the truth.
And, yes, I totally agree with you about the importance of being patient and understanding with the masses of orthodox Christianity, as we were all once similarly deceived.
Sincerely,
Randy

rick:
Hi Repottinger, 

Learning we don't have free will opens the door to the beginning of understanding the things of God. One of the things Ray said that helped me with my understanding was this ( have you ever made an uncaused choise ?

As I started to meditate on that question Ray had asked I started to understand Rays meaning . From that understanding that God through Ray had given me was very profound and allowed me to really understand that God is not going to hold me responsible for my action in this life , its true I will be held accountable because I like or enjoy the thing's I do.

This understanding helped me to understand why the lake of fire must be for everyone and as Ray has taught , there is a lake of fire but its not what Christendom says it is, like Ray said, its not even in the same ball park .

I will always remain thankful to Ray for the thousands of hours he put into studying the things of God , I have more truth in my life today that otherwise if I were still in Christendom I would not have known.

A few days ago I went back and started to study the twelve spiritual truths paper Ray had done , there is so much understanding there that is so priceless, a true gem, of understanding that keeps me in a state of awe .

These and many other foundational truths that Ray teaches are the difernce between being deceive and enlightened in the things of God the Father and Jesus His dear preious son.

Nice topic, God bless us all who have been called according to His wisdom and counsel.
.

AwesomeSavior:
"A person may plan his path, but Adonai directs his steps" (Proverbs 16:9). We have a will, but no free will. God is Sovereign over all His creation.

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