It is curious, actually quite miraculous, to think how all humanity are totally convinced that they have a 'free' will and can determine everything that will happen in their lives. The articles about the myth of free will shows just how this could and does happen to the WHOLE world.
http://bible-truths.com/lake15-C.html ---------------
THE INVISIBLE HAND OF DECEPTION
Just how does God deceive mankind into thinking that their thoughts and choices are “free and uncaused?” The answer is quite simple: man does not see, feel or perceive in any way, either internally or externally, any force or power causing him to think or do anything other than what he consciously wills. Surely that is enough proof for any carnal-minded person that his will and choices are free from any causality whatsoever. If he can’t see, feel, or perceive of anything making or causing him to choose a particular way, then surely, there is nothing there, and his “will is free.”
As though a mortal, carnal-minded man can perceive things of the spirit. A little later we will look at a verse that unlocks the secret as to why carnal people cannot understand the reason why they don’t have a free will.
God uses means and ways that are not perceived by man in causing his thoughts, will, and choices. What are always miracles from God are perceived by the carnal mind to be merely routine acts of nature.
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“He [God] causes the vapors to ascend from the ends of the earth; He makes lightnings for the rain; He brings the wind out of His treasuries” (Psalm 135:7).
God, “causes,” “makes,” and He “brings” into existence the manifestations of nature’s powers. Nothing “just happens” without a cause, and God says that He is the cause—every time and always. Yet how many Christians reading this will now believe that it is God Who causes the weather and all catastrophic (even acknowledged by insurance companies as “acts of God”)? It is not really “me” and “my” statements that people find difficult, if not impossible to believe, but rather the Scriptures that I quote to them.
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The workings of Satan have deceived the whole world including the ones whom God would later call to be His elect:
“And then shall that Wicked [‘Lawless One’—the
beast within all of us] be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of His mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of His coming: Even him whose coming is after the working of Satan [It is not Satan, but is ‘after the
working of Satan] with all power and signs and lying wanders, And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. And for this cause
God [yes, God Himself] shall send them strong dilusion, that they should believe a lie [Gk: ‘the lie’]…” (II Thes. 2:9-11).
And just how much of mankind and how much of this world has God given to that same Old Serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, to deceive?
“And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which DECEIVES THE WHOLE WORLD” (Rev. 12:9).
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God uses Satan over the nations as He wills Satan to will, not as Satan himself “free wills.” God uses the nations themselves to will as He wills the nations to will, not as the nations themselves “free will.” If we are to believe the Scriptures rather than the heresy of men, where does Satan or any of the nations possess “free will?”
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“God is the Potter; we are the clay.” When will we ever humble ourselves and believe the Word of God? This is GOD’S metaphor, not mine. Clay does not possess the power to thwart the plans of the Potter. Yet Christians profess that they possess a power that can thwart the purpose of God, and they even go so far as to say that God Himself gave to them this God-thwarting power. Do some think that when they exercise their “free will” contrary to God’s purpose that maybe “THEY are the Potter and God is the clay?”
And so, God has “obscured” his heart from seeing and understanding this Spiritual Truth. It takes a supernatural revelation from God to “spiritually discern” this deepest of human mysteries. And it is for the very fact that it is from the very HEART of man that he presumes to take to himself a presumed power GREATER THAN GOD HIMSELF, that He will “PUNISH HIS [MAN’S] ARROGANT AND HAUGHTY HEART.”
We are “accountable” for what comes out of our arrogant heart, but God is “responsible” for giving us such an heart in the first place.
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Free will? Man possesses free will? Balderdash! Man has no more a free will by which he can go against, contrary to, or thwart the plan and intentions of God Almighty than could the king of Assyria. And be warned: God will “PUNISH the fruit of the arrogant heart” of all those who presume to have powers above what their Maker has given them.
“Shall the ax [the one being used by God] boast itself against Him that hews with it?” (Isa. 10:15).
“Shall the thing formed say to Him that formed it, Why have you made me thus?” (Rom. 9:20).
“And the vessel [humanity] that He made of clay [Adam] was marred [‘ruined’—and its heart was made ‘subject to vanity {futility, failure}… and in ‘bondage of corruption’, Rom. 8:20-21], in the hand of the Potter: so He made it again ANOTHER vessel, as seemed good to the Potter to make it” (Jer. 18:4).
Every vessel of humanity is first made “marred in the hand of the Potter.” ... “the carnal mind is enmity against God,” ... “for out of the heart proceed evil thoughts.” Every vessel must be refashioned--regenerated, converted, judged, purged, and born again of the Spirit.
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“For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall show great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible they shall deceive the very elect” (Matt. 24:24)
Once one becomes a member of God’s
very elect, he can be deceived
no more.
Don’t
you be deceived. This verse does not say: “Satan, which deceives the whole world (except the two billion twenty-first century professing Christians of the world).” No, Satan deceives “the
whole world,” including the two billion professing Christians. How many have escaped the deception of Satan by the use of their “free will?” Not one man possesses a will by which he can freely resist Satan. If we are to “resist the Devil so that he flees from us,” we will need the power of God’s Spirit in us.
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Most will not believe how perfect and exact God's plan is. God's plan is operating on a pre-arranged schedule. It cannot be changed or altered one iota, ever!
God created man in a “marred” condition, but God’s plan has no mars whatsoever. It was not wrong or a sin for God to create mankind in a “marred” condition. It was a perfect plan. It is now and always will be a perfect plan.
God has always worked all things after the counsel of His Own will. His plan needs no midstream adjustments, corrections, or refinements. It cannot be improved upon. It cannot be added to or detracted from. IT IS PERFECT. GOD IS PERFECT. ALL WILL TURN OUT PERFECT. WE ALL WILL BE PERFECT BECAUSE GOD WILL BE “ALL IN ALL”! I believe it. I hope you do too.
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It is such a blessing to know/believe that God is sovereign and totally in charge of His creation. But to comprehend that He makes mankind in a carnal conditions that is "enmity against God" (Rom 8:7) and must go through this "experience of evil" (Ecc 1:13) first, so that eventually we all will be humbled, is a powerful knowledge to have. Because it sets you free from the worry about everything that's happening in this world... it seems like a totally out of control mess, but we know it is not, there is peace in knowing that. As Ray said His plan is perfect as He is perfect and we all will see the wonder of it all put right one day.
Isa 25:7 And He will swallow up on this mountain the covering that is cast over all peoples, the veil that is spread over all nations.
v. 8 He will swallow up death forever; and the Lord GOD will wipe away tears from all faces, and the reproach of His people He will take away from all the earth, for the LORD has spoken.
mercy, peace and love
Kat