I'd like to take this brief opportunity to say thank you to the CC users who contribute to my threads in a kind and gentle way.
I've started a number of threads that often address deep and complex questions, so thank you to those CC members who take the time to respond thoughtfully.
My question in this thread concerns predeterminism and free will.
My reading of the Bible is that everybody who will receive salvation has their name written in the book of life - right or wrong?
If this is true, and if God already knows who will reconcile with him through Jesus, how does this idea tally with free will?
Is free will Biblical?
I believe that everybody who will be saved, does have their name written in the book of life. I also believe that this book was written before creation (Rev 13:8). But I do not believe it was predestined by God who will be saved and who will be lost. Then the next logical question would be, how then was the book written from the foundation of the world?
Revelation 13:8
All who dwell on the earth will worship him, everyone whose name has not been written from the foundation of the world in the book of life of the Lamb who has been slain.
According to Peter, if we read this passage without rightly dividing the word of truth, we may be led to think the elect were chosen according to the foreknowledge of God, leading us to believe it is predestination.
1 Peter 1:2
Elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through sanctification of the Spirit, unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ: Grace unto you, and peace, be multiplied.
I do not believe this to be the case. I simply believe that God is omniscient, knowing everything. Jesus knew that Peter would betray him, before hand. Not merely because of prophecy, but because God is all knowing. There are hundres of examples in the bible, that demonstrated that God knew occurrences and events would occur beforehand. I will say that God knew before creation, every aspect of things that occur in this lifetime.
When God created the heavens and the earth, he set things into motion. The evening and the morning was the 1st day (Genesis 1:5). But before this, there was no time. Time is a characteristic of creation, along with dimension, matter and space. But God is not limited to time. We can think of the span of time as being inside a clear bubble. From the time that God created the heaves and earth until the day he destroys everything and declares time to be no more; being inside the bubble. If we could look at this whole span of time as being in a bubble, then God is on the outside of this bubble, looking inside. He is able to look inside on the left side and see when he created everything. He is also able to look on the right side and see it all end. God is not limited to time. He transcends time. He has already seen time come to an end. He has already seen the earth melt with fervent heat and the heavens depart as a scroll, being rolled together. God has already seen everything play out.
That's a lot to digest, but God did not decide beforehand who would be saved. He simply knows already. This is what Peter meant by foreknowledge.
But I am not suggesting that God does not have capability to make everybody serve him. He definitely could if he chose to do so. But God wants us to choose to serve him. I love the verse (John 3:16), but to understand verse 16, we have to better understand (John 3:17 & 18). Yes, it is not God's will that any should perish. But those who do perish is not because the Son condemned them. The verse 17 teaches us that he was not sent into the world to condemn the world. But in verse 18, we learn that those that are condemned are condemned already simply because they do not believe in the name of the only begotten Son of God.
So yes, we must choose God or we choose to be comdemned. And just because God already knows what our choices in life will be, does not mean that we know. We do not know if we will be alive to take our next breath. So we must make every choice we make count. We may not have the oppurtunity to choose later. Our soul may be required of us this very night (Luke 12:20).
John 3:
16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
17 For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.
18 He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.
So, by knowing that God is all knowing, it helps us to understand (Jeremiah 1:5).
Jeremiah 1:5
Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations.
God already knew what man that Jeremiah would become. He already saw him live out his whole life span. So God is able to make the claim, "before I formed thee in the belly, I knew thee. And yes, he did sanctify him and separate him before he came out of the womb. God revealed to Jeremiah his purpose before hand, as well as many other prophets. He worked with King David in a similar way. The same with Jonah.
God may or may not reveal things about our life, but one thing is sure; God knows our hearts. He knows who his children are. But the fearful thing is, we do not know what tomorrow holds.
Today is the day of salvation. In the day you hear his voice, harden not your hearts (Hebrews 3:15).